ATHLETIC have progressed in the SFA Youth Cup after their talented youngsters held their nerve to claim a penalty shoot-out win over St Mirren.

The Paisley side made the trip to KDM Group East End Park on Friday night for the third round tie, and Greg Shields' side came through after the teams had played out a 2-2 draw.

The under-18s side, which featured four 2006 age group players, five 2007s, and two 2008s, saw Callum Penman rattle their crossbar during a scoreless opening period, while goalkeeper, Adam Meikle, was on hand to produce a couple of smart stops.

However, three minutes after the restart, the Pars took the lead when Liam Hoggan made ground on the left before pulling the ball back for Daniel Bell to score.

Ten minutes later, though, Ethan Sutherland pulled the Buddies level, but five minutes later, 16-year-old Ethan Rowe restored the lead with a fine finish after brushing aside every challenge he faced.

With 12 minutes to go, Sutherland scored his, and Saints, second to force the tie straight to a penalty shoot-out, which Dunfermline won 4-2, thanks to successful kicks from Ewan McLeod, Sam Young, Hoggan and Neil Blake.

Shields commented: "On this showing, and the information myself and the other coaches gave to the group, they applied that. They were playing against an Elite Academy team, who play against the top teams week in, week out ,and we more than tested them. In fact, we matched them in many ways.

"We did ride our luck throughout the game at times but so did they with the opportunities we had. Overall, a draw was a fair result, but to win on penalties makes it all the sweeter."