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Morrison still has Albion Cup dream

James Morrison was a cup specialist with Middlesbrough.

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But the Albion midfielder admits time is running out to claim knockout glory with the Baggies.

As a Boro player, Morrison won the FA Youth Cup in 2004 after reaching the final a year earlier, and then helped his hometown club to the UEFA Cup final in 2006.

Yet with Albion, the 2008 FA Cup semi-final at Wembley was the closest he came to adding another final to his CV.

The 28-year-old is waiting to find out whether he will be involved tonight when Alan Irvine's men take on Hull in the third round of the Capital One Cup, and could be on the bench in a much-changed line-up.

But he insists he is keen for an extended run in the competition.

"Personally I would love a cup run," said Morrison "In recent years we've been terrible in the cups.

"The last run we had was when we got to Wembley and what a great day it was, when we had a chance of getting to a final.

"Time is running out for me so I'm well up for the cup but we've got a squad to compete now.

James Morrison in action for Scotland

"If you look at the bench there are a few starters on that bench so it will be up to the manager how he uses them.

"We did well in the cups at Middlesbrough and that's why I would love a cup run here.

"I was part of quite a few good cup runs and when you look back on your career they are the highlights.

"I don't know whether I'll play. It's hard these days to play three games in a week against Premier League opponents and we've got a big squad so we need to use everybody."

The Baggies will head into the Tigers clash on the back of their first Premier League win of the season at Tottenham on Sunday, and Morrison, whose header won the match, believes that success will help their chances of beating Steve Bruce's side.

"We will have more confidence after that but Hull are flying at the moment," said Morrison, who scored the winning goal on 74 minutes when he headed home a Chris Brunt corner.

"They have had some good performances and signed some good players so it will be a tough game.

"But after Sunday we should be full of confidence. It was a big win.

"There's been a lot of pressure on us and that performance just shows what West Brom are about and we're delighted with the win.

"I think we had to prove a point. We don't mean to play badly and last week's effort in training was really good and we took it into the game.

"I think I score a few headers. I think I'm alright in the air.

"I was just a blocker for Joleon Lescott. The plan was for him to spin away and me to find space and that's how it worked. I think everyone has had some stick this season. There was massive relief on Sunday but that's what we're capable of.

"Once we get our team settled and everyone is working we can do things like that.

"We've got to move on from this now, keep moving up the table and get everyone fit and we'll be alright."

Morrison was full of praise for the contribution of centre-back Lescott, who played a starring role on his long-awaited Albion debut.

And, with a host of former first-team regulars on the bench at White Hart Lane, Morrison hopes the win against Spurs is the prelude to some improved results for Irvine's men.

"It was a really good debut by Joleon," he said. "You can see his class and hopefully we can keep him on the pitch and if we can we will be fine this season."

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