Queen’s Park v Hamilton Accies – cinch Championship
Owen Coyle’s side have been playing home games at Ochilview this season as work continues at Lesser Hampden but they will face Accies at Hampden Park tomorrow.
The National Stadium will also host their SPFL Trust Trophy tie against Montrose next weekend but first up is an important Championship fixture for the in-form Spiders.
Queen’s Park saw off Raith Rovers 5-2 at Stark’s Park a fortnight ago – helped by doubles from Dom Thomas and Simon Murray – and were 3-0 winners at Peterhead in the Scottish Cup last week, earning another trip north, to Inverness, in round four. Promoted last season, the Glasgow club currently occupy fourth place but are only two points behind leaders Ayr United.
It’s been a difficult season for Hamilton, who are a point behind Arbroath at the foot of the table. They lost 2-0 to Queen’s Park at New Douglas Park in September and have picked up just two league wins so far. John Rankin’s side will take confidence from last weekend’s 4-0 Scottish Cup victory over East Kilbride, with Andy Ryan hitting a hat-trick to take his tally for the season to nine goals.
Dunfermline Athletic v Queen of the South – cinch League 1
The Pars are looking good for an immediate return to the Championship, having established a seven-point lead over closest challengers Falkirk and FC Edinburgh as the halfway stage approaches.
James McPake’s side have suffered just one league defeat so far – 2-0 at Montrose on October 22. Remarkably, these are the only goals Dunfermline have conceded on their travels in League 1 this season while they are unbeaten in eight home games to date – four wins and four draws.
Kyle Benedictus has been a key player for the East End Park club – helping them achieve 10 shut-outs already – but they are a strong unit throughout. The Pars have already won 2-0 at Palmerston and will be favourites to get the better of Wullie Gibson’s side on Saturday.
Queen of the South have found life tougher since dropping into the third tier. They have been inconsistent and are down in seventh place, five points outside the play-offs. They have recently beaten Montrose 4-0 and won 3-0 at FC Edinburgh but slumped 5-1 at Alloa in between those games and lost 4-1 at Morton in the Scottish Cup last week.
Elgin City v Stenhousemuir - cinch League 2
Leaders Dumbarton and second-placed Stirling Albion are well clear of the chasing pack but the next four clubs are separated by only two points. That quartet of promotion hopefuls includes Elgin City and Stenhousemuir (3rd v 5th) who meet at Borough Briggs.
Elgin crashed to a 4-0 defeat to Dumbarton in their last home outing on November 12 but bounced back with a 3-1 success at Annan a week later. Gavin Price's men came from behind to beat East of Scotland League side Hill of Beath Hawthorn 2-1 in Fife last weekend - helped by a 21st goal of the season from Kane Hester - and have a fourth-round tie at home to Drumchapel United on January 21 to look forward to.
The Black & Whites haven't drawn a match since the 3-3 result at Ochilview in September but the Warriors have drawn four of their last six league outings, losing the other two. Stephen Swift's men are without a league victory since the 4-2 triumph at Bonnyrigg Rose on October 1 but have knocked East Fife and Formartine United out of the Scottish Cup during that period. Their away record of three wins, one draw and three defeats is identical to Elgin's home record.
.png){kind=logo}
