EAST Stirlingshire saw their hopes of a fairytale promotion to the Second Division suffer a major setback at Ochilview last night when they allowed Cowdenbeath to garner a potentially decisive advantage from the first leg of this play-off semi-final.
The only consolation for Jim McInally's side was that Andy Rodgers' second-half goal allows them a semblance of hope in a tie which looked to be slipping away from them after Cowdenbeath carved out a two-goal lead within the opening half hour.
The
hosts started brightest and almost fashioned an opener after just two minutes, but Rodgers shot wastefully wide from a promising position on the edge of the penalty area.
However, it was the visitors who seized the initiative with their first foray upfield after 12 minutes when John Gemmell arrived to lash home a low strike from the edge of the box after Danny Mackay's strike had rebounded perfectly into his path from a defender's block.
Shire tried to respond but were limited to a couple of long-range efforts from Craig Donaldson and Derek Ure before the magnitude of their task was further heightened after 30 minutes when Cowdenbeath conjured another goal from only their second proper attack of the match.
Mark Ramsay's cross from the right eluded the Shire defence and Jay Stein arrived at the far post to send a superbly-struck angled half volley high past goalkeeper Mark Peat from around ten yards out.
But just as Shire's hopes looked to be evaporating, they threw themselves a lifeline after 62 minutes when Rodgers spun on the penalty spot before prodding a low effort past David Hay. The Fife outfit almost restored their two-goal advantage six minutes later but teenage striker John Ferguson fired just over from the edge of the box.
Rodgers spurned two glorious late chances to level the tie, so Shire will now have to beat Danny Lennon's side for the first time this season at Central Park on Saturday if they are to have any chance of prolonging their promotion bid.
East Stirling: Peat, Hay, Tully, King (Forrest 46), Bolochoweckyj, Weaver, Donaldson (McKenzie 73), Stevenson, Graham, Ure (Richardson 46), Rodgers. subs not used: Dunn, Newman. Booked: Bolochoweckyj.
Cowdenbeath: Hay, Baxter, Linton, McGregor, Armstrong, Shields, Ramsay, MacKay (Fleming 53), Gemmell (Dempster 73), Ferguson, Stein. Subs not used: Mbu, McQuade, Jackson.
Ref: W Collum. Att: 605.
