Greenock Morton F.C. facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Greenock Morton

Full name	Greenock Morton Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Ton
Founded	1874; 151 years ago (1874) (as Morton F.C.)
Ground	Cappielow Park
Ground Capacity	11,589 (5,741 seated)
Owner	Morton Club Together (MCT)
Chairman	John Laird
Manager	Dougie Imrie
League	Scottish Championship
2015–16	Scottish Championship, 5th
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Greenock Morton Football Club is a professional football team from Scotland. They play in the Scottish Championship league. The club started as Morton Football Club in 1874. This makes it one of the oldest football clubs in Scotland. In 1994, the club changed its name to Greenock Morton. This was to celebrate its strong connection to its home town of Greenock.

Morton won the Scottish Cup in 1922. Their best league finish was in 1916–17, when they came in second place behind Celtic. Morton holds a special record. They have been promoted to and relegated from the top league more times than any other club. This has happened 10 times for each. However, they have not played in the top league since 1988. In the 2014–15 season, Morton won their tenth league title. They won the Scottish League One championship on the very last day.

Club History

How Morton Started

Morton Football Club was formed in 1874. Football was becoming very popular in Scotland during the early 1870s. Many new clubs were starting up. At the first meeting, the club was named "Morton Football Club." No one is completely sure why they chose this name. Most people think it was named after 'Morton Terrace'. This was a row of houses next to their first playing field. Some of the players lived there. The name was changed to 'Greenock Morton Football Club' in 1994. This showed their pride in their hometown. But most people still just call them 'Morton'.

Morton was one of the first teams in the old Second Division. This league started in 1893. They finished 8th in their first season. Morton first moved up to the old First Division in 1899–1900. They finished 4th in their first season there in 1900–01.

Big Wins and Famous Matches

Morton's biggest success was winning the 1922 Scottish Cup Final. They beat Rangers 1–0. Jimmy Gourlay scored the winning goal from a free kick early in the game. The team had to travel right after the match. So, the big celebration happened a few days later. About 10,000 local fans came to Cappielow Park to celebrate.

Morton played in two other major cup finals. On April 17, 1948, they tied 1–1 with Rangers in the Scottish Cup Final. Jimmy White scored Morton's goal from a free kick. The teams played again on April 21. Rangers won 1–0 after extra time. Some people said the winning goal was unfair. They claimed Morton's goalkeeper, Jimmy Cowan, was blinded by a camera flash. These games were famous for the huge crowds. The first match had 132,629 fans. The replay had 133,750 fans. This was a record for a midweek match in Britain at the time.

Morton's third major cup final was the Scottish League Cup in 1963. Again, they played against Rangers. Rangers won 5–0 in front of 106,000 supporters.

During World War II, famous players sometimes played for different clubs. Morton was lucky to have two of England's best players. Sir Stanley Matthews and Tommy Lawton played for Morton a few times. When Morton reached the 1948 Scottish Cup Final, both players sent good luck messages.

Morton has played in a European Club Competition only once. They finished 6th in Scotland's top league in 1967–68. This allowed them to play in the European Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. They played against Chelsea. Morton lost both games and were knocked out.

In 1992–93, Morton lost 3–2 to Hamilton Academical in the Scottish Challenge Cup Final. This game was played at Love Street. This was the home ground of their rivals, St Mirren.

21st Century Challenges and Triumphs

The club faced money problems in the early 2000s. They were moved down from the First Division in 2000–01. They also went into a special financial process called administration. Their money troubles continued, and they were moved down another league. In the 2002–03 season, Morton played in the Third Division for the first time. Their financial problems were solved when chairman Douglas Rae took over. The team then won the Third Division championship. They secured the title with a 1–0 win over Peterhead. A record 8,497 fans watched this game.

After a strong start in 2003–04, the team's performance dropped. They finished 4th, missing out on promotion. This happened after they were 12 points ahead at the halfway point.

Jim McInally became the new manager. In his first season, the club almost got promoted. They finished just one point behind Stranraer.

Morton did not get promoted in the 2005–06 season. They finished 2nd, but only the champions were promoted automatically. Morton played in the playoffs but lost to Peterhead.

The next season, Morton had a huge 9–1 win against Forfar Athletic. A week later, they were promoted to the First Division. They then became Second Division Champions.

