Match Report - The Spartans

The Spartans 1-3 East Fife, Saturday 2^nd March 2023

Ainslie Park, cinch League Two

East Fife have made it 4 games unbeaten under the new management team as a fantastic performance gave the Fifers a well-deserved 3-1 victory over 2nd placed The Spartans, at Ainslie Park. After results midweek, East Fife now sit in 5th place, just 9 points off Dumbarton in the last playoff place, with 9 games still to go. The last quarter of the 23/24 campaign is nail-biting, as after Saturday, it looks like there is a slight chance that East Fife could achieve the unachievable, and sneak into the League One playoffs. While the primary goal remains safety in the division, there is no reason we cannot look up given our upturn in form in recent weeks.

Despite my high level of praise for the Fifers, it was another nightmarish start as we found ourselves a goal down inside 4 minutes. Cammy Russell latched onto a flicked header and beat Fleming in the 1-on-1, handing The Spartans an early lead.

Flem was forced into a great save in the 20th minute, stopping Russell from getting his brace, in the moment which looked to turn the tide, after The Spartans’ opening dominance.

After Fleming’s crucial save, the Methil Milan advanced up the park, grabbing the equaliser two minutes later through Alan Trouten. Loanee Robbie Hamilton delivered a deadly cross which met Trouts’ head and the fox in the box drew us level.

We could’ve taken the lead after 35 minutes when The Spartans failed to clear their lines, but after a series of blocks in the box, the Edinburgh based side were able to clear.

This took us into the break on level terms, where despite a fast start from the hosts, it cannot be argued we were the stronger of the two sides in the opening 45.

The second period, however, saw us take total control, taking the lead just 10 minutes into the half. Nathan Austin got the break of the ball after a defensive error, and charged toward goal, lashing his shot past Carswell, 2-1 Fife.

Despite an impressive performance going forward on Saturday, props must also be given to the backline, namely, Brian Easton. He showed some sublime defensive prowess, popping the ball out of Blair Henderson’s feet when he looked destined to equalise for The Spartans.

In the 70th minute, Dick Campbell made a double change which would richly benefit the Fifers, with Lyon and Healy replacing Hamilton and Austin. This marks the second consecutive week in which the substitutions have changed the game in the latter stages.

This was most prominent in the 84th minute, when James Lyon did excellently well in creating a chance for Scott Shepherd. East Fife’s number 9 was unfortunately denied by Carswell, but that did not stop Alan Trouten being first to the rebound, bagging a true poacher’s goal, and a brace for the day.

The turnaround was complete, and spelled another victory for the Fifers under Dick Campbell, amassing 8 points from the last 4 games played.

Speaking after the game, Assistant Manager Ian Campbell said: “From the time we scored I thought we were in control of the game. We were first class. We can take a great deal out of the game today, I thought we were tremendous. It was great to see the fans celebrating so much too.”

The Spartans – Carswell, Booth, Tapping, Sonkur, P Watson (K Watson 66’), Russell, Denholm (McNulty 60’), Armstrong, Craigen, Whyte, Henderson. Subs not used: Waugh, Jones, Brown, McCready, Laing, Thompson.

East Fife – Fleming, Murdoch, Newton, Page, Easton, McManus, Trouten (Nicol 89’), Hamilton (Healy 70’), Walls (Millar 88’), Shepherd, Austin (Lyon 71’). Subs not used: Schiavone, Blaney, Beveridge, Ramsay.

Referee – Andy Gamble

Attendance - 534

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Match Highlights - The Spartans

Highlights from yesterday's match against The Spartans and post-match reaction from Ian Campbell, Alan Trouten and Robbie Hamilton.

Match Preview - The Spartans

Oli Anderson previews today’s match against The Spartans

We are back on the road this afternoon after a draw against Forfar Athletic last week. Sharing the spoils with the Loons kept our unbeaten run under new management intact, though the second half could have seen us take all three, as it was much improved from the first period. We are headed back to the capital, for our second visit to The Spartans today. Our last trip to Ainslie Park saw us overcome a 2-0 half time deficit to rescue a draw. We are all hoping that we will not need second half heroics this time out to overcome our high-flying opponents. The Spartans are coming off the back of a 2-1 home win in the Lothians derby against Bonnyrigg Rose, with early goals from Blair Henderson and Ayrton Sonkur proving too much for the Rosey Posey to come back from. The win has also marked The Spartans’ third game in a row without defeat, last losing to Elgin City on the 10th of February.

The cinch League Two

A win for East Fife would see us add a touch of pressure to Dumbarton in fourth, whereas The Spartans can move into an impressive 2nd with 3 points this afternoon.

