Part Seven - The 60s and 70s
Shortly after their return to Division Two, East Fife endured a disastrous season which saw the club finish as the second worst team in Scottish Football; the team being spared the blushes of the ‘wooden spoon’ in 1960 by finishing just six points clear of bottom club Cowdenbeath.
Matters improved very little over the following three seasons, but in season 1963/64, following the return to the club of former player Jimmy Bonthrone as Manager, the Fifers managed to re-establish themselves as promotion contenders.
With Bonthrone at the helm, despite remaining a Second Division club, East Fife managed to pull off some memorable performances against First Division sides in the Scottish Cup and League Cup during the mid 1960’s. Amongst these memorable performances were victories against Aberdeen at Bayview in 1965 and against Motherwell at Fir Park in 1967. In the League Cup, the most notable successes were a draw with Rangers at Bayview in 1963 followed by a 2-0 victory over Celtic at the same venue a year later.
As the decade progressed, the push for a return to the First Division grew stronger and, after being ‘pipped at the post’ a couple of times, the Fifers’ promotion dreams were finally realised in 1971 when they finished the season as runners-up to Partick Thistle to regain top-flight status.
It took a while for the Fifers to become accustomed to life back in the First Division, with the first competitive win of the campaign not recorded until the end of September 1971, when Clyde were beaten at Shawfield. It was to be another three weeks before victory was tasted at home, when Kilmarnock were beaten 2-0 in Methil 16th October 1971, over thirteen years since the long suffering home support had last witnessed a First Division win! Victories were few and far between, however, during that first season back in the top flight, although a memorable win was recorded against the club’s ‘bogey’ team of the 1950’s, Hibernian!
Despite some poor showings, relegation was avoided, although it took two favourable results away from home over the final two Saturdays of the campaign, victory at St Johnstone and a draw at Motherwell, to avoid the drop.
East Fife in 1971. Back Row (L to R): Dave Clarke, Rab Cairns, Walter Borthwick, Dave Gorman, John Martis, Peter McQuade, Jim Finlayson. Front Row: Bertie Miller, Pat Quinn, Joe Hughes, Graham Honeyman, Billy McPhee
Season 1972/73 saw a marked improvement in performances, and good wins were recorded both at Bayview and away from home as East Fife consolidated their First Division status. It was during this campaign that home supporters witnessed one of the most entertaining matches ever played at Bayview. On 17th February 1973, Celtic visited Methil on the way to winning the league championship and were lucky to escape with a 2-2 draw. With the Fifers 2-1 ahead for most of the second half, East Fife ‘keeper Ernie McGarr saved no fewer than three penalties to preserve the Fifers’ lead. Just when it looked like a famous victory was about to be recorded, however, Celtic equalised with only a minute to play!
The following season also saw a notable victory, this time in the shape of a 1-0 win against the other half of the Old Firm, Rangers, at Ibrox on 13th October 1973. This is the only time East Fife have beaten Rangers on their own soil in a competitive match in peace-time (three wins were recorded at Ibrox in wartime matches). Alas, this success wasn’t a sign of things to come and, although the battle to avoid relegation went right to the very last day of the season, East Fife were sent back down to Division Two in April 1974.
Although season 1974/75 saw the team finish their league campaign in fifth place, the Fifers were re-instated as a First Division club due to league re-construction. This status was not the equivalent of previous years, however, as the top teams in the country would, in future, play their football in the Premier Division.
Although the following three seasons were spent in Division One, the quality of football on offer was not the same high standard that had been seen at Bayview in the early part of the decade and, for two seasons in succession, East Fife missed relegation by the skin of their teeth. There were, however, some favourable league results recorded at Bayview during this period, with Dunfermline Athletic beaten 5-1 in September 1975 and Hearts beaten 2-0 in November 1977.
The club’s First Division status was finally relinquished in 1978, at the end of a disastrous season that saw the Fifers finish bottom of the league, five points behind also-relegated Alloa Athletic and a full ten points behind third bottom Queen of the South. The supporters might not have believed it at the time, but the club were destined to play Second Division football for the next six years!
Home attendances also dropped alarmingly during the 1970’s. Taking a home league match against Albion Rovers as a typical example, a crowd of 3,152 attended the Division Two game at Bayview in December 1970. The same fixture in September 1979 attracted an attendance of just 581.
With this downward trend looking set to continue, it was apparent that the Fifers would be forced to tighten their belts as gate income dwindled. It certainly looked like bleak days ahead!
