Dunfermline ace Owain Fon Williams has called for togetherness as the Pars attempt to arrest their miserable malaise.
The Wales internationalist, who is also the goalkeeping coach at East End Park, insists he understands the expectations and frustration of supporters following a dreadful start to the Championship season.
The Fifers have picked up just one point in the league and have shipped 16 goals in their last five competitive matches.
Fans displayed their anger following Saturday’s 3-1 defeat against Ayr United — Fon Williams’ first start in the Championship this term — as boss Peter Grant and several senior players came under fire.
There have also been rumours of dissatisfaction in the dressing room, which Grant directly addressed this week.
It is a grim backdrop as Dunfermline prepare to tackle top-of-the-table Inverness.
“When you are working in football, there is alway pressure,” said Fon Williams. “Expectation, especially at Dunfermline, is massive.
“But we are all in it together; that is what a team is all about. You lose together and you win together.
“We have to remain fully focused on what we have to do because it is still very early in the season.
“It is easy to be distracted by a lot of things that are going on but we need to come together and make sure that we leave everything on the pitch on Saturday — and hopefully take three points.”
Different breed
Fon Williams’ return to the starting line-up at Somerset Park followed a string of errors by Deniz Mehmet, the former Dundee United keeper who was signed by Grant during the summer.
Despite battling Mehmet for the gloves, Fon Williams’ role as a coach and teammate means he has been on hand to provide support.
“Part and parcel of professional football, unfortunately, is form, confidence and emotion,” he continued. “I think goalies are quite good with that because we are a different breed.
“We are people who can bounce things off one another naturally, provided there is a trust there — which there is.
“I have been lucky to have worked with some great people, not just goalies, since I joined Dunfermline and that remains the same.
“We have a relationship that is quite open, and if you are open then you can work things out.”
‘Fortress’
And as a goalkeeper, Fon Williams would dearly love a clean sheet against his old club as he seeks to make East End Park ‘a fortress’, rather than a venue in which the home fans are driven to despair.
“Collectively we would love a clean sheet. It is a foothold; a baseline,” he added.
“Every game is an opportunity and I don’t say that cheaply.
“Every time you play — every time you stand on that pitch — there is an opportunity to win three points.
“There is no doubt that we can turn this place into a fortress. But we do need to get everyone together and remain focused on the job.”
