Managers post Partick

23/04/22: links to audio of the post match comments of John Hughes and Ian McCall.

Dunfermline manager John Hughes agreed that the result against Partick Thistle was disappointing while feeling that there was not too much in the game:-

“I felt that we were on the front foot a wee bit more so to put all that effort in and lose the goal from a setpiece is very very disappointing. Then we had Jakub (Stolarczyk) to thank for a great save with his feet in the first half. Outwith that I think we had a half chance with McCann and probably our best chance was Todorov’s header on to the back post.

“Other than that it was very difficult surface to play football. We went for a physical team, you are damned if you do, damned if you don’t. I totally understand and take all that. My only disappointment is, we knew it was knowing to be like that and our setplays and restarts our deliveries were absolutely shocking.

“It is not good enough when you have the chance to put in a ball, we had a big physical team and you have to get it in there with a bit of quality. We took two corners where I think they broke on us. That is my only frustration.”

The manager was delighted with the 924 strong travelling support:-

“I would like to thank the supporters for coming through in their numbers. They were absolutely outstanding and we have to repay them. We have a big game next week and we have to go into that, prepare for it properly because we are playing against a Queen of the South side that I have seen two or three times over the last six weeks and it will be a really really difficult match.”

Queen of the South have been relegated today, they might go into Friday nights game with a bit of freedom?

“Yes and we have to be guarded from that. We have to go and express ourselves. I felt last week when we played at home, although we dug the result out I felt one or two of us in terms of getting on the ball and doing it right - maybe it just got to us a little bit. Maybe knowing that Queen of the South are relegated, might take the pressure off us as well.

“I love the pressure, as a footballer that is what you thrive on. It has to be your fuel, you have to embrace that, make you man mountain not turn you into Tom Thumb. It is true and that’s what we are going to have to do from now until the end of the season.

“In terms of effort and commitment, everything that I have talked about, the supporters and the connection, it is not in question. We owe it to these supporters to win next week, see where it takes us and keep this club in the Championship, no matter how we are going to do it. Hopefully it will be next week, you never know, and keep moving this club forward.”

You took until the 76th minute before you used any substitutes?

“See before we brought the substitutes on we were on top. So when you are on top why would you want to bring substitutes on. When we did bring the substitutes on do you think that we were any better for it? No.

“Partick are a physical side. At setpieces you have to make sure that you are doing your job and marking them up. When you start taking physical players off and putting other ones on, you have to be very very careful.

“One or two of them - McCann ran out of legs, but one again right at the end we had five up front going for it. It just wasn’t to be today, we just need to take it on the chin. We knew that it was going to be that kind of thing and I will say it again, to lose the game from a setpiece, from a corner after putting all that into it that is the galling thing about it.”

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