Brechin boss Ray McKinnon reckons all the pressure is on Dunfermline this evening as both sides prepare for yet another massive game in the League One promotion race.
City’s 1-0 win over bottom club Stirling Albion saw McKinnon’s men jump above the Pars into the fourth and final play-off spot on Saturday, and has given the Angus club a slight psychological edge ahead of their clash at East End Park.
And with the onus on the hosts to bounce back from their 1-0 weekend loss to fellow promotion chasers Forfar, McKinnon believes his players can head to Fife tonight without fear.
“We had played Falkirk in the Scottish Cup and then Morton at our place before going to Forthbank and it looked like those games had taken their toll at the weekend,” he explained.
“We were very flat in the first half but credit to the boys as they came up with a goal and a win in the second 45 minutes.
“We cannot afford to be as flat again and I am hoping that playing on a big stage against a full time team will lift us.
“But we are fortunate in that all the pressure is on Dunfermline for this game so we can go and enjoy it.
“We are fourth just now and on an unbeaten run of 13 league games.
“If this game ends and we are still in fourth place I am sure it will have been a good night’s work.”
So with the gauntlet apparently laid down, Pars boss John Potter has demanded the appropriate reaction from his players after Saturday’s setback at Station Park.
Tonight’s fixture is essentially the Pars’ game in hand on the league’s top three sides, and a victory would see them cut leaders Stranraer’s advantage over them to seven points ahead of their trip to Stair Park this coming weekend.
A defeat though would see them slip six points behind City, who are at home to the Pars in a re-arranged league game a week tonight and have played a game fewer than Potter’s men.
“We have to go again,” Potter insisted.
“We have to pick ourselves up, start trying to win games again, and winning this one would be a great response from the weekend.
“We have a big squad and players coming back from injury so we need to pick a team that can go and win.
“We felt against Forfar that the team we picked was good enough to do that, but it wasn’t.
“We were a bit too safe on the ball at times and we were going sideways and backwards when we were asking the players to go forward.
“We wanted them to gamble a bit and play that killer pass.
“It probably was a lack of confidence but at the end of the day it is maybe down to how Forfar played.
“We were sloppy in possession and gave the ball away when we shouldn’t.
“We had two really good opportunities but you have to put them away if you are going to win games.”
The Pars are likely to make changes after the weekend’s setback, with striker Michael Moffat expected to start after impressing as a substitute at Station Park.
Defender Ryan Williamson could come into contention after he wasn’t risked on his return from knee surgery, while forward Ryan Wallace is still out injured.
City’s only definite absentee will be Callum Tapping, who remains sidelined with a knee injury, although a few players picked up knocks on Saturday and will be assessed.