Raith Rovers completed an astonishing week with a 3-1 win over Premiership side Motherwell in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup at Stark’s Park.
It came after a bare-bones Rovers made their third consecutive SPFL Trust Trophy final in midweek.
Those 120 minutes and penalties didn’t seem to affect the home side as a penalty from Jamie Gullan and some quick thinking from Sam Stanton gave Ian Murray’s a 2-0 lead at half-time.
Kevin van Veen pulled one back for the away side early in the second half but Imsa Goncalves came off the bench to seal the win.
The Livingston striker had only officially signed at Stark’s Park on the morning of the game.
Key moments
Rovers dominated the first half though the first opportunity fell to Motherwell’s Kevin van Veen but his shot was blocked.
At the other end former Dundee United player Calum Butcher, making his Motherwell debut, blocked a tasty-looking effort from Dylan Easton.
For all their good play it was a penalty for a handball by Callum Slattery that allowed Gullan to open the scoring from the spot.
Rovers continued to enjoy the majority of the play and were almost went two ahead when Easton curled just past the post.
They were eventually rewarded through Stanton when he pounced on a loose catch from goalkeeper Liam Kelly to make it 2-0.
Three half-time changes saw Stevie Hammell’s side spark into life and they scored within minutes of the restart through Van Veen.
It was Motherwell now on the front foot and they almost forced Ryan Nolan into an own goal but it came bouncing back off the crossbar.
Rovers grew into the half and Stanton forced a decent save out of Kelly after a quick throw from Aidan Connolly.
Second-half substitute Goncalves then capped off a terrific Rovers performance when he finished well under Kelly.
Player ratings
Raith Rovers (4-2-3-1): MacDonald 8; Millen 8, Lang 9, Nolan 8, Dick 8; Brown 9, Spencer 8; Connolly 8 (McBride 7), Stanton 9 (Ngwenya 6), Easton 9; Gullan 8 (Goncalves 8). Subs not used: Thomson, Young, Masson.
Star man: Sam Stanton
Tom Lang was outstanding at the back, especially in the first half, winning everything in the air and marshalling the backline.
Stanton scored a crucial goal at a crucial time, capitalising on some slack goalkeeping, and was again involved tirelessly all over the park.
Manager under the microscope
The loan signing of Ismael Goncalves from Livingston was announced on the morning of the game, allowing Murray to name six substitutes.
Midweek goal hero William Akio is cup-tied, as is Scott McGIll and Lewis Vaughan didn’t recover from a minor hamstring injury picked up versus Arbroath.
It was a return to a 4-2-3-1 after the back three failed to work versus Dundee in midweek.
Murray made smart subs at good times in the second half as his side came through a very difficult period.
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