Career At Morton
As a teenager Ritchie had trials with Manchester United, Coventry City, Everton, Middlesbrough and Rangers, but chose to join Celtic in 1971, aged 15. Soon after, Ritchie was 'farmed' out to Junior team Kirkintilloch Rob Roy. At Celtic, Ritchie had numerous disagreements with manager Jock Stein, which led to his transfer to Morton. As part of the transfer, Morton goalkeeper Roy Baines joined Celtic in exchange for Ritchie and a payment of £10,000.
Ritchie is most famous for his seven years at Greenock side Morton, during which he scored 118 goals. He was revered by the club's fans and earned the nicknames 'the King of Cappielow Park' and 'The Idle Idol'.
He made his debut for Morton on 28 October 1976 and scored 133 goals in 246 games for the club. He was the top scorer in the Premier League in 1978/79.
Ritchie was famous for what, by the standard of most professional footballers, was a rotund build and apparently blase demeanour. Scottish football journalist Chick Young saw Ritchie as "the epitome of the Scottish footballer - a fat, lazy bastard, but with great ball skill". He was renowned in Scotland for his expertise in free-kicks, reputedly perfected by observing Brazil train for the 1974 World Cup. His signature, demonstrated in more than one competitive match, was the ability to bend the ball into the net from a corner kick. His best and most famous goal was scored against Aberdeen at Cappielow Park.
In a famous incident Ritchie almost broke his leg falling over Greenock Telegraph photographer, Jim Sinclair, after he failed to stop on a long run up the field.
Whilst at Morton, Ritchie won a solitary cap for the Scotland national under-21 football team as an overage player, against Belgium.
Read more about this topic: Andy Ritchie (Scottish Footballer)
Famous quotes containing the words career and/or morton:
“In time your relatives will come to accept the idea that a career is as important to you as your family. Of course, in time the polar ice cap will melt.”
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“Dr. Livingstone, I presume?”
—Sir Henry Morton Stanley (1841–1904)