Match Preview - Forfar Athletic

Oli Anderson previews today’s match against Forfar Athletic.

Last Saturday saw the Fifers pick up our first win under new management as we controlled the tempo of the contest at New Dundas Park and overcoming Bonnyrigg Rose 2-0 on the day. It was a rather pleasant showing which can now hopefully be used to kick on. This week, we host Forfar Athletic, in a hugely important game for both sides. The Loons, who are coming off the back of a 2-0 victory against relegation threatened Clyde, currently sit in 7th position, only trailing ourselves in the goal difference department. Both sides are currently 11 points clear of the trapdoor, with 11 games still to play, so it is a much-needed victory for us and Ray Mackinnon’s men. A victory could potentially open up the possibility of a late playoff charge, so it is indeed all to play for.

A 3-minute flurry proved to be the difference on the scoresheet last week for the Methil Milan as Brian Easton bagged his first goal in the Black and Gold, before Alan Trouten added to his impressive tally from the spot. Bonnyrigg’s Reis Peggie also saw red in injury time of the contest leaving East Fife to see the game out against just 10 men.

Two second half strikes were enough for Forfar to take all 3 points in their most recent encounter as they beat Clyde 2-0 on Tuesday evening, playing out their game in hand. Stuart Morrison and Russell McLean both netted for the Loons, as they stretched their unbeaten run to 5 games, most recently losing to Hibernian in the Scottish Cup, back on 20th January.

The cinch League Two

	Team	Pld	GD	Pts
1	Stenhousemuir	25	25	57
2	Peterhead	24	13	41
3	The Spartans	24	12	40
4	Dumbarton	24	8	36
5	East Fife	25	-1	29
6	Bonnyrigg Rose	23	-1	28
7	Elgin City	25	-20	28
8	Forfar Athletic	24	-5	26
9	Stranraer	24	-14	26
10	Clyde	24	-17	18

Last Week’s Results

Saturday 17th February 2024

Bonnyrigg Rose 0-2 East Fife @ New Dundas Park

Clyde 2-0 Dumbarton @ New Douglas Park

Elgin City 2-2 Stenhousemuir @ Borough Briggs

Forfar Athletic 3-3 Peterhead @ Station Park

Stranraer 1-2 The Spartans @ Stair Park

Tuesday 20th February 2024

Clyde 0-2 Forfar Athletic @ New Douglas Park

Peterhead 0-0 Bonnyrigg Rose @ Balmoor Stadium

This Week’s Fixtures

Dumbarton vs Stranraer @ The Dumbarton Football Stadium

East Fife vs Forfar Athletic @ The MGM Timber Bayview Stadium

Peterhead vs Elgin City @ Balmoor Stadium

Stenhousemuir vs Clyde @ Ochilview Park

The Spartans vs Bonnyrigg Rose @ Ainslie Park.

Commemoration

There will be a minute’s applause ahead of kick off this afternoon to commemorate two Fifers who have sadly passed away recently: Vina Bonthrone, wife of East Fife legend Jimmy Bonthrone, and long-time supporter Callum Crawford. We send our condolences to Vina and Callum’s families and would appreciate if you could be in your seats ahead of this time.

Previous Encounter

The last time the two sides met, they played out a goalless draw at a rain-battered Station Park. East Fife failed to capitalise on a first half straight red card for Loons; with Josh Skelly being sent for an early bath, at the tail end of the first period.

There was only one change to the starting 11 from our 3-0 dismantling at the hands of Bonnyrigg Rose the week before, despite it being a severely depleted squad which travelled to Angus. Loanee Kieran Mitchell was handed a start in place of Jack Healy, in what proved to be the Raith man’s last appearance in Black and Gold.

Despite the majority of the team struggling on the day, the same can’t be said about Brogan Walls with the U20s graduate put in a cracking shift in the middle of the park, particularly in the first half. After 7 minutes, he created the first half chance of the game, spraying a lovely ball through for Nathan Austin to fire a cross into the area. Unfortunately, it was overhit, and Marc McCallum easily collected it, something which became a recurring theme during the proceedings.

On the 20-minute mark, Forfar had a chance from a free kick that was roughly 20 yards from goal. Ross stepped up for the Loons though his strike was a touch wide of the right-hand post.

The free kick started a mini barrage, which also saw Forfar’s number 9, Josh Skelly, being denied by Allan Fleming. The Fife veteran reacted quickly after Skelly got a touch on a deflected pass. Inglis was first to the parried shot and lashed an effort goalward. Luckily for the Black and Gold, it rattled against the woodwork and out of play.

The turning point of the game should have come in the 37th minute of play, when Brain Easton was mowed down by a very, very late sliding challenge from Josh Skelly. The rash tackle left referee Iain Snedden no choice but to show the forward a straight red.

East Fife then had the best chance of the game seconds after the dismissal when the resulting free kick wound up with Walls. Brogan floated a ball to Nathan Austin, whose diving header was somehow denied by Marc McCallum, as the goalie produced a wonder save to tip the ball round the post.

That was the last true piece of action of the half bas East Fife struggled to break down the robust Forfar defence.

There was not action in the second half, until the hour mark, although there was nothing much to shout about. Alan Trouten played a simple ball into Brogan Walls though the midfielder’s shot was rather timid, allowing McCallum to make an easy save.

