Scottish League Division 3
	Queen's Park	1
	Carroll
	East Fife	1
	McBride
Saturday February 3, 2007

HOMER can still remember the last time Queen's Park, East Fife and Paul Walker were all thrown into the mix at Hampden.
It was a Tuesday night just after the turn of the Millennium as Cowboy's Spiders took us on a rollercoaster ride towards the title.
Queen's desperately needed to see off the Fifers to boost their chances and seconds after the restart wee Paul scampered up the touchline, beat the last defender and slid the ball under keeper Willie McCulloch and into the net.
Incredibly, Queen's were one up and Gulliver hadn't even had a go at the referee yet.
For much of the rest of the game, Queen's were under the cosh, but the defensive rocks that were Caven and Martin marshalled the troops to a vital victory. And the rest, as they say, is history.
But history has a nasty habit of evening the score, and Homer was just hoping that Walker, who only signed on at Methil this week, wasn't the Queen's Nemesis on this occasion.
Incidentally, the only other QP survivors from that nailbiting night still involved today were Frankie Carroll and Richard Sinclair. And, naturally, Jonny Whelan was there.
So, could the Queen's of 2007 repeat the victory and set us on course for possible glory?
We did beat the Fifers last time out at Hampden, and the men from Methil have been in an awful run of form lately.
But they have led the league for a long time this term, are a very strong side, and were desperate themselves for victory to get their season back on track.
The boss had to go into the game without Alan Trouten, who suffered a hamstring injury last week. That was a blow, as the talented midfielder had shown signs of getting back to his best after what can only be described as an indifferent spell.
On the plus side, Agostini and Cairns were available for selection, as was Frankie Carroll.
Few in the home ranks expected too many changes in the starting XI from last week. Trouten was out with a hammy and Cairney dropped to the bench, with Dunn and Quinn coming in to the starting X1.
The weather was magnificent, spring in February; glorious sunshine which, by kick-off, had all but gone from inside the Hampden bowl.
Homer will never get his head round the concept of global warming. He's still trying to figure out how the guy who drives the snowplough gets to his work in the morning.
Of course, there are many things which confuse Homer, but we won't go there; time is short.
And it didn't take Queen's much time to welcome Walker back to Hampden, a scything challenge from Dunlop bring down down the wee man in the first minute. The free kick came to nothing.
We were 10 minutes in before we knew it. Little had happened in the opposing penalty boxes - Kettlewell rattled a shot well wide - but Queen's could be happy with their start, playing the ball on the deck and good movement off the ball.
Wee Walker looked a little hairier, a little more worn than Homer had remembered, but the spark was still there, as he showed when booting the ball away in disgust as a wayward forward pass had him chasing in vain. Referee Law had a quiet word.
Good Queen's pressure forced two corners on the right, Dunlop having a powerful head from Paton's kick blocked to create the second. Dunn had a shot blocked from the edge of the box as the Fifers cleared, and Ferry's inside pass was only just cut out by Smart at full stretch.
Twenty minutes in and Crawford's only action had been a comfortable save from a looping header; Ross was equally inactive, unfortunately.
Dunn took six Queen's players out of the game when he was slow with a forward pass as Spiders broke with pace, and it took a tackle by the backtracking Weatherston to stop a Walker cross as the Fifers tried to take advantage with a break of their own.
Ferry lost possession in our half and the Fifers broke four on two, with Paton caught upfield. Sinclair nand Dunlop both missed with tackles on Gibson, who squared to Gordon 10 yards out and watched him blaze a shot well over.
Queen's could be happy with their possession, but they had to be careful to keep the back door bolted.
Nicholas was booked for a foul on Paton after good advantage by referee Law (but don't tell Gulliver I said that; he gets upset when I praise officials, not that he would ever criticise them, of course).
Queen's were playing well up to their 18yd line, which is where they ran out of ideas. After one such breakdown, the Fifers broke two on two and Crawford was relieved to see a cute Nicholas chip sail over his head and over the bar.
Ross was called on to make his first save in 42 minutes, going down at full stretch to make a Ronald daisy-cutter look difficult.
Canning was saved severe embarrassment when Sinclair beat Nicholas after the Queen's left back had gifted the blonde Fifer possession. We were too often sloppy, and it would cost us if we kept it up in the second half.
Half-time: Queen's 0, East Fife 0

A very good through ball by Kettlewell into the box gave Ronald a half chance with a minute on the clock, but the big man was beaten to it by Courts.
From the clearance, Walker held off Kettlewell into the box and shot narrowly wide. Visiting supporters were on their feet shouting 'goal!' as the ball looked in, hitting the rear stanchion and running along the back of the net. Queen's fans roared their derision; great stuff.
Canning fed Dunn down the left and his cross was struck first time left-footed by Quinn and blocked for a corner.
A neat interpassing move involving Nicholas and Jablonski ended with the follicly-challenged Blackadder doing a fair impression of Rowan Atkinson with a wild shot over.
The Fifers looked to be getting more of the ball, and Sincair had to be alert to clear a Jablonski knock-down from Walker's cross and then Quinn threw himself in front of a Gibson shot six yards out when the big striker was in a great position to score.
This was not a good spell for Queen's. Ferry was too easily beaten by Doyle at a short free kick, Quinn again threw himself in front of the shot to block and as the ball cannoned through Paton completed the clearance from under the Queen's bar.
It was anyone's game at the minute, very finely balanced.
Kettlewell was booked for a foul on Nicholas in 61.
Queen's best move almost produced the opener in 66. Kettlewell inside to Dunn, a lay off to Weatherston and his low drive was turned round a post by the diving Ross.
That was the cue for an immediate change, with Carroll replacing Dunn.
But Queen's were stunned in 69 minutes when East Fife took the lead. Quinn was adjudged to have conceded a foul 20 yards out and McBride lashed the free kick against the rooted Crawford's left hand post and into the net.
The Fifers had certainly had more of the ball this half, but Queen's again had not made their possession pay and had created very little. They were missing the guile of Trouten
Nicholas should have made it 2-0 two minutes later, racing clear of the Queen's defence and shooting into the side net when he should at the very least have tested Crawford.
Kettlewell needed treatment after a heavy knocked and Walker departed the scene in 78 to be replaced by Young. For Queen's, Cairney replaced Quinn in 79.
Blackadder was booked in 79 for holding back Cairney and Ross saved low and comfortably from Canning's free kick.
The game was so even it looked as if that one goal would decide it, but Queen's stuck to their task and equalised three minutes from time. A Paton free kick was cleared for a corner and from his flag kick, Dunlop won the first header and wee Frankie Carroll rose to head past Ross.
O'Reilly was booked for kicking the ball away as Queen's pressed for a winner, but they hadn't left themselves enough time.
In the end, a draw was a fair result, but Homer can't shift this nagging feeling of another chance lost.