MATCH PREVIEW: Forfar Athletic v Stranraer

The home side will go into Saturday’s Station Park clash with visitors Stranraer in better heart after their excellent performance in demolishing second in the table Dunfermline Athletic last weekend.

That victory moved the ‘Loons’ off bottom spot in the table, albeit only on goal difference. However three points against Stephen Aitken’s outfit this weekend would see them leap frog the Stair Park side who currently sit just one point better off than the Station Park men.

Further good news for Manager Dick Campbell sees the return to his pool of three players all absent last weekend. Gavin Swankie served his one match ban against the ‘Pars’, while Martyn Fotheringham and Neil McCabe are fit and raring to go after long and short term injuries respectively. Whether the availability of this trio leads to any changes in the starting line up will be a conundrum for the manager to ponder.

A trialist who can operate in midfield or wide on the right who has been training with the squad over the past couple of weeks will also be included in Dick’s match day squad.

The visitors however travel to Station Park on a three game unbeaten league run, a 2-0 home win over East Fife being followed by a 1-1 draw up at Glebe Park and a 3-2 home win over Arbroath. In that match at Stair Park last Saturday, the home side raced into a three goal first half lead thanks to a brace from Martin Grehan who played ten games on loan with the ‘Loons’, Motherwell his parent club at the time in 2008, Jamie Longworth the other marksman. However Arbroath gave a better account of themselves in the second period reducing the leeway, although their second goal came courtesy of an injury time penalty.

Stranraer also had a great wee run in this season’s League Cup knocking out Premiership opposition in Ross County before going down in a titanic battle in the third round at Easter Road, Hibernian finally getting ‘over the line’ courtesy of a 5-3 win.

Saturday’s contest therefore shapes up on paper to be an excellent tussle and hopefully home fans not on their autumn break at present will turn out in reasonable numbers buoyed by last week’s success, not to mention the vast improvement from the previous Saturday.

The referee is Ayrshire based Des Roache who was also the man in the middle at our game at East Fife four weeks back.

The match is sponsored by Quinn Safety Consultancy Ltd.