Paul Allan reckons Dunfermline must adopt a ‘siege mentality’ as they battle through a nightmare spell of injuries.
The Pars, who have signed defender Malachi Fagan-Walcott on loan from Cardiff City, are set to have at least eight first-team players sidelined for the visit of Airdrie.
It is a list that has worsened considerably in the past week.
Skipper Kyle Benedictus, fellow defenders Rhys Breen and Aaron Comrie, and striker Alex Jakubiak have all been ruled out for lengthy spells following scans.
Allan has revealed he was also sent for hospital tests on a hamstring issue that caused him to miss the Fife derby defeat to rivals Raith Rovers on January 2.
But he recovered quickly enough to face Queen’s Park last Friday.
And the 23-year-old admits those who are fit enough to pull on the jersey must step up to the plate in the absence of their crocked team-mates.
He said: “It’s a tight-knit group we have but, with the injuries, everyone needs to pull their weight and take responsibility, and try to get results for the club.
“Never mind the limited options we’ve got available.
Grind
“This is something we just need to try to grind through and pick up as many points as possible.
“We have to [dig in]. It’s a case of roll the sleeves up and get on with it. Train hard every day and come a Saturday hopefully get a positive result with what we have available.
“Hopefully no-one picks up any more injuries along the way.
“It’s always a possibility. Any game you play you know you can pick up an injury.
“Just now, with the options being limited, there is more chance, because most boys are having to play most games and play 90 minutes.
“There is a chance that people can pick up slight niggles or wee injuries.
“But it’s something you tend not to think about because you want to play as much as possible anyway.
“There is probably that slightly higher risk of players getting injured just now.
“But hopefully we’re in the worst-case scenario. Surely it can’t get any worse?”
Allan scored his first goal for Dunfermline in the 2-1 victory over Airdrie on the opening day of the league season back in August.
‘Good side’
The midfielder came on as a substitute in the second-half and curled in a brilliant 65th-minute winner.
It was the perfect pick-me-up after a nightmare campaign last term that saw him miss seventh months with a stress fracture in his foot.
Asked if another goal would be ‘just what the doctor ordered’, he added: “Hopefully – and the same result would be ideal.
“Airdrie are a good side and they’re on a good run at the moment.
“The times we’ve played them, even last season, they’ve always been tight games – but we’ve always seemed to pick up a positive result.
“We’ll be looking to do that again on Saturday and hopefully we can pick up a bit of momentum.”
Allan was pressed into action as an auxiliary right-back in last Friday’s 2-1 defeat against Queen’s Park at Hampden.
Fresh injuries to Comrie and Jakubiak left Dunfermline further depleted as they slipped to a fifth game without a win.
‘We’ve not been great’
But they still failed to escape the wrath of manager James McPake, who was fiercely critical of his players and is hopeful of a reaction this weekend.
Allan commented: “We’ve seen in the past couple of games we’ve not picked up many points. We’ve not been great.
“I know we’ve got limited options but performance-wise I don’t think we’ve been brilliant.
“So, on Saturday, we’ll be looking to pick it up and bounce back with Airdrie at home.
“Hopefully we can just put in a better shift and get the result we want.”