Jim McInally resigned in 2008. Davie Irons took over as manager. Morton fought hard to avoid being moved down a league. They stayed up on the last day with a 3–0 win against Partick Thistle. Irons was replaced by James Grady in 2009.

Grady left in 2010, and Allan Moore became manager. Moore was fired in 2013. His replacement, Kenny Shiels, could not stop the team from being relegated. They moved down from the Scottish Championship in April 2014. Shiels resigned after a big 10–2 loss to Hamilton Accies.

After Shiels left, Jim Duffy became manager. He led the club to win the Scottish League One title. This meant they returned to the Championship right away. This league win was Morton's tenth league title. This made them one of the most successful clubs in Scotland for league titles. Duffy was fired in April 2018. This was after the club finished 7th in the Championship. At the end of the 2017–18 season, Chairman Douglas Rae retired after 17 years. His son Crawford took over.

Ray McKinnon became manager in May 2018. But he left after only three months to join another team. Jonatan Johansson then became the new manager.

Team Colours

Morton's home uniform is usually a blue and white striped shirt. They wear white shorts and white socks. In the 2006–07 season, they wore a blue and white striped shirt with white shorts and blue socks. Over the years, they have used some unique designs. These include sky blue and white stripes, like the Argentina national team. They even had a blue Morton tartan design once. The away uniform changes more often. For the 2021–22 season, the club wore a special 'throwback' home kit. It looked similar to the one they wore when they won the 1922 Scottish Cup Final. This kit had no sponsor.

Home Stadium

Morton's home stadium is Cappielow Park in Greenock. The club has played there since 1879. The stadium can hold 5,741 seated fans. In 2008, Morton bought the east stand from their rivals St Mirren. This helped improve the area for away fans.

The area behind the western goal is called the Wee Dublin End. It has bench seating. The main stand has plastic seats. The "Cowshed" is on the north side of the pitch. It used to be for both home and away fans. Now, it's only for home supporters. The "Sinclair Street" end is behind the eastern goal. It has uncovered standing areas.

Supporters and Rivalries

Greenock Morton has many fan clubs. These are in Greenock and nearby towns. Some of the main clubs are The Andy Ritchie Travel Club and The Prince of Wales Travel Club.

The club has a strong rivalry with their neighbours St Mirren. This is called the Renfrewshire derby. There is a lot of excitement between the two sets of fans during these games.

They also have a smaller rivalry with Partick Thistle. Police Scotland considers these games high-risk due to past fan issues.

The club also has friendly relationships with Reggiana from Italy and PEC Zwolle from the Netherlands.

League History

Morton has played in different leagues over the years:

• Top League: 1900–1927, 1929–1933, 1937–1938, 1946–1949, 1950–1952, 1964–1966, 1967–1975, 1978–1983, 1984–1985, 1987–1988
• Second League: 1893–1900, 1927–1929, 1933–1937, 1938–39, 1949–1950, 1952–1964, 1966–1967, 1975–1978, 1983–1984, 1985–1987, 1988–1994, 1995–2001, 2007–2014, 2015–present
• Third League: 1994–1995, 2001–2002, 2003–2007, 2014–2015
• Fourth League: 2002–2003

Club Achievements

National Trophies

• Scottish Cup
  • Winners: 1921–22
  • Runners-up: 1947–48
• Scottish League Cup
  • Runners-up: 1963–64
• Scottish Challenge Cup
  • Runners-up: 1992
• Scottish Football League
  • Runners-up: 1916–17
• Scottish First Division/Division Two
  • Champions: (6) 1949–50, 1963–64, 1966–67, 1977–78, 1983–84, 1986–1987
  • Runners-up: (4) 1899–1900, 1928–29, 1936–37, 2012–13
• Scottish Second Division/League One
  • Champions: (3) 1994–95, 2006–07, 2014–15
  • Runners-up: 2005–06
• Scottish Third Division
  • Champions: 2002–03

Other Awards

• Renfrewshire Cup
  • Winners: 52 times
• Great War Shield
  • Winners: 1914–15

Club Records

• Best league position – 2nd in First Division (1916–1917)
• Best Scottish Cup result – winners (1921–1922)
• Best League Cup result – runners-up (1963–1964)
• Biggest win – 21–0 vs Howwood (1886–87 Renfrewshire Cup)
• Biggest loss – 1–10 vs Port Glasgow Athletic (1894), St Bernard's (1933)
• Highest home attendance – 23,500 vs Celtic (1922)
• Most goals in one season – Allan McGraw (58 in 1963–1964)
• Most league games played – Derek Collins (534)
• Most league goals scored – Allan McGraw (117)
• Record player bought – Janne Lindberg – £250,000 (from MyPa-47)
• Record player sold – Derek Lilley – £500,000 (to Leeds United)

