Cowdenbeath earned themselves three vital points on Saturday when they came from behind to comprehensively beat Falkirk 4-1 at Central Park.
Lyle Taylor grabbed his 18th goal of the season within the first two minutes of the game, to give Falkirk the lead after some shaky defensive play from Cowdenbeath allowed him to turn John Armstrong inside out before slotting the ball neatly into the far corner.
The visitors continued to assert their authority on the game, with goalscorer Taylor looking like a handful when dropping into the left-hand channel.
Despite Falkirk’s dominance for much of the first half, they could only create a handful of half-chances from the edge of the penalty area, and were left to rue the lack of cutting edge in front of goal around ten minutes from half-time.
The Blue Brazil were level completely unexpectedly, when Jamie Stevenson found himself in space on the right-wing, and delivered a precise cross deep to the back post. Rangers loanee striker Kane Hemmings nodded back across Falkirk ‘keeper Michael McGovern, rendering him a helpless bystander as John Armstrong sidefooted low into the bottom right hand corner.
Cowdenbeath completely turned the game on its head three minutes later when a long throw into the box fell kindly to frontman Hemmings, who required only one touch to drill the ball past McGovern.
Falkirk got the second half underway and initially looked like they had recovered from the blow of two quickfire goals at the end of the first period, with Taylor again looking bright as he dropped deep to receive possession before trying to create some space for himself.
However, the balance of power in midfield began to gradually shift and hopes of a Falkirk response were tempered somewhat in the 73rd minute when Jamie Stevenson created another goal for John Armstrong with his delivery to the back post, allowing Armstrong to simply nod the ball home.
Despite the contrast in fortunes between the two sides in the Scottish First Division league table; Falkirk sit relatively securely in mid-table, while Cowdenbeath find themselves embroiled in a relegation battle with fellow strugglers Airdrie; the home side looked comfortable defending their lead as Falkirk looked in vain for a way back into the game.
Deep in injury time, the Bairns’ fate was sealed when Jamie Stevenson decided to have a shot at goal with a free-kick from around twenty yards out. The ball ricocheted off the wall sufficiently to leave Michael McGovern without a chance to get back across goal and stop the shot.
After initially looking vulnerable in defence, Cowdenbeath ran out comfortable winners. The much-needed victory moves them three points clear of Airdrie at the foot of the Scottish First Division. Meanwhile, defeat for Falkirk represents a missed opportunity to gain some ground on fourth-placed Livingston, in light of their surprise defeat to Dumbarton on Saturday.
Cowdenbeath: Flynn, Brett, Armstrong, O’Brien, Adamson, Stevenson, Robertson, Milne, Linton, Coult (Stewart 76), Hemmings (McKenzie 81).
Subs Not Used: Wight, Mbu, Miller.
Falkirk: McGovern, Flynn, Dods, McGeever (Grant 77), Kingsley, Jay Fulton, Murdoch, Alston, McGrandles (Dale Fulton 9), Higgins, Taylor, Dale Fulton (Weatherston 54).
Subs Not Used: Bowman, Dick.
Att: 566
Ref: Stephen Finnie
