MORTON defender Cammy Ballantyne has warned of the threat a buoyed Airdrieonians will pose when they come to Cappielow this weekend.

The ex-Diamonds man is looking to make it two wins out of three against his former employers as they make the trip to Inverclyde this weekend.

But he insists they'll be a different animal to the one the Ton faced earlier on in the season with key players returning from injury.

Ballantyne warned of the threat that Airdrie will pose (Image: Gary Bradley)

He feels the side's position at the bottom of the Championship belies their true quality and believes the North Lanarkshire side will be confident they can beat the drop.

Ballantyne has no illusions about the fact that the Ton will need to be at their best to get all three points.

He told the Tele: "I know they're positioned at the bottom of the table, but they've got a lot of good players.

"Airdrie had a lot of players out injured in the first half of the season as well. Obviously, every team's had injuries, but they had quite a lot to really important players.

"They were never going to be down there forever. They've won their last two in the league and despite their result at Dundee, they'll be full of confidence.

"It's the same way every club has had it at various points of the season. Every team has injuries.

"When they've got their full squad, or their main 11 fit, then they'll feel that they can challenge with anyone."

Ton will be looking to avenge their earlier draw in Airdrie (Image: Gary Bradley)

No side has been left unscathed by injuries in Scotland's second tier this season, with Morton having their own struggles.

Despite having to send droves of players to the treatment table this season, Dougie Imrie's side have been able to come up with some important results during these difficult periods.

Ballantyne has indicated that the return of players from injury gave Morton a welcome boost and believes this weekend's opponents will be similarly emboldened.

He added: "We had a lot of bad injuries in that second quarter of the season, and we still managed to get through that period, getting results here and there.

"Now the boys are all back fit and we can obviously show what we're really capable of. Airdrie will be thinking the exact same.

"They'll be thinking they can go on a run and avoid relegation. So we'll need to make sure we're at it as well if we want to get what could be a huge three points.