Greenock Morton - Cappielow Park

Greenock Morton FC 

Cappielow Park

Sinclair Street 

Greenock

PA15 2TU

01475 723571

Official Website

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Ground Number: 1524

Friday 13th March 2026

Greenock Morton 1-2 Partick Thistle
Scottish Championship

GREENOCK MORTON FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established as Morton FC in 1874. The true reason for the name 'Morton' remains unclear, though the general consensus is that the club was named after the 'Morton Terrace', a row of houses next to the original playing field, where some of the players lived. The area is located on Belville Street, a short distance from their current home and was named after a local ironmonger. They were founder members of the Scottish League Division 2 in 1893 and won promotion to the top tier after finishing as runners-up to Partick Thistle in 1900. Morton finished as runners-up to Celtic in 1917 in an extended twenty-team single division. They would remain in Division 1 until 1927 before relegation. The club would bounce back as runners-up to Dundee United in 1929. Bouncing between the top two divisions became the norm; a low of 12th in Division 2 in 1939 and a high of 6th in the renamed Premier Division were standout seasons league-wise. In 1994, the club changed its name to Greenock Morton to reflect its geographical location. This brought about the second-tier league title in 1995 and another couple of 6th place finishes in the top tier. Morton dropped as low as the 4th tier during the 2002/03 season following financial hardship and two successive relegations. They have been in the Championship since 2015, with a high of 4th in 2017 and a low of 9th in 2021 when they escaped relegation by winning playoff games against Montrose and Airdrieonians.

Morton's most famous day came in 1920 when they beat Rangers 1-0 in the Scottish Cup final. They have made two other major cup final appearances. In 1948, Morton drew 1–1 with Rangers in the Scottish Cup Final. In the replay, Rangers won 1–0 after extra time. The goal was said to be highly controversial because it was claimed that Morton goalkeeper Jimmy Cowan was blinded by the flash of a camera. These matches attracted huge crowds: the first match was played in front of 132,629, and the replay, in front of 133,750, was at the time a British record attendance for a midweek match. Morton's third and most recent major cup final was in the 1963 League Cup. Again, they faced Rangers, who won 5-0 on this occasion. They also reached the final of the 1993 Scottish Challenge Cup, losing 3-2 to Hamilton Academical. Morton has played one season in Europe, losing to Chelsea over two legs in the 1968/69 Fairs Cup.

During the Second World War, guest players were common at clubs throughout Great Britain. Morton was particularly fortunate in this respect in that two of English football's greatest ever players turned out at Cappielow. Sir Stanley Matthews and Tommy Lawton made several guest appearances for Morton. When Morton reached the 1948 Scottish Cup Final, both players sent telegrams wishing good luck to their former club. Matthews simply said, 'I am delighted to see Morton reach the final of the Scottish Cup'. Lawton's was more expressive, he said, 'Memories of happy days during the war at Cappielow compel me to wish the Morton manager & the boys all the best of luck in their cup final at Hampden'. Famous supporters include tennis coach Judy Murray and the late, iconic broadcaster Arthur Montford, who was a lifelong fan and honorary vice president. Fictionally, Jim 'Jock' McClaren supported the side in the hit sitcom Porridge with the half-Jamaican inmate born in the town, although Tony Osoba, who played him, was a half-Nigerian actor born in nearby Maryhill.

