Athletic boss is proud as unbeaten run ends
Montrose 2 PARS 0
THEIR unbeaten run might be over but James McPake said he was proud of his players and their start to the season.
After 11 League One matches, and two Prime Ministers having resigned from office since their last league reverse, Athletic’s proud record was finally breached by Montrose on Saturday.
Matthew Wright’s second half double – which were the first goals Dunfermline have conceded away from East End Park in the league this term – gave the Links Park men victory.
However, McPake refused to be too downbeat and chose to look at the positives from their season to date.
With seven victories from 12 outings, they have already matched the total number they achieved in last season’s disastrous Championship campaign, and the manager said: “It is hard to switch that, especially when you lose in a play-off game (against Queen’s Park).
“Then you come in as a new management team, a new group of staff. To come in and get them to gel, and get them to buy into your ideas, in terms of that, they have been excellent and they should be proud of what they have done.
“We are certainly proud of them. We put training sessions on and we give instructions asking them how we want them to play, but, ultimately, they go on to the pitch and they are the ones who deserve all the credit when they win.
“They are doing it, out running and out-working teams, scoring the goals, the late winners and holding on late on in games.
“We don’t mind as a coaching staff when you lose a game to take the flak because I believe, with the work the players give you, it is our job to just stand up and take it for them. You only do that when they give you everything that they have got.
“That group of boys have given us everything that they have got and that is why I can take full responsibility for that defeat on Saturday. Those boys have given us absolutely everything from day one.”
More than 35 years had passed since a Dunfermline side visited Montrose in a league game, with the last clash on the final day of the 1986/87 season, when Jim Leishman’s Pars had already secured promotion to the Premier Division.
Chris Mochrie, who previously spent time on loan with Stewart Petrie’s side, saw two decent efforts saved by home keeper, Ross Sinclair, but, just after the hour mark, Stewart Petrie saw his team lead against the club where he enjoys legendary status.
Moments after entering the play, Wright ran into the penalty area and, after a wellworked move, confidently slotted beyond Deniz Mehmet into the corner of the net.
With the Pars pushing for a leveller, the Mo made the game safe when Wright nicked the ball off Aaron Comrie to run through and slot home his second with three minutes to go.
“We were desperate to win games and there is still a belief there,” McPake added.
“This is not going to knock us for six; we will not allow that to happen. We will be back to work, working on what we can get better at, and we will come out at East End Park against Kelty and have a right go, with a big crowd behind us who will be desperate for us to get back to winning ways.”
PARS: Mehmet, Fisher (Mahon 77), Benedictus, Breen, Comrie, Hamilton (Todorov 61), Chalmers, Edwards, Mochrie, Todd, Wighton.
SUBS not used: MacDonald, Ritchie-Hosler, Young, Tod, Little.