Current Players

No. Position Player 1 GK James Storer (on loan from Wolves) 2 DF Cammy Ballantyne 3 DF Zak Delaney 4 DF Dylan Corr 5 DF Sonny Hart (on loan from Swindon Town) 6 DF Kris Moore 7 FW Owen Moffat 8 MF Cameron Blues 9 FW Tomi Adeloye 10 FW Jordan Davies

No. Position Player 11 MF Ali Crawford 14 FW Zak McKay 18 MF Michael Garrity 21 MF Grant Gillespie (captain) 22 MF Nathan Shaw 23 DF Jackson Longridge 27 MF Iain Wilson 29 MF Kerr Robertson 41 GK Sam Murdoch

Coaching Staff

Player Records

These records are for league matches after World War II.

Top Goalscorers

Top goalscorers

#	Name	Time at club	Games	Goals
1	Allan McGraw	1961–1966	136	117
2	Andy Ritchie	1976–1983	213	100
3	Rowan Alexander	1986–1995	310	98
4	Peter Weatherson	2003–2013	323	93
5	Tommy Orr	1946–1958	257	86
6	Eddie Beaton	1956–1960	110	83
	Derek Lilley	1991–1997 2005–2007	232	83
8	Joe Mason	1966–1973	186	76
9	Alec Linwood	1951–1955	101	72
10	John McNeil	1975–1991	328	67

Most Games Played

Most appearances

#	Name	Time at club	Games
1	Derek Collins	1987–1999 2001–2005	534
2	David Wylie	1985–1999	482
3	Jim Holmes	1976–1988	437
4	Davie Hayes	1970–1984	353
5	John McNeil	1975–1991	328
6	Peter Weatherson	2003–2013	323
7	Jim McAlister	2002–2010 2018–2021	312
8	Rowan Alexander	1986–1995	310
9	George Anderson	1969–1981 1985–1987	280
10	Roy Baines	1972–1977 1978–1983	271
	Chris Millar	2003–2008 2018–2021	271

