BRECHIN CITY HOME - 23/12/17

Manager blames fans for second half performance as team achieve first win in 8 games 

TEAM NEWS:
Michael Paton replaced Kallum Higginbotham as the only change from last week's starting 11. Formation changed at different points in the game, from 4-1-4-1 to 4-3-3 and briefly 4-4-2. 

MINUTES THAT MATTERED:
3' Joe Cardle's shot was charged down by the Brechin defence
18' Liam Watt's free kick for Brechin deflected off the top of the Pars defensive wall and behind
22' GOAL From a Nat Wedderburn cross, Nicky Clark headed the ball across goal for Declan McManus to turn in 1-0 Dunfermline
26' Clark had an effort that just missed the goal
44' Another chance for Dunfermline when Clark's header went just wide
49' GOAL Michael Paton hammered in a shot from a Joe Cardle pass to make it 2-0
59' GOAL Brechin sub Connor McLennan pulled a goal back with a tremendous shot from 25 yards
71' Liam Watt's shot from 20 yards was well saved by Sean Murdoch to prevent an equaliser
82' Pars sub Kallum Higginbotham missed a chance to make it 3-1 when given a chance to shoot from a few yards out

Declan McManus celebrates his goal which, as seen here, takes him to 10 for the season

OPINION:
No one would deny that securing 3 points was essential today, and having done so, the team moved up 2 places in the Championship table to third, with Queen of the South and Livingston both losing. However - and it's a big however - the nature of the win, against the worst away team seen at EEP for some time, was far from impressive; Brechin City are the only club in the top 8 divisions in Scotland and England this season not to have won a League game. Manager Allan Johnston then came out with a series of criticisms of the fans in his post-match interview, while also claiming that the team's first half performance was "brilliant" and that as soon as Brechin scored, the fans' negativity caused the players to become anxious. This included an inability to make a simple pass, or avoid lumping the ball into one of the empty stands or straight to a Brechin player (specifically, Jason Talbot and Callum Morris). 
The vast majority of fans want to win, and will be naturally disappointed by a disjointed display against a very poor team, that was characterised at the end by the sight of us rolling the ball about at the corner flag, killing time until the final whistle blew.
At half time, Ivo Den Biemen was introduced to the crowd as he made the half time draw. Shouts of "Ivo, Ivo" were heard and the applause he received was genuine and touching. THAT'S how a Dunfermline crowd want to react to one of their players. 
I honestly believe the manager went too far with his comments. I will leave it at that, for now. 
​Further comments on this game will posted in tomorrow's Stat Pack, Monday's 5 Things We Learned, and Tuesday's 2 Good, 2 Bad articles. 

Photos and edits by Pars Review
​
Tomorrow:
Stat Pack ​​​
​Match photo gallery