Dan Pybus has urged Dunfermline to use the pain of being ‘battered’ by Arbroath as motivation at Gayfield.
The Fifers have been given three footballing lessons by the Lichties this term.
Dick Campbell’s men have won 3-0 twice at East End Park, notably bullying the Pars in their Boxing Day triumph.
The other meeting between the sides proved to be Peter Grant’s final match in charge of Dunfermline.
The visitors threw away a two-goal lead to lose 4-2 in Angus, prompting a small group of seething supporters to pillory the Dunfermline team bus as it exited the stadium following the chastening defeat.
Grant was axed 24 hours later.
As such, Pybus reckons the Pars have plenty of added incentive to stun the league leaders on Saturday.
“We need to take motivation from the way they have battered us three times this season,” said the straight-talking Englishman. “That is a reality check and we need to use that.
“This is the last time that we are going to play them this season — so let’s make sure we beat them.
“We have conceded ten goals in three games against Arbroath which, by anyone’s standard, is nowhere near good enough.
“It’s about going there and matching them physically; match the hard work — then our quality should shine through.
“First and foremost, we need to match them off the ball if we are going to win the game.”
Time for action
Beyond settling scores, Dunfermline’s need for victory is stark.
The Pars have only lost once in their last six matches — two wins and three draws within that run — yet are still five points adrift of the guaranteed safety of eighth spot.
“From the turn of the year we have lost only TWO games,” noted Pybus. “One was a terrible defeat to Morton, which happens, and the other one was Kilmarnock [2-1].
“And our draws could easily have been wins.”
If anything, that only makes Dunfermline’s lack of upward mobility all the more maddening for Pybus.
With Ayr United, Morton and Hamilton also showing marked improvement in recent weeks, the Pars’ undoubted progress has not heralded a rise up the standings.
Turning draws into wins is now a necessity.
“I think that [failure to climb the league] is definitely frustrating,” acknowledged Pybus. “The teams around us are picking up three points — so we need to go on a winning run.
“Look at the game last Saturday; Kilmarnock were joint-top of the league and there was nothing in the game. In the other two games that we played against them this season, I thought we were the better team.
“They are 22 points ahead of us but there is nothing between the teams.
“It is frustrating to think we are fighting for our lives and they are going for the league.
“So, we need to start putting three points on the board. One point isn’t going to be good enough.”
