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WFS East League Premiership 2024 Round 2

After last week’s disappointment in Glasgow we headed up to Dundee for Round 2 of this year’s league. Today we’re locking horns with Arbroath (last year’s champions), Oriam (last year’s runners up) Linlithgow Rose (last weekend’s Glasgow Trophy winners) and St James (perennial Premiership contenders).

Back row: Ritchie Malcolm, Ian (Chillo) McMillan, Harry Gilfillan, Willie Carroll, Davie Ramsay
Front row: Kevin Henderson, John Wylie, Charles Doherty, Colin (Titch) Hardie, Haig Hutchison

Up first are Arbroath. We start well with a well worked goal with some slick passing between Kev and John allowing ‘Titch’ to get free on the right and fire the ball passed the keeper from a tight angle. 1-0. The lead is short-lived though as within two minutes we’re pinged for a third running foul and Arbroath are awarded a penalty which they score to tie things up. 1-1 However two minutes later it’s our turn as Arbroath turn sinners and we’re awarded a penalty. John Wylie steps up to slot it passed the keeper like he does so often but this time the keeper saves and the score remains the same. In the eleventh minute a goal-bound drive from Titch looks to have the keeper beat but he stretches out a hand and brings out a brilliant one handed save. A minute later though Titch manages to beat him again. Finding space on the right he shoots from a tight angle and beats the keeper. 2-1. From now on it’s game management, keeping the ball and starving Arbroath of any possession until the ref blows the final whistle.

Luncarty FC 1-1 Hearts
Oriam 1-2 Dundee East CSC
Raith Rovers 2-1 Arbroath – Maroon
St James 3-0 Tayport – Reds

Next up we face St James. We start well again opening the scoring in the second minute. John Wylie has the ball in a crowded corner but manages to flick it out to Chillo at the corner of the box, who controls it with his chest and fires past the keeper. 1-0. It’s tight for the next four minutes until Ritchie Malcolm steps up and beats the keeper with his trademark side of the foot screamer. 2-0. Two minutes later St James get back into the game as we’re pinged for a third running offense and they score with their penalty. 2-1. There’s very few chances after this as we again try to play the game out again. Keeping possession and frustrating St James for the last five minutes.

Linlithgow Rose CFC 1-1 Dundee East CSC
Luncarty 1-1 Arbroath – Maroon
Oriam 2-0 Tayport – Reds
Raith Rovers 2-1 St James

Our third game sees us playing Oriam, who we haven’t played since we met them in the final of their trophy in 2021. For the third time in a row, we start well. Titch gets the ball wide on the right in the second minute and, from distance, beats the keeper. 1-0. In four minutes, Oriam let us know they’re still in the game with a well taken shot that hits the post. A minute later, a mistake by Ritchie in midfield lets the Oriam striker through, but he fails to beat Harry in our goal, and the score remains the same. A minute later, however, Ritchie makes amends with a great shot. The keeper saves but only parries it out, and there is John Wylie standing at the front of the box to slap it home. The rest of the game Raith resort to playing keep ball passing about smoothly but unable to break down Oriam’s defence any further.
One thing to note in this game. No running fouls for either side.

Oriam 0-2 Raith Rovers
Linlithgow Rose CFC 0-0 Tayport – Reds
Luncarty 1-1 St James
Hearts 1-0 Arbroath

We don’t get off to a quick start in our final game. A lot of effort goes in to marshalling Linlithgow’s striker as he looks to get beyond our backline. The team defends well until the tenth minute when, trying to reach a ball in front of the Linlithgow goal, Titch is pinged for running. It’s a third offence so it’s a penalty to Rose. They score and for the first time today we go behind. 0-1. However we’re not behind for long as two minutes later the Rose keeper passes the ball directly to Davie Ramsay and, not being one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he skelps it past him to level. 1-1. There’s not much more direct action and the game finishes 1-1.

Dundee East CSC 3-1 Tayport – Reds
Hearts 4-4 St James
Linlithgow Rose CFC 1-1 Raith Rovers
Luncarty 3-3 Oriam

Final two games:
Arbroath Maroon 1-2 Dundee East CSC
Hearts 4-1 Linlithgow Rose CFC

And so we end the day unbeaten (over both rounds) and move up the table from fourth to second. All in all a good day out.

