There was to be no welcome back to club responsibilities for Jimmy Nicholl last night as Cowdenbeath succumbed to a second defeat to Falkirk in the space of a week to remain rooted in relegation trouble.
The Blue Brazil had come within 15 minutes of a shock draw against Rangers at Ibrox at weekend in the absence of Nicholl, who was on international duty in his new role as Northern Ireland assistant manager, but they rarely looked like coming back last night after going behind to David McCracken’s header just before the break.
The Fifers were more of an attacking threat in the second half but could not piece together enough in the final third to threaten Jamie MacDonald’s goal and it was the Bairns who were celebrating as they leapfrogged Queen of the South into the coveted fourth spot.
Whilst it is the promotion play-offs that are occupying the minds of Falkirk, it is the relegation ones that are troubling the men from Central Park as they continue to languish in second bottom spot.
“I’m sounding like a broken record,” admitted Nicholl.
“We set out to frustrate them and not to let them play their usual game, and the plan was to counter-attack with pace.
“But then we shot ourselves in the foot again. Big Nat Wedderburn was supposed to be picking up at the goal and he knows that.
“At this minute in time, because we’re not scoring goals, we’re making it really difficult for ourselves if we don’t defend properly.
Will Vaulks sent a powerful drive inches wide of Robbie Thomson’s right-hand post in the 23rd minute and John Baird had a volley ruled out for offside after finding the net two minutes later when he latched on to a deflected Taylor Morgan shot.
However, just as the visitors looked like reaching half-time unscathed, they fell behind to the kind of goal that has proved their undoing all season.
From a debated free-kick on the right, Alex Cooper whipped a dangerous ball into the ball but, rather than a Cowdenbeath head, it was home skipper McCracken who leaped highest to glance in what proved to be the winner.
Attendance: 3,220.
Falkirk: MacDonald; Vaulks, McCracken, Grant, Leahy; Taiwo, Kerr, Sibbald, Cooper (Alston 67); Morgan (Smith 54), Baird. Subs not used: Morrison, Dick, Maybury, O’Hara.
Cowdenbeath: Thomson; Toshney, Brownlie, Armstrong, Wedderburn; Milne (O’Brien 78); Johnston (Nish 71), Robertson, Hughes, Buchanan; Oyenuga. Subs not used: Sneddon, Kane, Miller, Marshall, Halsman.
Referee: A. Dallas.