Partick Thistle 1 - 2 Raith Rovers: Leap of Raith keeps Fifers in contention

Published on Saturday 31 October 2009 20:11

ANYONE who had casually dismissed Raith's excellent start to the season as little more than a flash in the pan must surely now be re-evaluating their take on the situation with the Kirkcaldy men continuing to stay among the promotion chasers thanks to tremendous results such as this one.

John McGlynn's men deservedly blew apart Thistle's proud unbeaten home record to stay in touch with the leaders, and on the evidence of these 90-minutes they, more than their hosts, are the likelier to give Dundee a run for their huge supply of money.

Whether or not the Fifers can stay the course and genuinely challenge for a place in the top flight remains to be seen, what you can say about them is they are where they are on merit, and if they continue to go about their business in the manner in which they have thus far they must be taken seriously. What is all the more remarkable is that they are confounding the sceptics with a refreshingly open style of play comprising two touchline-hugging wingers, and strikers of genuine pace.

For all that Thistle could boast four wins from their previous five home outings, it was the visitors who opened the attack with the power of Gregory Tade allied with the pace and touch of strike partner Johnny Russell giving a long-in-the-tooth Thistle back line plenty to think about. Only the quick reactions of Jags' keeper Jonny Tuffey kept out Dundee United loanee Russell after six very one-sided minutes, when the youngster looked certain to open the scoring.

Tuffey needed to be at his best again midway through the half to deny Rovers again, this time with an even better one-handed save on a blockbusting Grant Murray volley. Thistle simply were not in the game as an attacking force, with Rovers repeatedly swarming all over them.

Thistle, though, cleared their heads, stepped off the ropes and against the run of play took an unlikely lead just after the half hour. Simon Donnelly seized on some defensive hesitancy to squeeze a scuffed right-footed finish past Rovers keeper Ryan McGurn from eight yards.

To say it was cruel on Rovers would be a massive understatement, so it was a smack of justice being done when Rovers levelled ten minutes later just as Thistle enjoyed their best spell of the game. McGurn had denied Thistle several times, and when the hosts failed to clear a dead ball properly at the other end Ryan Wallace laced home a screamer from the edge of the area to tie the game at the interval.

With the need for improvement no doubt the primary topic of conversation inside the home dressing room, the second period began on a much more level footing than the first. Thistle forced a succession of poorly taken corners, and Rovers looked to exploit the plentiful supply of pace at their disposal.

Indeed it was from one such lightning break that the Fifers completed the turnaround just after the hour mark. Tade ran clear of the pedestrian-paced Partick defence only to be denied by the legs of Tuffey. However, the keeper made a real mess of taking the subsequent loose ball, allowing Robert Sloan to find the net with a measured finish.

Facing their first home league reversal of the season, and more importantly losing further ground on leaders Dundee, Thistle continued to plug away without ever convincing they had the unlocking of a steadfast visiting defence. Substitute Jim Hamilton headed narrowly over, but Rovers held out more comfortably than they would have imagined to confirm an impressive win.