Christmas Cup 2023

Raith Rovers Walking Football regained their Christmas Cup with a comprehensive win in the final.

Raith Rovers beat Fairfield in the final of their annual Christmas Cup on Sunday (16/11/2023). Both teams had won their qualifying groups with Fairfield progressing to beat Hibernian and Raith beating Fife Wanderers in the semi finals to set up a repeat of last year’s final.

In Group 1, after an opening 2-2 draw Hibs and Raith, battled it out until the last round of games.  With both teams on 7 points Hibs needed to match Raith’s result and not give up a 2 goal superior goal difference to take the group.  However a 2-1 reverse to Dunfermline Dynamos and a Raith 2-0 win over Fife Wanderers saw Raith top the group and Hibs, in their first competitive tournament go through to the semis in second place.

In Group 2 Fairfield and the high scoring Fife Wanderers 2 progressed to the semis.  Fairfield swept through the group unbeaten while Wanderers only lost to Fairfield and managed to score 4 goals in two of their games.

The semis saw Fairfield take on Hibs and Raith, Fife Wanderers 2.  A tiring Hibs team fell to a vastly more experienced Fairfield team in a tight match which ended in a 2-1 victory to last year’s winners.  In the other semi another tight scoreline saw Fife Wanderers 2 lose to Raith 3-2 to set up a repeat of last year’s final.

In the final Raith scored early and then built up a 4-0 lead before a late consolation for Fairfield resulted in a 4-1 win for the Rovers and the cup returning to Starks Park.

Trophy presentation.
Scott Jackson, chairman of Kirkcaldy & Dysart FC, presents the trophy to Raith Captain Ian McMillan.

Finally a big thanks to all of the teams, players and officials who turned out and especially to the referees without whom we wouldn’t be able to have competitions like this.

Falkirk WF
RRCF

John Cunningham Memorial Festival

On the 23rd of September walking footballers from all over Scotland and beyond gathered at Starks Park to remember our great friend and fellow walking footballer John Cunningham. It was a day to remember John and to enjoy one of the many things John enjoyed in his life, playing football with like minded people and above all having fun.

The day started with an introduction from Willie Carroll, a friend of John’s for many years and the reason John started playing walking football.

“Firstly a huge thank you all for coming along today to attend this festival in memory of a much loved friend, John Cunningham.
I, for one, know that John would have been the first person to put his name down as a player in this if it was for anyone else.
So, on to John.
John was a long time acquaintance of mine and it was on a Saturday afternoon when me and Michelle were out for a drink that we bumped into John and his wife Fiona and got chatting. I asked him if he would be interested in playing walking football. And like many others (including me) he laughed and said “No thanks. That’s for auld dudes.” Anyway, one thing led to another and he agreed to come along. The first night he came along he loved it, met up with guys he already knew and made many new friends. He enjoyed it so much he even moonlighted with another team in the over 60s league, playing for the wee team along the road AKA Fife Wanderers.
John was a friendly, lovable guy who enjoyed not just football but also golf and squash. His only downside was he was a Hibbee! No one’s perfect I suppose.
So today is all about remembering John and his happy go lucky attitude. So let’s have some fun all playing together and having a bit fun. I know John would approve of this.
So once again thanks for coming. Let’s play the game the way it should be played.
Oh and remember. The ref’s always right.“

There are no match reports as no scores were kept, officially that is but I’m sure there were many keeping score when playing against teammates, so below you’ll find reflections on the day from some of those who took part.

