Merry Xmas

Best wishes to everyone who pops by here

Hope you all have a great day etc.

Will hopefully get on here sometime in the next 10 days (Im off work till the 4th Jan) and update with everything thats been going on with me. Needless to say its been a hectic past month or so.

Introducing.........Harris Munro

Born 7th December 2005 at Queen Margaret's Hospital, Glasgow

Weighing in at 8lbs 1oz - Both Mother & Baby are doing fine.

MyPod

In case you dont know after much hinting etc. Gillian bought me an ipod for my Xmas in 2004. I lovely white 20gb bundle of joy - I have since wrapped it in the most funky cover I could find so now it looks something like this.

Since Xmas it's never been far from my side - my problem is getting all my music on it. (Like most things in life im just too lazy) - anyhow last night I decided to rip some new music onto it - or at least that was the plan - 2 hours later & I got 1.5GB less music on it than I started with & nothing new to speak of. Hopefully get list a of what I got on there soon.

Been a long time

Well its been ages since I last posted on here - Sorry for all you millions who usually tune in - the past 3 weeks has been fairly quiet - Getting frustrated at our lack of progress with our documentation but hopefully should still get it all together before the end of October.

Seen a few films recently with none of them really standing out enough to recommend - Goal, Red Eye & the Brother Grimm all worth a mention as they didn't make me wanna scream for my money back like a lot of the rubbish i've watched recently.

Been giving my PS2 a much needed battering recently with Prov Evolution Soccer 5 taking up much of my time. As usual not a dramatic change from PES4 but the game has certainly slowed down - still getting to grips with it.

Visted the Gaffney's in Dunfermline at the weekend - Good to catch up with them and always a pleasure to see our god-daughter Alyssa who is getting so big - See the pic below.

Anyway here's what else has been going on

Morton

Skunks
Outplayed them for 120 minutes - infact tore them apart we were a joy to watch. Good passing and skill unfortunately we couldn't score - A lot of the chances fell to our Midfielders with Chris Millar having a hat-trick of chances from around 16 yards which he failed to make count. Ended up missing 2 of our 4 kicks with Chris Millar & Scott Mclaughlin missing theirs (Millar hit the post & Scott's was easily saved by keeper). A pround performance but ultimately a defeat - we took around 2.5 - 3K with them having to open the section next to the Skunks fan on the touchline of the stadium as the Caley stand was full.

Peterhead
Definite hangover from Tuesday night with this one. Lost an early goal when we conceded a soft penalty for handball. Dominated the game and were wasteful with our chances & final ball. Got a goal back when Temps headed in from a good Andy Mc cross and could have easily been a few up when Dave Mcgregor scored from a corner in his 1st start since returning from injury. Cruising until the final minutes when seemed determined to throw points away and gave away another soft penalty which was hit onto the post.

I was in hospitality for this one with some of the guys from Hawthorne Boyle and we choose Chris Millar as MOM as he was back to the sort of form that has made him one of the 1st names on the teamsheet.

By the looks of it the international break had came at the right time for us as after a punishing 120 minutes on Tuesday we certainly seemed to struggle in the last 10.

Partick
Dire performance from the team and they gifted Thistle 3 points and a lot of belief. 1st half the damage was done as our defence proceeded to gift Thistle the ball inside our own box. Around 5 chances were presented with them taking 2 after which they gave up playing and tried to kill the game - We for our part huffed and puffed in the 2nd but didn't deserve anything. Defence with Greacen & Harding in particular we shocking and we ended the game with Greacen, Spoonsy & Jason up front as Jim appeared to lose his marbles in the pursuit of a goal.


A worrying start to a very big month for us with away games with Raith & Gretna to come as well as a Tuesday night game squeezed between these 2. Saturday's game has thrown up some selection worries with not many players who can say they played well with Greacen, Harding, Lilley & Temps all coming in for criticism - May be an idea to switch to 4-4-2 but dont know how to accomodate Andy in this formation.

Scottish Cup draw was made on Monday with us playing Cowdenbeath away in the 1st round with Ayr (who put us out of Carling Cup) to meet the winners at Somerset in the 2nd round in what is 2 potential banana skins before getting into the proper draw.

Scotland

2 games in 4 days would decide our fate - We were still in with a shout if we won both games and other results went our way. I got tickets for the Moldova game at Hampden & 52,000 went more in expectation rather than hope.
This was to be the easier of the 2 games - Win this then put pressure on Norway who weren't playing till later that evening. 90mins of football later and our hopes were destroyed. Smith went with defensive line-up with Dailly playing in between 2 banks of 4 with Miller on his own up front. We lost an early goal and failed to react and change the system until it was too late. Yes we had chances and on another day Kenny Miller would have had a hat-trick but it wasn't to be and Hampden was like a morgue at 4.50.

For the 1st time in his reign Smith was savaged (a bit over the top IMO) and he held his hands-up and accepted the blame for tactical error.

Wednesday was a different matter playing away from home we had nothing to play for but pride. a 3-5-1-1 with James Mcfadden supporting Miller and no Barry Ferguson in mdifield we got our tactics spot on and counter attacked to great effect. 3 of the best Scotland goals i've ever seen from Fletcher, Mcfadden & Hartley with the 1st 2 coming at the start of each half. I think playing all our games away from home would suit us if it were possible as games in Austria, Norway and Slovenia have shown.

There is renewed hope that this squad with average age of around 24 under Walter's guidance can take us to Euro Championships in 2008.

Other News

Big month for 2 of my sisters with 1 graduating and the other moving house after a whirlwind "house buying selling" week

Phew !!!!! promise I wont leave it soo long next time

Alyssa - 7 Months old

Skunks preview

Tonight see's the long awaited Bells Challenge cup game against the Skunks at Love Street.

Team news is that we have everyone available and with Jason pushing his claim with a goal on Saturday. I would stick with the same formation although I would have been tempted to try out a 4-4-2 on Saturday against Ayr and played that tonight but as Jim didn't I wouldn't change our system now.

As for personell I think we should also stick with Saturday's starting 11 - Chris Millar's game has improved recently (still not at top form) and he's probably done just about enough to keep Scott Mclaughlin out of the team. Up front Temps was excellent once again and really is playing the target man well - Vialli on the other hand is still looking out of sorts and I reckon he would be more likely to drop out rather than Temps if Jason were to come in.

The Skunks have been going strong recently and moved to the top of the table on Saturday. Made some good signings since we played them in RC final in July adding John Sutton (Chris's bro) and Charlie Adam (John's bro on loan from Rangers) and I reckon they are strong favourites. 1 advantage is that we seem to play better against teams attacking us so hopefully we can exploit them as they come forward and take us to our 1st Challenge cup final since 1992

Mon e' Ton

Morton v Ayr Utd

A good win away at Ayr today played very well but just thought it was going to be one of those days - Both Temps and Alex Walker hit the post in the 1st half and midwaythrough the 2nd we lost Greacen red carded for a 2nd bookable offence (more about the ref later).

Even being down to 10men we were still the better team but as time ticked by I thought it was gonna be 2 points dropped as Gretna were up in their game (they eventually won 3-0). Fortuantely we got the breakthrough - A long diagonal from Harding was headed down well by Andy Mclaren to Jason Walker who swiveled had fired into the net - cue delerium in the large traveling support.

Definately a well deserved win (our 1st there for 8 years) from a good game in which our domination was only threatened by the Referee. Mr Fyfe now has the statisitcs of handling 2 2nd Divison matches this season and has sent off 3 players and booked 14 - the 1st one was our game v Dumbarton in which Andy & Dean were sent off.

