Spiders lose out
QP gaffer admits performance ‘not good enough’
Queen’s Park ........ 0 East Fife................ 2 Queen’s Park gaffer Gus MacPherson admits his side were “not good enough” after losing 2-0 to East Fife at Hampden on Saturday.
It’s the Spiders second defeat of the season and means they are now fifth in the table with six points.
Gus said of the game: “We were not up to the standards that we have set ourselves in recent weeks. We know we can play better and we weren’t good enough.
“When we don’t reach those standards you will be punished, especially against the stronger teams like East Fife.
“We gave the ball away and lost a very poor first goal and that put us up against it.
“Sometimes you’ve just got to hold your hands up and say the other team deserved to win.
“We tried to be positive, we went with a 3-4-3. We got the ball in to good areas but our crossing was not up to par. We had 12 corners and East Fife dealt with them all pretty comfortably.
“They played well and were the better team on the day.”
Although the home side shaded possession in the game with 55 per cent, East Fife were well ahead on shots, with 10 on goal to Queen’s two.
The visitors opened the scoring on 27 minutes when Joe Bradley gave the ball away in midfield and the Fifers broke forward.
Murray played in Austin and although Muir saved his effort, Murray was on hand to fire home the rebound and put East Fife 1-0 ahead.
The home side were almost level on 37 minutes, Willie Muir’s kickout was flicked on to Tony Ralston, who raced to the byline but his cross was deflected in to the arms of Goodfellow.
On 62 minutes, Austin doubled the visitor’s advantage. The striker displayed some neat close control before firing home to make it 2-0.
There was more bad news for the Spiders as striker Chris Duggan and defender Byran Wharton came off injured.
And the extent of the injuries may dictate whether or not Gus adds new faces to his squad.
He said: “We’ll have to wait and see. Duggan and Wharton came off injured on Saturday so we’ll have to wait and assess them and see if we need any more additions.”
Next up, QP will face Berwick Rangers at Shielfield Park. Berwick sit fourth in the table and are coming off the back of a 2-2 draw with Arbroath at the weekend.
Gus added: “It’s another hard, hard game. It’s been a very tough start to the season.
“We’ve won the two away games and lost the two home games and that just typifies this league.
“We will go and be positive as we always are and hopefully we can get the right result.”
For the latest Queen’s Park news visit www.queensparkfc.co.uk. Queen’s Park: Muir, Baty, Gibson, Wharton (Marlow 61), Berr, Ralston, Burns, McKernon, Woods, Duggan (Carter 45), Bradley (Galt 69)