Dundee threw away a place in the Challenge Cup final after a penalty shootout defeat to Raith Rovers.
Zach Robinson missed the crucial spot-kick on his return to Dens Park after the Dark Blues had dominated the majority of the contest.
The home side cruised into a 2-0 lead within the opening half-hour.
Youngster Lyall Cameron was the man with two tidy finishes to put his side well in control.
And they remained in complete control for most of the match, passing up chance after chance to properly kill off the contest.
They were left ruing that wayward finishing as Raith staged an unlikely late comeback.
William Akio made it 2-1 with 77 minutes on the clock and suddenly the Stark’s Park side were all over their hosts.
Sam Stanton then planted a thunderous header into the corner five minutes later to force extra-time.
Dundee had yet more opportunities to seal the deal, Luke McCowan shooting wide when through on goal the biggest chance of the extra half-hour.
And difficulty in finding the net proved their undoing in the shootout despite Harry Sharp saving from Aidan Connolly.
Max Anderson saw Dundee’s fourth effort saved by Robbie Thomson before Robinson saw his final spot-kick crash back off the post.
Team selection
All eyes were on Gary Bowyer’s team selection – would he make big changes after the frustration at Hamilton? Would Zach Robinson start after being given the all-clear?
Robinson was on the bench with Kwame Thomas keeping his spot up top.
There were, though, four changes with Harry Sharp stepping into the goal as well as Alex Jakubiak, Paul McMullan and Lyall Cameron coming in.
The big headache for the Dens boss was at full-back with Tyler French, Ryan Clampin, Jordan Marshall and Sam Fisher (cup-tied) all missing.
Jordan McGhee was the man dropping in to right-back with Kerr continuing at left-back.
There was, however, a tweak to the system – a good old-fashioned 4-4-2 with Jakubiak joining Thomas as the strike pairing.
Lyall Cameron
Dundee’s young playmaker was outstanding.
Fans at Dens Park have become used to the composure shown by the 20-year-old.
But he took it to a new level for this one.
A lovely bit of play before Lyall Cameron made it 2-0 to @DundeeFC 🏆 pic.twitter.com/3PwJEvcUko
— SPFL Trust (@SPFLTrust) February 8, 2023
His opening goal was a fairly simple finish but the second capped off a wonderful passing move.
Seven passes from a throw-in on the halfway line saw the ball flow through Cammy Kerr, Alex Jakubiak and Paul McMullan.
The constant among the move, however, was Cameron. And, of course, when the chance came his way he showed a cool head to stroke the ball into the corner.
Best player on the park until he tired late in the 90 minutes.
Chances, chances, chances…
Dundee eased the pressure in this one by scoring very early and then consolidating that lead with a second after 28 minutes.
But they didn’t kill the game off.
Jakubiak missed from just a couple of yards out, Luke McCowan hit the bar in the first half, Paul McMullan struck the post with a corner second half.
The inability to finish chances has been a real Achilles heel for Bowyer’s side this season and this was the prime example for that coming back to bite. Hard.
McGhee could’ve had a couple, Robinson saw an effort blocked and Cameron could’ve notched his hat-trick.
But, while the game remained 2-0, the visitors were still in it.
All it took was one chance and they were back in it – enter Akio with 13 minutes to go.
Raith had been distinctly second-best for the entire contest but suddenly they were alive and Stanton’s stunning header levelled things up.
Zach Robinson
Despite two goals going in, one of the biggest cheers of the first half came when Robinson warmed up in front of the Bobby Cox Stand.
This was his first return to Dens Park since departing at the start of January – and his first Dundee game since mid-November due to injury.
That cheer came again at the start of the second half when Robinson emerged in place of Jakubiak.
It wasn’t the fairytale return for the striker, however. There were glimpses of his quality and ability to roll his marker.
But there was also a bit of rustiness with very little game time since that hamstring injury back in November.
That showed when it really mattered, the final spot-kick of Dundee’s five as his well-struck effort cannoned back off the post.
And sent Raith fans wild at the far end.
Extra-time
There’s no way this game should have been going into extra-time.
For 77 minutes of the match, Dundee were heading to the final. And they had battered Raith in the process.
A superb Sam Stanton header keeping @RaithRovers #SPFLTrustTrophy hopes alive 👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/A9f2lgUk93
— SPFL Trust (@SPFLTrust) February 8, 2023
What happened in the final 13 minutes of normal time must serve as a warning for the Dark Blues for the rest of this season.
No matter how dominant a team is, while the scoreline is within reach, a game isn’t over.
Dundee thought it was.
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