Dunfermline 0 Peterhead 0
Saturday, 7th Nov 2015Ladbrokes League One: three changes in Pars starting eleven. Paton, Antoine-Curier and McCabe start
For the visit of Peterhead Allan Johnston brought in Michael Paton, Rhys McCabe and Mickaël Antoine-Curier at the expense of David Hopkirk, Shaun Byrne and Michael Moffat. Josh Falkingham was deemed fit enough to return to the bench after being out for five weeks with a back injury.
The visitors made four changes - Kevin Dzierzawski, Scott Ferries, Leighton McIntosh and new signing Jassem Sukar from Dundee United, coming in for Cameron Kerr, Ally Gilchrist, Jordan Brown and Nicky Reilly.
After a minutes silence to remember those killed and injured in the line of duty with the Armed Forces, it was Peterhead who kicked off attacking the goal at the McCathie Stand end. After the opening minute was played predominantly in the Pars half, Faissal El Bakhtaoui burst down the right before trying to pick out Antoine-Curier but his cross into the six yard box was well defended.
El Bakhtaoui caused the next danger to the Peterhead goal, latching on to a McCabe pass the striker was shadowed by Sukar just enough to restrict the power of the shot that was held by Graeme Smith.
Antoine-Curier was offside in eighth minute when attempting to get on the end of a Jason Talbot cross from the left. Then two minutes later Smith had to dive to his left to palm away a header by his own right back, Ryan Strachan. The defender was put under pressure when Joe Cardle fed McCabe and Paton who switched play rapidly through El Bakhtaoui to Lewis Martin and the right back's good left foot produced the cross that caused the mayhem.
From being lucky at one end Peterhead then were unlucky when McIntosh broke in on the right and his shot across goal came back off the left goalpost. The Pars broke with pace and El Bakhtaoui tumbled in the Peterhead box when tracked by Steven Noble. No penalty awarded.
The Blue Toon got a decision when Ben Richards-Everton tackled Rory McAllister and from the 19th minute free kick Strachan drove the ball low but wide right. Next minute another decision was not given when Martin was tripped by Scott Ferries and the Peterhead man scampered away up the left to pick out Ferry with his cut back but the chance went tamely wide of the left goalpost.
Andy Geggan was well wide with a 25th minute shot from 30 yards and two minutes later McCabe had a shot from a similar distance that narrowly cleared the crossbar. Not to be left out McAllister from a suspicuiously offside position tested Sean Murdoch with a low drive. Strachan then got away with a slight touch as Cardle fired the ball through the six yard box from the right. No corner.
Just after the half hour Cardle was in on the right side of the opposition box again and this time tried a shot that hit the sidenetting. The referee Gavin Ross who had hitherto won no friends around East End Park then yellow carded Cardle when the Pars man ended up on McIntosh's back in trying to avoid falling. The Peterhead man reacting earning his card but Joe received a most unpopular card too.
Five minutes from the break Paton launched a great strike from 25 yards but the ball powered wide left. It had been a first half bereft of corners, the Pars had seven shots to the visitors five but no goals.
Half Time: Dunfermline 0 Peterhead 0
McAllister had a 47th minute effort blocked as Peterhead had the first opportunity of the second half and the Pars first chance fell to Paton when Antoine-Curier headed a diagonally passed ball down to his feet but the shot ended up in row Z. Richards-Everton collected a soft yelllow before the Fifers won the first corner of the game when El Bakhtaoui's 52nd minute shot was deflected behind. Unfortunately the setpiece changed nothing.
There was a let off for Richards-Everton in 54 minutes when in trying to shield the ball out for a bye kick he allowed McIntosh to cross and fortunately in front of goal sub Jordan Brown skied his attempt over the bar. Next minute Brown was presented with an even better chance from McIntosh and this time Murdoch pulled off a great block.
