Blair Henderson was the Spartans hero in Methil with a second half hat-trick to secure three points on the road and propel his side into third spot in the SPFL 2 table.

Sam Newman and Danny Denholm were in the starting XI, two changes from the side that faced Clyde at the weekend, with Callum Booth rested and Paul Watson, who extended his contract to the end of the season, taking up a spot on the bench.

It was the first time since the 1995/96 Scottish Cup that the clubs had met in competitive action and the second fixture of the current campaign, a 2-2 draw last time out at Ainslie Park.

The hosts were on a five-match unbeaten run and from the off, they looked to build on this, launching missiles up the park seeking out dangerman Nathan Austin.  He played the ball to Brogan Walls who fired over.

There was a half chance at the other end as Spartans looked to get into the game played in fresh conditions with a Methil chill in the air.  James Craigen in a crowded box just unable to dig the ball out from under his feet to get clean contact in order to trouble Allan Fleming in the East Fife goal.

Austin was the action man for the Fifers and it was an important block by Blair Carswell to deny the striker who scored in the previous encounter at Ainslie Park.

The chances were almost basketball-esque, one end then the other, with Jamie Dishington attempting a fierce low drive from inside the box, only to whizz it wide.

A fine ball launched over the top of the Fife defence played in Sam Newman as the half edged to a close. With Blair Henderson in the box, Newman’s attempted cross to find the striker was well cut out by a tracking defender.

One final play of the half saw that man Blair Carswell get enough to Connor McManus’ effort and Ayrton Sonkur completed the survival mode and hoofed the ball to safety.

HT: East Fife 0-0 The Spartans

An early opportunity for the tourists as a free-kick into the penalty area fell to Bradley Whyte who couldn’t keep his effort under the bar however it was a bright start to the half.

Then, six minutes after the interval, Spartans took the lead.  Blair Carswell’s restart was launched up the park, two defensive headers later and his namesake Henderson was on hand to benefit from the adventurous effort seeking out the home keeper and duly slotted home.

Five minutes later, the points were looking good when the same man was on hand to double Spartans lead.  James Craigen winning the ball as East Fife went on the offensive, linking up with Rhys Armstrong before sending a low cross into the 18 yard box for Henderson to hammer home with a clinical finish.

These movies have been watched before and all it takes is for a sniff of a chance to halve the deficit and squeekybumtime can kick in.  Blair Carswell’s tremendous stop from Jack Healy ensured that scenario wasn’t set to unfold.

With a quarter of an hour left on the clock, Danny Denholm was withdrawn and Cammy Russell came on to make his 100^th appearance for the Club.  Seconds later, he was fouled.  Plus ca change as they say in Paris…

Then, with five minutes to play, a long ball from deep inside the Spartans half evaded the leap of a Johnathan Page in the East Fife defence and there was Blair Henderson to collect, compose himself and slide home and another match ball to add to his growing collection.

There was still time for two batches of substitutions before the end of the game.

Henderson’s hat-trick strike his last involvement in the game as he was replaced by Paul Watson along with Armstrong swapping with Gavin Morrison.

Next up saw Sam Jones and Sean Brown get minutes after changing places with Dishington and Craigen.

East Fife had the ball in the net deep into injury time, only for Austin to be flagged offside.

FT: East Fife 0-3 The Spartans

Malt and Hops Man of the Match: Blair Henderson

After the glamour of Scottish Cup television exploits against Premiership opposition, Spartans and Clyde were back to the bread and butter of SPFL 2 league action.

With Jordan Tapping on the treatment table Paul Watson was the only change from the starting XI that took Hearts to injury time just seven days earlier.

Clyde unveiled their latest signing Chris McGinn as the team bus drew up to Ainslie Park, into the squad who were seeking their first away win of the campaign.

Not often (surely this will be the last) rapper Jay-Z and Spartans will be noted in the same sentence as both had 99 Problems – that being in the shape Jordan Allan who wore the number on the back of his shirt.

