John Hughes has warned that livelihoods are on the line following Dunfermline’s ‘unacceptable’ 2-1 defeat against Queen of the South.
The Fifers’ Championship status is hanging by a thread after a Joe Chalmers own goal and Darragh O’Connor’s header cancelled out Josh Edwards’ early opener on Friday night.
While Ayr’s win over Partick Thistle meant that a Dunfermline victory would have been futile in their bid to avoid the playoffs, the Pars’ meek showing after the break was unforgivable.
“The second half really disappointed me,” rued Hughes.
“I don’t know what happened — if they had a whisper [of the Ayr score] or something — but we were flat.
“We were taking too long on the ball, too many touches. We did not play with high energy.
“That, alone, is not acceptable.
“I’m bitterly disappointed, considering what was at stake for us.”
Livelihoods at stake
Dunfermline will now travel to Firhill to face Queen’s Park in the first leg of their playoff semi-final on Wednesday evening. The return fixture takes place on Saturday.
The victors of that tie will play either Montrose or Airdrie for a place in the 2022/23 Championship.
Hughes continued: “How do you pick them up?
“I’d like to think that I’ve got players in there who can pick themselves up, grab their team-mates by the scruff of the neck and say, ‘listen, livelihoods are at stake’.
“We cannot feel sorry for ourselves. It’s about standing up and being counted.
“We’ve had them all [Queen’s Park, Airdrie and Montrose] watched and know what we are up against.
“We have to handle that pressure. We need that swagger — bring it on.”
Hughes added: “It’s about standing up and being counted. We’re hoping we can do that, but it won’t be easy. If we play like we can play for 90 minutes, we’ll be okay. I’m hoping that the players are of the same mindset.”
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