A rare 126-year-old medal has been given to the prospective new owners of Dunfermline Athletic FC.

The medal, recently found at Halbeath Farm on the outskirts of Dunfermline and believed to be the oldest surviving artefact relating to the club, has been donated to the Pars United fans group by metal detecting enthusiast Les Hannah.

Inscribed Won by J. Lawson Dunfermline Athletic 1887 - just two years after the club had been founded - the medal is believed to have been presented to John Lawson, who played for a victorious Dunfermline Athletic side in the final of the 2nd XI Fife Cup, beating Kirkcaldy Wanderers 9-1 at Lady's Mill (McKane Park) on April 23 1887.

Pars Supporters' Trust vice-chairman and Pars United member Drew Main, said: "This is a truly magnificent gesture by Les at a time when the club is emerging from a very difficult period and embarks on a new era.

"We will ensure that the medal is put on display within East End Park so that fans can see such an important piece of Dunfermline Athletic history.

"Our research suggests that this might have been the John Lawson, who lived on the Pleasance Road, Halbeath, near where the medal was found. Sadly he was killed in a coal mining accident at the William Colliery, Crossgates, in 1906 aged 45.

The medal, therefore, also represents the coal mining heritage of many Dunfermline Athletic players and supporters."

To read the complete article, see:Rare 126-year-old Dunfermline cup winners' medal unearthed(www.thecourier.co.uk/news/local/fife/rare-126-year-old-dunfermline-cup-winners-medal-unearthed-1.119012)