50 things

1. What is your middle name? John
2. What color underwear are you wearing now? Black
3. What are you listening to right now? Virign Radio
4. What are the last 2 digits in your phone number? 60
5. What was the last thing you ate? Baked Potato w/ Cheese & Ham
6. If you were a crayon what color would you be? Blue
7. How is the weather right now? Reasonable
8. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? David Ross from work
9. The first thing you notice about the opposite sex? smile
10. Favorite type of Food? Mexican
11. Do you drink? yes
12. Do you smoke? nope
13. Ever get so drunk you dont remember what you did? Yes although not often enough
14. Hair color? brown
15. Eye color? brown
16. Do you wear contacts? Yes
17. Single? no
18. Favorite Month? August
19. Have you ever cried for no reason? No
20. Last Movie you Watched? 40 Year Old Virgin
21. Favorite Day of the Year? Xmas Day
22. Are you too shy to ask someone out? Yes
24. Hugs or Kisses? Kisses
25. Chocolate or Vanilla? vanilla
26. Do you want your friends to respond? of course
27. Who is most likely to respond? Martin
28. Who is least likely to respond?
29. What books are you reading? Read 3/4 of Garden of Beasts by Jeffery Deaver on hols but not picked it up since
30. Piercings? my ears were pierced
31. Fav. Movie? Toy Story
32. Fav. baseball Team? Chicago Cubs (they are the Morton of baseball)
34. Any pets? World's biggest spider collection
35. AIM? Naw - used too though
36. Butter, Plain or Salted popcorn? butter
37. dogs or cats? Dogs - Im a real animal lover
38. Favorite Flower?
44. Have you ever fired a gun? nope
45. Do you like to travel by plane? Love it
46. Right-handed or Left-handed? Right
48. How many pillows do you sleep with? 1
49. Are you missing someone? yes
50. Who do you think is good looking? The Mrs, Elisha Cuthbert, Jessica Alba......we could be here a while.


If anyone ever reads this blog - drop me a comment with your answers to the questions.

Alyssa is 6 months old

Morton V Alloa

After the exploits of midweek it was back to league business for the mighty as they took on Alloa at Cappielow. It’s always nice to see Tom Hendrie back at Cappielow - brings a smile to your face to see him going mental at every decision.

Change in the Ton line-up from Wednesday night - Jason, John Adam & Davie Macgregor dropped to the bench with Temps, Harding and Alex Walker taking their place. Mcinally opted then for a 3-4-1-2 formation with Walker playing alongside Chris Millar in central midfield and Andy McLaren sitting behind the front 2 of Vialli & Temps.

Ton started brightly but as with most of their games this season they found they had the bulk of possession but all too often the final ball or their decision making in the final third let them down. After the buzz of the initial opening spell the game had started to settle down when Spoonsy put us ahead. He picked the ball up just inside the Alloa half and with Alloa stringing 9 men across their box he was allowed to carry the ball to around 20yards out at the right hand corner of the box before hitting a low drive into the opposite corner of the net at the WDE. Its was no more than Ton deserve at this point and it was certainly a relief to get it as all too often this season we haven't capitalized on our early pressure and have been made to sweat later in the game.

As it turns out we almost got a 2nd shortly after when the ball broke kindly for Temps 8 yards out dead centre of the goal but unfortunately for the big guy the keeper produce a stunning save to deny Temps his 1st league goal of the season. The home support didn't have long to wait for another Ton goal though and this time it was the impressive Alex Walker who composed himself before firing a powerful curling drive high beyond the keeper in 34th minute.

The Ton created a couple more half chances before the break and went in 2-nil which probably flattered Alloa a little.

Normal service was resumed at the start of the 2nd with the Ton having bulk of possession but again being let down by the final ball and the game went into a quiet period before Ryan Harding took it upon himself to liven things up - fannying about (only way to describe it) on the half way line he was dispossessed by Jose who broke up the park a teed up Lurch who was playing alongside to find the net. 2-1 and suddenly we got a game on our hands - Not that Alloa had done anything or proceeded to do anything to cause us any alarm - Just Ton players suddenly became nervous - passes went astray and for 10 mins we lost our way a little.

Just as we were questioning Mcinally's & his use of subs up stepped Andy Mclaren to show why we missed him so much last week - On the right touchline he left a defender for dead and unlike Finlayson, who had wasted around 20 similar opportunities so far, he sent a delightful cross to the back post where Temps rose above the defender to head down past the keeper. Seconds later and it was 4 Finlayson cut in from the right and his half hit shot managed to creep in at the back post.

Mcinally seen this a cue to take off the old boys so off came the fairly ineffectual Vialli and Mclaren and on came Scott Mclaughlin & Jason.

Jason went close on a couple of occasions 1 when thru one on one (again - he seems to make a habit of missing these) and 1 from a good strike from edge of the box.

Chris Millar then capped a better all round performance with a goal when he worked himself free in the box to hit home from 10 yards.

Right at the death as the Ton fans were hovering round the exits and most of the 34 Alloa fans had accepted defeat Davie McGregor gave away a penalty as their left midfielder tried to go by him on the right touchline he stuck out a foot and conceded a corner but the referee appeared to point for a goal kick to which to Alloa player started appealing they wanted a corner turn out the ref had pointed to the spot - Very harsh indeed - infact wrong decision but fortunately it didn't prove costly as Mcgurn was sent wrong way with the last kick of the game.

5-2 victory with 5 different scorers - Got the impression that they could still step up a couple of gears if required - This could have easily been approaching double figures had we taken our chances and been more prudent in defence.

Temps deservedly got MOM with another good display - won a lot of headers, used possession well and the Shed seems to respond to that. Other stand outs were Walker who seems to get better with every game. Spoonsy - solid at the back and a goal to boot, Jim with another top notch performance and Chris Millar who had probably his best game of the season although still not back to the Chris of old.

Disappointments were Vialli who again doesn't look tuned in to the team/game/division. Mclaren who had one of his quieter games and Harding who seemed to dally on the ball too often. 1 other comment about the crowd which was only 2504 a fair drop from last week - hopefully a couple of wins on the road at Ayr & Partick can see us leapfrog Gretna who only drew with Thistle yesterday thus meaning a 1 point gap at the top of the division.

Other Results
Forfar 2 - 0 Dumbarton
Gretna 2 - 2 Partick Thistle
Raith 3 - 3 Ayr
Stirling 1 - 3 Peterhead

Next Week
Alloa v Gretna,
Ayr v Morton,
Dumbarton v Stirling,
Partick v Forfar,
Peterhead v Raith,

Challenge Cup Draw

After successfully negiotiating our way past Stirling we went into the Semi final draw on Thursday with some confindence. St. Johnstone, St Mirren or Hamilton would stand in our way of getting to our 1st Challenge Cup final since 1992.

I wanted either St J. or the Accies at Cappielow and hopefully leave our friends from Paisley for the final however the SFL had other ideas and paired us with St. Mirren at Love Street on Tuesday 27th September.

A good draw in terms of a big game and its bound to attract a crowd upwards of 6000 however it would have been nice to get them at Cappielow.

After Saturday 3 big away games on the trot that will go a long to showing what our season is likely to hold - Ayr, Partick & St Mirren in the space of 10days.

Happy Anniversary Martin & Claire

Today is the Gaffney's 3rd wedding Anniversary - Congratulations guys.

My how things have changed in 3 years.



14th September 2002 @ St Johns Church Port Glasgow



8th September 2005 @ Portstewart, Northern Ireland.

Ireland

Been very slow with the updates recently as we we're away in Ireland visiting the Houtens in Buncrana - great time catching up with them

It was Alyssa's 1st holiday and also her 1st visit to the beach.

The weather was so good we managed to have a BBQ and also go paddling in Loch Swilly.

As well as the usual crazy games and crazy drinks.

All in the 5 of us had a great time.

Transfer Deadline Day

With the transfer deadline day looming there was a load of rumours regarding the Ton with most seeming to be fabrication but 2 strong rumours were that of John Sutton & Scott Mclaughlin. Sutton had been touted to us a couple of times and a deal looked likely until on Wednesday the Skunks swooped to sign him – reckon he could be a good signing for them and they look a good bet for promotion.

Mclaughlin on the other hand did join us and will be a useful addition. He played well during his 6 months with us last season but opted to stay at Livi under Lambert in the summer and despite playing in a few of Livi’s opening league games he has been deemed surplus to requirements there. Could put pressure on Chris Millar when Alex Walker returns to fitness for those central midfield spots.

Morton v Brechin

The SFL in all their glory here as we are sent to Brechin on a Tuesday night for the Challenge cup. It was one of those draws that nobody wanted but it proved to be very good indeed for us.

