Airdrieonians 1-0 Raith Rovers: Diamonds beat Championship leaders again
- Published
Nikolay Todorov scored the only goal of the game
Airdrieonians beat Raith Rovers for the second time this season but the Championship leaders did not lose ground to nearest rivals Dundee United.
The Kirkcaldy club had been unbeaten since losing at the same venue in September and started brightly.
But Nikolay Todorov made it three goals in three games with a smart header from Mason Hancock's wonderful cross.
Todorov was earlier thwarted by goalkeeper Andrew McNeil and missed a good late chance to double his tally.
On the full-time whistle, referee Dan McFarlane issued a straight red card to Rovers full-back Ross Millen, who had an angry exchange with a number of home players.
Rovers were subdued on just their second loss of the campaign but United remain three points behind after their surprise home loss to Greenock Morton.
A deserved win keeps Airdrieonians in fourth place, eight points behind Partick Thistle and two above Morton.
Airdrieonians manager Rhys McCabe, talking to DiamondsTV: "I thought we battled really well. We were decent going forward, could have been a bit better, but probably did enough to merit the three points. Racking up clean sheets is a great confidence builder for defenders."
Raith Rovers assistant manager Colin Cameron: "Truth be told, we didn't play well enough to get anything out of the game. They took their chance and we didn't really have any clear cut chances, which is disappointing.
"We dropped below the standard that we've been at for most of the season and when you do that against anybody in this league it's tough."