An Early One-Two KO's the Fifers (1958)

(first published in the match programme for St. Mirren v Aberdeen, 18^th October 2025)

On 18^th October 1958, St. Mirren visited Dunfermline Athletic's East End Park on League business. The clubs had met only eight times since the resumption of organised football after the Second World War and all of these had been within the previous two seasons. Saints had won all of the League fixtures and had lost only two games - a League Cup Sectional tie in 1956 and in the previous season's Scottish Cup, when they lost 4-1 at Love Street in the second round.

After the first seven matches of the 1958/59 league campaign, St. Mirren were in thirteenth place, having won only one match and drawn three. The Pars were in second bottom place, but were only one point behind the Buddies, such was the closeness of the table.

The Dunfermline Athletic programme of the time consisted of eight pages, printed black on white matt paper. The front cover featured an illustration of a Pars player alongside the full match details and the threepenny price tag. The top and bottom of the cover, as with many of the other pages, consisted of adverts.

Page three's editorial focussed, not on the competing teams, but on the Home International between Wales and Scotland being played in Cardiff that day. This was Scotland's first match following their poor showing in the previous summer's World Cup. The Dark Blues' failure in Sweden meant that Scotland's prestige as a football nation had declined in no uncertain fashion and, in an effort to improve the situation, the selectors had bowed to public opinion and had appointed Matt Busby as Manager. His team selection for the day included several up-and-coming Anglo Scots and this appeared to give the fans encouragement for the future.

A photo of Dunfermline full back John Sweeney, courtesy of "Dunfermline Press", sat alongside the text of the editorial.

The centre pages laid out the Pars and Saints sides in the usual 2-3-5 formation, surrounded by adverts. Whilst the home side took the field as printed, St. Mirren showed some positional differences and Tony Gregal replaced the listed John McTurk.

Page six listed Dunfermline's fixtures for the season and their results to date. "East End Notes" on the opposite page included a welcome to the visitors and focussed on their two Scottish Cup meetings in 1957 (when a Davie Lapsley penalty saw St. Mirren through) and 1958. It was hoped that, with two away games looming, Dunfermline would be all-out to secure the home points against St. Mirren and improve their lowly league position.

The back page displayed the half time scoreboard, listing twelve of the matches being played that day, including the Home International.

A crowd of 8,600 saw the home side attack from the start and within three minutes they could have taken the lead. A throw in from Charlie Napier found George Peebles a few yards out and the outside right's shot was heading for the top corner before Saints' goalkeeper Campbell Forsyth sprang across the goal to save.

After fourteen minutes, St. Mirren took the lead. A Willie McCulloch cross found Vince Ryan and, with Pars' defender George Duthie slipping in an attempt to intercept, Ryan was presented with the easiest of tasks to score. Two minutes later, Tommy Bryceland lobbed home St. Mirren's second after a dazzling run from Ryan down the right wing.

Dunfermline responded and, after a couple of near misses, they finally got a goal back in 32 minutes. A Peebles cross was deflected by Jimmy Watson into the path of Harry Melrose and he squeezed the ball in at the post. Melrose almost equalised a minute later, again from a Peebles cross.

Saints should have extended their lead after forty minutes when both Bryceland and Alistair Miller had chances to beat Eddie Connachan from a few yards out but, on both occasions, the Dunfermline 'keeper kept them at bay.

In the second half, Dunfermline went all out for the equaliser. Watson missed a glorious opportunity immediately after the restart and, at one point, affairs were so hectic that Saints' Joe Doonan almost headed into his own net!

In the 52^nd minute St. Mirren were awarded a hotly-disputed penalty when Harry Colville was adjudged to have handled in the box and Davie Lapsley scored from the spot. Five minutes later, Melrose scored his second goal after more wonderful work from Peebles.

Despite intense pressure from the home side in the closing period, the equaliser didn't materialise and St. Mirren won by three goals to two.

In the Home International, Scotland defeated Wales 3-0, the second goal coming from debutant Denis Law.