I wasn’t planning on making the journey but managed to swing a 4o’clock finish from work to go to the game with around 250 other Ton fans (not on the same bus)

Team news was that John Adam was in for Dean Keenan and Temps was making his return in place of Jason. Ton ran out worthy 2-0 winners in what was a fine performance by the boys.

Early on we signalled our intentions as 1st Vialli with and 1 on 1 and Andy Mclaren with a 20 yard curler forced stunning saves from Craig Nelson. It wasn’t long before we made the breakthrough though with a goal of beauty.

Our defence cleared the ball out to Vialli who knocked the ball down to Temps who knocked that ball beyond the defence for Vialli who took his time on the left edge of the box before rolling the ball across the face of goal and a Andy Mclaren step over left Temps in acres of space to fire home from 15 yards.

It was no more than the Ton deserved at this point as we were dictating the game and outplaying our Division 1 opponents. It was only a matter of time before Ton got the second and Temps was at the heart of it again. He picked the ball up on the left hand side and as the crowd cried “pass it” he beat 3 men in a delightful run before crossing from the byeline to leave Vialli with the simple task of heading home.

Brechin had shown very little in the match with only a couple of snap shots to show for their efforts. In the 2nd half it’s a wonder the score line stayed 2-0 a we had half a dozen chances to increase our lead – Temps hit the post, had a shot saved and 1 cleared off the line before being replaced by Jason in 70minutes – Jason then had a couple of near misses.

All in all a great team performance with Temps winning the MOM award with his best performance in a Ton jersey – this game showed what he is capable of if things come off for him.

John Adam had a solid game in the midfield anchor role keeping everything simple and allowing Millar to get forward more.

Chris is still looking a shadow of his former self as he struggles to do even the simple things that are required in that central role.

The draw for the quarters paired us with Stirling at Forthbank – a tie that should hold no fears for us having beaten them recently there in the league. The other ties kept the big guns of Dundee, St johnstone and the Skunks apart – so could make for an interested final 4 if we can all push through.

Morton v Dumbarton

The Ton drew 1-1 with Dumbarton at the SHS – they totally dominated the game however poor final ball and a slackness in defence meant we could have easily lost the game.
There was 1 change from the team which beat Fofar last week Dean Keenan in for injured Alex Walker in midfield.

We had the bulk of possession and had 2 cleared off the line as our striking let us down. At the other end Davie Mcgurn made 2 great saves 1 on 1 with their strikers and as it hit the 85minute it looked like it was gonna be a disappointing 0-0 draw.

Then the fireworks started. As we pushed for a winner they broke up the park from our corner and after allowing their striker to run unchallenged from his own half Dean Keenan put in a woeful challenge which resulted in a penalty and a red card (may have been 2nd yellow or straight red).

They scored the penalty and thus Davie conceded his 1st league goal this season – then followed a total onslaught on the Son’s goal which should have resulted in a penalty when their centre half lay on the 6yard line and cuddled the ball after a goalmouth scramble

The Ton players went ballistic none more so than Andy Mclaren who obviously took it too far and was given a straight red by the ref for foul & abusive language.

From the resultant corner the ball was knocked down to Spoonsy who drove home from 15 yards – cue bedlam in the away end. 1-0 down and 2 sent off and still fought back to gain a draw that’s the sort of strength that has been missing in recent seasons.

Also have to mention about the referee who was one of the worst I have seen in a long time – nothing particularly wrong with the 2 sendings off but his general handling of the game frustrated both sets of players as he gave fouls for the slightest thing.

With Gretna only drawing with Ayr a point was a good result but losing Andy Mclaren and to a lesser extent Dean Keenan for the Gretna game a week on Saturday was a huge blow and Andy gives us that little bit of unpredicatability.

Dumbarton Preview

Ok the mighty head across the water today to take on Dumbarton at the Rock - Its never really been a happy hunting ground for us

We've won 1 and lost 3 at the Rock and we never seem to have a run of the mill game we've either been excellent or shocking.

I know it sounds cliche'd but the form book usually goes out the window when we head to the Rock. Had a great result and peformance in the corresponding fixture in 2004 but then when Mcinally came in tightened up the defence we managed to throw away 3 goals with some woeful defending in our 2nd visit to Dumbarton last season.

At present we probably look a better team than that of last year but we must prove that by taking 3 points at places like the Rock, Station Park & Balmoor.

Team news is that Alex Walker is out due to the injury that forced him off last week - 1st reports were of medial ligament damage which we're scorched later in the week - he's hoping to back for the Gretna game on the 10th September but may take a few more weeks.

In Alex absence Jim has his 1st big selection decision of the season (dropping Temps was a bit of no-brainer) there appears to be 2 options

Alter the formation to the more defensively sound 4-4-2 formation although with Mclaren and Millar in central midfield we may be short in there - however would give McAlister & Finalyson more security to go forward. Changing to this formation means also finding someone to play left back (Mcgregor?)
Stick with the 3-4-1-2 formation that has got us this far and go for straight replacement of Alex with either Keenan, Adam or Mcgregor
I reckon the 2nd option is the more likely with Keenan the favourite to step in - Dean does the defensive side of the game reasonably well and will not be found wanting in the tackle however lacks the poise and passing of Adam. Certainly whoever comes in will have to be on top form as Chris Millar's form has shaded this season - Although maybe with Keenan alongside Chris will be the more advance of the central 2 and we will see more of the old Chris.

Up front Jason Walker has done enough to merit his place in the starting 11 but hopefully bouyed by his subs appearance last week Temps will be knocking on the door should Jason or Vialli be toiling. Last week when Chris came on the crowd got behind him and his was noticably lifted by this - hopefully Chris can make the most of the skills he has an silence the boo-boys once and for all

The Strathclyde Homes Stadium is a relatively big park and hopefully that will benefit the likes Walker, Finlayson & Mcallister to use their pace to full effect.

We go into the game with a 100% league record having taken 9 points out of 9 and no goals conceeded during this time but I reckon now that i've mentioned it one if not both these record will go. I think a 3-2 is on the cards keep us up there with Gretna and the 1st big clash of the season at Cappielow on 10th September.


Mon e' Ton

Likely Line-up (3-4-1-2)

---------------- Mcgurn -------------------

Weatherson---- Greacen --- Harding -----

--------- Millar -----Keenan ------------

McAlister------------------------Finlayson

---------------Mclaren--------------------

--------- Lilley --- J. Walker -------------

Other Fixtures

Forfar v Peterhead,
Gretna v Ayr,
Partick v Raith,
Stirling v Alloa,

Morton V Forfar

Ton entertained Forfar at Cappielow on Saturday in one of those games which we should win comfortably but always seem to end up stuggling.
The same 11 that started at Forthbank last week took to the field meaning the Chris Templeman had to make do with a place on the bench.

First 20 minutes of the game it was all Morton with all too often the final ball lacking - Alex Walker seems to settle in with each game and was looking more and more comfortable on the ball however his afternoon ended when midway through the half he went on a run forward which was met with a blocked challenge which saw him have to limp off to be replaced with Dean Keenen. Despite all the 1st half presure we had very few clear cut chances and best effort was a Spoonsy 30 yard thunderbolt.

Second half saw us get more and more desperate in our attempts to make our possession turn into goals but was ultimately proving unsuccesful & Mcinally tried to change things by bringing off Jason and putting on Temps (who got a good receiption and was roundly encouraged by the home support). Almost immediately we got the breakthrough - A Spoonsy free kick lofted in from halfway line caused problems in their defence and was put into his own by Forrest under pressure from Greacen. After that we huffed and puffed but just couldn't get the 2nd and almost paid the price when a defensive mix up allowed their striker a free shot from 16yards out which almost snapped McGurn's crossbar in 2 before rebounding out. We played out the remaining minutes without ever looking like getting the 2nd.