5 attended from Dunbar including myself , Alan Turner , Craig Morrison , Davy Somerville and Tony Reekie on behalf of us , thanks to all who put on a very fitting day for John , the organisation and hospitality was first class .
It was a pleasure meeting and playing with people from all over the East of Scotland 󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿
Today was Johns day ⚽️ the Raith Rovers Community and all who attended did John proud.
Richard Gdulewicz

I was there in my capacity as Eastern Region rep and can definitely agree that the day was run brilliantly and RRWF should be commended. Well done to all who organised and took part. No disciplinary issues that I saw and all games were played in a great spirit.
We need more of these festivals as it definitely encourages camaraderie amongst players from all clubs in the Eastern Region.
Mike J Burnett

Brilliant day thanks to all ⚽️󠁧󠁢
Bruce Simpson

Great and well organised festival.👏👏👏
Pleasure meeting new people and playing with different guys 👍
Jimmy Mcintosh

Fabulous day out well done boys 👋
Keith Jenkin

Excellent day, huge thanks to the organisers and for celebrating John in this way. Big shout to my fellow Yellow team
Michael Cranston
Michael Cranston brilliant day and great bunch to play with , hope to see yous all soon ⚽️🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿👍
Bruce Simpson
Michael Cranston really enjoyed playing with you guys. Games were all played in a great spirit, how it should be. A lovely tribute to John..
Jack Gorman

Very enjoyable day and great fun, thanks for the hospitality too 👍
Allan Harrison

Great day well deserved memorial
Harry Gilfillan

Great day and well organised thanks for having us ⚽️👍
Alan Durno

Great day playing football
Can hardly walk now, however was well worth it. Cheers. To all attended and played.
David Somerville

Very well organised event, well done, I was a great day
Martin Kennedy

Great day , well done to the organisers and everyone who took part.
David Meek

Aye great day of football ! Fitting tribute and smart wee park, made new friends and well organised by RRWFC !
Alan Turner

Below is a gallery of many pics taken on the day. Some players may appear to be running but that is just a trick of the camera. 😉

WFS East League Championship 2023 Round 4

And so we reach the final round of fixtures in this year’s league. We come into this round in third place in the league. Four goals ahead of Carnoustie Panmure in fourth and one point behind Luncarty FC in second. Dundee Utd CT sit in first place seven points ahead of us in third place and catching them is going to be a big ask. But we play them first today so have a chance to take something out of their lead but we really need other results to go our way as well. However we receive news that Saints in the Community are unable to field a team today so the four teams they will be playing will be awarded a 3-0 win. This will help us in our points gathering but unfortunately Saints are also due to play Dundee Utd and Luncarty so it’s a double edged sword.

Back Row: Haig Hutchison, Stephen MacCrimmon, Ritchie Malcolm, Charles Doherty
Front Row: Mikey Curtis, John Wylie, Ian (Chillo) McMillan, Keith Jenkin

And so to the games. First up Dundee Utd CT and we really need to take the points here. The game starts well for us with pressure bringing a shot from Ritchie in the second minute that goes close. In five minutes a tackle from behind in the penalty area sees Chillo go down and the ref awards us a penalty. Dundee Utd protest vociferously (must be something in the Dundee water!) which ends up with their team captain, John, receiving a yellow card. After all the kerfuffle John Wylie steps up (just one step) and fires the ball behind the keeper and we have a one nil lead. From the restart United play the ball up the pitch and bring out a great save from Keith. In the eleventh minute Chillo blocks a cross from the corner and the United player seems to stumble. The ref awards a penalty and, despite our reservations, we accept the ref’s decision. A minute later a shot from the United left goes wide and the ref adjudges Keith has touched it before it crossed the line and awards a corner. From the corner Mikey clears the ball but his foot is adjudged to be hanging in the box so it’s another penalty to United which they score again. With three minutes to go it’s backs to the wall time for United as Raith press hard to try and equalise but to no avail and the game finishes two penalties to one for United.
Dundee Utd CT 2-1 Raith Rovers.

Dundee Utd CT 2-1 Raith Rovers
Dundee FC 3-0 Saints in the Community
Carnoustie 1-1 Tayport Yellow
Highland Utd 1-1 Montrose

So after the first round of matches Dundee Utd increase their lead at the top and Carnoustie move into second place on goals scored.