Greenock is located within Interclyde and has a population of around 43,000. It is a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, and forms part of a contiguous urban area with Gourock to the west and Port Glasgow to the east. It lies on the south bank of the Clyde at the "Tail of the Bank" where the River Clyde deepens into the Firth of Clyde. Place-name scholar William J. Watson wrote that "Greenock is well known in Gaelic as Grianáig, dative of grianág, 'a sunny knoll'. Historically, the town relied on shipbuilding, sugar refining and wool manufacturing for employment, but none of these industries are today part of Greenock's economy. More recently, the town relied heavily on electronics manufacturing. However, this has given way mostly to: call centre business, insurance, banking and shipping export. Greenock is Scotland's best served town in terms of railway stations. It boasts eight: Bogston, Cartsdyke, Greenock Central, Greenock West, Fort Matilda, Whinhill, Drumfrochar and Branchton.  In 2012, Greenock became the setting for the BBC television drama Waterloo Road, after the series was relocated from Rochdale, Greater Manchester. The series was shot at Greenock Academy, a former secondary school in the west of the town. The most famous Greenockian is the engineer James Watt. He is remembered in several placenames in the town, in the library instituted in his memory, and by the original Watt Memorial School (later College) building on the site of his birthplace in William Street, which incorporates a commemorative statue. The Finnart Campus of the local college was, until 2014, known as the James Watt College. Wetherspoons opened the James Watt pub after the building was converted from its previous use as the General Post Office.

MY VISIT

This weekend of the year was the traditional one for the Scottish Hop. However, the lineup was not as appealing as I'd have liked. Friday was the dreadful-looking Saughton Enclosure, and Sunday was the basic-looking Cowdenbeath Central. I'd have been perfectly happy to go there, but it seemed like a waste of a morning starting so late at 12:15. The Saturday was also up in the air until a few weeks before, though I'd have loved to have done Lochgelly, Albert and Cowdenbeath, which looked great. But by then, I had decided to go to Kilmarnock, which was just too far away to do all three on public transport. To replace the Friday night game, I got a bit of luck when the BBC picked their Friday night Championship game. As with when I went to Dunfermline a couple of years ago, Cowdenbeath was one of the more classic grounds and one that I was more than happy to visit. Given the high price of accommodation in Glasgow, the Premier Inn was good value at £81 a night, too, relatively speaking. Add to that the train fare from London coming in at under £30, and it was a good deal all round.

From our game at Clithroe, it was a bit of a dash to make our connections. The first bus stop was very well hidden, and we thought that Google Maps had done us dirty. Thankfully, we made it with a couple of minutes to spare, and it was all plain sailing from there. Both buses were superb with USB charging, and the second one, the Witchway, had tables, making typing my blog very easy. There was a 15-minute stop at Burnley, but we had plenty of time for our coach home. It had been a bargain day, getting to Clitheroe, back to Manchester, coach and train home cost just £18. We were back in Manchester at 6.15 and after going to a shop, went to the Wetherspoons. Not an especially good one, but it did the job with pint and wings coming in at around £5.50. Service was decent, and so we had no issues making our coach home. It left bang on time at 7.15, but it was uncomfortable next to a manspreading gorilla, albeit not as bad as the half a seat I had when seated next to a certain infamous hopper from Essex on a Scottish Hop coach some years back. We were back at Finchley Road at 11:20 and had around 25 minutes to wait for the last tube back to Amersham. Once I'd walked back to Colin's and driven home, it was 1.20 am. I sorted my stuff out, glad to be no longer carrying my passport and a bag everywhere I went. I went straight to bed, walking after less than six hours of sleep.

I walked to town and back on my bonus day off, getting some much-needed exercise. It was my normal day off on Tuesday, and so it was another walk to Wycombe and back, this time to get my hair cut. Over 20 miles walked in two days, though nowhere near enough to undo the damage done by another good weekend. In the evening, I went to Amersham Town v Wallingford & Crowmarsh. The hosts had not won for five months and had been beset by lots of weather postponements. I myself had not been further than seven miles from home since 17th December, with my last new ground in midweek coming at Stapleford on December 2nd. Wallingford & Crowmarsh raced into a three-goal lead at halftime and looked excellent. Amersham Town 'won' the second half to restore some pride. Wednesday & Thursday were merely doing a couple of days of work and biding my time for the weekend. I had a poor night's sleep for some reason, waking up a few times before giving up at 4.30. I watched YouTube for a couple of hours before getting up and getting ready. I left home at 7.30. Due to a miscalculation, I arrived at the bus stop at the time I was supposed to leave home after misreading the times on the bus company website. Still, better early than late, and I messaged Colin to let him know I was on my way. The bus took a long route, and so I was at the station at 8.20.