McGurn 6- Didn't have much to do but dealt with it fine
Spoonsy 7- Great strike and looks dangerous when he ventures forward - not really tested in defence
Alex Walker 7- Looked more settled and seem keen to get forward more - missed when he went off
Harding 6- Didn't have much to do defensively and distribution was poor
Greacen 7- Kept it simple and forced error for only goal
McLaren 8- Best player on park - always looking for the ball
Millar 5- Another poor game by his standards - needed to step up when Alex went off and didn't Finlayson 7- Another solid performance from Kev - I think we've yet to see him at his best in Competetive games but doesn't let us down - Seems to be disrupted going forward by Andy's tendancy to hug the right touchline
Jason 7- Did okay, but service wasn't great - Forfar defended very deep and left very little space in behind for Jason to exploit
Vialli 7- Got through a lot of work and won a lot in the air but failed to test the goalkeeper and at times looks out of sorts - linked up well with Andy on occassion
McAllister 8- Another hard working performance with skill going forward would like to see Jim getting more of the ball from team mates rather than doing the work himself

SUBS
Keenan 6- Game bypassed him a bit - playing the defensive role with the very little defensive work to be done and failed to really lend support to the attack
Templeman 7- Got a large cheer from the crowd coming on and seemed to respond to that - linked up well
Adam 6- Only on for 5 mins and didn't particularly do anything of note.

All in all good to get the points - much like previous week we could have easily blown Forfar away but ended up sweatin a little at the end - To be fair this is probably the sort of game we would have dropped points in the past few season. 3 games - 3 wins and no goals conceeded - cant complain.


Other Results
Alloa 1 - 2 Raith
Ayr 1 - 1 Peterhead
Gretna 1 - 0 Stirling
Partick 3 - 2 Dumbarton

League Table


Gretna 9
Morton 9
Ayr United 7
Partick Thistle 5
Alloa Athletic 4
Raith Rovers 3
Peterhead 2
Dumbarton 1
Stirling Albion 1
Forfar 0

Fixtures next week
Dumbarton v Morton,
Forfar v Peterhead,
Gretna v Ayr,
Partick v Raith,
Stirling v Alloa,

Kirk

On Tuesday night we headed up to Debbie's to see Debbie, Stephen & Kirk. Kirk is our Godson and will be 2 years old in October.
Before Tuesday it had been around 3 months since we last saw him and its amazing how much he has come on in that time.
He was full of life on Tuesday night even though it would normally have been bedtime.

Would loke to keep more in touch with them and get to see Kirk more often - Debbie is 6/7months pregnant at the moment so much of the talk surrounded baby names for the forthcoming addition to the family. One of the suggestions should Debbie have a girl was Molly but with Stephen's surname being Munro - I dont know if Molly Munro quite sounds right (sound like a drunken pub song was sung about Molly Munro)

I did quite like Debbie's suggestion of Naiah.

I also got me thinking about my name


ANDREW
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English,
Biblical Pronounced: AN-droo

From the Greek name Ανδρεας (Andreas), which derives from ανηρ (aner) "man" (genitive ανδρος (andros) "of a man"). In the New Testament the apostle Andrew was the brother of the apostle Simon Peter. According to legend he was crucified on an X-shaped cross, and he is the patron saint of Scotland, Russia, and Greece. This was also the name of kings of Hungary.

Try yours at http://www.behindthename.com/

Weekend

After returning from the football we had an impromptu game of poker on Saturday evening supplemented with a lot of beer.
We decided to keep the "buy-ins" at a fiver a time to ensure we didn't price anyone out of the game - As it was its just as well as any poker playing skills appears to have desserted me in recent weeks and I was all out fairly early.

Sunday was a lazy day spent in front of the box watching the feast of football on offer However that would come to end that evening as Gillian decided she wanted to go to the cinema to make up for the boy's night on Saturday night.

Highlight of the night for me was the Ice cream on offer at the Cinema (Mousse Tracks) The film wasn't bad although I think I actually prefer the original.

Morton v Stirling

Saturday saw us head to Stirling for a league game at Forthbank. As expected Jason Walker came in for Chris Templeman.
After huffing and puffing we came away with a 2-0 win with goals from Mclaren & Lilley. The support seems to be divided somewhat over the manner of the perfomance - I personally felt we caused ourselves more problems than Stirling caused and we could have easily hit 4 or 5 as they seemed there for the taking.
Best for the Ton was Jim Mcallister again who seems to have stole Chris Millar's "Mr Consistency" tag and while there wasn't really any poor perfrormances I once again felt that Chris Millar seemed to lacking again - all too often he seems to be doing the simple things poorly.

Jason also did his cause no harm and was probably the better of the 2 forwards on show.

All in all happy to leave Forthbank (not just to get away from that smell) with the 3 points.

I get the impression that one of these weeks we are going to click and some team will get a hiding until then I just hope we continue picking up result while not playing to our full potential.

Big Day Ooot

Friday saw the Hawthorne Boyle golf outing to the Gourock Golf course.

9 Golfers, 4 Caddies took to the course in what promise to be an exercise in digging up the golf course. I decided to keep my golf talents in the locker and carried Peter's clubs round the course. The group was split into 3 teams each of which would play a round and total scores.

Winning team was that of Alan, David & Stuart who beat the other two teams by over 20 points.

All in all a cracking day out (the weather held out for us) which was rounded off with a meal and drinks in the clubhouse.

Ayr hooooddooooooo strikes again

Just back from a disapointing night a Cappielow

Morton were playing Ayr in the 1st round of the CIS League Cup. After 2 wins out of 2 in our opening competive games hopes were high but the start of the match would soon bring us crashing back down to earth.

In 1st 30 mins we gifted possession and 2 goals to Ayr (could have been 3 but Vareille hit the bar) and we looked devoid of idea's. 1st goal Ayr player picked up the ball from a poor clearance (I think) and ran from centre circle to 20 yards out with no challenge and fired a cracker from 20 yards in to the WDE net.
2nd Greacen could decide to control or clear - didnt do either and gifted the ball to Varielle who split what was left of the defence for the no.10 to run in and finish well. almost grab a third when Greacen was beaten again by their impressive no.11 who flicked on to the onrushing Varielle who cracked the ball off the top of the bar

Only player who got pass marks in the 1st 30 mins was Jim Mcalister who won CIS man of the Match tonight (about time he got one of these). Last 15mins of the half we looked like we were starting to get somewhere - Spoonsy hit the bar and we had some better passing play but ulitmately couldn't create any clear cut chances.


At half time we took off Temps and brought on Jason Walker and certainly looked more dangerous (Jason looked best of 3 strikers tonight I thought) eventually got the breakthrough with 20+minutes to go a cracking free kick by Andy onto the head of Vialli from 10 yards. We huffed and puffed yet couldn't put the ball away Lilley had one cleared off the line and we had few close calls.

Assesment based outwith the 1st 30mins when we had much possesion but were very poor.

Mcgurn - didn't have much to do - no chance with goals

Defence - looked shaky as Ayr no.11 won everything and Varriellle was very cunning. Didn't have a lot to do after it went 2-0

Millar - poor game by his high standards - his decision making was poor and made a couple of howlers.

A. Walker - At times looked good - probably his best competitive game but could also have done more - often he could have drove forward more.

Finlayson - Up against a tough full back who could match him for pace - not as effective as he could have been.

McAllister - All over the park again - winning tackles, trying to create - obviously tired as the game went on. Deserved our MOM

McLaren - Was constantly trying to create things and gee on the team. Found Lilley well for goal and got the impression that if we were to equalise he would have a hand in it - 2 (almost) full games in 4 days will take it out of him the way he plays

Lilley - a quiet game for Derek - looked out of sorts for a lot of it - when Walker came on here had some nice 1 touches. Good header for goal

Temps - Some nice touches and some awful touches - usual game from Temps

J. Walker - looked lively when he came on - brought Lilley into the game more and got in about them - pushed his cuase for a start.

Impressed by Ayr they worked and they harried our team - their no.11 was my MOM. Dont reckon on this showing that John will get in their team - all 11 players worked their socks off. May have been different had we not gifted them 2 goals but probably just about deserved their win. For the Ton its back to the drawing board - maybe the wake up call we need as we have won past 2 without playing to our potential.

Reckon Jason Walker should be given a chance at Forthbank and if we had more options in the squad I would rest Millar and reshuffle the defence.

A much needed quiet weekend in the Webster household.

Friday night was spent in front of the PC as I left Gillian to Big Brother - It's got to the stage that I cant watch anymore. Everyone's hand has been played and they are just counting down the days till its over - just get them out of there now so I can get my TV back. Even Gillian is getting bored with it and after the eviction she found a new addiction - Yahoo Games.