And so to our second game against now second place Carnoustie Panmure. It’s a tight game as expected with neither team giving much away and there is little to note in the first ten minutes except a lot of effort and no reward for either team. In the last five minutes Raith up the pace with first a shot from Stephen MacCrimmon and then a shot from Ritchie going close. In the fourteenth minute Mikey Curtis steps up with a shot followed by a John Wylie shot that goes for a corner. With time running out Raith are awarded a free kick just outside the penalty area. Carnoustie switch off and Mikey takes it quickly passing back to John Wylie who lets rip and smashes the ball past the keeper for a one nil lead with seconds to go.
Carnoustie Panmure 0-1 Raith Rovers

Dundee Utd CT 2-1 Luncarty
Dundee FC 1-2 Montrose
Carnoustie Panmure 0-1 Raith Rovers
Tayport Yellow 4-0 Highland Utd

And the table changes again. Dundee Utd stay at the top and are now un-catchable but we move into second, relegating Carnoustie and Luncarty to third and fourth respectively.


We sit the next game out as we are due to play Saints in the Community and are awarded a 3-0 win.
Dundee FC 0-1 Highland Utd
Carnoustie Panmure 2-1 Luncarty
Tayport Yellow 2-2 Montrose
Saints in the Community 0-3 Raith Rovers


With Saints due to play two fixtures in the last two rounds and that leaving Dundee Utd and Carnoustie free during the fourth round their game now replaces the United Saints game.
Remaining walkover matches:
Saints in the Community 0-3 Dundee Utd CT
Saints in the Community 0-3 Luncarty


So we go into the last match against Highland Utd knowing that only a win will secure second place in the league. A draw and a big result for Luncarty and/or Carnoustie Panmure could mix up second, third and fourth places.
The game starts brightly for Raith with a Ritchie Malcolm shot bringing off a good save from the keeper for a corner. A few more great saves from the keeper until the third minute when John Wylie collects a pass from Ritchie and finally beats the keeper for 1-0. Three minutes later it’s 2-0 when Chillo is set free by Stevie and finds the net. 2-0. In eight minutes we are awarded a penalty for three running offences and Chillo steps up to take it. And smashes it off the post!!! With five minutes to go we put the game beyond Highland’s reach when after a mix up in defence the ball lands at Stevie’s feet and he puts it between the keeper’s legs for 3-0. With two minutes to go Haig gets the ball in midfield and instead of passing it to Charles who is free at the corner of the box smashes it from 15 yards past the keeper for 4-0. With time running out Mikey Curtis takes the ball down the right wing and crosses. John Wylie steps over the ball and it lands at Charles’ feet. He controls the ball and places it low to the keeper’s right to round off the game 5-0.

Tayport Yellow 2-1 Dundee FC
Raith Rovers 5-0 Highland Utd
Montrose 2-4 Luncarty FC
Carnoustie Panmure 2-0 Dundee Utd CT

And so we end the league in second place and secure promotion to the Premiership. Back where we belong?

Congratulations to Dundee Utd CT for winning the league almost unbeaten and a huge thank you to all of the other teams in the league for what was, for the most part, a good season played in the right way. A huge thank you as well to all of the Raith squad for their commitment and for digging deep at times in all games and competitions this season.

One more competition to go this year, which we’ll have details of soon, the Raith Rovers Christmas Cup. Hope to see as many of our friends from the East League as possible.

WFS East League Championship 2023 Round 3

Sunday 27th August saw the penultimate round of fixtures in this year’s WFS East League Championship. At the beginning of the day Raith were sitting in fourth place, two points behind one of today’s opponents Luncarty FC. And with the three teams above Raith being guaranteed at least 3 points before a ball was kicked it was imperative we got as many points as possible today to keep up our challenge.

Back: Ritchie Malcolm, Haig Hutchison, Scott Jackson, Ian (Chillo) McMillan, Harry Gilfillan
Front: Stephen MacCrimmon, Kevin Henderson, Charles Doherty, Keith Jenkin

First up we played Tayport Yellows who we beat earlier in the season 3-1. The game starts well for Raith as Haig passes in from the corner to Kev who coolly shoots past the keeper. In two minutes more Raith pressure leads to a shot from Stevie which hits the post and rolls out. Tayport have their first shot on goal in the third minute when some slack play at the back brings out a great save from Keith in goals. In eleven minutes a shot from distance from Ritchie is saved by the keeper but it’s not long until Haig gets on the scoresheet with a deflected shot which beats the keeper. With the game coming to a conclusion the referee blows for a third running offense against Tayport and awards Raith a penalty. Scott Jackson steps up to take it and, with almost the last touch of the game, shoots wide.
Raith 2-0 Tayport

