Manager on Friday

14/12/12: JJ - "We know that it is the start of a very tough period of games ...

Jim Jefferies is expecting Saturday's opponents Hamilton Accies to be a changed outfit from the one that gave the Pars a fair comfortable away win earlier this season and recognises that their manager Billy Reid did not win the First Division Manager of the Month award for nothing:-

"I think when we last played them we had a good performance away from home but I said at the time that they have been a bit like ourselves and made the decision to go with a lot of young players. They have got a good youth set there.

"They were always renowned for big, strong experienced players, and Billy (Reid) didn't let them all go at one time, but gradually you could see there was an element of youngsters coming through. I thought it would be a good football game between the two sides and it was. Since the season has gone on they have improved and if they are a team that is capable of beating Partick and Morton then you have got to treat them with the respect that they deserve.

"We know that it is the start of a very tough period of games, but as I have often said, the way we play and if we play to our potential it will be a tough game for anyone to play Dunfermline. You couldn't fault them last week. Certain things happened in the game last week that affected us. The funny thing was at ten men we had great opportunities to go one up and if you don't take these chances then it doesn't matter what the circumstances are. You couldn't fault them for effort, they played well, they dominated the game.

"The big blow was losing Callum (Morris) because it gave Livingston what they needed at the time. We have got to do without him for a couple of games so we have that to consider. The players have bounced back before, when you go down 5-1 at Partick Thistle and then play Raith Rovers a local derby away you think you have got to get a response from the players and we got it that day.

"We followed it on with a comfortable win against Dumbarton and then go to Partick and win in the Cup. The players have responded great when they have had that little result against them. We responded after we were beaten by Partick earlier in the season.

"It won't be easy tomorrow, they are a decent side and I think sometimes they are well set up to be solid and hit you on the break so we will have to be aware of that tomorrow. Hamilton are a stuffy team. We will need to be aware of Stevie May who is on loan from St Johnstone. He is a good player and if you give him room and space he can hurt you so we will need to make sure that we keep tabs on him. They do have a lot of young talented boys."

The Pars boss praised his players for what they had had to go through in the last month:-

"Some of the them have still not had their salaries, they are getting it in dribs and drabs and that is never ideal, especially at this time of year. It doesn't matter what time of year it is, it shouldn't happen. But you have seen yourself this morning the spirit that is about the place is phenomenal."

Alex Whittle was soaked with a bucket of water when the players were doing a Santa photoshoot. They may be damp but their spirits certainly are not. He continued:-

"The players are feeling it, but they are using the football as an escape to forget the current situation because they are winners and hard workers and they have not let anybody down. They are the ones that are being let down unfortunately, not through the supporters who have been fantastic to them and they appreciate it.

"Its nice to hear the comments about what the boys have been going through and to put on the spirit and fight right to the end and give everything for the jersey. That's the kind of players they want to come and support and hopefully they can come out tomorrow and get right behind them and appreciate what they are going through and give them all the encouragement that they need. That's a big thing at the moment, to keep their spirits up and keep things lively.

"As you have seen this morning they are a fantastic bunch to work with and that's one of the reasons why I enjoy the job. I don't enjoy all the other things round about it at times but I enjoy it because of their attitude and hopefully we can keep that going."

Did he foresee any of this happening when he first took the job?

"Football is tough for everybody. Dunfermline were relegated and in the past have had to deal with people coming in on fairly decent wages but a lot of these players don't get a lot of money, a few hundred quid and that makes a big difference. I feel for them and I'm amazed how they respond, it's not easy. You just have to keep them up to date with what is happening and hopefully it will all sort itself out, as Gavin (Masterton) has said, by the end of December.

"I know times are tough for a lot of football clubs and you can appreciate when they have paid big wages and its hard to keep up and maybe that's their fault for not budgeting or overspending. In Dunfermline's case, you can't complain about what these players are earning as they are on considerably less than a lot of clubs who are in financial problems due to mismanagement and not paying wages."

On the player availability front, Jim Jefferies revealed that Joe Cardle had been off a couple of days with a virus but he trained today. "We will see how he is tomorrow. Paul Gallacher is still out but should be ok for the Falkirk match but Michal (Hrivnak) has done ok in training and games and Callum is suspended for a couple of games so we have that to deal with. It will be a reshuffle of the squad but at this time of year other clubs will be the same. You are going to have suspensions and injuries, but touch wood we haven't been too bad in that department this year compared to other years."