It is going on nine years since Dunfermline manager James McPake started working with Craig Wighton.
By that point the striker – then just 16 years old – had already netted a goal versus Raith Rovers that made him the club’s youngest-ever goalscorer.
McPake, by contrast, was an experienced centre-back moving towards the end of his career which was cruelly cut short.
Wighton has not had his injury issues to seek either and it is this that laid the foundation for their strong bond today.
The pair shared a treatment room at Dens Park at the start of 2018 – Wighton was recovering from a knee ligament complaint while McPake had picked up a sickening knee cap injury in a Dundee derby that ended his playing career.
It meant that when Wighton was dealing with yet another issue earlier this season there was no better mentor to get him back on track.
Manager’s trust
“I know the manager trusts me and has faith in me so that helps as well when you have that backing from him and the staff,” Wighton told reporters after he netted his 11th goal of the season in a hard-fought win over Montrose.
That trust has been firmly repaid – with each of those goals coming in the 19 matches since he recovered from a knee injury.
Wighton “played through a lot of pain” in the opening parts of the campaign but a decision was taken to see a specialist.
Since he came off the bench to score with his first touch to put the gloss on an excellent performance away to Alloa in October he hasn’t looked back.
Some of his goals have been important, such as the winners at the Falkirk Stadium and away to Edinburgh.
Wighton’s goal versus Falkirk:
There have been clever goals – with no better example than the scooped finish in the 4-0 win against Forfar Athletic in the Scottish Cup.
Wighton’s goal versus Forfar:
Then there have been his clinical, one-touch finishes like his goal at home to Peterhead.
Wighton’s goal versus Peterhead:
Playing through the middle
Spells in his favoured centre-forward position have not been as common as the 25-year-old would have liked.
Save for his loan at East End Park under Stevie Crawford, this is the first injury-free run Wighton has had at centre-forward since his time at Dens.
At Hearts, and at times during his permanent spell with the Pars, he was sometimes a victim of being an intelligent footballer with an excellent touch and was often pushed wide.
Even at the start of this campaign when manager James McPake was trying to find the right combination Wighton often found himself on the left of a 4-3-3.
When Wighton returned in October, McPake was starting matches with a back three.
The chances of playing centrally increased and the striker has since made himself a vital part of the attack.
It said a lot that when Lewis McCann came off the bench in their most recent match – and the side switched to a 4-3-3 – Wighton retained his central position while the substitute played from the left.
McPake, who tried to sign the striker on loan twice while manager of Dundee, is now reaping the rewards from a fully fit Craig Wighton playing in his natural position.
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