DUNFERMLINE 0

ARBROATH 3

Mckenna (12, 67), Gold (44)

Dunfermline’s miserable start to the season continued after being comprehensively outplayed at East End Park by a spirited Arbroath side.

Although the Fifers are winless at the bottom of the Championship table, Pars’ manager Peter Grant remained philosophical in the wake of the defeat, despite his obvious disappointment.

“Its been a difficult week but we’ve no excuses,” said Grant, who had been without a number of players due to Covid-19.

“The preparation was difficult but we put out a team capable of producing a performance.

“We lost a terrible first goal and that put us on the back foot early on.

“Arbroath deserved their win and we deserved what we got for the way we played.”

The warning signs for Dunfermline were apparent during the early stages of the game with Arbroath’s lone striker Joel Nouble causing havoc with his powerful running.

And as the visitors seemed clearly intent on rampaging forward at every given opportunity, the opener seemed inevitable.

It arrived duly in the 12th minute as the result of a horrendous goalkeeping blunder by David Mehmet.

Nicky Low collected the ball 35 yards out and unleashed what could be described, at best, as a speculative effort which looked to be trundling safely into the arms of Mehmet, but the Pars’ keeper inexplicably spilled the shot leaving Michael Mckenna with the simplest of tap-ins.

Dunfermline were struggling to regroup in the wake of Mckenna’s strike although Kai Kennedy did briefly raise the hopes of the suffering home fans with a piercing run which culminated with a shot which rebounded from Derek Gaston’s right-hand post.

However, Arbroath increased their lead a minute before the interval, David Gold sweeping the ball past the beleaguered Mehmet from a Scott Stewart cross.

The visitors continued to dominate after the break and it was no real surprise when they increased their advantage midway through the second half, Mckenna finishing off an inch-perfect cross from the impressive Nouble.

Arbroath assistant manager Ian Campbell was naturally delighted with the outcome.

“Its a great three points for us” he said.

“We have some great players at this club and we’re a lot stronger than people give us credit for.”