Queen's Park 2, Cowdenbeath 0.

Ladbrokes League One Play-off

Semi-final finest leg

Attendance-572

COWDENBEATH'S place in League One is hanging by a thread after this performance at Hampden last night.

The Blues lost a goal in the very first minute, when they needed to be really solid, and from that point on never imposed themselves on the game.

Queen's are a decent team but really the sort of side that Cowdenbeath should have dealt with.

Now Cowden face an uphill struggle because at Central Park on Saturday the Spiders have been given something to hold on to.

The defence, which has played pretty well in the closing sequence of league games, had too many moments of slackness while star striker Greig Spence was given too few good openings. All in all another very ordinary Cowden performance.

There was only 25 seconds on the clock when the home side went ahead. No one closed down Paul Woods and he found Chris DUGGAN who gave Grant Adam no chance with a fine finish, but both home players were given too much time.

The Spiders took confidence from this and Woods tested Adam and there was 25 minutes on the clock before Declan McDaid fired in a 30 yarder which went just wide.

This heralded a good spell of play from the Blues and Dean Brett took a Spence pass and shot just wide.

On the stroke of the interval the home side threatened again when Duggan set up Joe Bradley and his effort came back off a post.

The second period saw Cowden threaten when McDaid brought out a fine save from Willie Muir with a low shot.

But in 66 minutes a rash Chris Kane tackle proved costly when he clattered DUGGAN and the front man got up and sank the spot-kick.

Cowdenbeath never gave up and Brett's curling finish almost pulled one back late on but it was not a good night for them at the National Stadium.

Queen's Park: Muir (7): Burns (6), McLeish (6); Berry (7), McGeever (6), Wharton (7); Woods (7), Brown (6) (McVey 77 (3)), Duggan (8), Bradley (7), Galt (6) (Carter 86 (2)). Subs not sued, O'Boyle, Gibson, Mitchell, Mortimer and Baty.

Cowdenbeath: Grant Adam (7); Brad Donaldson (6), Kenny Adamson (7); Aldin El Zubaidi (6) (Lewis Milne 54 (3)), Craig Sives (7), Chris Kane (6); Dean Brett (7), Keiran Gibbons (6), Greig Spence (6), Kyle Miller (6) (Declan Hughes 58 (3)), Declan McDaid (Ross Caldwell 73 (2)). Subs not used, Pat Scullion, Craig Johnston, Harbey Swann and Alin Roman.

Referee-Greg Aitken (7).