Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

James McPake bursting with Dunfermline pride despite 95th minute Dundee United ‘sucker punch’

Mathew Cudjoe's stunning strike robbed the Pars of two points.

Dunfermline Athletic manager James McPake makes a "1-1" gesture to Dundee United fans
Dunfermline manager James McPake is preparing for another Fife derby versus Raith. Image: SNS

James McPake is adamant Dunfermline merited all three points against Dundee United, rueing a galling late “sucker-punch”.

The Pars appeared on the road to a fine victory following a clinical Craig Wighton header at Tannadice.

But a moment of Mathew Cudjoe magic in the fifth minute of injury time secured a share of the spoils for United and left the Fifers, and McPake, gutted.

I’m hurting for the players. They deserved the three points.

James McPake

The former Dundee player, coach and manager made a “1-1” gesture to the Arabs on the way off the pitch as they celebrated a home draw but, speaking in the aftermath of the encounter, admitted he understood their delight.

Ewan Otoo shackles Tony Watt
Otoo, right, was excellent. Image: SNS

“I can’t ask my players to give any more,” said McPake. “We dug in and took it to 10 seconds left before we were sucker-punched.

“I’ve been here celebrating a draw as a player, like they (United) did. And quite right; they fought to the end.”

The Pars belied the absence of Lewis McCann, ruled out with a throat infection, while young defenders Ewan Otoo and Sam Fisher were excellent alongside the terrific Kyle Benedictus.

Craig Wighton celebrates Dunfermline's opener against Dundee United
Wighton celebrates his opener. Image: SNS

McPake added: “I’ve got four crucial players out so there’s a lot of pride for me. That’s 26 unbeaten for this group in the league.

“Ewan Otoo was playing academy football until last year, Sam Fisher was in and out the Dundee team, but not really doing anything. Alongside Benedictus, they were brave and we didn’t come and sit in a five.

“I’m hurting for the players. They deserved the three points.”

“Fantastic” prospect

McPake, meanwhile, expressed his excitement after handing a debut from the bench to Celtic starlet Ben Summers. 

Ben Summers on his Dunfermline Athletic debut at Dundee United
Summers turned out for the Pars on Saturday. Image: SNS

The talented teenager produced a bright cameo after putting pen to paper on Friday, illustrating a willingness to take possession and commit defenders.

McPake added: “Ben is a fantastic young player. He learned a lot at Celtic training with the first team. He just signed a new deal on Friday with them and he will be an exciting player.”

Conversation