Beith blitzed by six of best
MORTON produced a classy display to overcome Beith Juniors at Bellsdale Park and book their place in the fourth round of the Scottish Cup.
Jim Duffy’s team were ruthless and never looked back from the moment that Ross Forbes put them into an 11th-minute lead with an exquisite left-footed freekick. They now advance to face Championship rivals Falkirk.
Having played 15 matches just to reach this point, the occasion was all about Beith. Despite the heavy scoreline, the Scottish Junior Cup holders left the field at full-time to a standing ovation.
It is also to the credit of Morton that they were able to inflict what was only Beith’s second home defeat in 18 months in such comprehensive fashion.
‘We dealt with the occasion really well,’ said Duffy. ‘We have a lot of young lads and they were up against some really tough, experienced Junior players, but they handled themselves well.
‘I came through the Juniors as a player and I told the players they were in for a culture shock.
‘Beith were magnificent and can be proud of how they conducted themselves. They scrapped for every ball. Even in the 89th minute, they were still getting after us and searching for a goal.’
Michael Tidser and Jamie McDonagh added to Forbes’ opener to give Morton a 3-0 halftime lead. The goals were almost identical; Tidser cutting inside from the left and thumping an effort low into the bottom corner, with McDonagh doing likewise from the right.
Beith needed to find a response early in the second half, but Tam O’Ware killed the game by rifling an effort into the bottom corner from 25 yards to make it 4-0.
The standout player for the Junior side was centre-half John Sheridan. A bald-headed, burly bruiser, he presumably went home last night with the highlyrated Morton striker Jai Quitongo still in his back pocket.
It was the class and composure of Forbes and Jamie Lindsay in midfield that proved to be the difference. Lindsay capped off a flowing team move with a cool finish to make it 5-0, while a late header from O’Ware brought the scoring to an end.
Beith boss John Millar said: ‘Morton are a quality side. They’re going great in the Championship — it was only a few weeks ago that they went down to Queen of the South and lost 5-0.
‘We were beaten by the better team. We certainly can’t deny that there’s a big gulf in quality and I think the scoreline shows that.
‘I can’t fault my players for effort because they gave every ounce.
‘Our fans turn up every week and support us through thick and thin. This has been a journey for them. They showed their appreciation after the full-time whistle and the players quite rightly applauded them.’