Within moments of the kick-off he was in on goal however it took the heroics of Blair Carswell to deny the visitors from an opening minute lead.

They didn’t have to wait long however and after four minutes, it was Jordan Allan who got himself onto the end of Ross Lyon’s through ball and he nudged it beyond the spread-eagled Carswell and looked on as it trundled into the bottom corner.

There was an early unscheduled swap in the Spartans defence when Callum Booth retired injured and was replaced by Danny Denholm.

Midway through the half, the sides were level.  A patient build up from the hosts saw 17 passes made, filter through every outfield player in the process.  Danny Denholm’s sublime control from Ayrton Sonkur’s long ball / challenge outcome allowed him to slide the ball to Blair Henderson inside the box.

Henderson then sent the ball back inside to Rhys Armstrong on the edge of the box who unleashed an unstoppable drive beyond Jack Leighfield to delight the home fans within the 531 crowd.

Clyde, who have put in a recent series of performances that certainly don’t match their league position were keen to retain their lead and a succession of corners kept the home defence on their toes.

Kevin Waugh was then called upon to make a timely and crucial tackle as the half drew to a close, putting in a solid block that saw the Skipper offer some feedback to his colleagues to consider over the half time oranges.

HT: The Spartans 1-1 Clyde FC

Clyde were first to offer a threat a goal after the team returned from the sheds, with Liam Scullion looking on as his effort clipped the crossbar.

There was frustration in the home ranks as Kieran Watson had his shirt pulled back by Robbie Leitch as the Clyde player took a seat on the synthetic surface.  Best way to get your hands on a Spartans strip legitimately is via the Club Shop.

Blair Henderson then came close to scoring when his diving header flashed narrowly wide midway through the half.

The next quarter of an hour saw both sides work industriously to break each other down, but that final touch was proving to the elusive.

Spartans made a double change with just under ten to go, Sean Brown and Sam Newman replacing Rhys Armstrong and Kieran Watson.

One final half chance for Spartans came at the death however Bradley Whyte’s cross appeared to hang in the hoolie swirling round the Ainslie Park arena and was plucked from the air by Jack Leighfield ahead of Blair Henderson.

FT: The Spartans 1-1 Clyde

Malt and Hops Man of the Match: Rhys Armstrong

The Romance of the Scottish Cup saw Spartans come moments away from forcing extra time in the Edinburgh Derby only for Frankie Kent to deliver broken hearts with a headed winner deep into added on time.

A sell-out attendance of 3,500 packed into the Ainslie Park arena, the clunk clunk of the turnstiles delivering the capacity crowd for the lunchtime kick-off.  Willie Wonka would have been lucky to have had a golden ticket to hand out for this one.  Those who weren’t lucky were afforded the luxury of viewing live on the BBC, from neighbouring flats or, for the enterprising spectator view, on top of a parked transit van, complete with deckchair for comfort.

As teenage piper Gregor Wildgoose led the teams out to a rousing reception, the young Spartans Ultras displayed their new TIFO accompanied by a cacophony of noise.

With much press attention on the visitors line-up ins and outs, the small matter of Spartans playmaker Cammy Russell not having fully recovered from injury for a starting berth appeared to fly under the watchful eyes of the media, one of them perhaps focussed on the hope for headlines of heroic Scottish Cup scalp.

The young home support were in fine voice from the off however the first cheers of the afternoon came from the grassy banks of the Pilton Avenue end, albeit decidedly muddy come kick-off due to the overnight rain. 

With 12 minutes on the clock, Jorge Grant sent a long hanging delivery to the back post where Kenneth Vargas was on hand, or head for that matter to nod neatly into the net.

Not the start the home side were naturally looking for however the defence regrouped and regathered.  Then came the first chance of their one.

Former Scottish Cup winner Callum Booth pulled out a thunderous drive from fully 25 yards forcing Craig Gordon to pull off a save to match the delivery.  It was a shot that warmed the goalkeeper’s gloves and the fans who snaked round the four parts of the ground.

