Queens take revenge against Dunfermline

Aug 22 2008 by Our Correspondent, Dumfries Standard Friday

Queens take revenge

QUEEN of the South moved in to the Alba Challenge cup quarter-final with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Dunfermline at East End Park.

The visitors avenged their league defeat just 10 days earlier and will now face Morton at home on Sunday, September 7.

Both managers made numerous changes before the match – which only went ahead after passing an earlier pitch inspection at 4pm – in favour of resting some players ahead of key league and European matches.

Queens took the lead after only three minutes, when a cross from the left by Stevie Tosh was neatly controlled by Stewart Kean, who wasted no time in firing the ball past Callum Reidford in the Dunfermline goal.

Dunfermline looked to get back on level terms immediately when a Nicky Phinn through ball found Paul Burns who fired just over the bar.

Then moments later a Scott Muirhead cross found Scott McBride unmarked inside the box, but his header went narrowly wide.

Dunfermline were applying all the pressure at this stage and went close to getting back on level terms when a Paul Willis corner found Phinn whose header was tipped on to the crossbar by Cammy Bell.

Queens weathered the storm and almost doubled their advantage when a Stephen Dobbie volley was well saved by Reidford following a neat flick over the defence by Tosh.

The home side pressed hard for the equaliser towards the end of the first half, but for all the neat build up play they lacked the end product in the final third.

Both sides were forced in to a change just before half-time when Gary Arbuckle was taken off with what looked a hamstring injury, while Dunfermline changed goalkeepers with Reidford being replaced by Gallacher.

Dunfermline once again had a lot of possession early in the second half but lacked the finishing touch in front of goal.

They were made to pay on 75 minutes when the visitors doubled their advantage, after some neat build up play down the right a Paul Burns cross found substitute Sean O’Conner who headed the ball home at the near post.

Queens knocked the ball about well in the closing stages, content with preserving their two-goal advantage, with Dunfermline not threatening what would have been a consolation strike.

Teams

Dunfermline: Reidford (Gallacher 44); Shields (Dearden 46), Muirhead, Phinn (McCann 61), S Thomson, Bamba, Willis, R Thompson, Williamson, Kirk, McBride.

Subs not used: Whyte, McGregor.

Queen of the South: Bell; Reid, Harris, Adams, Barr, Thomson, Arbuckle (McQuilken 44), Tosh (MacFarlane 84), Kean, Dobbie (O’Conner 60), Burns.

Subs not used: MacFarlane, Robertson, Halliwell (gk).

Referee: M McCurry.