Airdrie boosted their cinch Championship play-off ambitions with a comfortable 3-1 home victory over fellow hopefuls Morton.

Nikolay Todorov gave the hosts a fast start with his 11th goal of the season when he fired into the top left corner past Ryan Mullen inside a minute.

Airdrie doubled their advantage through Charlie Telfer’s composed finish in the 15th minute before Mason Hancock all but sealed the three points by heading home from a corner with 22 minutes remaining.

Michael Garrity grabbed a consolation for the visitors when he converted Jai Quitongo’s cross in the 73rd minute.

The home side consolidated the fourth and final play-off spot with victory, moving three points clear of Dunfermline – with a game in hand – after their 1-1 draw at home to third-placed Partick Thistle.

Kai Fotheringham scored twice to help keep Dundee United four points clear at the top of the cinch Championship with a 5-0 victory at Queen’s Park.

The Terrors had to wait until the stroke of half-time to take the lead and it was Fotheringham who made the difference, stroking home Tony Watt’s cross.

Louis Moult doubled the visitors’ advantage when he raced through and lifted the ball over Calum Ferrie in the 55th minute.

United put the result beyond doubt on the hour mark when Ross Graham met Miller Thomson’s corner and headed home.

Fotheringham poked home a fourth in the 64th minute and Craig Sibbald made it five a few minutes later with a fierce strike.

Arbroath are all but relegated from the cinch Championship after falling 12 points from the relative safety of ninth place following a 2-1 defeat at nearest rivals Inverness.

Wallace Duffy sent the Caley Jags into the break ahead as, three minutes into stoppage time, he received Alex Samuel’s clever pass and beat Max Boruc from 10 yards out.

It was Arbroath who grabbed the next goal, however, when Leighton McIntosh found the back of the net from distance just after the hour.

The visitors would later go down to 10 men as Ricky Little earned a second yellow for fouling Billy Mckay and Inverness quickly took advantage through Samuel, who snaffled his fourth goal of the season.

Airdrie moved into the cinch Championship top four after beating Arbroath 2-1 at Gayfield Park.

Callum Fordyce’s 72nd-minute header from a Charles Telfer corner broke the deadlock and Gabriel McGill struck nine minutes from time before Jay Bird’s free-kick cut the deficit.

The Championship’s bottom club made Airdrie work hard for victory, and Arbroath were left to rue Leighton McIntosh’s missed penalty just before half-time.

Airdrie’s Dean McMaster hit the bar early in the second half, and it looked like being a frustrating night for the Diamonds until Fordyce and McGill came up trumps.

Partick Thistle maintained their cinch Championship promotion challenge with a 1-0 win over strugglers Inverness, who finished with 10 men at Firhill.

Jags forward Brian Graham saw an early glancing header saved by Caley keeper Mark Ridgers.

The visitors went close to breaking the deadlock from a corner in the 33rd minute when Wallace Duffy’s header hit the crossbar following a corner.

Partick Thistle took the lead four minutes before half-time when Scott Robinson knocked in a rebound after Ben Stanway’s long-range effort had been saved.

Caley found themselves down to 10 men in the 66th minute when midfielder Cammy Kerr was sent off for a second caution, but then saw late efforts from Samson Lawal and Alex Samuel saved by Jags keeper David Mitchell.

Dunfermline stayed firmly in the cinch Championship play-off hunt despite a late scare in a 3-2 win over rock-bottom Arbroath at Gayfield.

The visitors looked on course for a comfortable win after Ewan Otoo opened the scoring from the edge of the box after 24 minutes.

Paul Allan’s superb free-kick put the Pars further clear and Chris Kane’s effort on the stroke of half-time handed Dunfermline a 3-0 advantage at the interval.

But the visitors, heading into the game on the back of three straight losses and all but consigned to the drop, rallied with a brace from Scott Stewart either side of the hour mark.

And they came close to snatching an unlikely point late on when Leighton McIntosh fired a rising effort narrowly over the bar.

Dundee United took a big stride towards the cinch Scottish Championship title after goals from Tony Watt and Louis Moult gave them a 2-0 win over second-placed Raith.

Their win leaves the hosts four points clear at the top, although Raith retain a game in hand and will hope to push the promotion battle into the final weeks of the campaign.

Watt settled the home side’s nerves with just seven minutes on the clock when he stroked home the opener after a neat lay-off from Moult.

Kai Fotheringham wasted a superb chance to double the home side’s lead then busy Raith keeper Kevin Dabrowski parried another effort from Watt.

United all but sealed victory on 75 minutes when Moult was fouled in the box and stepped up to fire his resulting penalty past Dabrowski.

Morton returned to winning ways with a 2-0 victory over Queen’s Park in their cinch Championship match at Cappielow Park.

Ton forward George Oakley headed an early chance over the crossbar before Spiders keeper Calum Ferrie pushed a shot from Jack Bearne around a post.

Queen’s Park midfielder Jack Turner saw his long-range effort saved by Ryan Mullen midway through the first half.

Morton – who had lost five straight games in all competitions – went close soon after the restart when Kirk Broadfoot’s header from a corner struck the crossbar.

