Meet the fans fighting to save 150-year-old football club from extinction

Football fans are rallying alongside the local community in Inverclyde to save the town’s football club after more than 150 years.

Greenock Morton has been an integral part of the community since its founding in 1874, but it is facing increasing financial pressure.

Last month, it launched what it called a ‘fighting fund’ as part of a supporter-led initiative to protect the club’s future.

On Friday, the club said that through the fund, season-ticket sales, player sponsorships, and commercial sponsorships, supporters and businesses have contributed almost £50,000 in additional income.

Mark Kelly, general manager at the club STV News

However, chiefs warned the club needs to replace £335,000 owed by its main sponsor, Dalrada Technology.

Morton claims the manufacturing firm, with a base in Livingston, made no payments in August.

A Morton spokesperson said: “We believe the club has sufficient resources through to the new year with liquidity and no debt, thanks to the Fighting Fund and other avenues being explored. The Fighting Fund remains a critical avenue for us while we explore all options.

“Alongside these measures, the club continues to focus on generating every possible pound of additional income while identifying opportunities to reduce costs wherever sensible and practical to do so.

“It is also clear that Greenock Morton requires external investment if we are to create long-term financial security. We recognise that this is not a challenge that can be solved through fundraising alone and that a sustainable long-term solution is required.”

They added: “The situation facing Greenock Morton is serious, but it is not hopeless. The support shown over the last couple of weeks has already made a meaningful difference and has bought valuable time. There remains a significant amount of work ahead, but everyone involved is fully committed to protecting the future of this football club.

“Greenock Morton has consistently sought to operate within its means, maintain a debt-free model and align football ambition with income available. The challenge we face today is not the result of underlying financial weakness, but rather the loss of a significant income stream that had formed part of the club’s expected budget.

“While that presents a serious challenge, the underlying business remains stable if we can navigate this cashflow issue. We are also ensuring that we take the necessary independent professional advice to ensure we are fully informed for all important decisions that are being made and will be made.”

Dalrada Technology was contacted for comment.

What changes has the club been through?

It comes nearly five years after Morton Club Together, a fan membership organisation, took majority control of the Cappielow club, making it community-owned.

Morton has had its fair share of financial ups and downs over the years, including when former chairman Douglas Rae stepped in to save the club in 2001.

The Rae family, who also owned local business Golden Casket, which produces the Millions sweets, had been an integral part of the Scottish Championships side for more than two decades.

Douglas Rae died aged 87 in 2018, and his son Crawford took control of the club before the family gifted Morton Club Together its majority shareholding.

It meant that the 11,000-seater Cappielow Park remained in the football club’s hands, and that debts were cleared.

On the pitch, Morton have been in the Scottish Championship since 2007, barring one relegation to League One in 2014 before immediately bouncing back.

Mark Kelly, general manager at the club, told STV News: “For a place like Inverclyde, I can’t even fathom what it would be like not to have Morton here.

“It’s been here for over 150 years..I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like not having Morton about.”

David Whitton, director of the club and Morton Club Together, said: “A lot of clubs at our level do have tight finances.

“We were slightly behind on season tickets, and there were other costs we didn’t anticipate, and then when you add the sponsor delays, it got to the point that if we waited any longer, it would’ve been too late.”

He stated the club remains debt-free.

Fans ‘don’t think the club will see Christmas’

Some on the terraces said they don’t think the club will survive beyond Christmas, while others are hopeful they will pull through again.

Line of Duty star Martin Compston, who was born in Greenock, also threw his support behind the fund.

Loyal supporters say this season may be “written off” and fear relegation on the pitch, with Morton winless in their first five league games.

One said: “I feel personally we might not make it to Christmas, never mind the end of the season.

“There aren’t enough people coming to the games.”

Morton fans fighting to save the club STV News

Another said: “At the moment, there’s no way we can sustain full-time football, unfortunately.

“Morton is the community’s football team, and for me it’s really frustrating that the vast majority are leaving here to go and watch teams in Glasgow.”

Another said: “You always worry about your local team, but we’ve been through this before. We’ll pull through this, we always do.”

Insight Brandon Cook STV News Reporter

The catchy 1960s tune which plays as you leave another matchday says ‘We are the Morton of Cappielow, we are the pride of Greenock town’ – it’s accompanied now by an in-house mural at the famous Cowshed Stand, declaring Morton the ‘Pride of Inverclyde’.

It’s true, though, the club is a pillar of a town whose deep-rooted work across Inverclyde extends far beyond football. From club academy and women teams, to projects across the area like Morton memories, which helps those living with dementia.

Sadly, all too often, it takes doomsday scenarios – like a threat of impending closure – before many really reflect on it. They even let me sell programmes as a boy, volunteering around the ground on matchdays – former manager Jim Duffy was my first ‘official’ media interview before university.

Morton’s fighting fund response shows what the club means to supporters. I’m told fans from clubs across Scotland have also donated.

But this welcome plug will only stop the flood for so long – the club told me their financially struggling sponsor will come good on their season-long deal. But in the shadow of the Titan crane, which built a generation of ships during Greenock’s industrial boom, those inside Cappielow need nerves of steel.

An appetite for sustainable income alongside its loyal fan ownership model is there; we know talks involving a local cabal of business people continue. Will that bear fruit? Whatever happens, the opportunity must suit the club, fans and investors. Not a quick process.

But for those, like me, with fond memories of Cappielow’s terraces, securing the future in a sustainable way can’t come quickly enough.

For more information on Morton’s Fighting Fund, visit here.