STEWART GREACEN went from zero to hero during a memorable afternoon as Morton came from behind to clinch victory and secure their first division status for another season.

The Ton captain, left, had a horrendous first 20 minutes which saw him booked, then commit the error which gifted Ayr the lead.

But Greacen's dedication and character were rewarded late on as Cappielow's captain courageous inspired the fightback which condemned United to relegation.

Greacen, whose left-foot strike in 75 minutes changed the momentum of the game, said: "How we won that game I'll never know.

"We were terrible today. It was a really poor performance from us. We were lucky to be in the game at half time. Ayr were murdering us, as they were excellent and by far the better team.

"Once we got the goal, we knew their heads might go down. It changed the game." Greacen is contracted next season at Cappielow and is hopeful his team can have a more fruitful campaign.

Speaking after the game, he said: "That's twice now in the last three seasons that we have gone down to the last day, and that's disappointing.

"It's no secret that there are going to be a lot changes over the summer and we should be doing far better, looking towards the top half of the league." For long periods, the visitors played the better football but their inability to kill off Morton proved their downfall.

It was always going to be a dogfight and Greacen was first into whistler Charlie Richmond's book in the 17th minute for a rough challenge on Ayr's Danny McKay.

McKay made Greacen pay three minutes later when he dispossessed the Morton captain, set himself up and fired Ayr into the lead with a sweet right-footed strike from 25 yards.

Morton took their eye off the ball in the 41st minute when a mix-up between Greacen and Kevin Finlayson allowed Junior Mendes to nip into the box, but Stewart did well to palm away his shot from 10 yards.

Early in the second half, Kevin McKinlay came to the home side's rescue when he blocked Ryan McGowan's shot from six yards.

Next up for the visitors was Martyn Campbell, who volleyed just wide from 14 yards in the 67th minute.

Then in the 77th minute Greacen capitalised on a goalmouth scramble when he volleyed home from 12 yards.

It was to change the game. Morton barely deserved to be level but soon they were ahead.

In the 86th minute, Finlayson played a low cross ball to Carlo Monti, who slammed home from 15 yards.

The full-time whistle was greeted with rapturous applause from around the stadium except in the away end where the Ayr fans, who had been so vocal throughout the game, were now heartbroken.

Indeed, emotions ran so high that a scuffle between two rival fans broke out on the trackside, but the Morton stewards soon restored order.

Morton boss James Grady admitted: "We were terrible in the first half.

"We were way off the pace but maybe you can put that down to the occasion and the tension. We were second to every loose ball and never looked at the races. The goal we gave away was terrible and they could have been murdering us.

"Nobody put their foot on the ball the way we needed them to do and Ayr came out fighting.

"The bottom line was to get the job done and the guys did that. I believe we should be higher up the division with the players we have." United's dejected manager Brian Reid said: "I've never seen anything like it. We should have been winning by three or four goals before Morton got into the game.

"The boys showed today what they are capable of but maybe that's why we've been relegated as we've not done it enough this season."