There is a five-point gap at the top of League One and its size after facing Falkirk on Tuesday will give a fair indication of how the rest of the season will pan out.
A Pars win would surely make them champions-elect while a win for the Bairns would ramp up the pressure on the league leaders.
It will all take place in front of the biggest crowd at KDM East End Park for a league match since Rangers in 2013.
Dunfermline have four points from the previous meetings between the clubs but Falkirk have lost one of their 16 matches since, winning 12 of those.
Courier Sport got the Falkirk view going into a huge match.
Do or die
Sean Elderbrant – Falkirk supporter
There have been various points of this season where I’ve thought the title race is done, dead and buried, completely over.
Now there’s a five-point gap and we’ve still to play the Pars twice this season.
Going into this game, it feels do or die for us. Dunfermline just don’t lose games, they’ve only lost once.
4 Dunfermline v Alloa talking points as Kane Ritchie-Hosler shines in comfortable victory ahead of key Falkirk clash https://t.co/uKiSCoWECr pic.twitter.com/0S1XeqX5gv
— The Courier Sport (@thecouriersport) March 5, 2023
When they played the 4-3 game against Airdrie a few weeks ago, when they came back from 3-0 down to win 4-3, you’re thinking it’s the type of thing title-winning teams do.
I was a bit deflated but now it is technically within our hands: win every game and we win the title.
If we get beat, that’s it probably done.
Dunfermline have known how to win ugly this season, whereas we’ve been a bit flaky at the start of the season.
McGlynn has now settled in and found his winning formula. We now need to capitalise on that.
Quiet confidence
Ross Wayne – Falkirk Daft podcast
Confidence is the biggest word just. Dunfermline are on a long unbeaten run, we’re now on 10 games since our last loss, to Dundee in the cup.
Everything points to a cracker going into Tuesday.
I think the pressure is on Falkirk – realistically, we need to get a win. The fans will be hoping for a win, anyway – but we have been relishing the challenge and kind of going under the radar.
John McGlynn has not been making a big song and dance about anything and that was probably no more evident than in the build-up to the circus of the Darvel game.
All Falkirk did was go under the radar – we said nothing, we prepared and took a big crowd on the night, that helped.
You could see the determination in the players, even pre-kick-off – the Darvel management even made comment on that.
There’s just a quiet confidence around the club – obviously, that can all change in one fixture.
It’s all McGlynn
Ben Kearney – Falkirk Herald
It’s the happiest the fans have been in a long time.
It’s the most togetherness I’ve seen in the job in two years – it just feels completely different now.
It's the big one tomorrow as Dunfermline host Falkirk – a match that was originally due for New Year.
Back then I analysed the previous meetings between the sides this season and the managers' head-to-head record:https://t.co/AQYqFtQy5G
— Craig Cairns (@craigcairns001) March 6, 2023
Even the volunteers and staff that you speak to, they’ve got a smile on their faces. The whole atmosphere around the club has changed.
The fans finally have a team that they can support.
It’s all McGlynn, it’s literally all McGlynn. Having a manager that the fans have faith in and can see he knows what he’s doing – and seeing it work on the pitch.
There’s so much belief in what Falkirk are doing. There’s the belief now that they’re going to get out of League One.
Even the weekend win over Peterhead, that wouldn’t have been a game that Falkirk would have won pre-John McGlynn.
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