Last Week’s Results

Dumbarton 2-1 Stranraer @ The Dumbarton Football Stadium

East Fife 1-1 Forfar Athletic @ The MGM Timber Bayview Stadium

Peterhead 1-1 Elgin City @ Balmoor Stadium

Stenhousemuir 1-6 Clyde @ Ochilview Park

The Spartans 2-1 Bonnyrigg Rose @ Ainslie Park.

The Fixtures

Bonnyrigg vs Stenhousemuir @ New Dundas Park

Clyde vs Elgin @ New Douglas Park

Dumbarton vs Peterhead @ The Dumbarton Football Stadium

Stranraer vs Forfar @ Stair Park

The Spartans vs East Fife @ Ainslie Park

Previous Encounter

The last time the two sides met, Blair Henderson blew us away, netting a hattrick in a 3-0 thumping.

The first half was a rather uneventful affair, and other than Carswell making an impressive save to deny Austin after 20 minutes, nothing of note occurred. The two sides went into the interval incredibly even, and not many people would have called what happened in the second period.

It only took The Spartans 5 minutes in the second period to open the scoring, when a horrendous headed backpass was caught by Blair Henderson. The intelligent striker, who was through one on one made no mistake and fired the visitors ahead.

A further five minutes later, the Spartans doubled their lead, this time through a counterattack. The blistering pace from the frontmen was too much for East Fife to handle, and we were caught out, two goals down, and one massive hill to climb.

Despite looking down and out, we then had a slight spell of hope, as Healy did well, firing a shot from range which looked destined for the bottom corner. Sadly, Carswell also did his job rather well and kept the visitors two goals to the good.

Ten minutes later we were denied by Carswell yet again. The goalkeeper didn’t have much to do during the game, but when he was called upon, he filled his role to perfection.

The game then dried up until 5 minutes to go, a second defensive howler of the night allowed Henderson to nip in and score his third, ensuring that three points and the match ball would make their way back to Ainslie Park.

East Fife looked to have their consolation goal, as Austin tapped home in the 92nd minute, but the linesman had flagged for offside, keeping The Spartans’ clean sheet intact.

Squad News

Ins: New signing Jacob Blaney will be available for selection this afternoon, as he looks to make his first appearance in the Black and Gold. On top of this, Pat Slattery and Sean Docherty have returned to full training, with the latter featuring alongside Charlie Murray last night for the Under 20s in their 5-1 battering of Tranent. Youngster Ciaran Healy was the standout in that game, bagging four of the five goals for the Methil Milan. Docherty and Murray’s respective appearances were in the hopes of boosting their sharpness, giving them much needed minutes.

Outs: Jacob Comerford is the only man still on the table, and we hope he returns to fitness soon.

Team Colours

East Fife will don pink Taxi Centre kit this weekend, matched with black shorts and pink socks, while the goalkeeper will be clad in the yellow kit for the match.

Our opponents will be in their traditional colours this afternoon, with a white top and red shorts, with white socks. The Spartans goalkeeper will be wearing sky blue for the clash.

Match Tickets

Admission is via pay at the gate at Ainslie Park, via cash, or you can buy tickets via Spartans’ Fanbase page HERE! Prices below:

Adult: £15

Concession: £10

15-18: £5

Under 14: Free with a paying adult.

Travel Information

Access from Ferry Road to Pilton Drive is currently shut, after the entrance to Morrison’s Supermarket. Supporters’ buses can gain access to the car park still.

To access the stadium, head North from Crewe Toll Roundabout, to Crewe Road North, before turning right at Boswall Parkway. Then take a final right onto Pilton Drive.

Live Stream

As always, our international support out with the UK and Ireland can watch the contest on East Fife TV with a monthly or season pass. You can access this HERE!

Match Officials

The on-pitch official this weekend will be Andy Gamble. His two assistants running the lines are Steven Wilson and Thomas Denholm.

Allez le Fife!

Jacob Blaney Signs On Loan

We’re delighted to announce the signing of Jacob Blaney on loan from Hibernian until the end of the season.

The 19-year-old Jacob came through the ranks at Easter Road and made his first-team debut against St. Johnstone at the end of the 2021/22 season. The defender who has been capped for Scotland at both U19 and U16 level also had a short spell on loan at Stenhousemuir last season, making 5 appearances for the Warriors.

Assistant Manager Ian Campbell: “Jacob is a good, young player who will give us support across both the midfield and defence. He has good strength and ability and will complement our squad brilliantly for the run in to the end of the season. We would also like to thank Hibs for their assistance in completing this move.”

Welcome to Bayview Jacob!