Queen's Park face a key trip to Cappielow Park this Saturday to take on Greenock Morton in the Scottish Championship. The match pits the ninth-placed Spiders against the league's bottom side in a contest with significant early-season consequences for the relegation battle.
Recent form
Queen's Park arrive with momentum from their first victory of the campaign, a 2-1 home win over Inverness Caledonian Thistle last Friday. Connolly scored both goals, finding the net in the 18th and 41st minutes to overturn an early deficit. That result snapped a run of four consecutive defeats, a sequence that included losses to Raith Rovers, Arbroath, Ayr United and Dunfermline. Their recent form reads one win and four losses from their last five outings.
Morton, meanwhile, also secured a much-needed 2-1 victory away to Arbroath in their most recent fixture, which was their first league win of the season. Prior to that, they had suffered four straight defeats. The Ton currently sit in tenth place with four points, three points behind Queen's Park who have seven. The team that finishes ninth enters the relegation play-off, while tenth place means automatic demotion.
Head-to-head and team news
The sides have already met once this season, with Queen's Park securing a 2-1 victory at home on September 5th. Historically, matches between these clubs have been close, with the Spiders also winning a five-goal thriller 3-2 last February.
Queen's Park are expected to field a similar side to the one that beat Inverness. Their 4-2-3-1 formation last time out featured Mitchell in goal behind a back four of Zach Mauchin, Pignatiello, Lamie and Shiels. The midfield duo of Longridge and Ben Brannan supported an attacking line of Connolly, McCallion and Stewart, with Ruth leading the line.
Morton's last starting eleven included Ballantyne in goal, with a defence of Borso, Wilson, Sandilands and Robertson. Their midfield and attack featured Okike, Longridge, Harrison, Cupps, Garrity and Gillespie.
The wider picture
With only six games played, the Championship table remains tightly packed. Queen's Park's seven points from six matches leaves them just above the drop zone, and a win in Greenock could provide key breathing space. The Spiders' next assignment after this is another away trip, with their full fixtures list showing a busy schedule ahead.
Kick-off at Cappielow is set for 3pm on Saturday, October 17th.