Another Pars corner was successfully defended and then the crowd jeered as El Bakhtaoui rather greedily tried a shot at the far post with men well placed in the centre. The stadium silenced as Kevin Dzierzawski's 62nd minute shot hit the net and breathed sighs of relief when they realised the ball was outside the sidenetting on the right.
At the midway point in the half Allan Johnston made his first substitution withdrawing Michael Paton to introduce Ryan Wallace. It looked inspired as the sub immediately got in behind the left side of the Blue Toon defence but Antoine-Curier failed to take the chance at the far post and the ball rocketed behind.
In 71 minutes Antoine-Curier sent Cardle down the left and when his cross came in El Bakhtaoui was unlucky that the ball just did not present itself well enough for him to finish. Smith held a McCabe cross.
Peterhead forced two corners in 74th minute with Murdoch punching clear from the second. Then a Talbot ball for Antoine-Curier at the far post was smashed outside the right post from close range. The striker then won a corner on the right and when quickly taken McCabe sent the ball through the six yard box and Richards-Everton returned it along the crossbar.
Talbot headed behind to give Peterhead a 81st minute corner that Murdoch rose to hold comfortably. Talbot then got his defence out of trouble when centrally they slipped up and let McAllister in on goal. After sprinting in from the right, El Bakhtaoui drove a shot into Smith's arms.
Michael Moffat replaced the luckless Antoine-Curier for the final six minutes and Shaun Byrne came on for Rhys McCabe before Ryan Wallace made Smith pull of a fine save from a 30 yard free kick.
The visitors tested the Pars and their supporters nerves with a final push but for the second Saturday running it was to be a match with no goals. Peterhead bounced back from their disappointing 4-3 defeat to Stenhousemuir but this was the kind of match that Allan Johnston wants his team to win. Full marks to the home defence for the fifth successive league match without conceding a goal.
SUBS NOT USED: David Hopkirk, Josh Falkingham, Shaun Rooney, David Hutton (GK).
YELLOW CARD: Cardle (35), Richards-Everton (50), Martin (61)
PETERHEAD: Graeme Smith; Ryan Strachan, Scott Ross, Jassem Sukar, Steven Noble; Simon Ferry (Jordan Brown 49), Kevin Dzierzawski, James Redman, Scott Ferries; Leighton McIntosh (Shane Sutherland 78), Rory McAllister (Andy Rodgers 88).
SUBS NOT USED: Scott Adams, Nathan Blockley, Paul Jarvie (GK).
YELLOW CARD: McIntosh (35), Ferry (43), Brown (85)
REFEREE: Gavin Ross
WEATHER: Damp 10C
ATTENDANCE 2915
NEXT MATCH: Ladbrokes League One (away) v Airdrieonians, Saturday 14th November 2015, kick off 3.00pm at Excelsior Stadium
50/50 draw winning number was 16686
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Preview Peterhead
Saturday, 7th Nov 2015Ladbrokes League One: Chance to make up for only away defeat of the league campaign
After the disappointment of being held to a draw at Central Park last weekend, Allan Johnston's team has a home game against Peterhead to try and recover winning form. With the next three matches being away from home it is also the home fans last chance to see them until the first week in December.
The 2-1 defeat in the first match at Peterhead in August brought an end to the Pars buoyant start to the season with five successive wins. A Rory McAllister penalty put the home side in the lead after 30 minutes but Michael Moffat made it 1-1 just before half time and Leighton McIntosh scored a last minute winner for Jim McInally's team.
| All Matches v Peterhead | ||||
| Date | H/A | WDL | F-A | Scorers |
| 22/08/15 | A | L | 1-2 | [0-1] McAllister (pen.), [1-1] Moffat, [1-2] McIntosh |
| 04/04/15 | A | D | 1-1 | [1-0] Moffat, [1-1] Rodgers |
| 03/01/15 | H | D | 1-1 | [1-0] Forbes, [1-1] McAllister (pen.) |
| 08/11/14 | A | D | 3-0 | [1-0] El Bakhtaoui, [1-1] Stevenson. |
| 27/09/14 | H | W | 3-0 | [1-0] Falkingham, [2-0] Ugwu, [3-0] Thomas |
| 30/08/08 | A | W | 2-0 | [1-0] Kirk, [2-0] Phinn |
There have only been six matches between these clubs and until 2014-15 the only match had been in the Scottish League Cup.
