Dunfermline 1 Airdrie 0

THE Pars edged a nerve shredding clash as the bottom two sides in the Championship faced off at East End Park.

After a goalless first half Lewis McCann struck just after the hour mark and Athletic survived a penalty shout to hang on for a vital three points.

The win keeps them in ninth place – down to Morton’s late win at Raith - but Dunfermline have opened up a gap on the Diamonds, who remain rooted to the bottom of the league.

Dunfermline started the day four points clear of Airdrie and have now stretched that to seven.

Pars had lost their last two league games but did get a 1-0 midweek win over Alloa in the SPFL Trust Trophy and continued with an adventurous 3-4-3 formation.

James McPake made just one change to the starting line-up, with Chris Kane returning to lead the line and Dapo Mebude dropping to the bench.

There was a good opportunity blown inside the first two minutes when Kane Ritchie-Hosler’s cross-field pass picked out the run of Kieran Ngwenya who immediately nodded it inside for Joe Chalmers.

With an extra man the chance was there to really threaten a goal but the return pass from Chalmers was poor, Ngwenya’s momentum was lost and the away side escaped unharmed.

Coming into this match, Airdrie had lost five on the bounce after overcoming East Kilbride on penalties in the SPFL Trust Trophy last month and continue to prop up the table.

For all the plaudits and points Rhys McCabe and his team won last season, in this campaign their form has fallen off a cliff and they haven’t won a league game since the opening day, a 1-0 home win over Raith on August 3.

They survived a scare in the eighth minute when Kyle Benedictus won a header from a corner, Kane swivelled and forced an effort at goal which Kieran Wright blocked and the ball was smuggled away.

In the 19th minute the visitors posed a big problem for the Pars defence with Ben Wilson escaping down the right and rifling a low ball across goal that Aaron Comrie had to turn behind for a corner, under pressure from Lewis McGregor.

When the delivery came in the ball wasn’t cleared and fell kindly for Luke Badley-Morgan to instinctively thump a volley goalwards that Athletic goalie Tobi Oluwayemi did well to parry with his fists.

Adam Frizzell then went tumbling in the Dunfermline box, as a slipping Ewan Otoo went in to challenge, and with home fans fearing the concession of a penalty the ref booked the diving Airdrie skipper instead.

Athletic are one of the lowest scorers in the league – Airdrie's tally is even worse  – and there was an indication as to why when Ngwenya opened up space for a crack at goal but the ball ended up nearer the corner flag than the net.

To be fair he came much closer with a difficult chance just past the half hour when Ritchie-Hosler got to the line and dug out a low cross that Ngwenya met first time at the front post and was unlucky to see the shot flash wide.

As befitting two teams battling to escape the bottom of the table, there was plenty of effort and tackles but also a lack of quality at times with misplaced passes and poor control.

McGregor tested Oluwayemi with a crisp drive from distance before Matty Todd showed a flash of class, skipping away from two challenges to make space for a low shot that lacked the accuracy and venom to beat Wright.

Pars got lucky in the 44th minute when Frizzell somehow evaded a flurry of tackles and set up McGregor who ran clear and angled a drive inches wide of the far post.

Ritchie-Hosler had a brilliant chance to open the scoring at the start of the second half after good set-up work from McCann and Todd but his effort at goal was too tame – he should have smashed it – and the goalie saved.

Kane then misplaced a header after Ngwenya did well to release Otoo down the left and the cross looked like meat and drink for the striker.

However he didn’t get a good connection and the ball ran well wide with a late flag into the bargain.

Kane made way for Mebude 10 minutes after the break – many in the crowd didn’t seem to agree that he was the man to come off – but it was Airdrie who threatened next with a rehearsed corner routine allowing Gavin Gallagher a free hit from outside the box that skipped just wide.

The breakthrough came in the 61st minute and it was against the run of play, with the Diamonds having built up a head of steam and enjoyed a spell of attacking.

Just as the home crowd were starting to grow restless Ngwenya picked out the run of McCann and he took one touch before lifting the ball to the side of Wright and into the net.

A great burst from Aaron Comrie then opened up the Airdrie defence and when he dinked a clever ball into the middle Mebude stooped and sent a header bouncing past the post when he should have done better.

There was controversy in the 71st minute when sub Cameron Cooper had a great chance to level but instead of pulling the trigger he tried to take the ball round Oluwayemi.

Under pressure from the goalie and Chris Hamilton the Airdrie sub hit the deck and there were loud appeals for a penalty which the ref, Colin Steven, ignored.

McCann had run himself into the ground and made way for David Wotherspoon for the final 15 minutes, with the match still in the balance.

Hamilton got his head on the end of a Wotherspoon free kick in the closing stages, the goalie comfortably held on, and Athletic forced a corner which saw Benedictus crumple to the ground and yelp out in pain after falling awkwardly at the back post.

Luckily he seemed to be ok and it was fitting that he headed clear as Airdrie’s last chance came and went in added time.