Watching the save from the other end was Blair Carswell.  No doubt there was a small level of begrudging applause of his shot stopping hero that denied the leveller however it was the Spartans Cat who was to have one of the finest games of his career on one of the biggest stages.

As the game edged towards the interval and the masses set to much a home record number of Bain of Stenhouse pies and assorted savouries, Carswell was called into action to prevent Vargas from doubling the Hearts lead, thankfully Tagawa could only send the rebound over the bar.

HT: The Spartans 0-1 Heart of Midlothian

No changes were made at the break and that man Vargas was once again proving to be a real threat as he raced into the box but it was an exceptional save from Blair Carswell to deny the Jam Tarts man.

Jordan Tapping and James Craigen were both called upon to get their defensive heads to dangerous crosses as the dogged determination of the Spartans team continued to show resilience and offer a bit of nerves amongst the visiting crowd to consider that this tie was far from done and dusted.

Then, in the 65^th, it was all square.  Callum Booth collecting the ball out by the corner flag sent a long ball to the edge of the box for James Craigen who let rip and sent a sensational volley beyond a stranded Craig Gordon into the net.  Cue absolute scenes within the home support and with just a quarter of the match to go, could the Spartan Army faithful begin to dream?

Spartans made their first change of the afternoon with just over ten minutes left as Danny Denholm replaced Kieran Watson.

With the game entering the final stages of the ninety, once again it was Blair Carswell who came to Spartans rescue whilst frustrating the Jambos as he pulled off perhaps his finest save of the game to somehow deny Grant down low at his far post.  An extraordinary save from an exceptional keeper.

Perhaps with the thought of an additional 30 minutes on the horizon there was a brace of Spartans changes with Sean Brown and Cammy Russell replacing Blair Henderson and Jamie Dishington.

Then, with the game in two minutes into added on time, Cochrane launched a corner kick into the box where Kent was to leap the highest to send his header into the back of Carswell’s net.

There was enough time on the clock to make one final change, with Alan Brown making his 300^th appearance in Spartans colours, coming on for Rhys Armstrong.

Sadly there was little time left to make it a fairytale landmark appearance and with that, Willie Collum made one final peep of the whistle to signal the end of an exciting game and another year’s Scottish Cup run.

FT: The Spartans 1-2 Heart of Midlothian

Man of the Match: Blair Carswell

The Spartans maintained third spot in the SPFL 2 table despite suffering a 0-2 defeat to Stenhousemuir at Ainslie Park.

Gaffer Douglas Samuel making just the one change to the starting XI that won in Peterhead the previous week with Cammy Russell replaced by Bradley Whyte.  New signing Mason McCready, who joined the squad on Friday from Partick Thistle, joined the bench.

Despite the chill the game kicked off with blue sky gracing North Edinburgh.  The ball spending most of the opening five minutes up there.  As the Sultans of Ping FC once noted, “If God meant game to be played up there, he would’ve put goal posts in the air”.

Neither team was able to secure possession enough to make significant in-roads on either penalty area as many of the 702 inside the crowd shielded their eyes, not from what was playing out in front of them, but the pesky low setting sun.

The first opportunity came from the visitors who flung in a free-kick into the home box.  Gregor Buchanan found himself on the floor with muted appeals for a penalty waved aside.

Then, at the other end, Jamie Dishington was inches away from the opener when his effort via the outside of the boot shaved the outside of the post.

As is often the case in sport, moments after that narrow miss, it was Stenhousemuir who grabbed the advantage.  Matty Yates coming up with the ball after an interaction with Jamie Dishington, play raged on despite claims on the validity of how possession was won and the Stenny striker sent the ball beyond Carswell to make it 0-1.

Spartans rallied and a fantastic run by Blair Henderson through the heart of the visitors defence saw him made good progress however he was adjudged to have given the defender a wee tug and was pinged accordingly.

