Raith Rovers travelled to Arbroath on Saturday knowing defeat could haul them into a relegation battle.
But with a battling second half performance the Fifers completed a convincing comeback to claim a crucial 2-1 win.
Strikes from Scott Brown and Connor McBride extended their unbeaten run to ten games and puts Raith right in the play-off mix.
Courier Sport was at Gayfield to witness Raith’s win and here are three talking points:
Courageous captain Scott Brown
Scott Brown was made captain by Ian Murray despite only arriving in the summer on a free transfer from Peterhead.
But while he must feel pressure to lead from the front so early into his Rovers career, the former St Johnstone star is delivering.
Forget his stunning leveller, we’ll get to that in a minute.
Brown’s second half performance epitomised the spirited fightback Raith needed to win here.
He rolled his sleeves up, got stuck in and made Arbroath chase him.
And, then, when it mattered most he delivered with a moment of real quality.
Arbroath boss Dick Campbell is not shy of rolling out the superlatives but when he’s using it to praise an opponent, you need to listen.
Campbell described Brown’s strike as ‘world class’ and the 18-yard screamer was certainly top drawer.
Connor McBride seizes Raith Rovers chance
Ian Murray is at pains to point out that his January cutbacks can be a positive.
Murray has trimmed back his squad by releasing six and bringing in two.
And one player who may have feared the axe is Connor McBride, who has only started once in the Championship this term.
But after a pep talk with Murray, McBride is very much in his manager’s thoughts.
Murray was full of praise for McBride over how he responded to the tete-a-tete.
Scoring a winner at Arbroath, isn’t such a bad way to underline your determination to win a place in the team.
Cup runs can drive Raith on
Captains of the four #SPFLTrustTrophy semi finalists were at Hampden yesterday ahead of their fixtures next week. ⚽️
Who are you backing to lift the trophy this year? 🏆 pic.twitter.com/3VWe5uoJI1
— SPFL Trust (@SPFLTrust) February 3, 2023
Raith are almost safe from automatic relegation.
Their 15 point cushion from Hamilton is likely to be insurmountable. Even the 12 point advantage over Arbroath looks too much at this stage.
Now they can really start to pull together the results they need to push for the promotion play-offs as they sit level with fourth-place Partick Thistle.
But before that, Raith can enjoy a break in the cups.
They have a chance to defend their SPFL Trust Trophy as they face Dundee in the semi-final in midweek.
Then they host Motherwell in the Scottish Cup on Saturday.
And with Murray’s men building up a head of steam, you wouldn’t bet against them causing an upset against a struggling Well side.
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