Fifers slip out of cup as defensive woes continue

Frustratingly for the Methil side Alloa, who now enter the last 16 of the Irn-Bru Cup, really didn’t have to work too hard for any of the three goals they put past Ryan Goodfellow.

And as well as being generous at the back, East Fife let their hosts off at the other end, wasting a penalty kick.

It took Alloa less than 10 minutes to take the lead.

Greig Spence was able to work some room for himself inside the box and chipped a sublime cross into the six yard box.

Jordan Kirkpatrick was first to react and nodded past Ryan Goodfellow.

The visitors were struggling to get a foothold in the game and it was Alloa who grabbed the crucial second goal.

Jonathan Page up-ended Spence on the edge of the area and from the resultant free-kick Calum Waters sent his effort crashing beyond Ryan Goodfellow.

East Fife were second best throughout the first half but were gifted a great chance to get back into the game by their hosts.

Scott Taggart handled inside the area and Kevin Graham had the simple decision to point to the spot.

But from the kick the Methil men wasted their chance to pull one back with Scott Robinson firing well over the bar.

And they were kicked in the teeth on the stroke of half time when Spence notched number three when he picked up on a slack pass in the East Fife defence, raced in on Goodfellow’s goal and netted.

Assistant boss Dougie Anderson said: “We came to face an Alloa who are on a good run of form and are a good side.

“But yet again individual errors have accounted to another defeat.

“I don’t think we played poorly, we created four or five reasonable chances, but you can’t gift goals and we did that.

“The penalty miss was a turning point.

“We had a chance to make it 2-1 and that would have turned the game.

“The third goal just eliminated any hope we had of getting back in the game.”