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Match Report - Stenhousemuir

East Fife made the trip to Ochilview to take on Stenhousemuir for a fifth and final time this season (unless the sides meet in playoffs). Despite playing Stenhousemuir four times already this season, East Fife had yet to win a single one, losing 2-1 twice (once in the cup and once in the league) and drawing 2-2 and 1-1 in the other two meetings. Last weekend, Alan Trouten’s leaping header snatched the three points for the Methil men, as East Fife won 3-2 against Forfar Athletic. 

No changes were made to the starting squad that overcame Forfar last weekend, however Pat Slattery did returned from injury to take a place on the bench. 

The first chance went the way of the visitors when a floating corner from Alex Ferguson was cleared by Jamieson but only as far as Brogan Walls who’s controls the ball and, from distance, forces Lyle into a good save.

On the half hour mark, Stenhousemuir had a good chance to take the lead after a strong spell with the ball. Reilly drove down the right-hand side, before cutting the ball across to Wedderburn who tried his luck from 25-yards, but his attempt sailed over the bar and into the stand behind the goal. 

After a period of good possession for the Warriors, the home side took a deserved lead when poor communication from the back line resulted in Page giving away a cheap corner. The short corner from Forbes finds Matty Yates in the middle of the box who fires home through the legs of Allan Fleming.

Straight after the Warriors took the lead, Shepherd was gifted a chance to quickly level. A combination of Schiavone’s putting pressure on Yeats and a poor headed back pass from Crichton puts Shepherd in through in goal inside the penalty area however he couldn’t get the ball under control and Lyle picks up the pieces 

HALF TIME: Stenhousemuir 1-0 East Fife

East Fife came out at the second half all guns blazing in search for an equaliser. Trouten, in the centre of the park, fed the ball out to Healy on the left side who skips past Blanley into the penalty area before going down under the defender’s challenge, but no penalty kick was awarded. 

A few minutes after the penalty shout East Fife grabbed a deserved equaliser. Good passing play in the middle of the Stenhousemuir half from Schiavone, Walls and Trouten ends with the ball at Healy’s feet. Healy dances down to the by-line and cut the ball back across face of goal where Ferguson tapped the ball into the empty net, pulling the Fifers level. 

In the 65th minute, East Fife had an opportunity to take the lead after some sustained pressure. Schiavone played through to Shepherd, but his first-time shot is well saved by substitute Cantley in the Warrior’s goal. 

With only 9 minutes remaining, East Fife secured a deserved win with an incredibly well worked team goal. A one-two between Denholm and Ferguson saw the ball played out to Schiavone on the wing who’s cross was headed back across goal by Walls into the path of Shepherd to tap home sparking celebrations in the away end.

FULL TIME: Stenhousemuir 1-2 East Fife

An incredible three points for the Fifers, saw them jump up to 4th in the table and only a point behind 3rd placed Annan Athletic. Next up is a trip to bottom of the league Bonnyrigg Rose, however this will be no easy task as the Rose have picked up 7 points out of their last 6 games. 

Stenhousemuir Team: Lyle (Cantley 45’), Blaney (Anderson 87’), Crighton, Jamieson, Yeats (Lowdon 87’), Yates, Miller, Wedderburn, Brown )O’Reilly 68’), Reilly, Forbes (Orr 76’)

East Fife: Fleming, Steele, Page, Denham, Newton, Walls (McManus 85’), Ferguson, Trouten, Healy (Denholm 73’), Schiavone (Omar 90+3’), Shepherd (Young 85’)

Referee: Scott Lambie

Attendance: 474

Report by Andrew Laing

Admission Info v Bonnyrigg Rose

Admission prices for our cinch League Two match against Bonnyrigg Rose on Saturday 18th March at New Dundas Park have been confirmed as follows:

Admission prices

Adults - £14

Concessions - £9

Under 16s - £5

Admission is via pay-at-the-gate. Cash and card payments are available at the away entrance (Gate D).

There is no live stream available for viewers within the UK & Ireland this weekend, however overseas supporters can watch the match via East Fife TV with a monthly or season pass.

The 1903 Travel Club’s bus to Bonnyrigg Rose is currently full. A second bus has been added however there are only 6 seats remaining. The bus will depart Leven at 12:00PM with pick-ups at Methilhill Bowling Club (12:05PM) and the Lomond Centre (12:15PM). The cost of the bus is £12/person. Anyone interested in travelling on the bus should contact Ian Lowson (phone number available on request).

Match Preview - Stenhousemuir

Oli Anderson previews tomorrow’s match against Stenhousemuir.

This weekend, East Fife make their third trip to Ochilview Park this season to play Stenhousemuir. The Fifer’s are coming off the back of an incredible 3-2 victory when they hosted Forfar Athletic last week. The Black and Gold nabbed all three points at the death through a magnificent looping header from East Fife’s number 10, Alan Trouten. Gary Naysmith’s Warriors are also coming into this game after a win at the death, with Ross Forbes scoring in the 91st minute to topple Annan Athletic at Galabank, in a game which also finished 3-2.

Form

Stenhousemuir have recorded 11 points from their last 6 games, their only loss coming against current league leaders Dumbarton. They have recorded wins against Annan Athletic, Bonnyrigg Rose and Albion Rovers in recent weeks. The Warriors also drew with the Sons at the beginning of February, and with Ray Mackinnon’s Forfar side in their last 6.

