Neil Lennon’s Dunfermline side have reached the Scottish Premiership play-off semi-finals
Neil Lennon expressed his delight as his Dunfermline team continued to deliver “minor miracles” following their progression to the semi-finals of the William Hill Premiership play-offs after a goalless stalemate with Arbroath at Gayfield.
Protecting a slender 1-0 advantage from the opening leg, the Pars demonstrated their resilience as they stood firm against a robust Arbroath side.
The match appeared destined for additional time when the home side were handed a penalty in the 84th minute, but goalkeeper Aston Oxborough delivered a superb stop to deny defender Aaron Muirhead from the spot and secure their passage through.
Dunfermline will now face Partick Thistle with a place against the team finishing 11th in the Premiership at stake.
“The players are performing minor miracles at the moment. I’ve got a 17-year-old coming on in a play-off game – it’s brilliant,” Lennon remarked.
“Over the two legs we were the better team and had the better chances.”
Reflecting on the defensive display, the Lurgan man added: “We weren’t under massive pressure but we defended the duels brilliantly – it wasn’t pretty but I don’t care.
“The tie was defined on moments. We had chances and we didn’t take them.”
Speaking about his goalkeeper’s contribution, Lennon said: “Robbie (Fraser) has made the wrong decision and so has Aston. There’s no doubt he’s made us better. I’ve worked with good goalkeepers like (Artur) Boruc, (Fraser) Forster and (Ofir) Marciano – they make a big difference.
“I was raging with him for the tackle but he made a brilliant save.” The Pars manager was also satisfied that his team would now have two additional fixtures before their Scottish Cup final clash with Celtic later this month.
If they progress to the play-off final, the matches would be rescheduled to the Tuesday and Friday after the showpiece encounter at Hampden Park.
“There’s loads of ways to play football, what we’ve done is given ourselves a chance to remain in the competition,” Lennon said.
“It’s two competitive games before the Scottish Cup final.
“We’re in there to win it, we’ll give it everything we’ve got but for now, we’re just glad to have Arbroath out of the way because they’re such a difficult team to play against.”
Arbroath co-manager Colin Hamilton praised Muirhead following the defender’s disappointing final outing for the club.
Muirhead, who is departing Gayfield Park to join Annan Athletic in the summer, failed to convert a late spot-kick which confirmed Dunfermline’s progression to the semi-finals.
It has been a remarkable season for Arbroath, who secured third place after claiming the League One championship last term.
“It’s a tough one for Aaron on his last game for us,” Hamilton said.
“For the last year-and-a-half he’s been excellent for us. He’s a great player, team-mate and work colleague.
“I thought we deserved at least extra-time, but it just wasn’t our day. The boys gave us everything.
“Coming into the Championship after winning League One and finishing third, we didn’t just scrape into the play-offs, we were up there all year.”
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