Saints in the Community 0-0 Carnoustie Panmure
Raith 2-0 Tayport Yellows
Montrose 0-2 Dundee Utd CT
Luncarty FC 1-0 Dundee

Our second game is against Luncarty FC and one which we really need to win as we look to leapfrog them in the league. The game seems to start well for Raith with a shot from Stevie in the second minute but it was well saved by the keeper. However Luncarty head straight up the pitch and the referee harshly adjudges Chillo to have fouled one of their players in the penalty area and awards a penalty. Luncarty score despite Keith getting down well and getting near the ball. The game turns round in the fifth minute when an exquisite ball through the defence finds Chillo on his own in front of the keeper and he enthusiastically beats the keeper for the equaliser. Within a minute it’s 2-1 as Chillo turns provider this time passing to Stevie who beats the keeper. In the eighth minute the ref calls a second apparent running foul on Kev and a third for the team and awards Luncarty another penalty. This time the penalty goes low to Keith’s right and he gets a hand to it and saves. From here on it was possession football from Raith. Slick accurate passing and use of the keeper when we had the ball and hard pressing without the ball closing the game and Luncarty out.
Luncarty FC 1-2 Raith

Montrose 0-0 Carnoustie Panmure
Luncarty FC 1-2 Raith
Tayport Yellow 0-0 Saints in the Community
Dundee Utd CT 3-0 Dundee

Next up was an under-strength Dundee team who had done well to have a team for the day due to illness and injury. The first eight minutes of the game were largely uneventful bar a shot from Ritchie that went wide. In eight minutes a through pass to Kev allows him to shoot past the keeper for our opening goal. A minute later another pass finds Stevie free in front of goals and he scores to double his tally for the day (and the season). In the twelfth minute Haig hits the post but gets himself on the scoresheet within a minute to make it 3-0. In the thirteenth minute my notes say there was a good pass back to the keeper from Charles so it must have been good for it to have been written down. With the game coming to a close, a shot from Ritchie brings out a great save from Gavin in the Dundee goal to keep the score at 3-0.
Raith 3-0 Dundee

Dundee Utd CT 4-2 Tayport Yellows
Montrose 1-1 Saints in the Community
Raith 3-0 Dundee

And so we were on to the last game of the day against Montrose. With both teams having played three straight games before this, it was never going to be a classic. Both teams huffed and puffed but did little to test either keeper until in eight minutes a superb shot from distance on the Montrose right beat Keith for Montrose to take the lead. In the tenth minute though a third running offense by Montrose gave Raith a penalty which, after some discussion, Haig stepped up to dispatch past the keeper. The remaining five minutes brought a lot of Raith pressure but no goals and the game finished 1-1.
Raith 1-1 Montrose

Luncarty FC 2-1 Tayport Yellows
Raith 1-1 Montrose
Dundee 0-1 Carnoustie Panmure

And so we ended the day a point behind Luncarty but a place further up the league as Carnoustie Panmure drop from second to fourth. Our final games of the season in October see us play against top of the league Dundee Utd CT, the two teams directly below us in the league, Carnoustie Panmure and Saints in the Community, and newcomers Highland United. Realistically we need to get full points if we are to bridge the seven point gap to the top or the one point gap to second place and also keep Carnoustie Panmure from leapfrogging us.

But, “If we need ten…….”

Christmas Cup 2022 – Preview

Sunday 11th December 2022 will see the third running of Raith Rovers Walking Football’s Christmas cup. Won in 2019 by Raith Rovers and in 2021 by Braehead FC, this year will see 10 teams competing for the trophy at Starks Park, Kirkcaldy.

Group 1

Saints in the Community
A long established Walking Football Scotland team, Saints finished 11th in the East of Scotland League this year. Despite their lowly league position they are a hard team to beat having drawn 9 of their league games.

Braehead FC
Last year’s Christmas Cup winners and an impressive fourth position in their first competitive year in the Central League.

Fife Wanderers 65
One of two Fife Wanderers teams in this year’s competition, this looks to be the squad that will compete in next years over 65s league competition. On their day a hard team to beat.