Top League Goalscorers by Season

Season	Name	Goals	Division
1946–47	Ross Henderson	10	Premier Division
1947–48	Tommy Orr	14	Premier Division
1948–49	Neil Mochan	13	Premier Division
1949–50	Neil Mochan	24	First Division
1950–51	Neil Mochan	20	Premier Division
1951–52	Alec Linwood	19	Premier Division
1952–53	Bob Gibson Alec Linwood	17	First Division
1953–54	Alec Linwood John Hannigan	22	First Division
1954–55	Alec Linwood	14	First Division
1955–56	Bob Gibson	33	First Division
1956–57	Eddie Beaton	18	First Division
1957–58	Eddie Beaton	25	First Division
1958–59	Eddie Beaton	33	First Division
1959–60	Charlie Stewart	11	First Division
1960–61	Billy Craig	11	First Division
1961–62	Allan McGraw	16	First Division
1962–63	Allan McGraw	29	First Division
1963–64	Allan McGraw	51	First Division
1964–65	Allan McGraw	12	Premier Division
1965–66	Allan McGraw David Watson	8	Premier Division
1966–67	Joe Harper	29	First Division
1967–68	Joe Mason	15	Premier Division
1968–69	Joe Harper	25	Premier Division
1969–70	Billy Osborne	11	Premier Division
1970–71	Joe Mason	9	Premier Division
1971–72	Donald Gillies	9	Premier Division
1972–73	Donald Gillies	14	Premier Division
1973–74	Hugh McIlmoyle	8	Premier Division
1974–75	John Hazel	6	Premier Division
1975–76	John Goldthorpe Ian Harley Richard Sharp	22	First Division
1976–77	Andy Ritchie	22	First Division
1977–78	John Goldthorpe Andy Ritchie	20	First Division
1978–79	Andy Ritchie	22	Premier Division
1979–80	Andy Ritchie	19	Premier Division
1980–81	Andy Ritchie	8	Premier Division
1981–82	Andy Ritchie	6	Premier Division
1982–83	James Rooney	7	Premier Division
1983–84	John McNeil	17	First Division
1984–85	James Gillespie	5	Premier Division
1985–86	John McNeil	14	First Division
1986–87	Rowan Alexander	23	First Division
1987–88	Jimmy Boag	8	Premier Division
1988–89	Rowan Alexander	11	First Division
1989–90	Rowan Alexander	11	First Division
1990–91	Dave McCabe	21	First Division
1991–92	Alex Mathie	18	First Division
1992–93	Alex Mathie	13	First Division
1993–94	Rowan Alexander	11	First Division
1994–95	Derek Lilley	16	Second Division
1995–96	Derek Lilley	14	First Division
1996–97	Derek Lilley	15	First Division
1997–98	Warren Hawke	10	First Division
1998–99	Kevin Thomas	9	First Division
1999–00	Harry Curran	9	First Division
2000–01	Ross Matheson	9	First Division
2001–02	Scott Bannerman	8	Second Division
2002–03	Alex Williams	23	Third Division
2003–04	Peter Weatherson Alex Williams	15	Second Division
2004–05	Chris Millar Peter Weatherson	10	Second Division
2005–06	Derek Lilley	12	Second Division
2006–07	Peter Weatherson	15	Second Division
2007–08	Peter Weatherson	9	First Division
2008–09	Brian Wake Peter Weatherson	9	First Division
2009–10	Peter Weatherson	10	First Division
2010–11	Allan Jenkins	8	First Division
2011–12	Peter MacDonald	10	First Division
2012–13	Peter MacDonald	14	First Division
2013–14	Dougie Imrie	9	Championship
2014–15	Declan McManus (on loan from Aberdeen)	20	League One
2015–16	Denny Johnstone (on loan from Birmingham City)	14	Championship
2016–17	Ross Forbes	9	Championship
2017–18	Gary Harkins	8	Championship
2018–19	Bob McHugh	11	Championship
2019–20	Bob McHugh	8	Championship
2020–21	Aidan Nesbitt	4	Championship
2021–22	Gozie Ugwu	8	Championship
2022–23	Robbie Muirhead	10	Championship
2023–24	Robbie Muirhead	12	Championship
2024–25	Cameron Blues Filip Stuparević	5	Championship

Player Awards

• 2016–17 – Jim Duffy (Ladbrokes Championship Manager of the Season)
• 2014–15 – Declan McManus (SPFL League One Player of the Year)
• 2002–03 – Alex Williams (SPFA Third Division Player of the Year)
• 1994–95 – Derek McInnes (SPFA Second Division Player of the Year)
• 1994–95 – Allan McGraw (SPFA Second Division Manager of the Year)
• 1986–87 – Jim Holmes (SPFA First Division Player of the Year)
• 1984–85 – Jim Duffy (SPFA Players' Player of the Year)
• 1978–79 – Andy Ritchie (SFWA Footballer of the Year)

Recent International Players

The last player to get a full international cap while playing for Morton was Fouad Bachirou. He played for Comoros in 2014.

The last Morton player to play for Scotland's national team was Jai Quitongo. He played for the under-21 side in 2016.

Famous Players

This list includes players who have played over 100 league games for Morton. It also includes players who scored in a national cup final. Players who managed the club after playing for them are also listed. Finally, players from outside the British Isles or those who won full international honors are included.

Scottish Football Hall of Fame

Some former Morton players have been honored in the Scottish Football Hall of Fame.

• Joe Jordan (2005)
• Jimmy Cowan (2007)

For all Greenock Morton players with a Wikipedia article, see Category:Greenock Morton F.C. players.

Board of Directors

Club Managers

This list does not include temporary managers.

Scottish Cup Journey

Morton first played in the Scottish Cup in the 1877–78 season. They won it once in 1922. The competition's rules have changed many times over the years.

Morton has reached these stages in the Scottish Cup:

• Finals – 2 times (last in 1948)
• Semi-finals – 5 times (last in 1981)
• Quarter-finals – 16 times (last in 2024)

European Games

Season	Competition	Round	Opponent	Home	Away	Total Score
1968–69	Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	First round	Chelsea	3–4	0–5	3–9

See also

In Spanish: Greenock Morton Football Club para niños