Scottish League One: Three things we learned as Dunfermline go six points clear
Sparks were flying on Guy Fawkes Night in another weekend of action in the third tier…
Wighton proves to be the difference as Pars extend lead at the summit
Falkirk 0-1 Dunfermline Athletic
Craig Wighton’s 60th minute header is all that could separate the two teams as Dunfermline were the victors at The Falkirk Stadium.
The win for James McPake’s men sees them increase their tally at the top of the table to six points. For the Bairns, they remain in third, albeit only a point in front of fifth-place Alloa. The defeat has potentially marked an early dent in the home side’s promotion hopes with the league leaders looking unlikely to suffer a major drop in form anytime soon.
Next week, second meets third as Falkirk welcome Edinburgh while Dunfermline are back on home soil against Clyde.
Falkirk manager, John McGlynn said: “We didn’t defend our box, they [Dunfermline] defended their box, they scored a goal. You can’t give yourself a chance to win a league and not defend a simple corner-kick, it’s not rocket science. The difference between the two teams is they didn’t need to carve us open and we didn’t produce that quality to break them down.”
Dunfermline Athletic manager, James McPake said: “We showed discipline and were so tactically aware of what we had to do. You need the players to buy into the gameplan and they carried it out. John McGlynn’s side are a good team and we had to be compact. I can’t single any of them out.”
Queen’s hit three past Edinburgh to close the gap on the top four
Edinburgh 0-3 Queen of the South
Goals from Lewis Gibson, Ruari Paton and Lee Connelly sealed all three points for Queen’s as they eased to a comfortable victory over Edinburgh at Meadowbank.
Both teams were set to go down the tunnel at a stalemate at the break, however, Gibson struck in the first minute of added time to give the visitors a slender lead. The Doonhamers doubled their advantage through Paton in the 53rd minute, before Connelly put the icing on the cake with eight minutes of normal time remaining.
Despite remaining in seventh place, victory for the Dumfries club means they have closed the gap on fourth-place Montrose to five points. This is amid a slight upturn in form, where they have only lost two of their last nine matches in all competitions. Meanwhile, the Citizens suffered their first home defeat since August as they surrendered more ground on top-spot.
Next up for the capital side is a short trip to face Falkirk, where anything other than a win could see them drop out of the top two places for the first time since September. On the same day, Queen’s are also on the road as they visit Alloa in Clackmannanshire.
Jamieson gives Diamonds the edge over Clyde in Lanarkshire derby
Clyde 0-1 Airdrieonians
A 78th minute strike from Lewis Jamieson secured the win for Airdrie as they heaped more misery on winless Clyde at New Douglas Park.
The decisive moment in the game came when the Diamonds were awarded a penalty after Jamieson was fouled in the box. The on-loan St. Mirren youngster’s spot-kick was initially saved, however, he tapped in the rebound, which ultimately secured victory.
It is the first time the Lanarkshire side have achieved back-to-back wins since August. The sixth-place visitors are now three points behind the promotion play-off places as they seek a return to their early season form.
However, second-bottom Clyde, who officially confirmed Danny Lennon’s departure on Halloween, are on a 11-game losing streak and are seven matches away from equalling their worst-ever record in 1899.
The situation couldn’t look bleaker for the Bully Wee as they visit high-flying Dunfermline next Saturday, while Airdrie welcome rock-bottom Peterhead to the Excelsior Stadium.
Airdrieonians player-manager, Rhys McCabe said: “In terms of the game itself, it wasn’t pleasing on the eye. Like I said, before the game, it was important to build on that Montrose win and make sure that result was worthwhile. We were patient and knew it might take 70-80 minutes to cut them [Clyde] open, which proved to be the case.”
Results:
Kelty Hearts 1-1 Alloa Athletic
Montrose 3-0 Peterhead
Scottish League One Table: As It Stands