While I had the pleasure of a couple of games of Pro Evolution Soccer on the PS2 she amused herself by playing "Word Train" until she was almost blind - lol

Saturday was the start of the League season and while there was certain amount of anticipation in the morning I think some of the shine had been taken off with the competitve season having started a week earlier with the Challenge cup game v Gretna.

Those gooddam Cheerleaders were back in what was a scorching day at Cappielow however the game failed to live up to this heat and a somewhat lacklustre Morton scraped a 2-0 victory over Raith.

I guess its good that we're winning games without playing well but I got the impression that Raith were there for the taking and we could have sent out a message to the rest of the league as to our intentions.

Saturday night we watched Stealth and I guess it really lived up to expectations as we weren't expecting much - "Rogue unmanned plane goes mental" hardly inspires but it done exactly what it said on the tin - not a lot.

Sunday was another cracking day and we had my parents & Gillian's parents down for dinner - We dont often get all together and it was nice to catch up with them. Shame the sunlight is blocked from our back patio area by 6pm or we could have dined al-fresco ( I really must see about getting that row of houses knocked down - lol)

Unfortunately depsite a lovely weekend its Monday again - Roll on Friday.

2nd Divison preview

Here's a rundown on the other teams in the 2nd

ALLOA ATHLETIC
Appear to have found their level after yo-yoing for a while – We have done reasonably well against them in recent meetings. Lost some of their more influential players but Quitongo can usually find holes in our defence. Reckon they will be eyeing up mid-table as an acceptable season. Always good to get one over on Tom Hendrie and not in an anti-St Midden way He’s just a right moany bassa.

AYR UNITED
one of our bogey teams reckon we’ve won something like twice against them in 10 year. Enjoying going to Somerset Park (still a dump though) but never seem to get a result there. Difficult to call how well they will do as the have a lot of ex. juniors in their ranks. Interesting to see how John Maisano fits into the team – always had the potential at Cappielow but never quite fulfilled it – Ayr could do a lot worse than build the team round this guy.

DUMBARTON
Another ex. Ton hero lines up for Dumbarton this season – Scotty Bannerman had cemented his place in Ton history with important goals but failed to win a 1st team place last year and moved to “the Rock” in the summer. We never seem to have an average game against the Sons – were either fantastic or dire. Hate the clamor for tickets when we play them at the Rock. They will beat a few on their day but not quite push into the leading group.

FORFAR ATHLETIC
another one of our bogey teams especially at Station Park – no matter how on form we are we never seem to play well or take anything from them. Lost Shields recently which will be a big blow (would have taken him Cappielow last Xmas) obviously puts more burden on Tosh who has been around for ever. Will win points against us but struggle with relegation.

GRETNA
1st hand experience of them last week and was impressed by them. Look a bit top heavy with the arrival of Grady and Alexander’s main task could be deciding to the front pairing. Reckon they will be there or thereabouts in May

PARTICK THISTLE
Dick Campbell’s been here and done it before with Brechin although I don’t know if he will get the time to build anything at Thistle if they don’t have a good start to the season. Still has reasonable squad of players but will have to find the winning ways fast.

PETERHEAD
Bit of unknown quantity to me – obviously fond memories of our 3rd division decider in 2003 but they have taken a while to get out of the 3rd after coming so close on so many occasions. Would have ran away with the 3rd had it not been for Big spenders Gretna. Reckon they will win a lot at home (here have our 6 points now!) but probably settle for mid table safety.

RAITH ROVERS
still recovering for a disastrous spell under Claude Anelka – think this season will be about stabilising the ship and building a challenge for next season. Largely youthful side with a few (very) old heads. Settle for safety and signs of encouragement

STIRLING ALBION
Good record against Stirling in recent years and hopefully that will continue – appear to have lost the momentum gained from the 3rd division push and will need to get it back or could return there. Seem to be lacking a cutting edge up front.

I reckon the top 3 slots will be filled by ourselves, Gretna & Thistle (no real surprises there) but with only top slot guaranteeing a step up then it could be quite a battle. With the new play off system introduced it could mean that the other 2 miss out to either 9th team in 1st division or the 4th place team in the 2nd div.

Think the Ton will hold their own in the head to head matches with Gretna & Thistle but its the games against the other teams that will vitally important to our chances – picking up points at Somerset, Balmoor & Station Park could move us from nearly men to championship winners.

When we were young

That last "Knowing You, Knowing Me" thing got me thinking about all the gang when we were younger and Baz managed to dig out some old photo's.

Most of then are from around 9-10 years ago - I was 17 at the time.

Me & Baz in Salou - Summer '95

The Salou Boys - Sometime around 1995
(Barry, Me, Paul & Martin)

The girls - New Year 1996 (I think)

(Paula, Anni, Grace, Lynne, Laurzy & Melena)

Hopefully get some more online - check out http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andy.w/oldies/

Knowing Me, Knowing You ahhhaaaaa!!!!

10 years ago:
I wasn't long back from Salou with Martin, Paul & Barry - What a Holiday!! Need to do "Salou Revisited - 10 years on"New footie season had just started with the Ton playing in the 1st Division have won the 2nd Division in May (back in the days when we won promotions) and 1st league match of the season was a 1-1 draw at Tannadice "Argentina in Disguise" I had finished 6th year and had no idea what I was gonna do with myself - signed up for a NC Engineering course at the Jimmy Watt just to keep the folks happy.

Hopefully get some pics on here soon.

5 years ago:
Was working at Hawthorne Boyle (how things change) but in a couple of weeks time I would change jobs moving to APT and then Solectron within
3 months. That summer had been in Stalis with Martin, Claire, Paul & Paula - the last time the 6 of us were all away together (Not counting Dunoon as that ended in carnage)

1 year ago:
Returned from Honeymoon about a fortnight ago and depression was kicking in. loads of stuff to get organised post wedding. Reckon we got our
Wedding DVD and Pictures about now. Cant remember the exact date but reckon it must have been round about now that Claire informed us that
she was pregnant (Gill almost forced her hand by telling her she was pregnant after a premonition)
yesterday:
In work as usual - got away early to head through to see the Gaffney's - Baz's last night on Scottish soil for a year.
tomorrow:
Fridays are dress down day in work and are usually hectic but we finish at 4 so cant complain - after that it'll probably be a quiet night in with the Mrs I reckon (may even visit the in-laws to blag our dinner)

5 snacks I enjoy:
Cream Cakes, Jellies/Gums, Trifles, Chuppa Chups Lollies, Nachos and cheese

5 bands/artists that I know the lyrics to most of their songs:
Pink Floyd, Train, Oasis, Beatles, OCS

5 things I'd do with $100,000,000:
Build a superstadia for Morton (free entry for fans), Buyhouses for all the family, travel the world, Buy a plane, Marry Jessica Alba.

5 locations I'd like to run away to:
USA, Canada, Greece, Ireland, Bahamas

5 bad habits I have:
Swearing, Football, fascination with bakers, bored easily, the PC

5 things I like doing:
watching football, playing football, winning money, photography, using the PC

5 things I will never wear:
Wife Beaters, Hair piece, Prince Albert piercing, St. Midden Shirt, thong (sorry)

5 TV shows I like(d):
Smallville, The OC, Pimp my Ride, X-Files & Quantum Leap

5 movies I like:
Toy Story, Monster's Inc, Jaws, Field of Dreams, Star Wars

5 people I'd like(d) to meet:
Nelson Mandela, Michael Jordan, Jessica Alba, JFK, Kenny Dalglish

5 biggest joys at the moment:
A Ton victory, seeing the family, Alyssa, Cake

5 favorite toys:
iPod, PC, Nikon 3100 Camera, PS2, P800 Phone

Morton v Gretna - Bells Challenge Cup 1st Round

Morton welcomed back former Ton legends Rowan Alexander & Derek Collins yesterday as 2nd division newcomers Gretna came to Cappielow in the 1st round of the Bells challenge cup.

Ton fielded the same side that proved so successful at Love Street last Saturday with Andy Mclaren playing in the hole behind strikers Lilley & Temps as part of a 3-4-1-2 formation.

