Callumn Morrison on banishing hat-trick demons, going for the SPFL golden boot and his Falkirk journey so far

Callumn Morrison says it was “worth the wait” to finally bag his first senior career hat-trick as he surged to the top of the SPFL’s goalscoring charts after netting all four of Falkirk’s goals against Edinburgh City.

The ex-Hearts winger, 24, was the main man again for the champions-elect as he took his league tally to 21 for the campaign – with that number seeing him edge in front of the Jambos’ Lawrence Shanklan as the race heats up for the golden boot.

And the hat-trick has been a long time coming for the Alva ace, who has netted doubles for Falkirk five times this season alone.

Speaking to the Falkirk Herald, Morrison recalled missing a penalty for a hat-trick against Albion Rovers in the League Cup two campaigns ago.

"The penalty I missed for a hat-trick was against Albion Rovers two years ago in a cup game. That was a sore one,” he said. "I was saying to the boys I have waited years for a hat-trick, I have missed penalties and everything for a hat-trick. Then I score three then four – it's been worth the wait!

“The third one was a great ball in from Calvin (Miller). I've seen the goal and just had to get my foot through it and hit the target. Thankfully it went in.

"I was going to give the second penalty to give it to Gary (Oliver) but thought to myself I need to try and kick on here.

"I've seen the top goalscorer charts in Scotland and obviously want to be up there. It's great for a winger to score that many goals and I am delighted with it."

Falkirk now know that they seal the third tier title next weekend at Montrose with a victory, although glory might even be sealed pre-match if second-placed Hamilton Accies drop points against Queen of the South.

On the 4-1 win against Edinburgh City, and the final season run-in, Morrison added: “The most important thing was to take care of the game today which we did.

"We were hoping that another result went the other way which it didn't but it's all in our hands to go and win next week and wrap it up.

"When we heard that noise from the crowd [when Cove equalised], a wee bit of a roar, it gave us a bit of a lift and we started to play better football and settled down into the game.

"We are just happy to win the game and it gives us a good stepping stone for next week to wrap it up."

With promotion to the Championship all-but sealed, the winger, who recently penned a new two-year deal despite interest from multiple clubs higher up the food chain, admits it is hard not think about the excitement of next season.

Morrison joined the Bairns back in the summer of 2020 from Hearts and has seen the highs, and many lows, of the the club’s League One journey.

"I have been here four years now,” he said. The first season I signed was the season Partick Thistle went up, it was the year we were nine or ten points clear.

"It was a kick in the teeth because we finished fifth and didn't even get into the play-offs. I've been here through the bad times and now the good times are starting to come.

“It a bit of a relief for everybody now, not just myself but for the fans and the staff. Everyone has put hard work into it and I think everyone deserves it."

"It is a good challenge for us, to get back into the Championship where we belong. If we keep the squad that we have and add a few numbers to it, I think we will be up there.”

One thing that Morrison believes has changed dramatically this campaign is the noise in the Falkirk Stadium on matchdays, and he reckons that the fans’ backing has been a key component to the success on the park.

He highlighted the Ultras 1876 group in the Kevin McAllister Stand for the atmosphere they have brought to home and away fixtures.

"The fans have played a massive part,” he said. “There's the wee Ultra group behind the goal who get the full stadium going. I have said it a few times, but it really gives you that extra 10 per cent that you need, when you need a sometimes need wee kick up the bum.

"It is good to have that behind the goal because it was understandably a wee bit flat the last couple of years and they have brought something different to the stadium and it is a different feeling between us and the fans this year.”