Duffy’s delight as Morton end 17-year curse
MORTON manager Jim Duffy hailed his history makers after they defeated Renfrewshire rivals St Mirren for the first time in a competitive match since April 1999. Their 17-year winless run against the Paisley men came to an end in emphatic fashion thanks to first-half goals by Thomas O’Ware and Ross Forbes and a second half effort from Gary Oliver. Morton moved up to fourth in the Championship, while manager Jack Ross is still searching for his first win at bottom-of-the-table St Mirren, who grabbed a late consolation through Ben Gordon’s header. ‘I’m absolutely delighted,’ said Duffy. ‘In any football match, it’s hard for a manager to enjoy it as a football fan. ‘But if you couldn’t enjoy that football, especially our first-half performance, you would have to be made of stone. ‘It was an outstanding performance in the first half. Our second goal typified it. ‘I can’t praise the team highly enough. In the second half, without reaching the same levels as the first, we were still by far the better team ‘We started on the front foot and never let up. ‘Tonight was a top-class performance from every single player and they deserve all the praise that comes their way.’ Morton made the breakthrough on 15 minutes, punishing Saints for the kind of dire defending which has, so far, summed up their season. Forbes swung in a free-kick from the right and O’Ware leapt unchallenged to head the ball into the net. Great build-up play led to the hosts doubling their lead 12 minutes later. Jai Quitongo’s neat flick got the better of Saints defender Gordon and sent Oliver racing into the box. He slipped the ball to Forbes, who fired a low shot from 15 yards into the bottom-right corner. ‘If that goal is scored at any other level of football, you’d be waxing lyrical about it for weeks,’ added Duffy. Saints lacked punch in attack but came close to pulling a goal back six minutes before the break when David Clarkson’s shot from the edge of the box sailed narrowly wide. Ross introduced striker John Sutton and Kyle Magennis at the start of the second half in a bid to salvage something from the remainder of the game. But Duffy’s men thought they had extended their lead on the hour mark when Oliver glanced home Aidan Nesbitt’s cross, only for celebrations to be cut short by an offside flag. However, Oliver got his reward nine minutes later when he met Forbes’ knock down and fired a terrific shot from the edge of the box into the top corner. Gordon did pull a goal back for Saints four minutes from time after he headed home from a corner. ‘The bottom line is that the performance is not acceptable,’ said Ross. ‘I’ve spoken to the players. They must realise it is not acceptable.’