James McPake wants to draw a line under his side’s second-half showing at Arbroath.
That’s despite a 3-2 win, their third victory on the bounce for the first time this season, that lists them into the Scottish Premiership play-off positions.
Dunfermline were cruising at half-time thanks to goals from Ewan Otoo, Paul Allan and Chris Kane.
A second-half double from Arbroath’s Scott Stewart caused a nervy end to the game, but McPake’s men held on for the win, lifting them to fourth in the Scottish Championship.
“Credit to Arbroath, we didn’t do the basics properly in the second half,” said McPake.
“But it’s three points, it’s the first time I’ve won here as a manager in the league, so that’s the positives I’m taking.
James McPake: When the dust settles, it’s three points
“It was a fantastic first-half performance. We’ll draw a line under it.
“I’m emotional, I’m angry but when the dust settles, it’s three points.
“I’ve been up here a few times and had a lot of draws, but it’s a tough place to come.
“They’re fighting for their lives and you saw that at the end, you see in the second half they wanted it more than us and they got what they deserved in the second half.
“They were very unfortunate not to go away with something.
“I’ll watch the video and we’ll dissect it.”
Dunfermline lost Chris Hamilton five minutes into the game after a head knock, though it was too early to tell the full damage.
Though he missed most of the first half, McPake said his vice-captain’s influence was missed in the second.
“Chris Hamilton is not great at the moment, he was a bit dazed when he came off,” added McPake.
“We were never going to take a chance with the head knock. He was wanting to stay on.
“He’s one of those people who is too brave for his own good. That’s maybe what changed, I know he wasn’t on for much of the first half but we certainly missed him in the second half.
“Paul Allan’s hamstring got tight, so we’ll need to assess that. It’s disappointing for Paul because he was excellent when he came on. A great free-kick. It’s a gutter for him.”
Jim McIntyre: The reaction had to be better
Arbroath boss Jim McIntyre was encouraged by his side’s finish to the game but bemoaned giving themselves too much to do in the second half.
With five matches remaining, his side is running out of fixtures to fight off relegation to League One.
“The reaction in the second half had to be better, to be quite honest,” he said.
“But when you dig yourself a hole to get out of, that’s a tough ask against a Championship side.
“We actually started the game OK, the keeper had a couple of great saves.
“But after the first goal, we fell apart. Ultimately, in all facets of the game, we weren’t good enough.”
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