 

A fast Metropolitan train had us ready and waiting in the Barrel Vault Wetherspoons an hour before our train. Breakfast Muffin, Black Pudding, Old Rosie and an energy drink coming in at just over £12. From there, we made our way to Platform 6 for the 10.15 Lumo train. It was quite cramped due to being full, but comfortable all the same. Delays on the route to Stevenage were caused by overrunning engineering works, as you would expect in incompetent Britain. There were further delays up north and news of a precautionary pitch inspection at Greenock at 4 pm. We finally got to Edinburgh at 4.20 and had ten minutes to get to platform 10 for the train to Glasgow, two hours behind schedule. Despite the rampant attention seeker, PuffPuff lying to us that the game was off, it was confirmed as going ahead around 16:40. This was good news at last, not just for us but for Sean & Ollie who were coming up too. There was also a fellow hopper on our train who was going to the game, who knew Daniel by reputation. Due to a fire near Glasgow Central Station, the trains were knackered up there too. At least there was a bus service to get us there, albeit adding more time to the journey. There was further delay as PuffPuff's influence rubbed off on Colin as he stopped at Greggs for a big bag of food. As a result, we just saw our bus pulling off as we got to the stop. Due to traffic, the next one was delayed by 20 minutes, putting us back further. The bus was jam-packed and took a while to get out of Glasgow. For some reason, it was £11.50 single, £7.50 return, with the bus driver selling us the latter, good chap. The express part of the journey went well, with us getting to Greenock at 7. Bags were dumped in the room, and it was straight to the game with us getting there at 7.20. A fridge magnet from the club shop and a kebab pie relieved us of nearly a tenner.

 

Greenock Morton were sat just outside the relegation zone in 8th and were in disappointing form, having won one, drawn one and lost three of their last five. They'd lost their last three, including a 2-0 loss against St Johnstone last week. Partick Thistle were in 2nd and had won two and drawn three of their last five. In their last game, they lost 2-1 at St Mirren in the Scottish Cup Quarter Final. Just 24 miles separated the two teams, the Jags being based in central Glasgow. Former Wycombe striker Alex Samuel started for Partick. Greenock had the better of the game early on. They took the lead on 22 minutes when a low ball into the centre was put away by Callum McPherson from around the penalty spot. Both sides had chances, but Partick equalised on 38 minutes from the penalty spot with Reuben Lopata-White getting sent off for the challenge that led to it. This gave them impetus, and they dominated the second half. Morton looked to have held out, but in the last minute, it was the former Wycombe man Alex Samuel who drove into the bottom right-hand corner from a tight angle. There was still time for the hosts to have a good chance on the break, but the ball was cleared.

THE GROUND

CAPPIELOW PARK is a classic old ground. There is one seated stand, a covered area holding around 2,000. Opposite is a covered terrace with a few seats at the front. This has a capacity of around 3,000, including a few hundred seats. The two ends are uncovered. To the right of the main stand is a terrace holding a couple of thousand, and to the left is the away end. This looks like bench seating but acts as a standing terrace. As with all old grounds, there are compromises. Legroom is poor in the main stand, and there are plenty of supporting pillars. The food was poor, a bad representation of the Doner pie, which was dry and fell apart. Merchandise is from a small trailer, so it's hard to browse and see what's on offer. Cartsdyke train station is nearby, with Greenock town centre a half-hour walk away. This has a Wetherspoons, which is a pleasant place for a pint.

