The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
‘Fantastic’winprovidesperfectpreparationforcupshowdown
ourselves and also for a huge club like Rangers.
“It’ll be a big week for the club and it’s one we’re looking forward to now.”
Murray said the win was all the more pleasing after the midweek disappointment at Hamilton, when the side went down to an injury-time winner.
“We thought we were going to get at least a point out of that so I told the boys that we had to go to Alloa and be in a confident manner,” he said.
“To get the three points is fantastic.”
The visitors had the best of the opening exchanges, with winger Joe Cardle in particular causing trouble for theAlloa defence.
The ex-Dunfermline man picked out John Baird after 25 minutes but the Raith frontman was unable to find a way past Scott Bain from eight yards.
Despite the Raith pressure it should have been the home side who broke the deadlock.
DarrenYoung got on the end of a rebound six yards from goal but somehow managed to power his header off the crossbar.
Barry Smith’s men had a decent appeal for a penalty turned down whenAndy Kirk looked to have been tripped inside the box.
The second half was barely minutes old when Cardle found space to fire a shot towards goal which smashed off the crossbar.
But Murray’s men weren’t long in taking the lead in stunning style.
Grant Anderson was fouled on the edge of the box by Liam Lindsay and, from the resulting free- kick, Booth sent a fine curling effort past Scott Bain.
It was almost two when Callum Elliot managed to work his way in behind the Alloa defence, but he could only fire his effort well wide of Bain’s post.
Raith refused to settle with their goal advantage and went in pursuit of the second which would go a long way to killing the game off.
Booth again got himself up the park and fired wide from outside the box.