Lilley in full bloom as Morton find something extra

Published on Sunday 31 July 2005 00:33

MORTON 3 Lilley, 33, 112; J Walker 108;

GRETNA 3 Nicholls 67; Deuchar 91. 1-1 at full time

ANYONE expecting to see a gentle prologue to the league campaign was in for a pleasant shock as two teams keen to play football and assert their second Division promotion credential, contributed in full measure to a pulsating Bells Cup tie.

The balance of power switched every 15 minutes but in the end the home team just about deservedly emerged on top. For Gretna , yesterday's opposition provided a poignant reminder of just how much the club has progressed in recent times. It was almost three years ago to the day, August 3, 2002, that they faced Morton in their first-ever game in senior league football. On that day it had taken them all of 16 seconds to find the net before ending with a creditable 1-1 draw.

And that was how it finished yesterday after 90 minutes. However, within seconds of extra time, the floodgates opened and the fireworks began. Gretna manger Rowan Alexander had returned to his old Cappielaw stamping ground wary that previous visits as a manager had yielded little. However, given that he now has in his armoury the man he likes to call "the most prolific goal scorer in the world", Kenny Deuchar, there was considerable cause for optimism. And it was certainly the visitors who enjoyed the upper hand in the early stages with plenty of crisp neat football, especially down the left where Skelton was the inspired hub of most of their attacks.

However, it was Morton's debut striker, Derek Lilley, signed from Livingston on a long-term contract who opened the scoring on 33 minutes and even before that the home side had deserved to take the lead when Lilley's giant foil Templeman provided the deftest of chips on the turn which skimmed the bar.

Gretna gradually upped the tempo but had to wait until the 67th minute to equalise. They did so in style as David Nicholls galloped through the middle before driving a bending shot into the corner of the net. But it was only in extra time that the real entertainment began. Less than a minute after the restart Deuchar, who had been so quiet for much of the game, suddenly remembered his lines as he popped up in the box to head Gretna into a 2-1 lead. It left the homeside temporarily stunned and briefly Gretna threatened to run riot.

However, just as it seemed that might happen, the visitors contrived to make life hard for themselves as Innes needlessly earned a second yellow card in two minutes, to leave his side a man down.

The balance then shifted once more to Morton with substitute, Jason Walker, proving an inspired change. After several good chances he finally found his scoring touch driving powerfully under the Gretna keeper, Alan Main, to level once more.

The last words like the first belonged to Lilley who had earlier threatened to blot his copy book when he squared up to an opponent and almost sparked a mass brawl. But on 112 minutes he was the hero creeping into the box to head the winner after some scintillating wing play from McAllister. At the end the cheers from the home support was almost as loud as their team's new tartan motif second strip.