Aaron Muirhead misses late penalty as Dunfermline edge Arbroath in play-offs

Arbroath defender Aaron Muirhead missed a late penalty as Dunfermline held on to advance to the semi-finals of the William Hill Premiership play-offs following a second-leg goalless draw at Gayfield Park.

The Scottish Cup finalists had to endure a nervous evening, particularly in the closing stages, as they protected their 1-0 first-leg lead.

It appeared the tie could be heading for extra-time when Aston Oxborough brought down Ryan Dow in the 84th minute, but the Pars goalkeeper redeemed himself with a brilliant stop from Muirhead’s spot-kick.

The East End Park side will now take on Partick Thistle over two legs next week.

Both sides made one change from Tuesday evening’s first leg. For the hosts, Scott Robinson replaced Gavin Reilly in the lone striker role, while John Tod was preferred to Alfons Amade for the visitors.

Arbroath threatened from the off with a fast-flowing counter-attack that ended with an excellent block by Nurudeen Abdulai from Dow’s low strike.

There was an early booking for Tod when he pulled back Dow with just six minutes on the clock.

In the 14th minute, it required a vital goal-line clearance from Dunfermline skipper Jeremiah Chilokoa-Mullen to prevent Robinson from breaking the deadlock.

It was the Red Lichties who continued to probe for the goal that would bring them level in the tie, with Findlay Marshall blazing well over the top after a promising burst forward.

Harry Cochrane picked up a yellow card for a poorly-timed challenge on Charlie Gilmour just after the half-hour mark.

Despite being on the back foot for much of the first half, the Pars almost doubled their advantage a minute before half-time.

Matthew Todd’s corner caused panic in the home defence and the ball eventually landed at the feet of Gilmour, who lashed it over the top.

The visitors went close again in the 54th minute when Todd stung the palms of Aidan McAdams after connecting well with Andrew Tod’s delivery to the back post.

Reilly and Muirhead came off the bench in place of Cochrane and Jacob MacIntyre as Arbroath continued to look for a breakthrough.

The changes for the hosts certainly swung the momentum back in their favour, but they still struggled to seriously test Oxborough in the away goal.

Kieran Ngwenya headed the ball wide as Dunfermline enjoyed a rare foray forward and – with time running out for the Lichties – the game was becoming increasingly stretched.

Arbroath were handed a golden opportunity to draw level when they were awarded a penalty with seven minutes left. Dow was brought down by Oxborough after reacting quickest to Robbie Fraser’s short back-pass.

Muirhead was tasked with dispatching the resulting spot-kick, but he was denied by a superb stop from the Pars keeper.

Four minutes of added time brought more drama. McAdams came forward for a late corner, but the ball was eventually hammered clear.

The home players slumped to the turf when they heard the full-time whistle, while there were scenes of jubilation for Dunfermline.