The deadlock was broken in the 68th minute when Alan Power’s free-kick was headed in by Broadfoot.

Morton doubled their lead in the 72nd minute through a low free-kick from Robbie Muirhead to end Queen’s Park’s five-game unbeaten run.

Sean McGinty headed the winner as Ayr struck twice in three second-half minutes to beat Airdrie 2-1 at Somerset Park.

Irish defender McGinty anticipated a flick-on from a free-kick out wide and nodded home what proved to be the decisive goal five minutes after the interval.

Josh O’Connor had given Airdrie a half-time lead after racing clear of Ayr’s defence to smash an emphatic finish beyond goalkeeper Josh Clarke.

Ayr equalised two minutes after the restart when Anton Dowds darted on to Craig Watson’s weak headed back-pass to finish in style before McGinty headed in the home side’s second.

Airdrie’s Dean McMaster saw a spectacular volley brilliantly saved by Clarke in the first period, while Ayr’s appeals for a second-half penalty after Jamie Murphy went down in the box were waved away.

Goalkeeper Deniz Mehmet was Dunfermline’s hero as his late penalty save ensured that Miles Welch-Hayes’ header was enough to secure a 1-0 cinch Scottish Championship win at Greenock Morton.

In a first half of few clear-cut chances, Morton’s Kirk Broadfoot twice went close in the early stages, firing just wide after six minutes and then over the crossbar four minutes later.

The visitors rallied as the half wore on with Ewan Otoo shooting over five minutes before the break, seconds before Chris Kane forced keeper Ryan Mullen into a save with a header.

Kane Ritchie-Hosler called upon Mullen once again, just after the restart and the Pars finally got their reward – after 55 minutes – when Welch-Hayes headed home following a short corner worked between Kane and Ritchie-Hosler.

The hosts were handed an opportunity to level when Otoo fouled substitute Jai Quitongo inside the penalty area, but Robbie Muirhead’s 84th-minute spot-kick was saved by Mehmet.

Queen’s Park returned to winning ways with a 2-1 victory against Ayr in the cinch Championship.

The Spiders went in front in the 19th minute when Louis Longridge picked out Ruari Paton in the box and the striker nodded home from close range.

Cillian Sheridan doubled the lead for the visitors in the 59th minute after being set up by Paton to slot the ball past Josh Clarke, and they threatened again when Dom Thomas blasted a shot off the crossbar.

Jack Sanders pulled one back for Ayr in the 78th minute after heading home from Harry McHugh’s corner but the visitors held on to see out their first victory following three successive league draws.

Aidan Fitzpatrick’s goal was the difference as Partick Thistle earned back-to-back Scottish Championship wins with a 1-0 victory against strugglers Arbroath.

Thistle took the lead in the 15th minute when Fitzpatrick found some space and fired a low shot past Derek Gaston.

Arbroath had a chance when Innes Murray volleyed over the bar and Ryan Dow forced David Mitchell into a save after the break.

Defeat means the Red Lichties remain at the bottom of the table while Thistle remain third.

Louis Moult’s spectacular strike spared cinch Scottish Championship leaders Dundee United’s blushes as they dropped two precious points in a 1-1 draw with lowly Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

Both sides had early chances with Alex Greive going close for the hosts and Nathan Shaw threatening for the visitors, who took the lead with 12 minutes gone when Wallace Duffy pounced after goalkeeper Jack Walton had parried Aribim Pepple’s cross.

United responded and Ross Docherty forced keeper Mark Ridgers into an 18th-minute save before Glenn Middleton headed wide but they headed in at the break trailing despite a strong finish to the first half.

However, they got themselves back on level terms in eye-catching style 10 minutes after the restart when substitute Moult struck from long range.

Declan Gallagher smashed a 62nd-minute half-volley against a post and Ridgers denied Ross Graham in the aftermath before keeping out Docherty’s 70th-minute header to ensure the side which started the day in ninth place emerged with a point.

Airdrie moved up to fourth in the cinch Championship as they extended their unbeaten run to five matches with a 5-2 comeback victory over bottom side Arbroath.

Ryan Dow gave the visitors a shock lead after 16 minutes as he slotted home Charlie Reilly’s cross, but Airdrie hit back to go into half-time with a 2-1 lead as on-loan Rangers midfielder Arron Lyall equalised in the 39th minute and teenager Liam McStravick found the bottom corner.

Former Arbroath loanee Mason Hancock’s header extended the hosts’ lead two minutes after the break before David Gold pulled one back for the away side.

But Charlie Telfer restored the Diamonds’ two-goal cushion with a close-range shot and ex-Arbroath midfielder Craig Watson put the score beyond doubt 12 minutes from time.

Queen’s Park and Raith Rovers drew a blank in their cinch Championship contest at Hampden.

Sean Welsh’s second-half header, which went just wide from Jack Thomson’s corner, was the closest the home side came to a winner in the 0-0 draw.

The visitors created little and were unable to find the decisive breakthrough which would have given them the outright lead at the top of the table, although the point sees them join pacesetters Dundee United on 58 points.