The first home match in November brought Queen of the South to East End Park. The visitors sat joint sixth with their hosts, equal on points, equal on goal difference so this was a match where there would a winner would take a significant advantage.

Following the 2-0 win on Tuesday night Stevie Crawford went with the same starting eleven and same bench.

Allan Johnston was forced into two changes to his starting eleven due to the absence of Michael Paton and Darren Brownlie. Into his side came Callum Semple and Lewis Kidd and their bench was only six strong.

Pre kick off Remembrance respects were paid with chairmen of both clubs laying poppy wreaths on the centre circle. Abdul Osman kicked off for Queen of the South attacking the goal at the McCathie Stand end.

Play was tentative until in the ninth minute Kyle Turner picked out Greg Kiltie with a bit of space 25 yards out on the right side. He advanced into the box before striking an on target effort that bounced off Semple for a corner on the right.

Andy Ryan sent the ball in towards the near post from the setpiece and Lee Ashcroft was unlucky to see his connection date over the bar. Within a minute Kiltie was sent through into the penalty box and there were appeals for a penalty after the Pars player was prevented from getting a shot away.

Someone who did get a shot away was Faissal El Bakhtaoui blasting over the crossbar from 12 yards out at the other end as a cross was defended out on the left side.

In sixteen minutes Kevin Nisbet launched a counterattack but with only Ryan up, and he was well marked, the striker went on his own but keeper Robby McCrorie came out to intercept. Next Ryan was aggrieved after a Kiltie cross was nicked away from him but no corner was given.

The match was lacking action for the keepers but Nisbet tried his hardest after receiving a sweeping pass from Josh Edwards on the opposite side, raced in on the right and blasted a shot just over the bar. McCrorie had to out quick to smother the ball at the feet of Kiltie when he was played in by Ryan.

On the half hour Paul Paton placed a great ball in front of Ryan Dow for him to run on to and then cut across the Queens box. There was some desperate defending to prevent Pars strikes but when Paton returned the ball in Ryan smacked a shot on target but McCrorie saved to his right.

Turner launched a couple of free kicks into the Queens box but to no avail. In 37 minutes limping off, El Bakhtaoui was forced to retire meaning Connor Murray was the first sub of the afternoon.

The sub did well to get a cross in from the left but Turner was equally good with his defence. As the half time whistle approached there was a flurry of activity in front of McCrorie’s goal. Nisbet headed down for Kiltie but he was closed out and then cracks from Dow and then Turner were blocked by the defence.

Half time: Dunfermline 0 Queen of the South 0

The visitors mounted the first attack of the second half, Stephen Dobbie latching on to a Pybus pass to send a dangerous ball through the Pars six yard box that evaded Jack Hamilton and the Pars defenders.

The Fifers pushed up and a pass from Ryan into the centre of the park was collected by Dow to set up Comrie but his effort was blocked. In 51 minutes Ryan got room on the right side to test the keeper at his near post.

At the other end Dobbie produced an effort that slipped outside the left upright and after a run up the left Ryan sent in another shot that McCrorie had to hold at the near post.

A goal was certainly becoming more likely and in 57 minutes it duly happened. Running on to a hefty Ashcroft ball, Kiltie beat Mercer on the left to send in a right footed cross that DOW met on the edge of the box. He beat off the challenge of Pybus and Kilday and despite Holt’s efforts on the goal line the Pars were ahead. 1-0

The Dumfries side’s second half sub Darren Lyon drove a shot wide left from the edge of the box but it continued to press. It was the midpoint of the second half when an impressive flick from Edwards to Kiltie and then his lifted pass back for Edwards that almost created a second but McCrorie did well to prevent the marauding full back.

A 73rd minute Queens free kick, given after Ryan was yellow carded for his challenge on Pybus, sent the ball into the Pars box and there were some nervy moments as Murray had chances to shoot.

Tom Beadling replaced Andy Ryan with fifteen minutes remaining and there was a neat interchange between Kiltie and a Dow that set up Paton for an inviting ball to the far post but there was no one to accept it.

No problem for NISBET in 82 minutes, he ran on to a Turner pass up the left touchline, evaded the challenge of Kilday to cut in from the left edge of the box, denied Semple and crashed the ball past McCrorie. 2-0

Dobbie collected a yellow card when flattening Comrie and Turner’s free kick on the right Nisbet flashed a headed attempt narrowly wide left.

The Fifers saw out the game to collect the three points and the home support left in great spirit.

DUNFERMLINE: Ryan Scully: Aaron Comrie, Lee Ashcroft, Lewis Martin, Josh Edwards: Ryan Dow, Paul Paton (c), Kyle Turner, Greg Kiltie, Kevin Nisbet, Andy Ryan (Tom Beadling 75).
SUBS NOT USED: Gabby McGill, Harry Cochrane, Danny Devine, Josh Coley, Miller Fenton, Cammy Gill (GK)
SCORERS: Dow (57), Nisbet (82)
YELLOW CARD: Ryan (73)

QUEEN OF THE SOUTH: Robby McCrorie: Scott Mercer, Lee Kilday, Callum Semele, Kevin Holt: Daniel Pybus, Lewis Kidd, Abdul Osman (Darren Lyon 55), Faissal El Bakhtaoui (Connor Murray 37), Jack Hamilton, Stephen Dobbie (c).
SUBS NOT USED: Gary Oliver, Andrew McCarthy, Ewan Gourlay, Craig Burns (GK).
YELLOW CARD: Osman (36), Dobbie (84)

REFEREE: Andrew Dallas
WEATHER: Cloudy 11C
ATTENDANCE 3621

NEXT MATCH: Ladbrokes Championship (away) v Alloa Athletic, Saturday 9th. November 2019 3.00pm kick off at the Indodrill Stadium.