Familiar scenario as Morton bowed out of SPFL Trust Trophy

Dougie Imrie's men bowed out after a limp performance against a Lions side who didn’t really need to get out of second gear to progress to a semi-final meeting with Dunfermline at East End Park.

Austin Samuels' strike wasn't enough as Morton bowed out of the SPFL Trust Trophy (Image: Gary Bradley) With only the Scottish Cup remaining for Dougie Imrie and his team to distract them from their league campaign, the focus returns to the Championship tomorrow.

That comes in the form of a trip to a Raith Rovers team who have turned a bit of a corner since Morton’s comfortable victory over the Fifers last month - a fitting way to mark Ton's 150th anniversary celebrations.

Wins over bottom side Airdrie and Ayr have propelled Rovers above Ton in recent weeks as our own form has nose-dived amidst Morton's autumn injury crisis that's now an annual event.

But there are signs that the injuries are beginning to clear, with the return of Ryan Mullen in midweek, added to that of Morgan Boyes, who played the entirety of both matches on his return to the side.

READ MORE: Morton tumble out of SPFL Trust Trophy at Livingston

The return of Morgan Boyes has boosted Imrie's options (Image: Gary Bradley) Boyes of course, was deployed at left back in both, owing to Zak Delaney’s suspension for the Livingston game following his red card at Cowdenbeath earlier in the Trust Trophy campaign.

Delaney could return to the fold for the visit to Stark’s Park, which would raise questions about Imrie’s preferred central defensive pairing, and perhaps more pertinently, if he decides to operate one of them in the right back position.

With the returns of Ali Crawford and regular right back Cammy Ballantyne still a few weeks down the road, it’s difficult not to feel for the luckless Dylan Corr, who suffered yet another injury set-back just when he looked to be closing in on a return to first team action after dislocating his shoulder against St Johnstone in August.

While the draw with Ayr was far from a classic, there was room for optimism in Morton’s performance, and had Filip Stuparevic shown more composure in front of goal, Ton could have bagged all three points against the play-off chasing Honest Men.

Filip Stuparevic has seen efforts go begging against Ayr and Livingston (Image: Gary Bradley) READ MORE: Three things we learned as Morton fail to build on Ayr draw

However, Tuesday night felt like a backwards step against a re-jigged Livingston side.

Morton huffed and puffed in the first half, creating a couple of decent chances, before being forced back by a Livingston team who clearly had more quality on the night, a sign of the difference between the haves and have-nots of the Scottish Championship.

It might be harsh to suggest that a fully fit Ryan Mullen might have got down to Reece McAlear’s first-half effort, but after falling behind, Morton barely laid a glove on David Martindale’s team, and Austin Samuels’ late consolation flattered us on another disappointing night for the travelling support.

Imrie made no secret about how seriously he was taking the Trust trophy this season, so to exit the competition with such an unconvincing performance will be a source of frustration --though there’s no point in dwelling on something that can’t be fixed.

Imrie was left disappointed with numerous aspects of his side's performance against Livi (Image: Gary Bradley) With Raith’s neighbours Dunfermline hosting Airdrie on Saturday, at least one of those below us will be collecting points, so failure to beat Neil Collins’ Rovers side could see Ton drop into the play-off position.

After a slow start to his tenure in Kirkcaldy, Collins is beginning to make his mark on predecessor Ian Murray’s squad, and the locals will look to the visit of Morton as the sort of fixture from which they should be collecting maximum points.

Collins has been boosted by club captain Scott Brown signing an extension to his contract this week, but on a positive note for Morton, Raith will be missing firepower in the shape of Jack Hamilton and long-term absentee Lewis Vaughan.

Raith’s biggest threat will likely come from Dylan Easton, whose sublime free-kick at Firhill last week rescued a point for the Fifers, ending Partick’s three-match winning run in the process.

In what feels like a never-ending run of away games recently, and Morton’s form on the road proving to be a real Achilles heel this season, there would be no better time to address that and record their first away league win before a rare Saturday afternoon on home soil against Partick Thistle next weekend.