| Competition: | Scottish League | Scottish Cup | League Cup |
| Matches Played | 32 | 4 | 10 |
| East Fife Wins | 8 | 0 | 5 |
| Hearts Wins | 16 | 3 | 4 |
| Drawn Matches | 7 | 1 | 1 |
Totals (for League, Scottish Cup and League Cup):
| Matches Played | 45 |
| East Fife Wins | 13 |
| Hearts Wins | 23 |
| Drawn Matches | 9 |
Total Number of Goals Scored (in all three competitions):
| East Fife | 66 | Hearts | 107 |
East Fife were founded in 1903. Their first ever opponents were the
famous Heart of Midlothian from Edinburgh, who visited Methil for a friendly match at
Bayview Park on 15 August. The match was an attractive one, not only because of the
quality of the opposition, but because the visitors full backs - Tom Collins and Roderick
Walker - had previously turned out for local junior sides Leven Thistle and Buckhaven
United. On a dull and wet afternoon, after the crowd had been entertained by the Methil
Prize Brass Band and the East of Fife Pipe Band, the match kicked off ten minutes late.
East Fife Captain and former Hearts' player Harry Allan won the toss and East Fife,
wearing green and white hoops, elected to defend the east (Aberhill) goal. The rain began
to pour midway through the first half and, although the ground absorbed the water well,
the ball became saturated making it greasy and difficult to control. Bell put Hearts 1-0
in front but their lead was short lived. After some good defending work by Hearts' Walker
and Collins, Nangle equalised for East Fife when he slipped the ball past 'keeper Moir.
Just before half time Hearts went 2-1 ahead through Forrester. During the second half the
East Fife players began to settle and, according to the match report which appeared in the
following edition of the Leven Advertiser, Nangle and Houston played to each other 'in
rattling style', bringing the best out of the Hearts full backs. Nangle scored his and
East Fife's second to square the match at 2-2 after the Hearts defence had soaked up some
considerable East Fife pressure.
East Fife (Green and White Hoops) - Moffat; Allan, Drummond; Middlemass, Melville,
Bell; Nangle, Houston, McArdle, J.Wilson and Manson
Hearts ( Maroon ) - Moir; Walker, Collins; McDonald, Philp, Williamson; Ford,
Jarvie, Forrester, Tait and Bell
The earliest known photograph of
East Fife, taken in 1903. The picture was taken at half time during a friendly with
Falkirk at Bayview on 12 September 1903, four weeks after the Hearts match. The players in
the back row are (left to right): Harry Allan (Captain), Moffat, Drummond, and Melville.
Middle row: Smith, Jarvie, D.Wilson, W.Wilson and Nangle. Seated at the front are McArdle
and Middlemass.