Clitheroe - Shawbridge

Clitheroe FC

The Loom Loft Stadium

Shawbridge

Pendle Road

Clitheroe

Lancashire

BB7 1LZ

07788 662294

Official Website

Twitter

Blackburn Rovers WFC Twitter

Ground Number: 1523

Sunday 8th March 2026

Blackburn Rovers WFC 1-3 Leeds United WFC

WNL Division 1 North

CLITHEROE FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

Despite two previous clubs existing in the town, this version of the club was established in 1924. They joined the North East Lancashire Combination for a year before moving on to the Lancashire Combination. An early high point was in 1938 when they finished as runners-up behind South Liverpool. After years of struggle, they were relegated to the second tier in 1952. It would take until 1958 for them to win promotion back as they finished as runners-up behind Oldham Athletic Reserves, but they were relegated back before winning the Division 2 title in 1960. They remained in the top tier for many years after this, even winning the league overall in 1980. In 1982, the league was merged with the Cheshire League to form the North West Counties League. Clitheroe were placed in Division 3, which they won in 1984, followed by the Division 2 title a year later. They remained in Division 1 for nearly two decades, finishing as runners-up twice before winning the title in 2004. This earned them promotion to the NPL Division 1. They have remained there ever since; in latter years, the division has been regionalised. Their best finish came in 2023, where they finished 4th before losing out to Workington in the playoff semi-finals.

The best run in the FA Cup has been to the 3rd Qualifying Round, which has been achieved on four occasions. In 1996, they played at Wembley Stadium in the final of the FA Vase. Some 7,500 people watched the game against Brigg Town, and although Clitheroe won against them earlier in the season in the FA Cup, they were beaten 3–0 in the Vase Final. A public appeal to help with the visit to Wembley saw £7,400 donated by townspeople and businesses. A notable FA Trophy run came this season, and several higher division sides were giant-killed, most notably York City. This game produced their record attendance of 2,071. Their run eventually came to an end in the 4th Round as they were beaten 3-1 at Scunthorpe United. Local cup wins include the Lancashire FA Challenge Trophy in 1985 and the North West Counties Floodlit Trophy in 1999. The club's record transfer sale is Carlo Nash, who netted them £45,000 when the goalkeeper moved to Crystal Palace in 1996.

Clitheroe is a town in the Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire; it is located 34 miles north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for tourists visiting the area. In 2018, the Clitheroe built-up area had an estimated population of 16,279. The town was listed in the 2017 The Sunday Times report on the best places to live in Northern England, while the wider Ribble Valley, of which Clitheroe is the most populous settlement, was listed in the 2018 and 2024 Sunday Times reports on the best places to live. Clitheroe and the wider Ribble Valley have also been listed as the healthiest and happiest place to live in the United Kingdom. The town's most notable building is Clitheroe Castle, which is one of the smallest Norman keeps in Great Britain. The castle's most prominent feature is the hole in its side, which was made in 1649 as was ordered by the government. Clitheroe is twinned with Rivesaltes, a small town in France.

BLACKBURN ROVERS WFC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 1991. They play in the FA Women's National League Division One North, the fourth tier of English women's football. The club spent five seasons in the FA Women's Premier League National Division, the highest level of the women's game in England before the formation of the Women's Super League in 2011, from 2006 until their relegation at the end of the 2010–11 season. They declined to submit an application to become an inaugural member of the Women's Super League due to their reluctance to split the team from the men's. It was announced on 20 May 2025, after finishing tenth in the 2024–25 Women's Championship, one spot away from relegation to the FA Women's National League, that Blackburn had withdrawn from the Women's Championship, because the club owner was unwilling to meet the league's requirements on facilities, player welfare and staffing. On 4 June 2025, the club announced that The FA had decided that Blackburn would play in the FA Women’s National League Division One North for the 2025–26 season, dropping from the second to the fourth tier of English football.

MY VISIT

Originally, on this day, I had Blackburn Rovers Women pencilled in. It was a cracking ground and seemed ironic that I was watching women's football in a town that is literally called clit hero. At least to my puerile mind anyway. However, what was not so amusing was Northern Railway's famously hopeless Sunday service. When it did run, the service was only scheduled to depart every two hours, which would mean placing my faith in the buses. If something went wrong, then I risked missing my coach home, so although I was keen to visit, a list of alternatives was drawn up, but these were little better logistically, aside from revisits to Bury & Hyde. The latter appealed more, and not fancying a tricky and sober bus journey, my mind was set on a Hyde revisit. The 12:30 kickoff was a strange one and muddied the waters. I later found that their U21 team had a 10:30 kickoff, so they were obviously making good use of the pitch. But then, in the morning, I took a look and found that the public transport was equally crap wherever we went, so we might as well get a new tick. There was also the excellent-looking Bowlands Beer Hall, which really swung it.

