Forfar Athletic 2-1 East Fife: Boss Dick Campbell rues Fifers' soft centre after second half slump

Liam Newton celebrates after scoring East Fife's opener against Forfar Athletic (Photo: Kenny Mackay)

The Fifers were a goal ahead – thanks to Liam Newton’s finish on the half hour mark – and well on top at Station Park heading into the break but they conceded two sloppy goals in the second half.

Russell McLean was quickest to react on 57 minutes to slot home in front of goal after he got the better of Hibs loanee Jacob Blaney to level things up.

And the striker had his and Forfar’s second goal twenty minutes from time when he latched onto Stuart Morrison’s cross to head home with Newton too slow to react.

Liam Newton prods home after latching onto the ball in the Forfar box (Photo: Kenny Mackay)

That result leaves the Fifers stuck in fifth place, all but guaranteed to finish in that position come the end of what has been a frustrating campaign.

"We were outstanding in the first half,” boss Campbell told East Fife TV. “We outplayed them in every department. We only got the one goal to show for it.

“It is clear to me that we don’t create a lot of chances. I spoke to the guys about the game being 90 minutes and not thinking that they had done enough. Raymond (McKinnon) will put his team forward.

“The two goals that we lost in the second half were Sunday league for me. They’ve scored two from two yards out because we didn’t stop the crosses.

“I’m afraid that is the way football and I am very disappointed, we need to learn to fight our corner.

“I’m not prepared to accept that level of commitment from the second half. Scott (Shepherd) worked ever so hard up top but he hadn’t nothing to play with.

"We didn’t create anything. I won’t paint over the cracks. We didn’t do enough to win the game and we let them dictate the tempo in the second half.

"That doesn’t happen with an East Fife team. It better stop happening or they (the players) will get the wrath of me. We didn’t play for 90 minutes.”

Campbell added: “The goal when I came here was to stay in the league, we did that comfortably.

"We had a sniff of the play-offs but to be honest if we played like that in them we would just have made a fool of ourselves.”