Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

6 shocks that blew Dundee United and Raith Rovers’ Scottish Championship title race wide open

The fourth and final meeting between the sides could effectively decide the destination of the trophy.

Dundee United and Raith Rovers have both passed up golden opportunities this season. Images: SNS.
Dundee United and Raith Rovers have both passed up golden opportunities this season. Images: SNS.

It could all come down to this weekend for Dundee United and Raith Rovers.

After the Championship rivals face each other at Tannadice, they will still have five and six fixtures to play respectively.

But given how tight the title race has been this season, Saturday could be key.

A win for either side might just be the difference between direct entry to the Premiership and a gruelling play-off schedule.

There have been a number of eyebrow-raising results that have helped get us here, with just a point separating the teams.

Raith Rovers players following Dylan Easton's winner at Tannadice
Raith celebrate their winner at Tannadice in December. Image: SNS

Courier Sport selects five matches that have ensured we have a tight title race.

Raith Rovers 2-2 Arbroath, December 30

Raith could very well have pulled away at the top of the league over December and January were it not for a dip in form.

Carrying on their imperious record to the end of the season was never likely to happen.

When a poor run did come, it hit hard, with just one win over a six-game stretch of league matches all they could muster.

One of their more shocking results came at home to a heavily depleted Arbroath at the end of last year and involved a goal-of-the-season contender from a substitute goalie.

Arbroath have only won one match since.

Arbroath 3-2 Raith Rovers, March 1

That also came against Raith Rovers.

While Dundee United have trounced the Lichties handsomely this season, Raith have found them something of a bogey team.

Rovers were cruising, 2-0 up and about to go top of the league before a second-half implosion saw Arbroath rescue an unlikely three points.

Dundee United 0-2 Airdrie, February 27

United have also had spurned opportunities to pile on the pressure.

One such occasion came during a recent midweek game in-hand versus Airdrie.

Jim Goodwin’s side had the opportunity to pull three points clear of Rovers but started slowly and, as has become a bit of a habit recently, conceded the first goal.

Dundee United missed the chance to pull clear. Image: SNS.

United remained top of the division on goal difference – something else that could come into play on the final day.

It was only their fourth defeat of the season, though their third at Tannadice in front of an expectant home crowd.

Dunfermline 3-1 Dundee United, March 15

There has been one more defeat since, and two draws in that time.

The manner of the defeat was the most worrying for United as Dunfermline took a 3-0 lead shortly after half-time of this televised clash.

Dundee United were soundly beaten at East End Park. Image: SNS.

The Pars have proved stubborn opposition for Goodwin’s men this season, who have won just one of four thanks to a late Chris Mochrie goal.

So it was at East End Park 10 days ago, where United improved at 3-0 down, forced an own goal and created a fair few chances, but were soundly beaten in the end.

Dundee United 1-1 Inverness Caley Thistle, March 23

Inverness are another side the Tangerines have come unstuck against.

The most recent was perhaps the most frustrating. The Caley Jags are fighting to stay in the division and had won just one of their last eight when they arrived at Tannadice on Saturday.

The 1-1 draw was their second at the venue this season and, with Raith’s match postponed due to the Challenge Cup final, the result stood as another big opportunity spurned to pull ahead.

Dundee United 0-1 Raith Rovers, December 16

It really could come down to the head-to-head record between the title rivals.

Granted, it may be stretching the meaning of the concept of a shock, but Dylan Easton’s mazy run and finish in December is where the title we have today race really began.

Raith Rovers match-winner Dylan Easton celebrates against Dundee United
Match-winner Dylan Easton celebrates after the sides last met at Tannadice. Image: SNS

United were unbeaten in the league at the time and many were questioning how long Rovers could continue to win points late in matches.

It was a real statement from Ian Murray’s men, though it did precede a dip in form that saw them win just once in their next six Championship fixtures.

Another win at Tannadice could be what gets them over the line, or vice versa for United.

Conversation