John McLaughlan hailed his Dunfermline battlers after they came from behind three times to secure a dramatic 3-3 draw with Falkirk.
Skipper Kyle Benedictus was the hero with the final equaliser for the home side a minute into stoppage time.
It ensured a sensational climax to a see-saw encounter between two bitter rivals and could have dented the Bairns’ title challenge.
Successful penalties from Chris Kane and Matty Todd hauled the Pars level in both halves after goals from Callumn Morrison and Aidan Nesbitt.
And the Fifers were not to be denied a positive result, despite what Falkirk thought was an 87th-minute winner from Liam Henderson.
Interim boss McLaughlan is convinced the nature of the result should inspire the East End Park men following the shock of McPake’s departure.
He said: “It was a very emotional game, in terms of the way the scoring went.
“I asked for the correct attitude before the game and I asked for a big performance.
“To go a goal down and then come back, and then go the second goal down and then the third goal, I thought they showed great resilience and I thought there was a real togetherness with the team.
‘Very difficult’
“So, I’m really pleased to get the point.
“Does it feel like more than a point? I think so because of what happened at the start of the week.
“It was very difficult for everyone involved. The players deserve all the credit.
“We scored three goals so you’ve got to be pleased with that side of it and I just think, at the end of the day, we did show character.
“It would have been easy for the guys to have felt sorry for themselves. But they responded obviously with the penalties right away and then the goal right at the end as well.
“This group, I believe in them. I think that they’ve shown that they’re capable of performing against the top team in the league.”
He added: “I’m delighted for the players because it’s a big, big occasion for the fans. They turned out in great numbers.
“I thought they were fantastic and the players responded in the right manner.
“We’ve got a good fan-base here and I think they can go from strength to strength.
“If that doesn’t galvanise the dressing room, then nothing will.”
Holiday
Youth coach McLaughlan was asked to step in after manager James McPake was sacked on Monday.
And he has revealed that a pre-planned family holiday to the Canary Islands could put a spanner in the works of Dunfermline’s plans in the coming days.
If a replacement for McPake is not found in the meantime, McLaughlan is due to travel to Lanzarote on Thursday, with the Pars taking on Partick Thistle two days later.
He added: “We’ve booked it for Thursday, to fly out on Thursday. I was only asked to take the team for this week and obviously prepare them for Friday.
“So until somebody tells me different, Lanzarote.”
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