MORTON 1 (Telfer 35) AYR UNITED 5 (Shankland 19, 75, Moore 73, 81, McDaid 89)
UNITED consolidated their position at the top of the Championship as doubles from goal-machine Lawrence Shankland and Craig Moore along with a Declan McDaid strike routed Morton.
Delighted Ayr boss Ian McCall declared: “In the last half-hour we were irresistible and we looked like we would score every time we went up the park.
“We felt we were in control in the first half-hour and deserved to be in the lead until we made a bad error. They had their best spell after that but we came back strongly. Lawrence had five chances and scored twice which is unusual as he normally scores five from five.
“It was a good day for us and a great win.”
In a frantic opening Ayr had the better chances and the pressure paid when Shankland swept the Honest Men into the lead from six yards after Michael Rose had headed a McDaid corner back across goal.
Morton levelled with their first effort on target when Charlie Telfer robbed a dithering Crawford inside the box and sent a low shot arrowing into the far corner.
The Greenock side were presented with a great opportunity to take on the restart when Gary Oliver was sent tumbling by Ross Doohan but the Ayr keeper made amends by saving Michael Tidser’s weakly hit penalty.
It proved a costly miss as Ayr reclaimed the lead when a cross from substitute Craig McGuffie was deflected high into the air and when it fell fellow replacement Craig Moore prodded home.
Within a minute Moore cut the ball back for Shankland who gleefully notched his seventeenth goal of the season.
As the visitors ran riot Moore rifled home the fourth from the edge of the box before McDaid slammed home a rebound to complete the scoring.
Jonatan Johansson reacted to his first defeat as Ton boss by saying: “I thought until they scored their second we were playing the best football we have since I came here.
“However, the way we capitulated was unacceptable.”
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