AIRDRIE United strengthened their grip on second place in the Second Division and condemned Cowdenbeath to a relegation play-off place with a comfortable victory at New Broomfield.
First-half goals from Marco Andreoni and Graeme Holmes ended the v
isitors' challenge before Bryan Prunty and substitute Ricky Waddell underlined the Diamonds' supremacy with goals after the break.
Cowdenbeath started brightly but the home side started to show more urgency and it was no surprise when they took the lead on 20 minutes. Stuart Noble cleverly found space on the left and his low cross was turned home by on-loan Dundee United midfielder Andreoni. That settled Kenny Black's promotion-chasing side and they deservedly doubled their lead on 36 minutes. Holmes latched on to Prunty's through ball and rounded keeper David Hay before slotting home.
That effectively ended the contest and Prunty made it three on the hour with a close-range finish after Noble had flicked on Holmes' corner. Waddell completed the scoring on 79 minutes with a low finish from Allan Russell's low left-wing cross.
Airdrie: Hollis, R Donnelly, Lovering (Waddell 64), McDonald, Smyth, Andreoni (Watt 71), Smith, Prunty, Russell, Holmes, Noble (Campbell 77). Subs not used: Gillies, P Donnelly
Cowdenbeath: Hay, Shanks, Adamson, Scullion, Hill, O'Neill (McBride 71), Tomana, Shields, Dempster (Gates 73), McQuade (Robertson), McLaughlin. Subs not used: Lynch, Allison
Referee: A Law. Attendance: 735
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