Morton rally to defeat Airdrie

Published on Sunday 22 November 2009 23:17

WITH games involving the top six teams postponed because of the involvement of Dundee and Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the ALBA Challenge Cup final, or, in the case of leaders Queen of the South and Dunfermline, a waterlogged Palmerston Park pitch, attention was focused on happenings at the foot of the table.

The two games played saw Airdrie United suffer their third defeat in a row as they went down 4-2 at home to Morton, with Raith Rovers nudging ahead of their Fife rivals from East End Park on goal difference in the table after their goalless draw with Ayr United.

Airdrie burst into life when David Nixon fired them ahead from a corner after only two minutes and their lead was doubled two minutes later when John Baird ran on to a Diarmuid O'Carroll pass to net. Baird almost made it three shortly afterwards but it was not to be and Ryan McGuffie headed in for Morton shortly before the interval before Brian Wake levelled right on half time.

Wake capitalised on a mistake by Simon Storey to put the Greenock men ahead in the second-half and recent signing David van Zanten's long range strike brought the fourth.

Airdrie manager Kenny Black said: "For the first 40 odd minutes I was delighted with what I was seeing, but then we let Morton back into things. The four goals we lost were down to poor defending, especially the crucial one that put them ahead."

Manager boss James Grady was honest afterwards when he admitted: "We did not deserve to be level at the interval so credit to the boys for battling back. Last year we would have lost that game four or five nil so I am pleased with the spirit"

Ayr United doubled their advantage over Black's side to two points with a no scoring draw at Kirkcaldy where chances were at a premium on a heavy pitch that passed a morning pitch inspection before getting the go-ahead.

Neither manager was too down-heartened. John McGlynn, who included on-loan Dundee United player Greg Cameron in his ranks alongside former Hibs defender Thierry Gathuessi as a trialist, said: "The gap between us and Ayr remains the same so I have to be pleased with that. Keeping a clean sheet after losing five goals at Morton last week was really important. We defended well, but offered little up front."

Ayr United manager Brian Reid said: "We may have had a penalty later on, but it is a clean sheet and a point and I will take that."