Morton pile pressure on strugglers

AyR uTd 1 MoRToN 4

SILKY Morton made it four wins in a row and closed the gap on second-placed Dundee United.

Jim Duffy’s men sizzled in the Somerset Park rain as the live TV Championship clash turned into a nightmare for Ayr, who remain winless in the league since October 22.

Ross Forbes sent the Greenock men on the road to victory after 11 minutes when he stepped inside and curled an angled 25-yarder past Greg Fleming.

The midfielder doubled the lead seven minutes later when he fired over Fleming’s head after an Aidan Nesbitt cross was teed up by Gary Oliver.

Daryll Meggatt had a low, skidding 30-yarder easily gathered by Derek Gaston before the Cappielow side went 3-0 up after 30 minutes.

Ricki Lamie was the architect with a surging run down the left

flank and his pass was collected by Oliver, who fired low and hard into the bottom corner.

Ayr looked shell-shocked but they bared their teeth when Jamie Adams nodded down to the inrushing Craig Moore, who knocked the ball over the bar from close range.

The Honest Men threw themselves a lifeline after 36 minutes when Adams stabbed home after good play from the overlapping Nicky Devlin.

Morton restored their three-goal cushion after 65 minutes.

Michael Doyle drove the ball across goal and Oliver forced it over the line despite the best efforts of home centre-back Conrad Balatoni to make an interception.

Ayr should have managed a second consolation when Moore failed with only Gaston to beat and sub Craig McGuffie fired the loose ball over.