Much like both Scottish pre-season friendlies Morton took a while to get going and while Gretna dominated possession the failed to really test Mcgurn in the Ton goal.

In probably the 1st real passing movement Morton managed to string to together Andy set up Jim with a ball inside the full back & Jim found Vialli who side footed home from 12 yards.

Unfortuantely the goal didn’t really settle the boys down and neither side was able to dominate the game. Gretna equalised midway through the 2nd half when the Ton midfield failed to track Davie Nicholls who fired home from 25 yards.

Jim made a couple of changes by bringing on Dean & Jason for Alex & Temps and this seemed to swing the balance in Ton’s favour but were unable to break the deadlock before the end of 90mins.

Within seconds of the start of the 1st period of extra time Gretna went ahead when the much vaulted front pairing of Bingham & Deuchar finally clicked for Deuchar to head past Mcgurn. As tempers flared between the more experienced players on the field Morton huffed and puffed but couldn’t find a way past Main in the Gretna goal and it wasn’t until the sending off of Innes after 2 quickfire bookings that we really took the initiative and when Jason & Vialli worked a fantastic 1-2 which saw Jason fire the equaliser there appeared to be only 1 team that was gonna win and this was proven correct when Vialli headed in after Main had parried from a fine run & shot from Jim.

Best of the day for the Ton were Finlayson and Vialli with my MOM going to Jim Mcalister who got thru a power of work on the flank and was instrumental in 2 of the goals.

All in all a good win for the Ton (always a turn up for the books when we win a cup game) who didn’t probably perform to their potential but got the result. Gretna showed that they will be a force in the 2nd Division and surely be one of ours main challengers for that coveted top spot.

Stats
Line-up (3-4-1-2)

---------------- Mcgurn -------------------

Weatherson---- Greacen --- Harding -----

--------- Millar -----A Walker ------------

McAlister------------------------Finlayson

---------------Mclaren--------------------

--------- Lilley --- Templeman -------------

Subs -
Gonet
Mcgregor
Keenan <-> A. Walker (61mins)
Adam <-> Mclaren (115mins)
J Walker <->Templeman (69mins)

Goals
Lilley 31
J. Walker 109
Lilley 113

Morton Round Up

Pre-Season

Morton completed their pre-season schedule at Falkirk on Tuesday night with a 0-0 draw in what was somewhat an experimental match for both sides. Morton began the game with the likes of Keenan, Mcgregor, Adam & Jason Walker in the starting line-up. Despite giving away much of he possession to an SPL bound Falkirk side Morton created by far the better of the chances and would have earned a deserved victory were it not for a fine display by the Bairns no.1. I have to say I was somewhat disappointed with Falkirk who failed to make their possession amount to much and failed to break down the Morton defence until very late in the game after a spate of substitutions.

Tuesday also seen me add to my list of venue I’ve watched Morton at – Im now down to 3 current stadiums in Scotland that I’ve not visited – Pittodrie, Tynecastle & Balmoor.

Last Saturday we were at Love St for the final of the Renfrewshire cup as the Ton ran out 2-0 winners to lift the trophy for the 3rd season in a row. Goals at the end of each half from Jim McAlister and Derek Lilley put a cap on a great team performance by the Ton – My MOM was probably Jim Mcalister who put in a great shift in the left wing-back position. New boys Finlayson & Lilley also had fine matches showing they will be great additions to the team.
In general the pre-season friendlies have been a success not just from results perspective but also helped develop the squad rather than just the starting 11.

Alex Williams

On Tuesday the club announced that they had reached an agreement to terminate the contract of Alex Williams at the club. Alex had 1 year remaining of a 3 year contract signed at the start of the 2003/2004 season. Alex had been a goalscoring sensation when he 1st arrived at the Ton from Stirling Albion in 2002 and his goals helped the Ton win the 3rd Division title in 2003.

After a great start to life in division 2 the goals soon dried up amid rumours of off-field disciplinary problems. A change of manager failed to re-capture Alex goalscoring potential and towards the end of last season it was clear he no longer figured in the Jim Mcinally’s plan. No move over the summer raised hopes of a possible re-concilliation but failure to feature in the pre-season friendlies made it clear he didn’t have a future at Cappielow.

Personally im sorry to hear that Alex had gone – I had always hoped that he would recapture his form of his 1st year and a half at the club. There is no doubt that Alex has the goalscoring instinct but it deserted him when he needed it and his off field indiscretions quickly became to talk of the shed. I hope he manages to screw the nut and fufils the potential his early Ton displays suggested.

Strip

The Ton wore their change Tartan strip kit for the 1st time on Saturday against Gretna (Despite the lack of a clash with our hoops and Gretna’s white kit) Opinion has been split on the Tartan top but the more I’ve seen of it the more it has grown on me and it appears to have sold well (which I guess is the main point of it) Unfortunately the club have decided to pair the top with bright yellow shorts & socks which takes away from the look of the top – bit of a fashion disaster.

This is the final year of a 3 year deal with Vandanel which has seen us with 1 new home kit and 3 away kits (All Yellow, All White & Tartan).

Season Ticket
Finally went and purchased my season ticket on Friday. Usually im beating down the door to Cappielow when the season tickets go on sale but this year with the lack of a home pre-season friendly meant there was no rush to buy the ticket.

Costing £160 it represents a significant saving over the season of 18 league games plus at least 2 cup games (Gretna BC & Ayr LC) at £11 entry fee. The ticket allows entry to all league games and 1st 2 rounds of all 3 cup competitions.

Where did the weekend go?

Hot
Derek Lilley - Great to have him back
Football - Great to have it back
LCD TV's - The Future

Not
Monday - I just dont like them
Crap films - just cant get those 2 hours back.

Shuffle Song - Meet Virginia : Train

Had a quiet weekend but a good one nonetheless

The much anticipated Renfrewshire Cup final went well with the Ton winning 2-0 with goals from Jim Mcallister & Derek Lilley against a poor St. Mirren side.
Saturday night was spent watching "Kicking & Screaming" and the pretty much how i'd be if you tried to get me to watch it again. Will Ferrell IMO is very hit and miss and this was a big miss - defo one for the 5-9 year olds amongst us.

Sunday was Gillian's Dad's birthday so we had the in-law's down for dinner and to catch up, Fiona also made an appearance (thinks she's missing the folks who've been away in Ireland for the past 3 weeks). Also got to see the Gaffney's on Sunday as they popped in for a couple of hours.

Got a lovely new TV over the weekend courtesy of the Smith's. I know its seems strange going from a 32in widescreen to a 20in but this ones an LCD and looks fantastic on the bedroom wall.
The other bonus is that the 32in will not go to waste - were sticking that in the computer room for me to play my PS2 on - Result !!!!

This week Morton v Falkirk friendly at Westfield on Tuesday and some stuff to do for Canada. Pay day on Friday as well as Dorrian's party which should be fun.

Squad 2005/2006

So, now most (but maybe not all) of the transfer activity has died down this pre-season, what will the first team be for the 1st competitive game of the season on Saturday at Love Street?

Goalkeepers -

Gonet, McGurn, Stark

Defence -

Greacen, Harding, Keenan, MacGregor, McCluskey, Weatherson

Midfield -

Adam, Finlayson, McAlister, McLaren, Millar, A. Walker

Forwards -

Lilley, McLean, Templeman, Walker, Williams

Plus youngsters

Gonet - Not seen play as yet - only appearance of note in pre-season friendly at Altrincham he saved 2 penalties in 3-1 win - 1 for the future.

McGurn - Shakey start after taking over from Craig Coyle last season but seemed to grow into the position - could be more commanding of area but excellent shot stopper.

Stark - Hasn't played for the ton yet - loaned out to Juniors last season

Greacen - Standards slipped in the 2nd half last season (may have been rushed back from injury too quick) On his day is commanding and uncompromising.

Harding - Shored up a leaky defence while on loan last season - signed in the summer and hoping for more of the same.

Keenan - Somewhat of a utility man without really excelling in any position. Always commited to the tackle but needs to be more controlled at times.

Macgregor - just returning to 1st team action after long term injury layoff - could be a few wekks into the season before full match fit. Has been a target of boo boys but has shown promise if he can recover pre-injury form.

