A Masonic token marked Lodge Crawfordsburn Greenock No. 1121. Source. The average salary in the Championship is £600 a week. Source.
Morton host Dundee United.
The Tangerines are top of the division with 31 points and a +27 goal difference. They have allowed only 6 goals, though one of them was to Morton. Last weekend they were knocked out of the Scottish Cup by Queen of the South.
Morton have completed a third of their 2023-24 league matches, have accumulated only 8 points, and are adrift at the bottom of the Championship. If they continue to play to form they will end the season with 24 points (worse that 2013-14) and a -30 goal difference (worse than 2000-01). Both those seasons ended in relegation.
2000-01 36 9 8 19 34 61 -27 35 9/10 First Division
2013-14 36 6 8 22 32 71 -49 26 10/10 Championship
Last season Hamilton had 10 points after 12 games and they went on to be relegated. Fewer than one quarter of the Championship sides that were in last place on December 1st went on to avoid the drop. (See below.)
There's talk that free agent Josh McPake is on trial with Morton. He made ten appearances with the club in 2020-21.
[But the pitch is frozen and the match is postponed.]
The other Championship matches:
Dunfermline 3 - 0 Arbroath (November 28)*
*A Plenty of Nothing Championship League Cup Round One match.
Ayr United (6th) vs Arbroath (9th) (postponed)
Dick Campbell resigned following last weekend's cup loss to The Spartans, making Dougie Imrie the senior manager in the Championship and eighth in the SPFL overall, and he still hasn't spent two years in the job.
Dunfermline (4th) vs Queen's Park (8th) [postponed]
Inverness CT (7th) [1 - 2] Raith Rovers (2nd)
Partick Thistle (3rd) [2 - 1] Airdrieonians (5th)
Other matches:
Banks o' Dee [4 - 1] Strathspey Thistle
Albion Rovers vs Linlithgow Rose [postponed]
Largs Thistle vs Gartcairn (postponed)
Peebles Rovers vs Edinburgh United [postponed]
Eglinton vs Carluke Rovers [postponed]
FC Isle of Man [1 - 3] Squires Gate
Haverfordwest County 1 - 1 Cardiff Metropolitan University (November 28)
Cardiff Metropolitan University [4 - 2] Aberystwyth
Carrick Rangers [2 - 2] Loughgall
Scottish Junior Cup, round 4:
Benburb vs Arthurlie [postponed]
Darvel vs Larkhall Thistle [postponed]
Hurlford United vs Caledonian Locomotives [postponed]
Johnstone Burgh vs Dundee Downfield [postponed]
Largs Thistle [2 - 2] Lochee United [Lochee win on PK]
Rothie Rovers vs Bellshill Athletic [postponed]
Stonehaven vs St Cadoc's [postponed]
Vale of Leven vs Auchinleck Talbot [postponed]
2023-24 UEFA Champions League group stage, matchday 5 (November 28):
Lazio 2 - 0 Celtic
2023-24 UEFA Europa League group stage, matchday 5 (November 30):
Rangers 1 - 1 Aris Limassol
2023-24 UEFA Conference group stage, matchday 5 (November 30):
HJK 2 - 2 Aberdeen
2023-24 AFC Champions League group stage, matchday 5 (November 28 - 29):
Group G: Incheon United 2 - 1 Yokohama F. Marinos
Group H: Ventforet Kofu 3 - 3 Melbourne City
Group I: Kawasaki Frontale 5 - 0 Johor Darul Ta'zim
Group J: Urawa Red Diamonds 2 - 1 Wuhan Three Towns
45th Empress's Cup, Round 3:
Match No. 21: Orca Kamogawa (N1) [2 - 3] Fujieda Junshin High School (Tokai)
Match No. 22: Osaka University of Physical Education (Kansai) [0 - 2] Ehime FC Ladies (N1)
Match No. 23: Viamaterrasu Mitazaki (N2) [1 - 0] Toyo University (Kanto)
Match No. 24: AS Harima Albion (N1) [3 - 0] Speranza Osaka (N1)
Match No. 25: Iga FC Kunoichi Mie (N1) [2 - 0] Fukuoka J Anclas (N2)
Match No. 26: Nittaidai SMG Yokohama (N1) [2 - 1] Teikyo Heisei University (Kanto)
Match No. 27: Sfida Setagaya (N1) [1 - 0] Tokyo Verdy Menina (Kanto)
Match No. 28: Yokohama FC Seagulls (N1) [2 - 1] Yamato Sylphid (N1)
Matches 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28 are tomorrow.
J1 promotion playoff final:
Tokyo Verdy [1 - 1] Shimizu S-Pulse
[Somehow Verdy only needed a draw to earn promotion.] [Japanese Wikipedia Tokyo Verdy article: "Due to the regulation that the top ranked teams in J2 will be promoted, it has been decided that they will be promoted to J1 next season." It would have taken ten minutes to do penalty kicks.]
JFL promotion playoff (tomorrow):
Okinawa SV [2 - 1] Vonds Ichihara
Canadian Premier League:
York United has been bought by a Mexican consortium.
Pacific FC has released former HFX Wanderers goalkeeper Keiran Baskett.
The proposed A League second division is due to start in 2025, with eight teams confirmed so far: APIA Leichhardt, Marconi Stallions, Sydney Olympic, Sydney United, South Melbourne, our guys Preston Lions, Wollongong Wolves and Avondale FC. These are mostly diaspora clubs, which in the past the powers that be have tended to view as potential trouble, but it was an A League fixture that provided a big riot last December.
A while back I said that former HFX Wanderer Iida Kodai had signed with Sheikh Russel KC of the Bangladesh Premier League. Their season runs from December to July, but there have been some preseason games already:
2023/10/20 Sheikh Jamal 1 - 0 Sheikh Russel friendly
2023/10/27 Sheikh Russel 0 - 0 Rahmatganj MFS Independence Cup group stage
2023/10/30 Bangladesh Air Force 0 - 1 Sheikh Russel Independence Cup group stage
2023/11/4 Abhani Limited Dhaka 2 - 0 Sheikh Russel Independence Cup group stage
Sheikh Russel KC is named after the youngest son of the first President of Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Practically the whole family was killed in the military coup of 1975. There's a Canadian angle.
Last on December 1st, but avoided relegation:
2018-19 Partick Thistle
2016-17 St Mirren
2014-15 Livingston
2012-13 Dumbarton
2010-11 Dundee
2008-09 Airdrie United
2000-01 Airdrieonians
Historical matches:
1882/12/2 Morton 2 - 2 Thornliebank (Renfrewshire Cup R2)
1944/12/2 Hibs 0 - 1 Morton
1967/12/2 Hibs 0 - 1 Morton
1995/12/2 Morton 3 - 0 Clydebank
Goals by Marko Rajamaki (2) and Derek Lilley.
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