U18s: St Johnstone 0-3 Greenock Morton

Our under-18s went down 3-0 against Greenock Morton in the Club Academy Scotland Performance League on Friday night.

It was a top-of-the-table battle on the McDiarmid Park astro, with the young team looking to close the gap on the visitors.

We carved out the first real chance of the game when Arran Brookfield found himself in a promising position but his strike edged the wrong side of the post.

Morton started to stamp their authority on the game and took the lead with a looping header which nestled in the far corner.

Murray Binnie attempted to hit back shortly after but, after drifting in from the left flank, had his shot saved by the well-positioned goalkeeper.

We went on the hunt for a route back into the game at the start of the second half when Brodie Dair worked his way to the byline before cutting the ball back. There were no takers on this occasion.

Morton added a second following a corner kick just after the hour mark before wrapping up the victory in the 90th minute.

Saints starting team: Thomson, Brookfield, Carling, Hamill, Shiels, Miller, Muir, Cord, Fleming, Binnie and Dair.