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THEY scored, hit the bar, had two efforts cleared off the line and saw other efforts saved. All in the second half.
So how on earth did Dumbarton manage to lose to Raith Rovers?
Easy. With what went on in the opening 45 minutes.
Half time arrived with the travelling fans wondering if they’d witnessed a worse first half performance all season. Ryan Conroy’s penalty and Grant Anderson’s header had the Kirkcaldy side coasting.
And then the real Sons emerged.
After a succession of chances, Mitch Megginson found the net with 10 minutes left – and then saw his effort go over off the top of the bar.
Then in injury time, Scott Agnew and Andy Graham were both denied by goal line clearances.
It was bad luck alright, but leaving it until the second half to produce the performance you’re capable of is asking for it.
And it’s been done to death – chances were made, and not taken. It’s not just against the division’s leading sides where they have to be dispatched.
If Sons start the Livingston game on Saturday the way they finished this one, there surely will only be one winner.
But kick it off the same way as they began at Stark’s Park and a long afternoon lies ahead.
The game, which saw loan signing Stuart Findlay make his Sons debut in defence, made a lukewarm start. There were chances, but none that sufficiently tested either keeper.
Agnew narrowly missed the target with a shot from the edge of the area, while Ross Callachan and Martin Scott did likewise for Raith.
An Andy Graham header from Agnew’s corner forced the first save of the match before the first warning sign came in the 19th minute.
Mark Stewart connected with a low ball into the area six yards out, but somehow hit the post, with the ball rebounding to Danny Rogers.
Raith only had to wait 10 minutes to make up for that, though, after Chris Turner dived in on Anderson inside the area. Conroy, who not long before had narrowly missed with a free kick, did the honours from 12 yards.
Garry Fleming almost provided an immediate response with a shot which went just wide, but on 32 minutes the deficit was doubled.
Callachan sent over a high ball to the back post, giving Anderson a completely free header from close range.
Another near miss by Fleming, followed by Graham just missing a cross from the right, were papering over the cracks. Sons were struggling.
And five minutes into the second half they were lucky to avoid going further behind. A counter attack ended with Scott setting up Stewart with a gaping goal ahead of him, but he shot wide of the far post.
Dumbarton grew into the game as the half went on, but clearcut chances weren’t easy to create. Agnew twice went close, with the keeper saving the first time while his second effort was over the bar.
Archie Campbell was unlucky to narrowly miss after cutting in from the left, while at the other end, Stewart missed another chance in a goalmouth scramble.
When that happens, you get the feeling there’s something left in the game.
And with 10 minutes left, after Agnew’s low shot was parried by the keeper, Megginson was there to put Sons back in the contest.
Only 120 seconds later, he could have completed the comeback himself.
Fleming beat the keeper to David Van Zanten’s cross, with the loose ball spinning Megginson’s way. He blasted it towards goal, but it crashed off the top of the bar and went into the stand.
From what had looked an irretrievable position at the interval, Dumbarton now had a fighting chance.
But what happened in injury time just about summed the afternoon up.
Agnew’s shot looked to have snatched a point, but the keeper somehow clawed it back from behind the line. Graham’s header from the rebound was headed clear.
It was undoubtedly tough on a Sons side whose second half performance definitely merited something.
However, if they’d started the afternoon in such a fashion, they wouldn’t have been in that position.
An easy lesson to take into a home fixture against the bottom side this Saturday. No-one needs to say what sort of result would be desirable.
Raith Rovers: McGurn; Thomson, Watson, Hill, Anderson (McKay 87), Stewart (Nade 79), Elliot, Scott (Moon 72), Callachan, Conroy, McKeown. Subs: Cuthbert; Fox, Vaughan, Barr. Booked: Callachan.
Dumbarton: Rogers; Van Zanten, Linton (Taggart 76), Graham, Mair, Turner, Agnew, Megginson, Fleming, Findlay, Campbell. Subs: Ewings; Nish, McCallum, Whitefield. Booked: Fleming.
Referee: John McKendrick.
Crowd: 1,475.
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