Scottish League Division 2 Play-off Final 2nd leg
	East Fife	0
	Queen's Park	3
	Paton, Trouten, Carroll
Saturday, May 12, 2007

WE'RE all dreamers at heart, and let's face it, when you follow Queen's Park you need to hold on to your dreams. After all, we invest our emotional energy in a team of kids and seasoned veterans who play for the love of the game.
They don't need to kiss the jersey to show how they feel, they prove it by turning out every week, while lesser talents elsewhere walk off with inflated pay packets - and put far less into the sport.
Some so-called experts tell us there is no place for Queen's Park in today's football ... try telling that to five hundred or so delirious supporters who saw their promotion dream come true in Methil today.
These black and white hordes have travelled the length and breadth of Scotland to back their team. They've revelled in the triumphs, and despaired in their defeats.
Even as they celebrated today, those fans knew they would probably never see some of today's team in a Queen's Park jersey again. But those self-same fans knew the club would survive - as it has done for 140 years.
They were just happy to have seen a smashing bunch of players - led by a pretty special coaching squad - achieve what the doubters said was impossible.
All season, Gulliver and Homer have listened to the drivel of the pundits saying the pretty football we played would never win prizes at this level. Billy Stark kept the faith; the players kept the faith and the majority of the fans kept the faith. The faith was rewarded today.
And incredibly, the triumph was achieved with precious few anxious moments along the way.
The boss was able to say same again to the XI who started on Wednesday. The bench was also strengthened by the return of Frankie Carroll, Tony Quinn and Mark Cairns.
With a two-goal lead from the first leg, ther only big danger was an early goal. One arrived, but it was for Queen's - and what a goal it was.
Gulliver and Homer were sitting right behind Paul Paton's dad as the ball broke to the full back about 30 yeards out.
Shoot, shouted his old man.
Shoot, Paul did - and the ball flew into the net with keeper Dodds clutching at straws.
Paton doesn't score many, but he makes them worth the wait.
Four minutes on the clock, and barring disasters, we were well on the way to Division 2.
Truth be told, the disaster never looked on the cards. We were in the driving seat and never took our foot off the pedal.
We kept possession of the ball when we needed too, and dealt with the main East Fife threat - a big lump up the middle - with ease. Any time the ball needed to be won, Big D won it. Any time he wasn't there, Mick Dunlop obliged.
The rock-solid defence meant the midfield could strut their stuff, and they did it with some applomb.
We didn't create too much in the first period, but we were seldom under any pressure. Paul Walker worked his wee socks off any time he got the ball, and it was Walker who brought out DC's only real save in the first period.
Just on the half-hour, we had a wee chance to make it two. Weatherston fed Cairney, who teed up Ferry, but his shot flew inches wide.
That was about it as far as chances for the first 45.
One nil at the break was good, and it quickly became evident it would only get better.
After 51 minutes, Ferry's cross was headed back across goal by Ronald and Paolo Cairney let fly. Sadly, it was straight at Dodds.
Five minutes later, Kettlewell and Trouten combined to swing in a sweet cross which David Weatherston headed just wide.
The Fifers took off both full backs and threw on Nicholas and Blackadder. It waqs a desperate gamble, and it backfired spectacularly.
Queen's found even more space and Weatherston exploited it after 74 minutes. He burst clear down the left and cut the ball back to Trouten. He smacked it off the bar and it bounced down just over the line.
With 16 minutes left, and a 6-2 aggregate lead, even Gulliver felt confident we might just hang on.
The players had no such thoughts; they smelt blood, and extracted it with a third goal in the dying minutes.
Robert Dunn, a late substitute for Paul Ronald, collected the ball in the middle of the park and sent other sub Frankie Carroll (on for Trouten) sprinting clear and he smacked the ball home with his left peg.
Three-nil, and under a minute to go; we were there.
You know Gulliver would never criticise an official, but some in the Hoops thought Mr Collum could have shown a bit more understanding when Canning and Dunlop left the field to celebrate with the young fans.
But then again, the rules say that's a yellow card, and whatever you may say about Mr Collum, he's a stickler for the rule book.
Canning and Dunlop were duly summoned and booked ... both with huge grins on their faces.
The joy-filled faces of the Spiders fans inside the ground told the story at the final whistle. Many of the youngsters in Black and White had grown pretty accustomed to success over the course of the season, and expected nothing else.
Those who have followed the cause for more years than they care to admit were a bit shellshocked. They have seen many Spiders teams do a Devon Loch in the final furlong, and dreaded another slip today. They couldn't quite believe how comfortable it all was.
The players joined in the celebrations, by donning t-shirts bearing the slogan "we are going up". They danced, the fans sang, and Billy Stark was persuaded to join in before being carried off the park on the shouilders' of the players.
The feel good factor extended far and wide as the mobile phone messages came in from Celtic fans and even a wee pal of Gulliver's down in Geordie land. Thanks boys. I might just follow your advice and have a sherbert or two later on.
What nobody who was at Methil today should forget is that this is a special QP squad, and everyone who has donned the jersey has done the club proud over the course of the season.
They have given us our finest moment in recent history with a remarkable cup victory over a Premier League side. They have produced football that would gladden the heart of any true fan.
And they have done it for no financial reward, in the finest tradition of this club. Ludere causa ludendi may seem an antiquated notion in this grubby, money-grabbing game. But it's one that this correspondent holds dear, as do all who know and love the history of Queen's Park.
As always at this time of year, we must wish those who are moving on to pastures new every success.
But Gulliver can't let them go without making his customary plea: Make sure you are making the right move. Remember, you will go a long way to get better facilities, better coaching - or a better environment to learn. A little sacrifice now might pay big dividends in the long term - particularly if you're not moving straight to a full-time club.
Anyway, enough of that. For the moment, let's all just pay tribute to the record-breaking squad of 2006-07, and thank them for all they have done.
Enjoy (or endure) the close season, and here's hoping Gulliver and Homer will find plenty more happy exploits to report on next time round in Division 2 - and how good does that sound?.

Any children watching please turn away now ... Gulliver is off to get well and truly pi .. ed!!! Enjoy yourself everybody, it is later than you think.