The Fife have recorded 10 in their last 6, beating Albion Rovers, Dumbarton and Forfar Athletic in recent weeks. We also split the points with title chasing Stirling Albion. The Fifers have tasted defeat recently too, unfortunately, losing out to Annan Athletic, as well as Stranraer.

The cinch League Two Table:

Last Week

The Hosts

Stenhousemuir overcame Annan Athletic last weekend in a back-and-forth encounter. Annan broke the deadlock after 4 minutes through Tommy Goss, though Stenny levelled just 2 minutes later thanks to a Nat Wedderburn strike.

Annan started the second half quick too, with Dom Docherty putting the Galabankies back in front after 50 minutes. It was Stenhousemuir who would have the chance to celebrate however, as the Warriors struck after 70 minutes through Matty Yates, and then right on the full-time whistle with a great goal from Ross Forbes.

The Fife

The Fifers bounced back from their blip at Stranraer last week to overcome Ray McKinnon’s strong Forfar Athletic side, scoring the winner at the death, at the MGM Timber Bayview Stadium.

It looked to be a repeat of the dismal display at Stranraer to start with, as the Fifers could not get off the blocks, going 1-0 down after 10 minutes courtesy of a Finn Robson tap-in.

This did not dishearten the Black and Gold though, and rather than going under, they bounced back with venom, with Brogan Walls rattling the post after 20 minutes of play.

Going a goal down lit a fire under East Fife, who started to dominate, and eventually got their equaliser through Brogan Walls, who fired his shot into the roof of the net from close range. The Fifers kept pushing and should have taken the lead after 31 minutes, when there was a stramash in the box, but nobody could pull the trigger and beat the stranded ‘keeper. Trouten, Shepherd and Schiavone all had a chance but none could tuck it away.

Half Time: East Fife 1-1 Forfar Athletic.

East Fife were rampant at the start of the second half, they never gave any space at all as they pushed for the goal to put them ahead. After lots of hard work, and good football, it eventually came in the 69th minute, through an own goal, as Craig Slater’s header changed the course of the ball, and it bobbled past Marc McCallum for 2-1 Fife.

The lead never lasted long though, as the Loons bounced back just 7 minutes through Stefan McCluskey, who rolled his shot into the bottom corner after some great build up play.

East Fife fought to the whistle though, and earned their reward in the 89th minute, as captain Alan Trouten scored the winner. It was a lovely ball whipped in from Alex Ferguson, and Trouten had to leap like his namesake to fire it home. Trouten was instrumental in East Fife’s positive play during the entire match, and his goal capped off an excellent team display.

 Full-Time: East Fife 3-2 Forfar Athletic

Squad News

Outs: Kieran Miller remains out with his back injury, as does Aidan Quinn who is out with a knee knock.

Ins: In-form Pat Slattery returns to the squad this week after his two weeks away through injury.

Previous Encounter

The two sides last met on a Stormy Saturday Bayview in January and played out a 1-1 draw in the league.

The adverse weather conditions more than played a part in the proceedings, as the wind made football practically unplayable at times over the course of the ninety minutes.

The first chance came early for the Fifers when Scott Mercer couldn’t get the ball over the line after a stramash from a corner kick. Set plays were all unreliable during the proceedings as any lofted ball was blown all over the park.

The Black and Gold struck first, when Alan Trouten beat the Stenny offside trap, and with help from the wind, slotted past a stranded Lyle to fire Fife in front.

While Stenny pushed hard for the next five minutes, they couldn’t beat Allan Fleming, who pulled off some crucial saves in the game.

Youngster Taylor Steven found himself beating the defenders to a loose ball after 35 minutes of action, but Jamieson was there to put in an exceptional tackle, in what was a Man of the Match performance.

The half ended with a booking for East Fife, as Trouten was carded for a tackle on Warriors’ Captain Miller.

Despite being the better of the two sides in the first 45, Fife were only one goal up, which proved costly, as Stenhousemuir had grit, and the wind, on their side.

HALF TIME 1-0.

It was clear in the second half that the long ball tactic attempted by Stenhousemuir in the first halfwas going to be much more successful, and it proved to be the case as in the first 5 minutes of the second period, Fleming was forced into a pair of saves after a long ball floated over the back line.

New signing Aidan Quinn was a formidable addition to the backline and made a massive challenge after 55 minutes of play to deny a 1-on-1 situation.

The equaliser came from nothing, after 61 minutes of action. Rangers Academy graduate Matt Yates whipped a ball in from long range, and goalie Fleming misread the bounce, as the ball trundled into the back of the net.

He more than made up for it later in the half though, making an impressive save to keep Orr out, which was just as crucial as a goal at the other end would’ve been.

The last touch of the game brought Fife their best chance of the 90. The corner was whipped in, then headed high into the air. Trouten of all people jumped to get onto it, but his header was plopped over.

Match Tickets

Tickets can be paid for in cash at the gate or online by card pre-match.

Prices below:

Adults- £14

Concession- £9

Child- £5

Live Stream

Unfortunately for our fans in the UK and Ireland there will be no livestream for the clash this weekend. However, for our global audience, the game can be watched on EFTV with a monthly or season pass.

Team Colours

East Fife will be in their green and white kit this weekend, accompanied by white socks and shorts. The goalkeeper will don Turquoise for the tie.

Stenhousemuir will wear their classic maroon shirt, with white shorts and maroon socks. The Warriors’ ‘keeper will be clad in yellow for the affair.

Officials

Scott Lambie will be the on field official for the clash this weekend. His two assistants running the lines will be David Dunne and Mark Harris.