Queen of the South defeated Arbroath for the third time this season with a 3-2 victory at a blustery Gayfield Park to extend their lead at the top of the Second Division to six points.

Goals from Nicky Clark and Chris Higgins gave the league leaders a two-goal lead before Steven Doris netted from the penalty spot on half-time.  The second half saw Queens take more control of the game and they extended their lead through Mark Durnan before Doris scored his second penalty of the afternoon with the last kick of the game.

The players had to adapt to some tricky weather conditions in the first half as a bitter wind blew off the North Sea and the low sun made things difficult as both teams struggled to take control in the early period.

It was Queen of the South that created the best of the early chances as twice they were denied by goal-line clearances within a minute.  The move stemmed from a Chris Mitchell corner from the right that found Gavin Reilly completely free in the area.  The striker controlled before seeing his goal-bound effort blocked and Nicky Clarks headed rebound was also cleared from under the crossbar by the Arbroath defence.

Arbroath came into the game in the following minutes through a series of set-pieces that caused Queens keeper Lee Robinson problems as they flooded the six-yard box making it impossible for him to come and collect. Pushing and shoving from both sides was largely ignored by the referee and the Queens defence were able to escape some hairy moments to keep the score level and broke to devastating effect on 22 minutes.

The Queens midfield stole possession on the halfway line allowing Derek Lyle to find Nicky Clarks dart behind the home defence.  The striker was under pressure from the centre-back as his first effort was saved by the goalkeepers feet but the rebound fell kindly and Clark showed his composure in taking a touch around the goalkeeper to slot home into the empty net.

The goal settled Queens and they started to take control of the contest and extended their lead on 28 minutes through captain Chris Higgins.  The ball dropped to the big centre-back after a bit of pinball in the Arbroath area following a corner kick and his volley from the edge of the box found the bottom corner.

At the other end the Queens defenders were having the better of it as Arbroath were only able to really threaten from set-pieces but that changed just before half-time as Paul Currie won a penalty.  Chris Mitchell was the man that was adjudged to have fouled in the area although the Queens players were adamant that the full-back won the ball.  The referee was not about to change his mind and Steven Doris stepped up to send Robinson the wrong way to give his side a way back into the match.

Into the second half and the away side were looking to keep the ball on the floor.  They retained possession well and kept Arbroath at arms length before making it 3-1 through Mark Durnan.

The goal came from another corner as Nicky Clark fired a shot back across the goalmouth to find centre-back Durnan in the six-yard box and the former St Johnstone man made no mistake as he smashed home.

The away side were looking comfortable as Arbroath struggled to put together any kind of cohesive attacking move and their best chances dropped to substitute Lee Sibanda but his two efforts did not threaten Robinsons goal.

Derek Lyle missed a gilt-edged chance late on as Queens counter-attacked at speed.  Substitutes David Hopkirk and Willie Gibson broke into the Arbroath half and Gibson’s square pass found Lyle free at the back post but his finish was wild as the ball flew wide of the post.

Into the final few minutes of the match and Arbroath were unable to put the Queens defence under any real pressure as the league leaders defended well although the home side were awarded a last-minute penalty.

A long-range shot from Paul Sheerin was blocked by Ryan McGuffies arm and the referee pointed to the spot.  Steven Doris stepped up to slam into the top corner but it was only a consolation as the final whistle went immediately after the restart.

In the end it was a steady if unspectacular win for the league leaders but with Alloa dropping points at home to Brechin the Doonhamers increased their lead to six points with a game in hand to put themselves into a strong position after eleven games played.