Bullen’s happy to share spoils
AYR UNITED 1 Kirk (3) MORTON 1 Quitongo (16)
Lee Bullen admitted neither team deserved to lose a frantic top-of-the-table contest after Ayr missed the chance to open a five-point lead at the top of the Championship.
Alex Kirk’s header after three minutes gave the Honest Men a flying start but Morton quickly levelled through Jai Quitongo to stretch their impressive unbeaten run to six games.
Ayr are still three points clear of the chasing pack which includes Morton and boss Bullen is delighted to be setting the pace.
He said: “The game was 100% what I expected – Ayr and Morton going at it like that. I don’t think any team deserved to lose the game although we probably worked their goalie slightly more.
“It was all about concentration levels and avoiding mistakes. Credit to both sets of players.”
Ayr had a penalty claim denied and a late goal disallowed but Bullen had no qualms with either decision.
He said: “It would have been a soft penalty while it was a clear handball. A point is so important in this league given that it was first against second.”
Ayr took only three minutes to hit the front. Josh Mullin flung over a free-kick from the left touchline and Dipo Akinyemi broke clear of his marker to send in an effort which keeper Brian Schwake couldn’t hold.
The loose ball fell perfectly for Kirk and the on-loan Arsenal teenager nodded home from point-blank range. It was the first goal Morton had conceded in 385 minutes.
The Greenock side, which included a trio of ex-Ayr men in Jack Baird, Grant Gillespie and Robbie Crawford, took only 13 minutes to equalise. Crawford swept over a deep corner and Quitongo rose above Akinyemi at the back post to head home. Ayr fans howled for a penalty after 26 minutes when Baird seemed to haul down Akinyemi just inside the box but referee Euan Anderson was uninterested.
Sub Jaze Kabia almost had an instant impact for Morton. Four minutes after entering the fray on the hour, the on-loan Livingston striker sent in a swerving 20-yarder which crashed off the post.
Ayr thought they had regained the lead with nine minutes left through Mark McKenzie but their celebrations were cut short when the ref spotted a handball by Kirk.
Morton boss Dougie Imrie claimed: “A point was fair, I don’t think Ayr deserved to win nor did we. The only thing I am disappointed in is the way we lost the goal but the way we came back into the game first-half especially to get the equaliser shows the character we have.
“We penned them in at the start of the second-half but we never got that final bit right today which was disappointing.”
MORTON: Schwake 6; Grimshaw 6, Baird 6, Ambrose 7, Strapp 6; Blues 6, Gillespie 6; Quitongo 6 (King 80, 3), Crawford 7, McGrattan 5 (Kabia 61, 5); Muirhead. Unused subs - Pignatellio, Hynes, McGregor, Lithgow.
AYR UTD: Albinson 6; McAllister 5 (McKenzie 72, 5), Kirk 7, McGinty 6, Musonda 5 (Reading 60, 5); Mullin 6, Murdoch 7, Dempsey 7, Mitchell-Lawson 6 (O’Connor 85, 3); Young 5 (Ashford 60, 4), Akinyemi 6. Unused subs - McAdams, Bilham, Bangala, Ecrepont, Bryden.