Report

Raith Rovers’ League Cup hopes came to an end on Tuesday after losing 3-1 away to St Johnstone in Perth.  

Barry Robson made one change on the night, with Lewis Stevenson returning straight into the starting eleven for his first appearance of the season after a small injury bout. Josh Mullin was the man to drop to the bench, completing a twenty-man squad.  

Raith got the match underway, but neither side produced any promising chances in the opening stages. Raith had a strong penalty shout in the 16th minute after an attempted tackle brought Dylan Easton down in the box, but referee Greg Soutar deemed the challenge fair as play continued.  

St Johnstone took the lead a short while later after a chipped ball over The Rovers’ defence was controlled by five-time ex-rover, Jamie Gullan. The striker’s touch allowed him to fire in past Rae from an angle to open the scoring in the 28th minute of the match.  

Another moment of controversy unfolded after Raith players protested that Sts’ keeper Toby Steward had caught the ball outside of his box. The decision went Steward’s way, though, with play once again continuing.   

Halftime signalled the end of a fairly chanceless period of football, and both sides emerged unchanged for the second half.  

The Saints doubled their lead just five minutes into the second half after some neat football ended with Josh McPake having a chance from close range. Rae came rushing out and The Rovers’ defence pressured, but McPake still managed to find the net as he poked home from around ten yards.  

Raith made some changes shortly after, which saw Kai Montagu and Jack Hamilton come on for Lewis Vaughan and Dylan Easton.  

Raith went on to make their way up the pitch shortly after, and worked a ball into the box from wide after Rowe slid a pass across goal in the 56th minute. Jack Hamilton’s first touch of the match controlled the ball, and his second struck the ball into the net from around 16 yards out – just one minute after coming on.  

Raith enjoyed a burst of energy in the aftermath of Hamilton’s goal, but St Johnstone re-established their two-goal lead eventually when Makenzie Kirk sped his way through The Rovers’ defence. A neat finish through the legs of Rae followed, which restored the host’s cushion with just ten minutes to go.  

St Johnstone saw out what remained of the match and, in doing so, almost guaranteed their place at the top of The League Cup group stage. On the other hand, Raith have almost certainly failed to proceed from the group stage after accruing one win and two defeats from the first three matches. The fourth and final match takes place this Saturday when league One side Inverness Caley Thistle visit Stark’s Park.  

Written by Hamish Rankine.  

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