Here we are on the last full day of the season and just a couple of days ago we had very little idea of what lay in store. We knew we were in the play-offs, but we didn't know where, when or who it would be against. Some answers have been provided, but it would be the end of playtonight before the final pieces were put together in the jigsaw. We travelled to Dumbarton not knowing quite what would be the best result. Some wanted us to finish fourth to face Stranraer in the semis. Others wanted us to go out on a high and go into the crucial play-offs brimming with confidence. One man certainly had to come up with some answers. Spiders coach Billy Stark had almost a full deck to choose from, but he also had to consider what lay ahead after today. Would he rest players with Tuesday night in mind? Would he give those who had been missing with suspension a run out? Would he see if the kids brought in last week could do a job from the start? Gullivar has to admit he didn't envy the coach, who was on a hiding to nothing no matter what he did. In the end, after no doubt a lot of soul-searching, the boss came up with this starting XI: Crawford, Paton, Dunlop, Quinn, Agostini, Canning, Kettlewell, Cairney, Dunn, Ronald and Trouten. At least that was supposed to be how we started, but in yet another twist, Damiano Agostini pulled up in the warm-up and was replaced in the starting line-up by Andy Boslem. Boslem's place on the bench was taken by Alan Harty, who sat alongside Mark Cairns, Mark Ferry, David Weatherston and Richard Bowers. It was hardly surprising with such a changed tream that Queen's would take time to settle, but while we showed little in an attacking sense, we were seldom really stretched in the early stages. Six minutes in and Borris created the first real opportunity, setting up McQuilken, but his volley sailed high and wide. Queen's slowly started to get into the game and after 11 minutes, Paton fired in a fine free kick, which found no takers. Dunn was next to step up to the plate, breaking through the middle, but he delayed his pass too long and was eventually left with no option other than a shot. It never troubled the keeper. The first real drama of the game came just after 25 minutes. Borris went down under Canning's challenge in the box and referee Brown pointed to the spot. Dillon smashed his spot kick towards the top corner, but reckoned without the strong left hand of David Crawford which somehow managed to turn the ball over the bar. A great stop at just the right moment. That suggested it might be our day, and that belief was strengthened within five minutes. Cairney fed Canning and he let rip. Robert Dunn got in the way of the shot and deflected it past a helpless Grindlay. That was the only goal of the first period, but there were a couple of encouraging moments, mainly to do with the composure of young Boslem at the back. Gulliver also enjoyed the classic comment when Craig barged into Paton. A home fan tried to claim it was just a mistimed tackle, Our man summed it up better when he suggested it was the shove he mistimed. Queen's came out and smartly after the break and took control of proceedings. Trouten looked lively as he broke through after 50 minutes. He fed Dunn, but the striker's effort was deflected for a corner. On the hour mark, the boss gave Paul Ronald a rest and brought on Weatherston. He nearly made an immediate impact when Cairney, Kettlewell, and Trouten combined to give him the chance, but his shot from the edge of the box sailed high over the top. Ferry for Trouten was the next change as the boss looked to next week. Crawford had been enjoying a nice quiet afternoon, but had to earn his keep after 68 minutes when he produced a fine double save to keep us ahead. Seventy-five minutes in came the first real "Queen's" moment of the afternoon. Ferry, Dunn and Canning all had shots blocked before the rebound reached Tony Quinn. His first-time shot was so badly hit it sailed towards the corner flag and the wind turned the effort into a fine pass for Ferry. As everybody laughed at the insanity, the midfielder fired in a cross that found no takers. Three minutes later, Queen's sealed the game. Paton's free kick was hit too hard, but a Sons' defender tried to head it back to Grindlay. Weatherston read his mind and sneaked in to touch the ball over the line before the stranded keeper could get anywhere near it. The only other moments of note came in the dying minutes. Kettlewell produced a wee bit of magic to lob the ball past Dillon and sent a raking ball through to Weatherson. The finish didn't match the build-up, and Grindlay easily gathered his shot. Then, with another shut-out looming, Boslem's headed clearance was picked up by Tiernan and fed through to substitute Coyne. He twisted to volley past a helpless Crawford. That was the end of the scoring, and a 2-1 victory was a nice way to round off a glorious sunny afternoon. We face far bigger challenges on Tuesday, when Arbroath will come to Hampden fired up with a sense of injustice at having to bring the game forward. As far as Queen's are concerned, perhaps the biggest test for the boss will be getting his line-up right. He'll have most of the squad available, and if he gets that right - and the boys do their bit - we have nothing to fear. The only certainty is that we'll suffer more than a few agonies during the course of the night. Hopefully, we'll get a result that will make the trip to Gayfield on Saturday slightly less nerve-jangling. But then again, don't bet on it. This is Queen's we're talking about.
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