Fairfield B
One of two Fairfield teams in this year’s competition. Fairfield finished fifth in the East league in their inaugural season this year. A resilient team, always up for a game.

Raith Rovers Reds
Another team that are here as one of a pair. This Rovers’ version consists of newly league qualified players some of whom will be looking to stake a claim in next year’s league team.

Group 2

Crieff Juniors
Third place in this year’s East league by two goals despite matching St James on goals scored and scoring more than Arbroath.

Fife Wanderers
The other Fife Wanderers’ team in this year’s competition. A ninth position in this year’s league doesn’t do Wanderers justice and they always show up well in this competition.

Raith Rovers Blues
Raith Rovers league squad finished eighth in the East league this year in what was a disappointing showing for the former Scottish Cup winners.

Dunfermline Dynamos
A hard season for Dunfermline in the league with many injury problems leading to some game forfeits. A stubborn side who, on their day, can match most teams in the league.

Fairfield A
The second of Fairfield’s entries this year who will no doubt be looking to make it to the final against Fairfield B.

Teams in each group will play each other once and then the teams in matching positions in each group will play to decide the final cup positions.

First game kicks off at 12:30 with access for teams and supporters from 12. Spectating for the group stages will be from the North Stand with the Main Stand being used for the Final.
Sunday’s weather looks to be dry but cold so wrap up warm and enjoy the fun.

WFS East League 2022 Month 8

The final Sunday of this year’s league and the team head up to Dundee on a bright, sunny but cold morning. Starting the day in eighth place in the league nine points from today’s three games could see us jump to fifth place depending on other results. This month’s fixtures are against Dundee United, Dunfermline Dynamos and Fairfield.

Back row: John Cunningham, Scott Jackson, Dave Fawcett, Willie Carroll, Steve Fleming, Brian Geddes.
Front row: Harry Younger, Martin Page, Kevin Henderson, Haig Hutchison.

We sit out the first round of matches.

Arbroath 4-0 St Andrews and East Neuk
Dundee United 0-1 Montrose
Carnoustie Panmure 3-0 Saints in the Community
Dunfermline Dynamos 1-4 Fife Wanderers

Our first game of the day is against Dundee United who won the first tie earlier this year 1-0. The game starts at pace and a rarely seen yellow card is produced for Scott Jackson in the second minute. No-one is sure what for but it’s only our second yellow of the season. The game flashes bad temperedly in the fifth minute with a hard tackle from behind by a Dundee Utd player which provokes a reaction from Kev and both players receive a yellow card. In seven minutes the deadlock is broken when Scott Jackson finds the back of the net. In twelve minutes a ball from Martin in his goal area finds Harry in midfield who passes to John at the edge of the box and he scores. Dundee Utd continue to press but a Raith corner in the last minute is fired through the Dundee Utd box to find Haig alone at the back and he slots it past the keeper.
Dundee United 0-1 Raith

Carnoustie Panmure 2-0 Tayport
Dundee Utd 0-3 Raith
Crieff Juniors St James

Our second game of the day sees us play local rivals Dunfermline Dynamos. The game starts well for Raith when, in the fourth minute, Dave presses the Dunfermline defense in the corner and the ball comes out to Steve who shoots and scores. Not much of note happens until the tenth minute when John gets a shot off but only manages to find the post. With the game winding down Scott finds John in front of goal in the fifteenth minute and he puts the ball past the keeper for 2-0. Thirty seconds later an almost identical move sees Scott find John again for a third goal to Raith.
Dunfermline Dynamos 0-3 Raith

Dunfermline Dynamos 0-3 Raith
Dundee United 2-1 St Andrews
Arbroath 1-2 St James

We sit out the next round of matches.
Fairfield 1-1 Montrose
Dunfermline Dynamos 3-3 Saints in the Community
Crieff Juniors 5-1 Fife Wanderers

For our final match of the day we play Fairfield. The game starts badly with a pass across the defence being intercepted in the first minute and the Fairfield player slotting the ball past Pagey. It gets worse less than a minute later when a mix up in defense allows Fairfield to take a two goal lead. In four minutes Fairfield score again to give Raith an even harder task. The fightback begins in the eighth minute with a Scott Jackson goal. In eleven minutes John Cunningham hits the post again and that’s that. Fairfield 3-1 Raith