Blair Carswell was to make one final spectacular save before the teams headed to the sheds as he got down low to deny Yates a second, pushing a shot behind from close range.

HT: The Spartans 0-2 Stenhousemuir

An early half chance for Blair Henderson saw the Spartans man send a half volley towards goal only for it to dip too late and fall just behind the goal.

The visitors had an opportunity of their own when Meechan flashed his shot across the face of Carswell’s goal with no-one coming in to pick up the scraps.

Henderson could count himself unlucky not to have levelled proceedings when Kevin Waugh’s through ball found the No.9.  He still had lots to do before digging out a shot that went narrowly wide.

A first swap of the day saw Danny Denholm come on for Kieran Watson midway through the half.

Bradley Whyte was next to have a pop at goal as Spartans pressed for the equaliser.  It looked a potential for top bins but the trajectory and pace of the ball saw it go over the bar.

Paul Watson was next to enter the fray as he replaced Ayrton Sonkur.

Then, in the 81^st minute, the visitors struck again.  A wee flick following a headed clearance inside the Stenny half found Matty Aitken flirting with the offside line however he collected the ball before racing in to slide beyond Carswell to double the lead.

A double Spartans swap to salvage something out of the game saw Sean Brown and Sam Newman come on for Booth and Whyte however despite some intense bombardment of the tourists box, there was to be no reward for the late endeavours.

FT: The Spartans 0-2 Stenhousemuir

Malt and Hops Man of the Match: James Craigen

Blair Henderson’s second half strike helped The Spartans record a fourth successive clean sheet victory, sending Dougie Samuel’s side to second in the SPFL 2 table in the process.

New signing Callum Booth was straight into the travelling starting XI following his move from St Johnstone keen to kick off his loan in winning ways.

Under a blanket of Blue Toon sky of same colour play got underway on a soft surface due to levels of rain in the vicinity of late.

Spartans were on the front foot from the off however their aerial launches into the box failed to stick and were scooped up by the home defence with relative ease.

A counter from the tourists saw Rhys Armstrong go for a wander through the middle of the park before shipping out wide.  The ball was then sent into the box, beyond Blair Henderson into the path of Cammy Russell who shot narrowly beyond the far post.

Armstrong found himself shortly after on the edge of the penalty area after Henderson managed to offload in a busy box however the effort was too central and into the welcoming bread basket of the Stuart McKenzie.

Cammy Russell took a dull one after distributing the ball in back play which was to see him subsequently require treatment.

Meanwhile, Blair Carswell was to pull off one several fine saves, this one diving low to deny Andy McCarthy, not with his gloves, but the boot, from deep inside the penalty box.

HT: Peterhead 0-0 The Spartans

Cammy Russell was replaced by Bradley Whyte at the interval as the former failed to shake off the knock received earlier.

A half chance followed for the substitute shortly after the restart however it wasn’t to be as the fresh legged one couldn’t direct his header net bound.

Another super Blair Carswell in goals save, this time diving at full range to push away a header that looked certain to tickle the onion bag.

Midway through the half, another Spartans change, with Jordan Tapping swapping with Danny Denholm.

Then, with twelve minutes left on the clock, the outcome of the game was to be decided.  James Craigen went on a direct run towards goal.  His perfectly timed pass into the path of Blair Henderson saw the striker break the offside trap just inside the box.  He used his experience and finishing prowess to take time to compose himself before slamming the ball into the net.

Peterhead looked for an avenue back into the game with a double change.  With four minutes left, it was Spartans who made a brace of substitutions of their own.  Sean Brown and Paul Watson coming on for Henderson and Armstrong.

As the sands of injury time filtered through the hour glass of hope for the hosts, Sean Brown used his game management skills to hold onto the ball and keep possession to kill the clock.  This and a final effort finding the welcoming arms of Blair Carswell ensured Spartans record a third win on the road at Balmoor this season.

FT: Peterhead 0-1 The Spartans

Malt and Hops Man of the Match: Blair Carswell