Hamilton FC vs Greenock Morton preview - Neil still missing for Accies

Posted Friday, December 27, 2013 by PA

Hamilton will again be without player-manager Alex Neil against bottom-of-the-table Morton as he requires surgery to fix a stomach muscle problem.

Jonathan Routledge remains sidelined with a knee injury but Michael Devlin should return after completing a full week of training following a knock.

Neil said: "If we want to get back to top spot then we need to start taking our chances at a far better rate than we have been doing.

"We have lost to both Alloa and Dumbarton recently in games where we created lots of openings. Morton will be battling for their new manager but we have to be ruthless."

Recently-appointed Morton boss Kenny Shiels is starting to recast his squad, with Barrie Mackay coming in on loan from Rangers and former Ibrox defender Darren Cole also coming on board.

Shiels released skipper Mark McLaughlin and Nacho Novo earlier this week with the Greenock side also missing the injured Thomas O'Ware (head), Jonathan Page (hamstring), Tony Wallace (groin) and David O'Brien (shoulder).

Shiels said: "It was a disappointing start against Falkirk last weekend. Hopefully we will show improvement against Hamilton, although it will be tough as they are a good side.

"The players are very low on confidence but hopefully we can start turning things around."