James McPake bemoaned Dunfermline’s ‘criminal’ defending as they crashed to a 2-1 defeat against bitter rivals Falkirk.
The Pars slipped behind midway through a tight first-half when an Ethan Ross shot rebounded back off the post and ricocheted into the net off skipper Chris Hamilton.
Hamilton’s afternoon of woe got even worse after the break when he was guilty of mis-hitting a pass from a goal-kick and gifting possession to the Bairns, who scored a second through Calvin Miller.
Lewis McCann pulled one back for the Fifers with 18 minutes left from David Wotherspoon’s free-kick.
But, with Falkirk defender Luke Graham clearing net-bound headers from Hamilton and Sam Young in the late push for an equaliser, Dunfermline were left to rue conceding soft goals.
“It was two really poor goals from us, particularly the second goal,” said a gutted McPake, whose side sit second-bottom in the Championship table with just one win from ten league games.
“It’s criminal when you’re tight in a game and probably putting them under a lot of pressure to make that decision. And then the way it played out, it’s a really poor goal to lose.
”It’s difficult because we’re beat again, certainly. That’s obvious.
‘Completely self-inflicted’
“Again, a lot goes into the game in terms of the chances we make.
“But, ultimately, you’ve got to put the ball on the net, and then you’ve got to defend your own box better. We had been good at that.
“I’ve not seen any of the goals back. The first one, I need to go back and see exactly how that happens. But the second one is completely self-inflicted.
“That’s not having a go at the players. But individual errors do kill you at certain points. It’s happened over the season; it’s just another one.”
Dunfermline must now bounce back quickly from the derby disappointment as they prepare to host unbeaten Livingston on Tuesday.
“I think with the size of the squad now, it’s a good thing,” said McPake of the midweek game.
“It shouldn’t be an issue, the turnaround from now to Tuesday.”
Meanwhile, McPake is hopeful striker Chris Kane will quickly recover from the calf problem that kept him out of the trip to Falkirk.
“I’m very hopeful, yes,” he said when asked if the former St Johnstone player would be available to face Livi.
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