Given the influence Martin Hardie has had on Dunfermline’s surge towards the title, Pars fans arriving at Cappielow on Saturday could have been forgiven a degree of anxiety when their talisman’s name wasn’t on the teamsheet.
Continue to pass the ballIt was one of those wingers, Joe Cardle, who put a marker down straight from the off and tormented the Morton defence.
He’d come close with a shot after cutting in off the left wing in the opening stages, then on eight minutes, from a Cardle corner, Kevin Rutkiewicz headed the ball goalwards and Steven McDougall turned it over the line from a couple of yards out for the opener.
There were several other good chances which fell to the Pars in the first half, the pick of which was a David Graham shot dragged wide after a McDougall effort had been parried.
There was only one goal in it at the break, but on 52 minutes it was effectively game over and championship over as Graham curled home a spectacular left-foot shot from the corner of the box to double their lead.
Morton had a bit more of the ball after that but rarely threatened, and Chris Smith was up to dealing with the best effort they were able to produce, a low 18-yarder through a crowded box from Michael Tidser. Between 2500 and 3000 was the estimate for the size of the support from Fife, and a few of them staged a mini pitch invasion following the second goal.
It was the real thing when the full-time whistle was blown, and after getting up close with their heroes the fans congregated in front of the main stand, where Pars legend Jim Leishman conducted the celebrations.
Expect more of the same at East End Park when the First Division trophy is presented on Saturday.
McIntyre felt he couldn’t have asked for a more clinical display than the one he got.
He commented, “Cappielow is one of the most difficult grounds to come to in this league and it would have been easy for the players to allow themselves to think about other results in other places (at Raith and Falkirk), but we never allowed ourselves to do that.
“From the start we stuck to our game plan and attacked them. We should have been even more ahead.
“We’ll continue to try and play football in the SPL. We’ll always do our best to pass the ball.”
They needn’t have worried, however.
Hardie-less Dunfermline produced a masterclass in how to seal a championship by taking charge of this potentially-tricky fixture from the first minute and never letting any doubts creep in that this might not be their day.
The fact that Jim McIntyre’s men coped so well without their injured midfielder shouldn’t have come as a surprise, though.
As skipper Austin McCann pointed out, the strength of this promotion-winning squad has been in its unity, not its individuals.
He said, “We’ve put a lot of hard work in from the first day of pre-season and to get over the line is a fantastic feeling.
“I thought last week’s win against Raith was good but being in that dressing room after we’ve won the league has topped it. It’s an unbelievable experience.
“We’ve had dodgy results from time to time but that’s what happens over the course of a season. I’ve never known a better team spirit than we’ve got here and that’s what carried us through.
“We all love each other in there, and this is by far the highlight of my career.
“The manager has to take a lot of credit for bringing in the right players and getting us all to gel together. I’m proud to be leading us back into the SPL.
“I’m also proud that we’ve won the title the right wayby playing good football.”
That they did, and even when the pressure was at its highest on Saturday, their customary formation of two strikers and two wingers was deployed.