Scorer Hoppy hopes to start

"I am doing everything I can, I am in the gym and training so hopefully I could get a start to show what I can do ...

David Hopkirk feels that he has been unlucky this season but he is still hopefully of making an impression in the remaining three league matches.

Injury has resulted in Hoppy not starting a first team match this season but on Saturday he got on for twenty minutes against Dumbarton and now he is targeting a start.

"I have been flying in training. I am scoring goals, I am the hardest worker. I keep trying hard every day and hopefully I will get picked."

His most recent appearance off the bench took his tally to 12 appearances this season. He continued:-

"You train all week but it is hard coming off the bench. You try and be warmed up and keep up with the pace of the game. People say "fresh legs" but you are just trying to get up to pace. My injuries have meant my comeback has been stop start but really since December I have been alright."

At Dumbarton Hopkirk proved to be a super sub scoring the second Pars goal five minutes from the end:-

"Last season we were winning every week and it was a bit easier. This season most teams are full time, that`s their jobs and they are all fit. My focus now is just to try and play for the rest of the season.

"I am doing everything I can, I am in the gym and training so hopefully I could get a start to show what I can do but it is not easy to get one start then be back out. I need a run of games to get full fitness.

"I will probably start enjoying it and then the season is done. I have another year on my contract but I want to finish the season strong."

The 24 year old who joined Dunfermline in January 2015 spent six years at Celtic as a youth and broke through initially at Hamilton Accies. He picked up his career at Queen of the South before joining Annan Athletic where he got noticed by Dunfermline.

Last year in an effort to be super fit for pre season, Hoppy hurt his back lifting weights. He explained:-

"The gaffer told me that I had a good chance of playing but I hurt my back doing too much, so this year I will just chill out and not do too much, tick over and get fit in pre season."

Scorer of a winning goal at Ibrox in Annan`s 2-1 win in March 2013, Hoppy feels that if he was playing more often he could score more goals.

"Coming on as a sub you sometimes only get that one chance that you have to finish. If you are on from the start you get three or four chances and you can finish one.

"Fans expect you to come on and be fitter than everybody because you have not been playing. Football isn`t like that, we have been warming up and then have to go on and play full pelt. You can pull hamstrings like that.

"When you are playing in a game awareness gets better. People don`t notice that side of it, they expect you to go on and play."

Related Stories

• Assistant Manager on Thursday
• Dumbarton 0 Dunfermline 2
• Dunfermline 1 Raith Rovers 0
• Morris motoring on at Dunfermline