IT'S a place that, for generations of supporters, has produced on-field fireworks, celebratory tears and perfect partnerships.

So when Pars fan Jason Canning decided he was going to pop the question with a "bit of a statement" on Christmas Eve, where better to do it than on the pitch at his beloved East End Park, with a pyrotechnic display into the bargain?

With some help from the football club, 31-year-old Jason – well known to fellow Athletic followers for being behind crowd displays at matches – provided partner Carla Robertson, 30, with an early festive gift as they got hitched on the hallowed turf – announced to the world by the Pars on their social media.

The couple, from Dalgety Bay, have been together for almost eight years and after some "not so subtle" hints – which, Jason laughed, included simply "when are you going to do it?" – he put a plan into action so secret that not even either set of parents knew anything about it.

Having devised an idea of making Carla think they were stopping in on the Halbeath Road to do some filming for a fan display, Jason liaised with club photographer Craig Brown to put his proposal into action.

"I wanted to make a bit of a statement and I didn't mean to make that much of a statement – the people in Aldi heard the engagement!" he joked.

"I'd had the idea in my head of roughly what I wanted to do. I felt it was a place where I had something that I could use as a theatre, somewhere that would make an impact. We came up with a rough walk through, we walked it through the day before, and came up with a rough idea of what we would do to trick her in getting her there."

A brief stop-off on the way to Carla's parents did the trick and, having made all the final preparations, Jason continued: "We walked into the middle of the pitch and I got her to do her distraction piece, which was her holding what she thought was a green screen, and that we were going to photoshop something onto the green screen.

"But it wasn't – it was just a black sheet that she was walking through the pitch with! At that point, I was trying to light the fireworks in the wind – which was a bit of a struggle at first – but I eventually got it.

"If you actually look very closely in the video, you notice how much of an impression the fireworks made from the language that came out of her mouth when the first one went off which, to be honest, caught me by surprise by how loud they were as well!

"At which point, she turned around and I was on one knee!"

Thankfully, Carla said yes and, after the emotional moment started to sink in, the loved-up couple are hoping to tie the knot in 2022.

Asked whether East End could be the venue for the big day, Jason laughed: "I got away with the proposal – I think I would get murdered for that one!

"East End Park has got a big thing for me. It's another family, it's a second home. The year before, my fiancée actually came to most of the games with me as well, and she's helped with most of my crowd displays, so it means something to her as well.

"The both of us have watched that video about 30 times – we're probably half the amount of views that have been on the video! We both haven't shut up about it.

"With my background, I was always going to do it big, and it doesn't come any bigger than a 12,000-seater stadium and a load of fireworks!

"I don't know if it's still the the buzz of the fireworks or the engagement but we're definitely buzzing.

"I knew she'd say yes, so we're more than happy."