The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Young ready to shake-up players and formation
East Fife manager Darren Young reckons that some of his players will be in for a shock this afternoon when he reads out the team to face Ayr United at Somerset Park.
The Bayview boss has grown tired of inconsistency from his men and is changing the formation and personnel that will take on the title-chasers after last Saturday’s 2-0 defeat from Queen’s Park.
Young said: “We had gone away from home and won at Stranraer with a terrific performance and had the chance to build on it last weekend.
“However, it never happened and again we let the performance level slip,” he said.
“We will go with a different approach at Ayr and with different players. We tried a few things at training in midweek and you could see three or four boys begin to feel uneasy as they had thought they would be the first picks and they weren’t,” he said.
“They were then given a chance to show what they can do and, to be honest, our training was the most intense it has been in weeks.
“There will be some disappointed players when I name the team but anyone coming in knows that they have to perform to keep a jersey.”
The Honest Men are looking to bounce back after losing 6-1 to Rangers in the Scottish Cup last weekend and Young reckons that they will view this as a great opportunity to do that.
Young said: “There is no disgrace in losing to Rangers but Ayr will still feel that they have a point to prove in front of their own fans.
“However, this is a game we can win if we play at the high level we are capable of.”
Scott Allardice has been added on loan from Dundee United until the end of next month and looks set to start with Kyle Wilkie, Mark Docherty and Craig Thomson all ruled out.”