Mcluskey - Looks to be on his way out of the TOn after disagreements with Manager - if forgiven could do a job as back-up centre half or at full back.

Weatherson - Seemed to be destined for a bit part role as striker until reverting back to defence - now seems to be our 1st choice right back. Positioning at times could be better but solid in the tackle and good distribution.

Adam - Has good composure and passing range but needs to improve his all-round game to win a place in the 1st team.

Finlayson - Signed from Stranraer in the summer - Always made a nuisance of himself when playing against us - combines skill and industry to good affect.

McAlister - Most improved player last season after looking like he wasn't going to cut it as a striker - made the left mid position his own. Could benefit from playing fewer games and competition for places this season. fast & skilful but a little on the slight side.

McLaren - Made a big impact on loan last season showing he was a class above the 2nd Division. Could also benefit from being used more sparingly this season.

Millar - My Player of the Year last season - all action midfield who will hopefully get more support from his fellow midfielder this season.

A. Walker - Signed from Rangers in the summer. Bit of an unknown quantity due to conflicting reports from previous clubs.

Lilley - Signed in the summer from Livingston - One of my heroes in his 1st spell with the club developed from clumsy foward into goal machine under Allan Mcgraw. Still young and fit enough to do the business outwith the SPL.

Mclean - taking from the Juniors by Cowboy shortly before he parted company with the club - has yet to show anything close to 1st team form.

Templeman - Hefty price tag weighed heavy on his shoulders last season - Should benefit from better supply and more support this season. Target for the boo boys who wanted immediate results

J. Walker - Played a bit part role last season not really given a run of games in the team. Has shown in pre-season that he is hungry. Has lot of pace and wins a lot in the air despite his height.

Williams - Another on his way out of Cappielow - Darling of fans in his early career but a number of misdemeanors have resulted in Alex using up all his 9 lives - Still a capable striker who could do the business if nurtured in the right way.

We at present appear to have a decent group of around 14 players who could do the job at this level - however beyond that we dont seem to have much back-up and may struggle if hit by injuries.
In defence - We have a solid enough 4 out of 5 positions but seems to be lacking a decent left back - this may force Jim to revert from his favoured 4-4-2 formation to a 3-5-2.

In midfield I think we all hoped he would sign a good quality central midfielder in the Veira, Keane, Gerrard mould but this doesn't seem to have happened. Last season our problem seemed to be that our midfield was often too light weight with too many ball players and none willing to get their hands dirty tracking back. Alex Walker has been signed and hopefully he can
provide the defensive cover to allow the other midfielders to create.

Up front Derek Lilley has been added which should take some of the responsibilty off Chris

Starting 16 for the season (4-4-2)

---------------- Mcgurn -------------------

--------- Greacen --- Harding -------------

Weatherson-------------------- Macgregor

--------- Millar -----A Walker -----------

Mclaren -------------------------Finlayson

--------- Lilley --- Templeman -------------

Subs -

Gonet, Mcluskey, Keenan, McAlister, J Walker

I was born under a Green Oak tree

While bouncy around looking at the name thingy below - I also found this site
http://s131653538.onlinehome.us/birthday.asp
which does something similar with your birthday

You entered: 1/20/1978
You were born on a Friday under the astrological sign Capricorn.

Your Life path number is 1.
The Julian calendar date of your birth is 2443528.5.
The golden number for 1978 is 3.
The epact number for 1978 is 21.
The year 1978 was not a leap year.

You are 27 years old.
You are 330 months old.
You are 1,435 weeks old.
You are 10,044 days old.
You are 241,073 hours old.
You are 14,464,424 minutes old.
You are 867,865,462 seconds old.

There are 183 days till your next birthday on which your cake will have 28 candles on it.

Your birthstone is Garnet
The Mystical properties of Garnet
Garnet is used as a power stoneSome lists consider these stones to be your birthstone. (Birthstone lists come from Jewlers, Tibet, Ayurvedic Indian medicine, and other sources)
Emerald, Rose Quartz

Your birth tree is Elm Tree,
the noble-mindedness Pleasant shape, tasteful clothes, modest demands, tends not forgive mistakes, cheerful, likes to lead but not to obey, honest and faithful partner, tends to a know-all-attitude and making decisions for others, noble-minded, generous, good sense of humour, practical.

What is in a name?

Found this funky website http://s131653538.onlinehome.us/Numbers.asp
which gives you some meaning behind your name - give it a try !!!!


You entered: Andrew Webster

There are 13 letters in your name.Those 13 letters total to 58There are 4 vowels and 9 consonants in your name.

Your number is: 4

The characteristics of #4 are:
A foundation, order, service, struggle against limits, steady growth.

The expression or destiny for #4:
Order, service, and management are the cornerstones of the number 4 Expression. Your destiny is to express wonderful organization skills with your ever practical, down-to-earth approach. You are the kind of person who is always willing to work those long, hard hours to push a project through to completion. A patience with detail allows you to become expert in fields such as building, engineering, and all forms of craftsmanship. Your abilities to write and teach may lean toward the more technical and detailed. In the arts, music will likely be your choice. Artistic talents may also appear in such fields as horiculture and floral arrangement, as well. Many skilled physicians and especially surgeons have the 4 Expression.
The positive attitudes of the 4 Expression yield responsibility; you are one who no doubt, fulfills obligations, and is highly systematic and orderly. You are serious and sincere, honest and faithful. It is your role to help and you are required to do a good job at everything you undertake.

If there is too much 4 energies present in your makeup, you may express some of the negative attitudes of the number 4. The obligations that you face may tend to create frustration and feelings of limitation or restriction. You may sometimes find yourself nursing negative attitudes in this regard and these can keep you in a rather low mood. Avoid becoming too rigid, stubborn, dogmatic, and fixed in your opinions. You may have a tendency to develop and hold very strong likes and dislikes, and some of these may border on the classification of prejudice. The negative side of 4 often produces dominant and bossy individuals who use disciplinarian to an excess. These tendencies must be avoided. Finally, like nearly all with 4 Expression, you must keep your eye on the big picture and not get overly wrapped up in detail and routine.

Your Soul Urge number is: 7
A Soul Urge number of 7 means: With a number 7 Soul Urge you are very fond of reading, and retreating to periods of being alone and away from the disruptions of the outer world. You like to dream and develop you idealistic understandings, to study and analyze, to gain knowledge and wisdom. You may be too laid back and withdrawn to really succeed in the business world, and you will be much more comfortable in circumstances that are tolerant of your reserve, your analytical approach, and your desire to use your mind rather than your physical being.
You are very timid around people that you don't know very well, so much so at times that casual conversation and social situations can be strained. You tend to repress your emotions to the extend that some people have a good bit of difficult understanding you. You tend to be very selective with friends and you don't easily adapt to new environments or to new people very
quickly.

The negative traits of the 7 include becoming too much the introvert and isolated from others.

Your Inner Dream number is: 6
An Inner Dream number of 6 means: You dream of guiding and fostering the perfect family in the perfect home. You crave the devotion from offspring and a loving spouse. You picture yourself in the center of a successful domestic unit.

Successful English Tour

Morton completed their English pre-season tour with a 2-0 victory against Whitton Albion. A goal by Jason Walker and an Own goal were difference between the sides in what by all accounts was a decent performance by Morton.

Mcinally fielded a mix of 1st team and squad player throughout the tour and has been impressed by some of the fringe players who have shown they can make the step up into the 1st team if required.

Next up for the Ton it a trip to Love Street for what could be the last derby played there.

Pre-Season Fixtures
14/07/2005 A Northwich Victoria 0-2
16/07/2005 A Altrincham 3-1
19/07/2005 A Witton Albion 2-0
23/07/2005 A St Mirren (Renfrewshire Cup Final)
26/07/2005 A Falkirk

No work on Monday

Yesterday we took advantage of being off work and arranged a BBQ at our place. It was also a good opportunity to catch up with the Ogilby's who had just returned for their 2 week holiday in Spain on Sunday evening.

So depsite the somewhat changeable weather we went ahead with the BBQ. Ended up a decent turnout - Us, The Ogilby's, The Smith's, Fiona, Calum & Barry all came down to sample the delights of my scorching.

