Dundee Utd 3
Falkirk 5
League (Division One)

Match Report

Alan Gordon replaced Jim Henry (absent due to injury) in the starting eleven as United looked to continue their return to winning form following their defeat of Clyde.

United put the Falkirk goal under pressure in the third minute when a long ball was met by Sandy White. His shot was blocked by Stuart Rennie and Ian Mitchell, chipping the rebound towards an empty goal saw his effort cleared off the line. At the other end, Falkirk were unlucky from a corner, which Andy Roxburgh headed just over. The lead was eventually taken by the Bairns and it came from Tom Young, lashing the ball home from another corner. United struggled to get into a stride and the first half hour belonged to the visitors. Alex Ferguson did brilliantly to direct a header past Hamish McAlpine in the 32nd minute, but the goal was disallowed for offside. Somewhat against the run of play, it was United who scored next, when Billy Gray crashed his effort home with a 20 yard drive. The goal was a short reprieve from Falkirk's attacks, however, and in the space of a minute, Falkirk hit back with two goals. Not to be denied a second time, Alex Ferguson took advantage of a Gray mistake to score and Wilson Hoggan netted seconds later to give his side a commanding 3-1 lead at the interval.

United came out for the second half full of fight, but Falkirk remained dangerous on the break. The Brockville men almost netted a fourth in the 49th minute but the heroics of McAlpine in goal kept a Ferguson shot out. United's increased attacking play paid off in the 52nd minute with a goal for Alan Gordon. Falkirk restored their two goal lead through Ferguson five minutes later though and in the 73rd minute they went 5-2 up, Doug Somner the scorer for the Bairns. A final consolation for United arrived through Jackie Copland to round off a disappointed result. The result left United a point behind Falkirk and just three points ahead of bottom of the table Kilmarnock.