Falkirk 3 Peterhead 0: Comfortable win at home

The Bairns saw out the game a lot more comfortably than their rivals Raith did in Kirkcaldy at home to Forfar -- and the results elsewhere are just as important now in the final quarter of the season.

This display was a far cry from the scrappy 0-0 draw on the opening day of the season, and eight minutes into his first Falkirk start since December 2017 Lee Miller put the Bairns in front and into a position they never looked like relinquishing.

Mikey Doyle burst forward on the right and clipped a ball into the box which Rafa de Vitta knocked down to Aidan Connolly. The little winger played in the boss and the ball was tucked away as you'd expect a 36-year-old of his football ability and experience would.

Miller and Connolly's link-up was particularly impressive for the Bairns and they fed off one another. Another impressive outlet for the home side was Paul Dixon's long-range shooting and after stinging the palms of Greg Fleming on three minutes the left bakc went on to go close twice more, even hitting the crossbar in the second half.

But the remainder of Falkirk's goals came from Declan McManus, as they so often have done this season.

Simon Ferry was harshly penalised for handball in the penalty area while jumping as part of the defensive wall to block a Connolly free-kick. Ref Craig napier gave McManus the chance from 12 yards and he stroked low to Fleming's left.

Falkirk were comfortable and capable of adding to their tally in the second half, and McManus did with a clever free-kick that caught Fleming flat-footed on 62 minutes.

The shot off the post just after the hour put him on a hat-trick but he was substituted before the inevitable happened, and hit the post in the search for his third.

With Miller, McManus and de Vita replaced by Charlie Telfer, Conor Sammon and David McMillan the Bairns cruised to full time though Paul Dixon and Gary Miller both went close from range and Sammon had a close range prod at goal blocked in the six-yard box.

While Raith were 2-0 up at Forfar, Falkirk's three-goal cushion was relief and enough to be able to give McManus a rest, but Forfar almost did the Bairns a favour with a late rally at Stark's park and a late goal made viewing in Fife quite uncomfortabel for the remaining seconds.

But the Bairns remain in the penultimate place in League One, still a single point behind the Rovers, but with an ever-increasing goal difference on the league leaders too.