As is almost customary every year we missed Claire Anne on her birthday as she was out in Spain - So we all tried to make it up to her with a belated birthday celebration.



After which we had a hotly contested game of Scene It which was won by "Team Snake in the Grass" consisting of Martin O, The Smiths, Gillian, Fiona & Barry.

All in all a cracking weekend - we must do it again sometime.

The Long Weekend

This weekend was the Glasgow fair weekend - which to be honest doesn't mean a lot nowadays but 1 thing it does mean is that Gillian (who works in Glasgow) had the Friday & Monday off work.

I took the Monday off in the hope that we could arrange a trip down south to Alton Towers (and maybe squeeze in a Morton game on the Saturday) but unfortunately our lack of cash meant that idea was knocked on the head earlier in the month. Instead we decided to try and make the most of the long weekend.

Friday night we had Fiona & Calum down for dinner as Fiona & Gillian counted down the hours to the release of the new Harry Potter book. They had pre-ordered the book from WH Smith in Greenock which was opening at 12.01am on Saturday morning especially for this book release.
Once they had picked up their copies of the book I left them to their own devices as I knew I would get no sense out of them till mid-Saturday at least.

Saturday we headed through to the Gaffney's after the Harry Potter post-Mortem took place. Ton were playing Altrincham in the 2nd leg of their 3 game English tour & as we were heading through to Dunfermline David was sending me text's from the game. With every passing text I was kicking myself more and more that I didn't bite the bullet and go - 2up after 20 mins, man sent off & penalty saved by our keeper - why wasn't I there !!!!!!!
Game eventually finshed 3-1 which has whet my appetite even more for this Saturday's Renfrewshire cup final versus St. Mirren at Love Street.

Saturday night we ate, drank and were merry with the Gaffney's , The Reilly's and Stibby who was about as useful as a chocolate fireguard.

The crutches and bandaged legs were as a result of an operation on shid splints on Friday. He resided on the couch most of the time while we made the best of the situation.
Sunday was spent gauching at chez Gaffney - caught a bit of the Open golf and did our usual food run for lunch. Great being through and seeing the guys again. Everytime we're through Alyssa seems to have come on so much since the last time. As usual got a load of pictures will need to get the online ASAP

Came home on Sunday evening to see Barry who had just returned from a trip to the US.

Pre-Season Fixtures

Morton's pre-season schedule is all away from Cappielow as the team look to prepare for the opening game of the season in the Bells Challenge Cup against Gretna followed by Raith Rovers in the League both at home

• 14/07/2005 A Northwich Victoria
• 16/07/2005 A Altrincham
• 19/07/2005 A Witton Albion
• 23/07/2005 A St Mirren (Renfrewshire Cup Final)
• 26/07/2005 A Falkirk

The drought is over - Footie is back.

Well after 78 Days of sorrow, sunshine & speculation - Morton are back!!!!

Tonight they take on Northwich Victoria in a friendly at the New Victoria ground as part of their mini-pre-season tour of England.

After the disappointment of missing out on promotion for the 2nd consecutive season Douglas Rae has made it clear to the management team that another failure would not be accepted.

Mcinally began the close-season by releasing a number of players from the squad.
Out the door went

Alan Mahood
John Maisano
Scott Bannerman
Paul Walker
Liam Mitchell
Stephen Hamilton
Graeme Ballantyne

Of those released only Maisano & Walker had played major roles in the 1st team last season with both possessing undoubted ability but failing to utilise it. Sorry to see both go as on the their day both players were a class above the 2nd Division.

Special mention must also go to Scott Bannerman who cemented his place in Morton history with 2 of the most important goals in our recent history. 1st goal v's Stenny and the 3rd Division winning strike against Peterhead. Scott's 1st team appearances were fairly limited last year and he suffered to an extent from being a very versatile player who never really staked a claim for a position.

Mcinally's Team

With the lose of these player the squad was looking a bit on the thin side but Jim then delved into the transfer market & made 5 good signings.
In came

Ryan Harding

Alex Walker

Andy Mclaren

Kevin Finlayson

Derek Lilley (not pictured)



Harding joined us on loan from Livingston in January and shored up the defence that had looked abit shaky with Greacen & McCluskey as the central pairing. Andy Mclaren was another January loan signing who impressed sufficiently to gain a permanent deal at Cappielow. His vision and skill helped him become a fans favourite in his 4 months at Cappielow and upon returning to Dundee Utd was able to negotiate the remaining year of his contract to allow his to join us.

Finlayson was one of the Stranraer side who pipped us to promotion this season but the lure of full-time football ensured he remained in 2nd Division - In my opinion a more industrious replacement for Paul Walker on the left wing. Alex Walker is a bit of an unknown quantity having arrived at Cappielow from Rangers after failing to make an impact in the 1st team at Ibrox. Mixed reports from a loan spell at Clyde don't help matters - however he will be seen as a replacement for Scott McLaughlin who was on loan at Cappielow for the 2nd half of last season but opted to stay at Almondvale under Paul Lambert.

By far the most popular signing of the summer was the return of Derek Lilley to Cappielow - Derek left for Leeds Utd for over £500,000 having spent 6 years & played over 150 games for Morton and firmly establishing himself as a provengoalscorerr and a fans favourite. After spells with Hearts, Bury, Oxford, Dundee Utd & Livingston Lilley opted to drop down from the SPL to help the Ton with their promotion push this year.

With these 5 additions that now gives us a decent sized squad of players

2nd Division Fixtures 2005/2006

06/08/2005 H Raith Rovers
13/08/2005 A Stirling Albion
20/08/2005 H Forfar Athletic
27/08/2005 A Dumbarton
10/09/2005 H Gretna
17/09/2005 H Alloa Athletic
24/09/2005 A Ayr United
01/10/2005 H Peterhead
15/10/2005 A Partick Thistle
22/10/2005 A Raith Rovers
25/10/2005 H Stirling Albion
29/10/2005 A Gretna
05/11/2005 H Dumbarton
12/11/2005 A Alloa Athletic
26/11/2005 H Ayr United
03/12/2005 H Partick Thistle
17/12/2005 A Peterhead
26/12/2005 H Raith Rovers
31/12/2005 A Forfar Athletic
02/01/2006 A Dumbarton
14/01/2006 H Gretna
21/01/2006 H Alloa Athletic
28/01/2006 A Ayr United
04/02/2006 H Peterhead
11/02/2006 A Partick Thistle
18/02/2006 A Stirling Albion
25/02/2006 H Forfar Athletic
04/03/2006 H Dumbarton
11/03/2006 A Gretna
18/03/2006 A Alloa Athletic
25/03/2006 H Ayr United
01/04/2006 A Forfar Athletic
08/04/2006 H Partick Thistle
15/04/2006 A Raith Rovers
22/04/2006 H Stirling Albion
29/04/2006 A Forfar Athletic

Im Back !!!!!

No I wasn't away anywhere - just too darn lazy to carry on posting.

Anyway it has been ages since I last posted on here and a lot has happened since then.

* Xmas & NY 04
Cracking time was had by all had the family down for Xmas Dinner (only the Houtens missing) and had a few parties over the holiday season (seen a lot of the Gaffney's & Baz & AJ). Gill bought me an Ipod for Xmas which has rarely left my side. Check out the Pics Xmas New Year

* I Turned 27
I know we did something just cant really remember what it was


* New member of the Gang
Alyssa Jane Gaffney was born on 18th March at Forth Park Maternity hospital in Kirkcaldy. Alyssa & both parents were fantastic which cannot be said for Uncle John. Alyssa Pics

* Ireland
With Baby Alyssa safely arrived in the world we took the opportunity to visit the Houtens who were in Buncrana for a change.


* Mr & Mrs Di Marco tie the knot
28th May 2005 - Paul & Paula got hitched at St. Johns in the Port and then upto Dean Park to celebrate.
Check out the Pics Wedding Pics



* Andy is the Godfather
and Gillian is the godmother (not the same ring to it) on the 26th of June for Alyssa's Christening at St. Margarets Church in DunfermlineChristening Pics

* 1 year Anniversary
myself and Gillian celebrate our 1st wedding Anniversary at the Seamill Hydro on 27th June