Gallant Linlithgow Rose fall short of Scottish Cup upset as proud boss targets league title

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Linlithgow Rose’s hopes of an historic Scottish Cup last-16 berth were dashed by Raith Rovers as the Championship side ran out 2-0 winners at Prestonfield.A sold-out crowd under the Prestonfield lights set the scene for another night of Scottish Cup drama and intrigue.While there would be no repeat of Darvel’s heroics against Aberdeen from 24 hours previously, the East of Scotland Premier Division outfit more than held their own against their full-time second-tier opponents.They should even have been in front at the break as Mark Stowe squandered the best chance of the half for either team when he lifted the ball over Tom Lang and left himself with only Jamie MacDonald to beat but dragged his effort wide.The hosts also had a penalty shout turned down when Stowe looked to have been clipped inside the box.Raith enjoyed plenty of the play, especially down the flanks, but lacked the final touch as they were unable to offer up anything more than a string of half-chances.That changed after the half-time break, though, as the visitors took the upper-hand almost immediately following the restart.

In a bizarre moment just three minutes in, Jamie Gullan appeared to have given them the lead when he pounced on an errant Alex Webb header back to the keeper and dinked the ball over Cammy Binnie.The striker was clearly in an offside position but looked to have been played on by Webb’s errant header.After consulting with his assistant, referee Graham Grainger awarded the goal – only to have a second chat with the same official and change his mind and rule it out for offside.But the striker didn’t have to wait long to snatch the lead – for certain this time – as six minutes later he raced on to a pass over the top and beat the onrushing