Have I moaned about summer football yet? If not, allow me to. The day I went to Cappielow must have been the coldest day of the year. It wasn’t raining or windy, just a baltic day. I dragged my girlfriend to the game and to say she was not best pleased would be an understatement. Sitting in a stand freezing with umpteen layers on and still freezing your balls off is not my idea of fun. At first I didn’t want to entertain the thought of summer football but it has grown on me in recent years and I am now fully behind the idea. I know we all like the festive games but for our game going forward I think we should seriously look at moving to summer football, even if we try it for one year to see how it works.
Back to Cappielow, the day we headed to Greenock was when Dundee United were in town.
The Stadium
Cappielow is old, but I love it. It has great character but is beginning to look a bit tired. We were sat in the Grandstand, which is probably the most modern looking of the stands at Cappielow. It is single tiered, all seated stand, with a wooden floor and a number of terribly placed supporting pillars. One pillar was right in our line of sight, but we didn’t want to move as it would have meant sitting on a new freezing cold seat. Like stubborn Scots we sat and moved our heads each side of the pillar every 30 seconds for 90 minutes. Opposite us was the “Cowshed” which is a half and half stand with seats and terracing. Some of the Dundee United fans were in a pen on the left hand side while the rest of the stand was occupied by Ton fans. United fans were also at the other end of the Grandstand in a small pocket making next to no noise, no shocks there. To the right of us was the terraced Sinclair Street Stand which had around 50 hardy souls braving the elements. Opposite the “hardy souls” is what can only be described as a belter of a name for a stand. It is called the Wee Dublin End. Not a clue why it is called that so if there are any Morton fans out there get in touch. Unfortunately it is not used on match days. One thing I should mention is the large crane behind the Wee Dublin End. Clearly ship building was a big industry in these parts.
The Match
Since last seeing Dundee United they had appointed a permanent manager after Ray McKinnon got the boot. Former Hearts manager Csaba Laszlo had taken over the reigns and you could see he was already getting his message across about the way he wants to play the game. Remember Tony Blair when he came out with “Education, Education, Education”? I get the feeling Csaba shouts, “Possession, Possession, Possession” before every match to his players. The first half was quite a tense affair with the Morton goalkeeper denying former Motherwell and Celtic striker Scott McDonald then midfielder Fraser Fyvie with a couple of fine saves. Although United couldn’t find the opening goal they were dominant in possession, like Csaba would have insisted, but just couldn’t breach Derek Gaston in the Ton goal.
I was optimistic for the second half that we would see some goals, however the opening one didn’t come until the 61st minute. The Arabs were knocking on the Ton goal and after some sustained pressure eventually broke the deadline through Billy King with a classy finish. I have criticised the winger in the past for going missing for large parts of games and no fulfilling his potential. His left footed strike from just inside the box was a thing of beauty. I am sure there will be highlights on YouTube somewhere, check it out. United deserved the goal but they had to wait till stoppage time for their second, which also came through Billy King. Now readers I must confess I missed the second. I am never one for leaving early from football matches but when you have a nagging girlfriend who is freezing and saying “can we go home yet” every 5 minutes you have to give in. So, while you are on YouTube watching the first Billy King goal stay on there and watch the second. Although United won 2-0 they were very comfortable throughout the game with Morton not really offering much in front of goal.
The Mug
It’s back! After a week off The Mug feature is back. I know you all missed it so feast your eyes on the lovely Greenock Morton mug.
The End…kinda
As I have said many times I think Dundee United will finish in first or second place. Morton are not a bad team and play some alright football at times. Like many in the Championship they some times struggle to find the killer pass. They definitely won’t get relegated but I think they may struggle to reach the play-offs. If the Ton do then it will be classed as a great season for the Renfrewshire side.
Fact: Cappielow staged an international match between Scotland and Wales in 1902.
Price: £20
Attendace: 2,021
The Forty Two 
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