Raith beat title rivals Dundee Utd to go five clear
- Published
Dylan Easton's shot flew past Jack Walton to give Rovers the lead
Dylan Easton's wonderful winner moved Raith Rovers five points clear at the top of the Scottish Championship and inflicted a first league defeat of the season on title rivals Dundee United.
The tricky forward collected Sam Stanton's excellent pass and twisted and turned just inside the box before curling a sublime left-footer into the far corner for his ninth of the season.
It means Raith Rovers have won seven consecutive games in all competitions and have not lost a match since September.
Over 10,000 fans attended this top-of-the-table tussle at Tannadice, with 2,000 Raith supporters filling The Shed stand.
Rovers' defender Ross Millen celebrating a last-ditch tackle to deny Louis Moult an almost certain equaliser late on summed up the spirit that's been generated over recent months in his side.
Ian Murray's men are unbeaten in 13 games in all competitions and although they didn't threaten much in the first half, picked their moment after the break to strike the telling blow.
Easton has been a stand-out player in the Championship this season and it all started with an intelligent run, which allowed Stanton to find him and then the former Airdrieonians man did the rest.
Moult, Glenn Middleton and Chris Mochrie all had good second half chances to level but Kevin Dabrowski and the resolute Raith defence were equal to everything thrown at them.
Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin: "We're disappointed to lose any game but we certainly didn't want to lose to our nearest rivals. It's a little bit of magic from Easton and our boys didn't lose the game because of a lack of fight. Dabrowski's made a couple of good saves low to his left and we didn't get any breaks today."
Raith Rovers manager Ian Murray: "It's a fantastic win for us, there's no doubt. The bond that the players have got - you can't buy these things in football. It's a five-point lead but my message to the players is to keep their feet on the ground. If we drop our standards then we'll get kicked."