Wighton hardened for battle after Hearts
CRAIG WIGHTON admits his disappointing spell at Hearts has ensured he has the mental toughness to help Dunfermline move clear of Championship relegation trouble.
Wighton concedes his time at Tynecastle was the toughest in his career, with his frustration at not being in the team being compounded by the fact he could only look on as Hearts lost their place in the Premiership in 2020.
However, the 24-year-old striker is hoping to use that experience as the winless Pars attempt to move off the second tier basement and ease the pressure on under-fire boss Peter Grant.
Wighton, who is set to face Kilmarnock on Saturday, said: “The toughest period of my career was probably the first couple of seasons at Hearts.
“Things weren’t going well for me personally. I wasn’t playing as much as I would have liked and when I was playing I probably wasn’t doing enough to stay in the team.
“The team as a whole was struggling to get results but even then we all stayed positive and knew we had good players at the club at that point.
“A couple of wins turns the whole situation around but we need to start doing that soon. We can’t be sitting here a few weeks down the line saying the same things over and over.
“There are obviously a few younger guys who are not used to this pressure but the majority of the group have been through this before or had pressure on them since they have broken into the first team. It is part of the game, you need to deal with that.
“When things are going well and you are getting all the praise it is good but we need to deal with this side of it as well.
“We haven’t been good enough so we need to accept the criticism and it is up to us to turn everyone’s opinion around.”