Raith over 50s went into the last round of fixtures in WFS’s East Region League on Sunday 27th October one point behind leaders, Dundee East, with each team having 4 games to play. Meanwhile a point behind Rovers lay Luncarty and lurking a further point back were Hearts. It was going to be a tight day.

First up was Arbroath. Last year’s champions were having a hard season and were currently sitting 6th in the league. Despite this Raith were expecting a tough game and that’s how it played out. For most of the game both teams cancelled each other out attacking and defending well while both keepers pulled off some big saves. However the deadlock was broken in the 13th minute when, super-sub, Neil Galloway, received a pass from Davey and shot low past the Arbroath keeper to open the scoring. With taking the lead late in the game and knowing all points were going to be crucial on the day Raith played the game out in a controlled manner to run out winners 1-0.
Luncarty 1-3 Hearts
Oriam 1-1 Dundee East
Raith Rovers 1-0 Arbroath – Maroon
St James 2-1 Tayport – Reds
Raith Rovers 25pts
Dundee East 24pts
Hearts 23pts
Luncarty 21pts

Game two saw St James as the opposition. Another team not having their expected season. Long time dominant force in the league they had started the day second bottom of the league but after one game had risen above Arbroath into sixth place. A tight start to the game turned Raith’s way in the 3rd minute when a pass from Davey found Chillo who turned and shot 1-0. Three minutes later St James tied the game up but that parity was short-lived when a St James player stepped into their keeper’s area and the ref awarded a penalty to Raith. Up stepped Kev Henderson, planted his standing foot firmly beside the ball and fired past the keeper. 2-1 There few more opportunities for both sides but Harry in the Raith goal again pulled off some great saves and Raith held on to record their second win of the day 2-1.
Linlithgow Rose 1-4 Dundee East
Luncarty 0-2 Arbroath – Maroon
Oriam 1-0 Tayport – Reds
Raith Rovers 2-1 St James
Raith Rovers 28pts
Dundee East 27pts
Hearts 23pts
Luncarty 21pts

Third game in and the team faced Oriam. Oriam started the day just below the top four in fifth place and were maintaining that position. Raith opened the scoring in the 4th minute when Scott took a free kick, passing to Kev who beat the keeper for a 1-0 lead. The lead however was short-lived as a rising Oriam shot caught Scott high on his arm in the penalty area and the ref awarded Oriam a penalty. 1-1 With points winning prizes Raith pushed hard for a winner but had to remain vigilant to not lose a goal to a breakaway or a “three runs” penalty. However the pressure paid off in the 13th minute when some scrappy play at the edge of the Oriam box allowed Scott to score. 2-1 And that’s how it finished as Raith managed the game out.
Oriam 1-2 Raith Rovers
Linlithgow Rose 0-1 Tayport – Reds
Luncarty 1-3 St James
Hearts 2-0 Arbroath – Maroon
Raith Rovers 31pts
Dundee East 27pts
Hearts 26pts
Luncarty 21pts

So Raith went into their last game, against Linlithgow Rose, knowing that a win would secure the league title. Any other result and the league would be decided by the results of the last two games of the day which involved the other two teams in the hunt. The game started badly for Raith as they seemed to switch off and allowed Linlithgow to score in the second minute. However they regained their composure and for the next six minutes dominated the game with Harry, in the Raith net, foiling any Linlithgow break-a-ways. The game turned in the 10th minute when the ref awarded Linlithgow a, what some saw as controversial, penalty. The Linlithgow player, heading towards the corner, played the ball a metre or so in front of him. Ritchie came round him and played the ball, without any contact and started to advance. All seemed well until the Linlithgow player called for a foul which was then given. The penalty was scored and Raith were now up against it. From this point on it was all out attack from Raith to try and salvage the game. However desperation led to gaps at the back and Linlithgow punished Raith with goals in the 12th minute and another just before full time. 0-4
Dundee East 1-1 Tayport – Reds
Hearts 3-1 St James
Linlithgow Rose 4-0 Raith Rovers
Luncarty 0-0 Oriam
Raith Rovers 31pts
Hearts 29pts
Dundee East 28pts
Luncarty 22pts

Going into the last two games, Arbroath – Maroon V Dundee East and Hearts V Linlithgow Rose, a draw in each game would see Raith win the league. A win for Hearts would see them win the league. A loss or draw for Hearts and a win for Dundee East would see Dundee East win the league on goal difference. It was all down to these two matches and Raith now had no say. For a while it was looking good for Raith with Hearts drawing 1-1 with Linlithgow and Dundee East drawing 2-2 with Arbroath. However two late goals for Dundee East, and no further scoring in the other match, gave Dundee the title.