 

From a few pints at Spoons in Lytham, we headed to Tesco Express for both hard and soft drinks. Then a bus to our hotel with a friendly Jimmy Bullard lookalike. He loved our hopping stories. Colin had lost his power bank and borrowed mine. Due to inebriation, I cannot be sure what happened, but in any case, I no longer had a power bank when I reached the hotel. I was thinking of an upgrade anyway, so I ordered a new one on Amazon along with Energy Drinks to get free delivery. From then, I drank my cider and climbed into bed. It had been a boozy old weekend once again, so I was thinking that I'd be more sensible on Sunday. Colin woke me up on Sunday at 6 am, turning all the lights on. It was only an hour before my alarm, so it wasn't too bad. We still hadn't decided what game we were going to do at that point. Even Kendal Town Women was considered. It was very good transport-wise, but no one had bothered advertising the game on Twitter. I fint it staggering that clubs can't be arsed to spend ten seconds updating people, as it's free advertising after all. It was a shame as it was a cracker of a town and ground, but I suppose Groundhop UK might do it one day, being that they control both the North West Counties and Northern League hops. The plan was to go into Preston as Colin needed some bits and then get a single bus to Clitheroe. It was a bit early to get there, but it was better than faffing about with multiple buses.

We left the room at 9.10 to get the bus to Preston as Colin wanted to go to a shop. It was perfectly on time, and so we had a bit of time to wait before the shops opened. So naturally, we headed to Wetherspoons for a breakfast muffin and Cranberry juice. No pint for me as I'd had tons the previous two days and was going to indulge later. The bus was on time, but as the shops didn't open until 11, his shopping had to wait. Both bus rides were £1, a bargain but on rickety old buses. We were in Clitheroe at 11.30. We walked up to the castle, which was very pleasant and popular with dog walkers. The keep was all covered up with polythene, which was a shame as it was the highest point. We still managed to get a picture of the ground, though, albeit obscured by trees. We then walked down to the Bowlands Brewery for lunch. First up was a pint of Cockeyed Bushpig cider, a retry but very nice. Second was a Kasteel Tropical, which was new for me and excellent. For food, I had a slow-roast beef baguette, and this was also great. It had been a most enjoyable pre-match. It was a ten-minute walk to the ground, where I paid £5 to get in and £4.50 for a pint of Strongbow Dark Fruits in a branded club cup.

 

Leeds United were 2nd in the table, whilst Blackburn were rock bottom and having a tough season. Blackburn were playing in a rather nice yellow kit, probably because both of Leeds' kits would have clashed with Blackburn's blue and white halves. Leeds were dominant in the first 20, but Blackburn dug in and defended well. On 23 minutes, Blackburn had their first attack and took the goal well, Ellie Rice striking the ball low into the bottom corner. Leeds continued to dominate, but Blackburn defended well. Leeds finally equalised on 67 minutes, a good header from the left and a header from Woodruff. Leeds got two late goals, firstly a penalty from Smith, then a cross from the left was bundled home by Woodruff for her brace, both in injury time.

 

THE GROUND

SHAWBRIDGE is an excellent small ground full of character. The main stand holds around 200 seated, whilst there is extensive cover for around 1000. There was no hot food to my knowledge when I went, but the bar was good. The club shop also stocked a reasonable range. The quaint town is a short walk away and includes plenty of options. The Bowlands Brewery is especially excellent, with 40 draft beers and ciders and many more in bottles. It's a very hilly place, and the pitch has a noticeable slope to it, adding to the character.