East Fife’s last chance of the game came with 15 minutes still on the clock. Fresh substitute Gregor Nicol lofted a free kick into the 18-yard box, which was met by McManus. The makeshift defender was able to unleash a shot, though it was caught in the pack, and bounced out for a corner.

Despite being a man down, credit must go to Forfar who fought till the very end and looked the more likely of the two sides to nick all three points. Morrison got on the end of Paterson’s cross with just five minutes on the clock. Thankfully, the flicked header fell on the wrong side of the post, and The Methil Milan were able to return to the Kingdom with at least something.

Form

The Fife

In our last 6 games, the Fifers have recorded 2 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses, scooping up 8 points in cinch League Two in the process.

The First of the two losses came against The Spartans, where Blair Henderson showed his quality. Pairing his performance with a litter of defensive errors from the Fife backline, and the end result is tragic. It ended 3-0 to The Spartans, and adding salt to the wounds, Blair Henderson returned to the capital with the match ball. The other loss came against Elgin City, where we fell 1-0 at Borough Briggs, in what proved to be Greig McDonald’s last game in charge of the club. Brian Cameron scored the only goal, right on the stroke of half time for City.

Our two draws have come against the top two in the league, with the earliest of the two being against Peterhead at the end of January. Devastatingly, a 94th minute goal from Jordon Brown salvaged the Blue Toon a point with the last kick of the game, after Nathan Austin and Jonathan Page fired us two goals up in the first half. The most recent draw came a fortnight ago against leaders Stenhousemuir. A nightmare start for the Fifers saw us go a goal down inside 5 minutes, but Austin got a well-deserved equaliser just before half time as the two sides shared the spoils.

Our wins have come in very different fashion, with the only similarity being that the Black and Gold ended the contest with a clean sheet. The first win was a 1-0 victory over Stranraer, in a close fought contest. It was once again ‘Stone Cold’ Nathan Austin, who struck for the Fifers, as Fash added to his all-impressive goal tally this season.

The second victory came last week against Bonnyrigg Rose. Despite a well fought first half hour, the Fifers came into control and dominated proceedings. The goals came in a flurry, and the strikes from Easty and Trouts proved just too much for the Rosey Posey to compete with.

The visitors

As previously mentioned, Forfar are currently on a 5-game unbeaten run, which stretches back to their Scottish Cup exit at the hands of Premiership side Hibs.

Forfar have drawn three of their last 5 league games, firstly, playing out a goalless draw with Bonnyrigg on the 27th of January, and then a fortnight later, the Loons came from behind twice to earn a point against Dumbarton, with Stuart Morrison and Rayan Mohammed on the scoresheet for Forfar. Their most recent draw came against Peterhead, where Ray McKinnon’s side cruised into a 3-0 lead by half time, thanks to a brace from Russell McLean and a goal from Stuart Morrison. It was all for naught though, as Rory McAllister, Flynn Duffy and Alfie Stewart all chipped in for Peterhead in the second half, ensuring that the spoils were shared.

The two Forfar wins have come in similar vein as that of East Fife’s, with a recent 2-0 victory, and a 1-0 win further back. The 2-0 came midweek against Clyde, with Morrison and McLean on the scoresheet for the Loons. The 1-0 victory was against The Spartans at the beginning of February, and it was Tomas Brindley who grabbed the only goal inside 3 minutes.

Squad News

There are no fresh updates to the squad list, with Slattery and Comerford both remaining out of action.

Team Colours

East Fife will don the 120th anniversary black and gold top, matched with white shorts and socks, while the goalkeeper will be clad in the yellow kit for the match.

Our opponents will be in their away colours at the Wooden Fortress, with an all-navy get-up. The Forfar goalkeeper will be wearing green for the clash.

Match Tickets

Season Tickets are valid for our league campaign, with prices match prices below:

Adults- £18

Concessions (Over 65s/Disabled)- £14

Under 16s- £5

Parent and 1 child- £21

Parent and 2 children- £24

Like last season, EFCFC players Under 16 years of age will be admitted for free!

There are no cash turnstiles at Bayview, so supporters are encouraged to buy their ticket online in advance where possible. However, ticket can also be purchased (cash and card) from the matchday reception for those unable to do so.

Please note, parent & child ticket must be purchased in person from the matchday reception.

Live Streaming

Live Streaming of the game will be available on East Fife TV for our international fans. This can be accessed through a monthly or season pass. You can access this HERE! There is no live streaming option for viewers within the UK or Ireland this weekend.

Officials

The on-pitch official this afternoon will be Lloyd Wilson while his assistants running the lines are Kevin Buchanan and James Duffy.

Refreshments

The stadium bar will be open from 12.15pm on Saturday! We welcome you to join us for a drink before the match. The bar will be open again after the full-time whistle for post-match refreshments.

Pie stalls at both ends of the stadium will be open from 2.00pm today. Both cash and card are accepted.

Programme

Issue Number 15 for the 23/24 edition of the Bayview will be available from vendors outside the ground pre match. This week’s edition includes an interview with Pat Slattery along with all of the regular features.

Those unable to attend today’s match can purchase their programme online for home delivery.

Mon the Fife!