Fairfield 3-1 Raith
Arbroath 2-1 Tayport
Crieff Juniors 4-1 St Andrews and East Neuk

We end the day with two wins out of three so despite not improving our league position it was overall a successful day. A special mention for our stand in ref for the last two games. The ref team were a man down and Matt Ramsey from Walking Football Scotland stepped up. And we’ve got to say he was one of the best refs we’ve experienced all year. When I say “we have to say” he was good that’s because Matt has promised £20 to charity if we do. 😉

WFS East League 2022 Month 8 – Preview

The over 50s travel up to Dundee this weekend for the last set of fixtures in this year’s league competition. Currently sitting in eight place the right results could see the team rise to fourth place.

This weekends games see us playing local rivals Dunfermline Dynamos, the always fiery Dundee United and newcomers Fairfield. Previous games this season saw us beat Dunfermline 3-0 and lose a tight game 1-0 against Dundee Utd. Our game against Fairfield wasn’t played due to Fairfield being unable to play that weekend so was awarded to us 3-0.

WFS East League 2022 Month 7

The penultimate Sunday of this year’s league saw the team once again head north to Dundee. With league changes mooted for next year where we finish in the league will play a big part in where, and who, we play next year. This month’s fixtures are against Tayport, Crieff Juniors and Arbroath. Three straight games in a row, one after the other.

Back row: George Lindsay, Scott Jackson, John Wylie, Martin Page, Charles Doherty Front row: Kevin Henderson, Harry Younger, Haig Hutchison, Dave Fawcett

Our first game is against Tayport and hopefully will only be 15 minutes long this time. As always it’s a tight game with few clear chances for either side. In the sixth minute Haig collects the ball on the right wing and angles a shot across the goal but it goes wide. In the twelfth minute Raith force four corners one after the other pinning Tayport back in their own half. In the thirteenth minute a Scott Jackson shot flies over the bar and that’s the last real action of the game and it finishes Raith Rovers 0-0 Tayport

Saints in the Community 0-3 St James
Crieff Juniors 2-1 Fairfield
Carnoustie Panmure 3-1 Fife Wanderers
Raith 0-0 Tayport

Our second game of the day is against Crieff Juniors who we’ve played only once before competitively. That last meeting was a 2-2 draw so another close game is expected. And so it turns out with much effort but both keepers on top form. In the sixth minute a Crieff attack brings out a great save from Martin Page but the ball falls to a Crieff player alone at the edge of the box. But he slips and blasts the ball high over the bar from just a few yards. In eleven minutes Raith get pinged for a second running offense and now have to take care in the last few minutes. With time running out in the fourteenth minute there’s some controversy as John Wylie rockets in a shot which comes off the underside of the bar and bounces back over the goalkeeper’s head. The referee, much to the ire of the Crieff players, gives a goal adjudging that the ball had bounced over the line and back into play. With only a minute left the Raith boys dig in and hold on for a well fought win.
Crieff Juniors 0-1 Raith

Crieff Juniors 0-1 Raith
Arbroath 6-0 Montrose
St Andrews & East Neuk 0-8 St James
Dundee Utd 2-1 Fairfield

Our last game of the day is another tough one against second placed Arbroath. Always a tough game against a team of big guys. The game starts poorly for Raith when a shot from the right beats Pagey in the goals for an Arbroath lead. In the eighth minute however a lovely passing move ends up at Kev’s feet and he puts the ball behind the keeper for the equaliser. The parity lasts for three minutes however as Arbroath score from a corner that doesn’t seem to be taken from anywhere near the corner. Determined to try and get something from the game Raith press and in thirteen minutes a midfield interception by Charles leads to a pass to Kev who finds John at the right hand corner of the box and he slots the ball past the keeper for the equaliser. However less than a minute later Arbroath score to retake the lead and manage to hold on to take all three points.
Arbroath 3-2 Raith

Crieff Juniors 5-0 Montrose
St Andrews & East Neuk 0-4 Tayport
Arbroath 3-2 Raith
Dundee Utd CT 4-0 Fife Wanderers

The remaining games:
Carnoustie Panmure 2-1 St Andrews & East Neuk
Arbroath 1-1 Saints in the Community
Saints in the Community 0-2 Tayport
Carnoustie Panmure 1-2 St James

The day ends with a draw, a win and a loss and four points out of nine. A good result against three of the teams in the top four and a result that sees us move up a place in the league.

