East End Park. After a frantic first half in the West Fife derby Dunfermline are piling on the pressure.
Kelty Hearts had equalised through Darren Lyon’s eye-popping strike in that opening period, cancelling out a decent goal from Nikolay Todorov.
Chris Mochrie, who had taken a while to get into the match, was starting to affect the game and after spinning Cammy Logan he drives towards goal.
“What I will talk most about is the decision by Chris Mochrie to take the extra touch when everybody is telling him to play it wide,” McPake said after the game.”
Intelligence
Mochrie waits a beat before spying a surging run from Aaron Comrie and threading it through a small window to find the wingback.
Wighton’s goal:
Comrie squares it first time for Wighton to finish.
“That is intelligence,” added McPake, “but also from Aaron Comrie because if he knows if he just makes that extra run.
“Chris has got the ability, got the bravery – which is a good word to describe it because the full crowd are shouting shoot or pass.
“He makes his own mind up, he is calm in that position and he plays the ball out to Aaron who makes a great run.”
Mochrie had to be patient to make himself a regular in the Dunfermline Athletic team.
The playmaker scored from the bench on his debut away to Edinburgh, netting the third in a 3-0 win.
That was the day after signing a season-long loan from Dundee United.
Finding his position
After two more substitute appearances he made his first start in the draw to Kelty Hearts.
He has started about every game since.
Originally usedas one of James McPake’s two No8s he has flourished since being moved into the No 10 role.
For the trip to Queen of the South the Pars boss ditched the No 6 from his back-three system and positioned Mochrie as a No 10 instead.
Time and again he found space between the lines of Queen of the South’s 4-4-1-1, forcing manager Willie Gibson into a half-time switch.
He has barely looked back, standing out in most matches since and making his debut for the Scotland under-21s along the way.
After the draw with Falkirk, McPake said Mochrie was the “best player on the park by a country mile”.
More space
Mochrie has shown he can unlock a tight defence but has also benefitted in recent matches from the extra space from teams having a go at the Pars.
Even in the only defeat of the season, at Montrose, he was arguably the best player on the park.
Mochrie creates an attack versus Montrose:
Teams are also now targeting Mochrie, taking turns to cynically end his mazy runs – leading to the manager to recent call for more protection.
McPake deserves credit for the way he has eased the 19-year-old into his starting XI and found where he is most dangerous.
Speaking after his call-up to the under-21s in September, the Dunfermline manager was reluctant to take credit.
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