James McPake has declared it a case of ‘job done’ for Dunfermline in the Scottish Cup.
But he insists the victory over Edinburgh City should have been more comfortable than the eventual 2-1 scoreline.
A goal after just five minutes from Dapo Mebude eased any Pars’ nerves over their trip to Meadowbank to face a team two divisions below.
And, with home keeper Mark Weir then brilliantly keeping out a fantastic Matty Todd lob and Mebude’s header, the Fifers effectively sealed the win with a deflected effort from Todd 17 minutes from time.
League Two City – who played attractive passing football throughout – briefly threatened a grandstand finish with Connor Young’s injury-time penalty.
But it came too late to seriously trouble Dunfermline’s passage into Monday night’s draw.
“Yes,” replied McPake when asked if it was ‘job done’. “It should have been more comfortable than it was.
“I said that to the players in [the dressing room]. There have been games where we’ve lost and say that we maybe should have won.
“We had chances created today, and it was another one of them. I think we had a lot of good chances.
‘In the draw’
“The goalie made two really good saves. The one that he saves and Josh Cooper puts over the bar and then the one from Matthew [Todd], which would have been a great goal.
“We got ourselves in front early on and I think when you get that second goal you’re complete control of the game. I don’t think Tobi [Oluwayemi] had an awful lot to do.
“It’s a team two divisions below you. They’re going to throw everything at it.
“They get a penalty but there’s not enough time in it. Job done and we’re in the draw for the next round.”
Mebude’s goal was not only his maiden strike for Dunfermline but also his first since September 2021.
It would have been a cathartic moment for the former Rangers and Watford striker, who is rebuilding his career after a life-threatening car crash in January that left him in a coma for five days.
“He has had to work really hard, not just to get back playing football, but to get healthy,” added McPake. “He’s healthy, he’s now fit, he’s strong.
“He’s been annoyed at himself. I think that that goal’s not been coming. Sometimes you get like that, you try a wee bit harder.
‘Hopefully he kicks on and relaxes’
“To be fair, it’s been annoying me, because every week I’m saying to him, this will be your week, you’re going to get your goal now. It’s not happened.
“To get it so early on, I was delighted for him. Hopefully, now he just kicks on and relaxes.
“He’s as brave as he comes, not just for what he comes through, but the way he plays and the way he puts himself about in the game.
“He’s talented as well, so the goals are going to come. It’s just about that belief for him now that he’s got that and a couple of other wee chances.”
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