The first ever league match between Dunfermline Athletic and Peterhead is one that neither club nor their fans will forget in a hurry. It will be remembered not so much for the three goals Dunfermline won by but rather for the three men that Peterhead had sent off before half time. What followed was a bizarre second half that was more like a game of three and in.
Every game is different and there certainly will not many like that one at East End Park back in September 2014. The return at the Balmoor Stadium looked to be heading for an away win after Faissal El Bakhtaoui sent the Pars into a 19th minute lead but just two minutes from time Jamie Stevenson's equaliser for Peterhead spoiled the long trip back down the A90 home.
Peterhead were last at East End as first foots on Saturday 3rd January. That was a 1-1 draw after Ross Forbes' 20th minute opener was cancelled out by Rory McAllister's second half spot kick. In April it was seventh v sixth at Balmoor when Peterhead hosted the Pars for the second time that season. With both teams equal on 44 points it was no surprise that the game was another 1-1 draw. Michael Moffat had headed the Pars into the lead but Andy Rodgers came on to score 12 minutes from time.
League Stats
| Dunfermline | Peterhead |
| Current League Position | |
| 2 | 7 |
| League form last six games | |
| WDWWWD | LDDLWL |
| League Points | |
| 26 | 14 |
| Goal Difference | |
| +29 | +3 |
| League Record | |
| P12, W8, D2, L2 | P12, W3, D5, L2 |
Recent Form
Peterhead have only won one league match (a 2-0 home win over Airdrieonians) since they defeated Dunfermline at Balmoor back on 22nd August. The Pars have won six of the nine league games since the teams last met with Ayr United the only team to get the better of them. On Saturday the Blue Toon were 3-0 up after only 38 minutes against Stenhousemuir but let their hosts come back to win 4-3. McAllister's three goals at Ochilview Park took his tally to 17.
| Form last six home / away | ||||||
| Dunfermline (home) | Peterhead (away) | |||||
| Forfar Athletic | W | 4-0 | Stenhousemuir | L | 3-4 | |
| Albion Rovers | W | 3-0 | Albion Rovers | L | 0-1 | |
| Airdrieonians | D | 1-1 | Ayr United | D | 1-1 | |
| Ayr United | L | 0-2 | Cowdenbeath | D | 2-2 | |
| Stranraer | W | 3-1 | Airdrieonians | L |
0-1 |
|
| Dundee | W | 3-1 | Falkirk | W |
5-3 |
|
Last Time Out
DUNFERMLINE (v Cowdenbeath): Sean Murdoch; Lewis Martin, Marc McAusland, Ben Richards-Everton, Jason Talbot; David Hopkirk (Michael Paton 65), Andy Geggan, Shaun Byrne, Joe Cardle, Michael Moffat (Ryan Wallace 59), Faissal El Bakhtaoui (Mickael Antoine-Curier 65)
SUBS NOT USED: Rhys McCabe, Lewis Spence, Shaun Rooney, David Hutton (GK).
PETERHEAD (v Stenhousemuir): Graeme Smith; Cameron Kerr, Scott Ross, Ally Gilchrist (Nathan Blockley 35), Steven Noble; Simon Ferry (Shane Sutherland 73), James Redman, Ryan Strachan, Nicky Riley (Leighton McIntosh 67), Rory McAllister, Jordan Brown
SUBS NOT USED: Kevin Dzierzawski, Scott Ferries, Andy Rodgers, Paul Jarvie (GK).
Referee will be Gavin Ross.
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