A goal in the dying minutes from East Fife’s Darryl Falconer ended Dundee’s hopes of progressing to the semi-finals of the Reserve League Cup.
The Dark Blues needed three points from this game at Methil on Monday night to stay in with a chance of finishing in the top two of the Group section of the cup.
The home side took the lead in the fifth minute when, much to everyone’s surprise, the referee spotted an infringement in the visitors’ box and awarded a penalty kick. Scott McBride made no mistake, beating Dan Twardzik from the spot.
Ten minutes later McBride had a chance to increase the Fifers’ lead but his shot came back off the post.
The game was held up for some time when East Fife’s Cyrus Moosavi went down injured after an innocuous challenge and the unfortunate player had to be carried to the dressing room by two of his team mates.
Although the ref allowed substitute David Maskrey to come on, he also allowed the game to restart while the two East Fife players were still in the dressing room with their injured colleague so we had the bizarre situation of them racing back onto the park just as Dundee looked set to score against nine men.
Dundee tried hard to get back on level terms and Lee Cameron, Jamie Reid and Connor Macleod all had shots just off target.
A pleasing aspect of this game was the distribution of midfielder Sean Bonnet-Johnson and he was to play a part in his side’s equaliser.
HT: East Fife 1 Dundee 0
Scott Mollison didn’t appear for the second half due to a calf injury and he was replaced by Calvin Colquhoun.
It took the Dens men less than a minute to equalise, Cameron taking a pass from Bonnet-Johnson, turning his man and sending the ball into the net past Dylan Rooney.
Adam Cummins then had a 30-yard shot beaten down by the Methil keeper, but, a minute later it was Twardzik’s turn to save his side when he blocked a Falconer effort.
Dundee were piling on the pressure now and Cameron had a shot blocked by Rooney in the home goal.
Fifteen minutes from time Thomas Carberry pulled up with cramp and was replaced by John Black.
Two minutes later Cameron grabbed his second of the night when he chased a long ball from skipper Kyle Benedictus and finished superbly in the bottom corner.
The Dark Blues should have wrapped the game up after this. Reid was through but found Rooney in great form, Black had a point blank shot blocked and Cameron had a strong appeal for a penalty when he went down in the box.
There was a flashpoint near the end with Dundee’s Cummins and East Fife’s Ryan Stewart both being booked.
Dundee were made to pay for spurning their chances when Falconer raced through in the dying minutes to place the ball past Twardzik.
FT: East Fife 2 Dundee 2
East Fife: Rooney, Grieve, Honeyman, Thom, Mbu, Cowan (Woolley 66), Moosavi (Maskrey 17), Stewart, Inkango, McBride (M Shaw 66), Falconer.
Dundee: Twardzik, Sivewright, Mollison (Colquhoun 46), Benedictus, Cummins, Carberry (J Black 75), Lockwood, Bonnet-Johnson, Reid, Cameron, Macleod.
Report: Jim Davie.
