Fifers chasing victory and possible top spot

East Fife manager Darren Young is looking for his players to shut out visitors Stranraer this afternoon and get the win that could see them return to the top of the League One table.

A success over the Stair Park men and a Falkirk win at leaders Raith Rovers would see Young’s side at the summit.

He said: “Last Saturday we travelled to Falkirk and they are the strongest side we have faced this season. We managed to get a goalless draw and the challenge for everyone now is that if we can keep a clean sheet at the Falkirk Stadium then we can keep a clean sheet at home.

“That draw could have been even better as we created good chances especially in the first half but I recognise that our goalkeeper Jordan Hart made a great save from David Mcmillan so Falkirk could say much the same.

“There was not really much between us. We put on a good performance at a difficult venue, which led to a decent result. We will look to build on it against Stranraer.”

Young added: “Shutting teams out at home is not something we have done so far this season and hopefully it can start in this one.

“It will not be easy as I watched the highlights from their game at Airdrie last weekend and they were unlucky to drop points in a 2-2 draw. They scored a goal from a corner they have obviously worked on, then took advantage of a defensive error to grab a second.

“However, if we can be tight defensively again and get the better of them when we attack, there is a chance we could go to the top of the table. That would be a nice way to end the first round of games.”

Ryan Wallace is available again but Kyle Bell, Chris Duggan and Kevin Smith are all still out.