Competing in a division with less resources than the majority of the other sides in the league is a shared experience for Jim Duffy and Stevie Aitken.

Perhaps that’s why there is a mutual appreciation between the bosses of Morton and Dumbarton, with both singing the praises of the other in the lead-up to today’s clash between the sides.

With just three points separating the teams in the congested middle section of the table, the fixture could go a long way to shaping the seasons of both clubs.

According to Morton manager Duffy, that will make for a close encounter at Cappielow this afternoon.

“It will be extremely tight again, there’s no doubt about it,” he said.

“I’m a real big admirer of Stevie Aitken, I think he did a fantastic job at Stranraer and he’s doing it again with Dumbarton.

“He’s had a bit of movement in January with Willie Gibson going back to Stranraer and Scott Brown going back to St Johnstone, but he’s brought in Christian Nade and Tom Walsh, so he’s recruited really well right from the start of the season.

“I don’t think there will be too much in it, it might just come down to who gets the breaks on the day or who is sharper on the day, but it will certainly be close again.

“It’s really difficult to win one game in this division, never mind a succession of them, because the teams are all so evenly matched.

“You’ve got to appreciate how difficult a league it is and how evenly contested it is. There’s very little between the vast majority of the teams and it’s probably the most competitive league in the country.

“You can never switch off, you can’t relax for a minute.”

Duffy’s point was exemplified by bottom-side Alloa fighting back from two goals down to claim a point against Morton on Tuesday night.

Despite that disappointment, Duffy says that it will be out of their system in time for today’s clash.

He said: “I’m relatively calm and I don’t let things fester too long, that’s football and you just have to look at Hearts losing a two-goal lead to Hibs on Saturday to see that these things happen.

“It’s not unique to Morton, it happens to top, top clubs.

“It’s not as if we were being cut open, but at the same time it’s disappointing to only come away with a draw from that position.

“Alloa played the ball forward a little bit more and picked up the second balls a bit more, keeping us on the back-foot without troubling our goalkeeper too often.

“They kept the game in their attacking third and it was hard for us to get a foothold in the second half after dominating the first.

“The opposition impacted the game though and you can’t always play your way, you’ve got to adapt.

“If I was being critical now then I’d say we have to adapt better to the opposition. We were playing a certain way and doing it well, but when the opposition started to have an impact in the game we were too slow to react to it and Alloa’s changes.

“We were 2-0 up and we threw two points away, there’s no disguising that, but football is all about perspective.

“You can draw 2-2 at Ibrox and get all the plaudits, or you can draw 2-2 at Alloa and get all the criticism – you still get a point away from home just the same. But we understand that it will be looked at differently.”