Hamilton gives Athletic a heads up to earn a point
Ross Hart REPORTER
Inverness CT 1 DUNFERMLINE ATH 1 GOAL HERO Chris Hamilton was Athletic’s head boy on Saturday as they battled back to make their point against Inverness Caledonian Thistle.
The vice-captain’s equaliser 10 minutes from time gave James McPake’s side a share of the spoils in the Highland capital, cancelling out Nathan Shaw’s early opener for the hosts.
McPake felt that the draw was the least his men deserved to take from the match, which saw loan signing, Owen Moffat, come off the bench for his Pars debut, and a return to action for winger Kane Ritchie-Hosler.
“We went behind in similar circumstances to last week (against Raith Rovers),” said McPake.
“We had a lot of the ball. We concede a goal, go behind and we had, not so much clear-cut chances in the first half, but a lot of good balls into good areas that we weren’t getting on the end of. That’s something we’ll certainly have to have a look at.
“Second half we were the dominant team in my opinion. We deserved to get the point and, in the end, we didn’t do enough because we never got that second goal.
“But in terms of chances created in that second half, and just the dominance of the second half, we’re gutted we’re not going down the road with three points.”
Hamilton was one of two changes made to Dunfermline’s starting line-up, as he and Ben Summers, making his first start, were brought in place of the benched Rhys Breen and Craig Wighton, who was absent from the squad.
The travelling fans were hoping to see their side win just their fourth league game in 21 visits to Inverness, but watched them fall behind after only 12 minutes.
Shaw hit a shot from around 25 yards that goalkeeper, Harry Sharp, failed to keep out as it went in via the post.
Charlie Gilmour fired wide for Billy Dodds’ side, before an Adam Brooks effort was ruled out for offside, as Inverness looked for a second before the break.
It didn’t come and the introductions of Moffat and Ritchie-Hosler with half-an-hour to play gave Athletic fresh impetus.
It was the former who played a pivotal role in the equaliser when, after offering himself as a short option for Joe Chalmers at a corner, he received the ball and clipped in a left-footed cross.
It was flicked on by Sam Fisher and Hamilton ghosted in unmarked to head beyond Mark Ridgers to nod home his first goal of the season.
The Pars pushed for a winner, with ex-Athletic defender, Danny Devine, making a vital interception to prevent Lewis McCann from connecting with Fisher’s cross, before a thrilling run by Moffat, taking him beyond four opponents and into the box, was ended with a good block by Ridgers.
Despite their best efforts, Dunfermline could only head home with a share of the points, and McPake praised the impact of those brought off the bench.
“They were excellent,” he said.
“I don’t think anyone was bad in terms of the changes we did make, but it gave a different dimension to the team, a different dynamic with the players that could come on when we were chasing the game.
“It’s good now to be able to do that. We’re getting the squad back, so we can do that, and I’m delighted for the ones that did go on and make an impact, but also the attitude they show to coming off. You never want them to be happy.
“I specifically say that because Rhys Breen would’ve been disappointed he wasn’t playing. He’s sitting behind me and I think he was the loudest person in Inverness, just encouraging his teammates. That’s the spirit in the group.
“I fully believe that’s what helps us so much, and keeps us going so much, because they’ve all got that and they all back each other.”
Skipper Kyle Benedictus was taken off after sustaining a foot injury, of which McPake added: “I hope it’ll be ok. You get those ones and I had to basically make the decision to take him off. We obviously don’t know if there’s any bone damage until we get it xrayed or scanned.
“Hopefully it’s just one of the ones you kick a boot with the studs and it bruises because’s he’s very important to us, but that’s football.
“He was just wanting his boots changed rather than coming off, because his other boots were a bit bigger. When it gets to that point, I think you’ve got to make a decision, but he’s as brave as lion and he’d have run about there even if his foot was broken. “Hopefully he’ll be ok.” INVERNESS: Ridgers, Duffy (Bray 69), Harper, Devine, Boyes, Gilmour, Carson, Anderson (Davidson 87), Shaw, McKay (Samuels 87), Brooks (Longstaff 82). Subs not used: Delaney, Doran, Lodovica, MacKay, Thompson.
Goal: Shaw (12). Booked: Duffy (46), Brooks (58).
PARS: Sharp, Comrie (Ritchie-Hosler 59), Hamilton, Benedictus (Allan 71), Fisher, Otoo, Chalmers, Summers (Tod 84), McCann, O’Halloran (Moffat 59).
Subs not used: Breen, Fenton, Sutherland, Little.
Goal: Hamilton (80). Booked: Tod (90).
REFEREE: Matthew MacDermid.
ATTENDANCE: 2,388. ,
ATHLETIC are awaiting the results of an x-ray to determine the seriousness of a knock picked up by Kyle Benedictus on Saturday.
The Pars captain was substituted with 20 minutes to go during the draw at Inverness Caledonian Thistle with a foot injury, which boss James McPake hoped postmatch would just result in bruising.
Benedictus was sent for an x-ray on Tuesday and, when he spoke to Press Sport ahead of our print deadline, McPake said they were still awaiting results from it.
He also revealed that forward, Craig Wighton, missed the game in the Highlands with a “wee niggle in his knee picked up in training”, but didn’t believe it to be a serious issue.
Dunfermline go to Championship rivals Dundee United in the SPFL Trust Trophy this weekend, a game that McPake said he “would very mindful of who we need to protect”.
When asked for an update on his skipper, he said: “It’s still pretty sore. We’ll assess him later on in the week.
“I think it got x-rayed today (Tuesday), so we’ll get the results of that, and we’ll just assess where we are with that. Wighton’s the same - we’ll wait and see, but we certainly won’t be taking any risks.
“That’s not because it’s the SPFL Trust Trophy. What we don’t want to do is risk players for a prolonged period of time.
“Craig just got a wee niggle in his knee that he picked up in training, completely unrelated to the knee issues previously, which is a bonus. It’s not a serious one but we’ll make sure we get it right.
“It’s an opportunity (against United) for the full squad. It’s not being dismissive of this game, but we understand just where it ranks in terms of importance with the league games coming up.
“We’re obviously out the Viaplay, which was disappointing not to get through. Again, it’s not dismissive of the game, but also it’s a game that we’ll want to go up and use for certain reasons. We’ll use it for minutes for people like Kane (Ritchie-Hosler) and Owen (Moffat), but also we want to put a competitive team on the pitch as well.
“We’ll assess things later in the week and pick 11 players that can go up there and go out and try and get a positive result.
“We keep saying to the players not to waste a game. Every game’s a chance to impress, not just us, but the fans that are there, and add the reserve games into that as well. They’re a great chance to go out and top your minutes up, and impress everyone watching with eyes on the weekend as well.
“The team we pick will be the best team we feel that can go up there and get a result for this football club, but we’ll also be very mindful of who we need to protect.”
McPake added that Matty Todd was doing more walking with his moonboot off, but has “still a wee bit to go” before he’s back in contention to play, while Deniz Mehmet is “still doing bits and pieces every day on the training pitch” and “shouldn’t be too far away” as the pair continue their recovery from ankle injuries.