Football: East Fife going west

Scottish football

East Fife have become used to being on the wrong end of thrashings this season - and little is likely to change today. Sixteen points adrift at the bottom of the Bell's Scottish League First Division, the hapless men from Methil are off to Ibrox for a daunting Tennents Scottish Cup fourth-round tie.

Jimmy Bone, the East Fife manager, said: "The majority of my players are part-timers and combine their football with work commitments. But they are hungry to progress and we know we have nothing to lose on Saturday."

East Fife know that the only thing they are likely to be taking home from Glasgow to the Fife coast is a six-figure cheque, which will help them fund their move to a new stadium.

East Fife have won just one of their 26 league games - the worst record in British football. Their goalkeeper Lindsay Hamilton, once on the books at Rangers under Graeme Souness, has conceded 73 goals, but Bone insists there is little point in him or his players worrying about Brian Laudrup and the other Ibrox stars. "If I thought about the likes of Laudrup, I would have been sleepless for three weeks since the draw," Bone said. "If those guys play to their form, then it could be a long afternoon for us, but we will do our best."

Rangers will be without Paul Gascoigne, whose ankle injury will keep him out for at least another week, and their Chilean striker, Sebastian Rozental.