WFS East League 2022 Month 6

The over 50s returned to competitive league action on Sunday after the summer break and an enforced extra month off due to injuries and availability issues. This meant that last months fixtures against Fife Wanderers, Montrose and Saints in the Community were forfeited as 3-0 defeats. This month’s fixtures are against St Andrews and East Neuk, St James and Carnoustie Panmure.

Back row: Charles Doherty, Willie Carroll, Scott Jackson, Dave Fawcett Front row: John Wylie, Haig Hutchison, Kevin Henderson, George Lindsay

After a few months away from league action the team are eager to get back to it but we sit out the first round of games.
Montrose 2-0 St Andrews and East Neuk
Arbroath 2-0 Fairfield
Fife Wanderers 1-2 St James
Dundee Utd CT 1-1 Saints in the Community

Our first game back is against St Andrews and East Neuk who currently sit at the bottom of the table but have a few very good players. The game starts well for Rovers. In two minutes Scott and John exchange a flurry of short passes in front of the St Andrews goal and John slides the ball past the keeper. Five minutes later a pass in from the corner finds Scott who puts the ball behind the keeper for 2-0. Before the restart Willie comes on for Dave. Raith regain the ball after the kick off and a nice passing move through the middle of the pitch finishes with Willie scoring with almost his first touch. A minute later a through ball from Willie sees Kev get the slightest of touches to divert the ball past the keeper for 4-0. In 13 minutes Charles comes on for Haig and a minute later Scott scores again to finish the scoring 5-0. A special mention for George Lindsay in goals for the first time. A few great saves and a clean sheet.
Raith 5-0 St Andrews and East Neuk

Carnoustie Panmure 0-2 Dundee Utd CT
Raith 5-0 St Andrews and East Neuk
Crieff Juniors 3-1 Saints in the Community
Fife Wanderers 0-3 Tayport

We sit out the next round of games.
Fairfield 4-1 Tayport
Montrose 0-6 St James
Saints in the Community 2-0 St Andrews and East Neuk
Crieff Juniors 3-0 Dundee Utd CT

Our second game of the day is against table toppers St James. As always it promises to be a tight competitive game. The game starts well with the defence not allowing St James forwards much space but in the second minute St James get some space and the ball ends up in our net 0-1. The boys press and the game flows back and forward with chances for both sides. In the tenth minute a speculative shot from the left beats George in the Raith goal and St James increase their lead 0-2. A minute later though the fight back starts with a wicked Scott Jackson shot that takes a slight deflection off a defender and flies past the St James keeper 1-2. Raith continue to press but a mix up in defence in the thirteenth minute leaves a St James player free at the edge of the box and he makes no mistake 1-3. Despite some valiant pressing the match finishes.
Raith 1-3 St James

Raith 1-3 St James
Carnoustie Panmure 1-2 Fairfield
Montrose 1-2 Tayport
Arbroath 5-1 Fife Wanderers

We finish the day with a match against Carnoustie Panmure. Never an easy team to play but after a hard game against St James this could be tough. The game starts well for Raith with a rare Willie Carroll goal in the second minute 0-1. However the lead doesn’t last and Carnoustie equalise within a minute 1-1. Three minutes later and he does it again. Willie Carroll is now looking for a hat trick which will make him totally unbearable in the car journey home 2-1. Raith change keeper replacing George with Scott. In the eighth minute the impossible almost happens. First Willie hits the post and then unbelievably he hits the post again with the ball then rebounding off the keeper and……it’s a corner. In ten minutes Carnoustie equalise and just after Raith replace Dave with Charles they score again to go ahead 2-3. With time running out Charles slips the ball to John and he shoots past the Carnoustie keeper to tie things up 3-3.
The game ends with honours even and Raith gaining four points out of nine this month.
Carnoustie Panmure 3-3 Raith