The last time Morton played at Tynecastle the park still had terraces*. Source.
Greenock Morton visit Tynecastle Park for a match against Heart of Midlothian. This is Morton's first visit to Hearts' park since March 26th, 1988. Hearts traveled to Cappielow last December 5th and won 0 - 2.
The last Morton player to score against Hearts was John McNeil.
Hearts are top of the Championship, but you couldn't really call them a juggernaut. So far this season they've lost to Dunfermline, Dundee and Raith Rovers in league play, to Alloa in the League Cup, and last weekend QoS held them to a draw.
Morton enter today's match in seventh place, 5 points out of last place. If Morton lose, and Arbroath and ICT win, Morton will drop to ninth place.
Morton have signed Dutch winger Justin Johnson, previously of Hamilton Academical.
With Morton and Hearts now in the same division, which SPFL club owns the longest ongoing streak without a match against Greenock Morton? Trick answer: Cove Rangers. They last played Morton in the Scottish Cup in 2004, but only joined the SPFL in 2019. Otherwise it's Montrose, who last played Morton on August 27th, 2013. Morton could play them both next year by being relegated.
Though if League One are unable to complete 18 games, there might not be relegation.
Tynecastle is the sixth-largest park in the SPFL in terms of seating, after Hampden, Celtic Park, Ibrox, Pittodrie and Easter Road. The pitch is a little narrow by UEFA standards. There is under-soil heating, but that did not prevent the postponement of Hearts' January 12th match against Dunfermline.
Today was to have been Scottish Cup, Round Four day. If the 2020-21 cup is cancelled it'll be the first time since 1909 that a Scottish Cup has been started but not finished.
*Terraces. Traditionally English football supporters lived in terraces and watched the match from terraces. Scottish supporters watched from terraces but lived in tenements.
Right now there are 22 active SPFL clubs. In 1919-20 there were 22 SFL clubs, all in one division. Clubs that were in the 1919-20 SFL that are also in the 2020-21 Premiership/Championship are: Rangers, Celtic, Motherwell, Dundee, Morton, Kilmarnock, Ayr United, St Mirren, Hearts, Aberdeen, Hibs, Raith Rovers and Hamilton Academical.
Rangers could win the Premiership before the split. Has that ever happened before? Yes, in fact it's common:
2000-01 Celtic won the title in game 33 on April 7, 2001.
2003-04 Celtic won the title in game 32 on April 18, 2004.
2005-06 Celtic won the title in game 32 on April 5, 2006.
2013-14 Celtic won the title in game 31 on March 26, 2014.
2016-17 Celtic won the title in game 30 on April 3, 2017.
They're kicking around return to play scenarios in the Highland League. If they can restart in March they may be able to complete their 15-game schedule by playing through May, and by sending last year's champions Brora to represent them if the pyramid playoffs start before the league finishes.
Other Championship matches:
Inverness CT 0 - 1 Queen of the South (February 17)
Arbroath [1 - 0] Raith Rovers
Ayr United [0 - 2] Inverness CT
Dundee [2 - 3] Queen of the South
Dunfermline [2 - 1] Alloa
[Hearts 1 - 1 Morton. Career highlight goal by McGuffie.]
Other matches:
Aberdeen [1 - 0] Kilmarnock
Luxembourg: Progrès Niederkorn 2 - 5 Hesperange (February 17)
Progrès Niederkorn [0 - 0] Hostert (tomorrow)
3.Liga: 1.FC Saarbrücken [2 - 1] TSV 1860
Swiss Cup, Round of 16 (February 17): Winterthur 6 - 2 Basel (upset!)
Swiss Challenge League: Xamax [3 - 1] Winterthur
Japan Super Cup: Kawasaki Frontale [3 - 2] Gamba Osaka
Suomen Cup, group stage: TPS [2 - 2] PK-35 [PK win on PK.]
UCD [2 - 1] Longford Town (friendly) (tomorrow)
Icelandic League Cup: Fylkir 3 - 2 IBV (February 17)
Leiknir [4 - 1] IBV
The Strongest and Wilstermann play back-to-back friendlies today:
Club The Strongest [0 - 1] Jorge Wilstermann (friendly)
Club The Strongest [1 - 0] Jorge Wilstermann (friendly)
Europa League Round of 32, first leg (February 18):
Royal Antwerp 3 - 4 Rangers
The start of the 2021 Concacaf Champions League has been pushed back from February to April, which is good because Toronto FC and Forge still haven't played the 2020 Canadian Championship. The winner will face Club León in the Round of 16.
Postponed matches:
SWF Championship South: Morton vs Renfrew
Lowland League: Bonnyrigg Rose vs Spartans
The Highland League Cup was to have begun this weekend.
When have Dunfermline Athletic, Raith Rovers, East Fife and Cowdenbeath all played in the same division?
1937-38, 1939-40, 1945-46, 1946-47, 1947-48
League matches in which Morton beat the top team in their division, 1910s:
1911/12/2 Morton 2 - 1 Rangers (Division One)
1915/4/10 Morton 2 - 0 Hearts (Division One) (see below)
1918/11/23 Morton 1 - 0 Rangers (Division One)
The ten most recent Scottish Cup matches between teams called United:
2020/12/21 Formartine United 2 - 1 Turriff United
2019/9/21 Turriff United 1 - 5 Formartine United
2017/9/23 Formartine United 2 - 1 Turriff United
2012/1/7 Airdrie United 2 - 6 Dundee United
2008/12/23 Ayr United 3 - 1 Lochee United
2008/12/17 Lochee United 1 - 1 Ayr United
2002/3/5 Ayr United 2 - 0 Dundee United
2002/2/24 Dundee United 2 - 2 Ayr United
1999/3/17 Dundee United 2 - 1 Ayr United
1999/3/13 Ayr United 0 - 0 Dundee United
Historical matches:
Feb 20, 1915. Morton visited Raith Rovers and played to a 1 - 1 draw.
Feb 20, 1993. Morton visited Stirling Albion and won 0 - 2. Lilley and McArthur scored.
SFL Division Three results, February 21, 1925:
Brechin City 4 - 1 Peebles Rovers
Galston 3 - 2 Mid Annandale
Helensburgh 2 - 1 Lochgelly United
Nithsdale Wanderers 6 - 1 Vale of Leven
Queen of the South 3 - 0 Leith Athletic
Source: Glasgow Herald, February 23, 1925, p. 14.
Morton, 2; Heart of Midlothian, 0.
At Cappielow Park, Greenock. Estimated attendance, 10,000. Teams:--Morton--Bradford; Ferrier and Ormond; Wright, Stark and M'Lean; Torrance and Gourlay; McLaughlin; Stevenson and Seymour. Heart of Midlothian--Boyd; Crossan and Currie; Briggs, Scott and Nellies; Low and Wattie; Gracie; Graham and Bryden. Referee--T. Robertson (Glasgow). From the outset Morton played with great dash, and after 20 minutes Stark scored from a free kick. Two minutes from the interval Hearts were awarded a penalty kick, but failed to equalise, Nellies shooting past. Midway through the second period, in which Morton gave the more convincing display, Gracie also failed to convert a penalty kick. Morton in the last minute of the game increased their lead, Seymour scoring from a penalty. Goalscorers:--Morton--Stark and Seymour.
Glasgow Herald, April 12, 1915, p. 13.
This result unseated Hearts from the top position, and with only one match remaining they were unable to regain it. Celtic won the title, Hearts finished second and Morton fourth.
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