A Lewis McCann goal three minutes from time earned Dunfermline a point the last time Inverness Caledonian Thistle were the visitors at KDM Group East End Park but possibly more memorable is the phenomenal amount of times that the woodwork saved Caley that afternoon. Ahead of their return this Saturday, Lewis recalled that match with humour and just a little exaggeration:-
“After hitting the post 19 times! Even the one that went in hit the post. We want to win, we always want to win but they’re a good team, we saw on the TV how the played against Raith, they played really well in that game.
“We’re just focused on ourselves and what we can do – and hopefully we won’t hit the post as much! I’ve never experienced anything like that before. It was ridiculous. There was something like four posts in the first-half, and then I hit the post again, Ewan hit the post, I think Hammy hit the post. It was ridiculous. It was almost like it just wasn’t going to be our day but we kept going and we’ve proved that loads of times, last season and this season.”
Inverness have a lot to play for as they try and distance themselves from Queen’s Park on the play-off position, the Pars are more comfortable but still would like at least one point to secure their Championship status. Lewis claimed that the team was sticking by its mantle of just taking it game by game.
“We always want to win and they’ll be coming down not needing to win but really wanting to win to secure a place in the league. We’re not completely safe so we want to get something out of the game as well, 100 per cent. We’re all very competitive. You can see it even if we’re playing darts, poker, anything. Everyone wants to win, none of us like the feeling of losing and it’s about pride as well. Even if the game meant absolutely nothing, we would still want to win.”
Lewis’ strike at Hampden in September was voted Goal of the Season by Dunfermline fans. He scored twice in the second half of the match against Queen’s Park but his goal directly from a free kick was “quite special” agreed Lewis who added:
“I don’t think I’ll ever hit another one like it, but hopefully I do. It’s nice to get recognition for scoring a goal like that. There were all sorts of goals up against it – team goals, Paul Allan had a really good goal, and he was unlucky that the week after the vote came out he scored a really good free-kick. There were a load of goals that could have won it but I was very happy.
“It was in a special setting as well. It just randomly pops up on my phone all the time, and I think, ‘oh, I’ll give that a wee watch’! I must have watched it over a hundred times, and there’s many different angles of it – even one where Sam Fisher’s head is right in the way of the top corner! It was a very special goal for me, I was lucky that one happened in a match and it wasn’t one that hit row Z.”
His chances of a repeat from a free kick this weekend will depend how far out it is. Lewis said “the closer ones I might give to Paul Allan, but further out I’ll be stepping over it, yes.”
Lewis has not added to his seven goal tally since the match against Inverness Caley Thistle in November, he has got himself in positions to score but for all sorts of reasons the ball has not gone in the net. The 22 year old is possibly hard on himself but he continued:-
“We’re all competitive people and we want to be the best we can be. It’s easy enough saying not to be annoyed when you miss a chance, but you’re always going to be annoyed – whether it’s a big chance or one where you had a very small chance of scoring. In my head, I want to be the best I can be, and if I miss a chance I would still be annoyed with myself.
“The gaffer has been quite good about saying, ‘you’re going to miss chances, it is what it is, everyone misses chances’. It’s just about how you react to it. You can’t let it affect the rest of your game. If you miss multiple chances, it’s obviously going to play on your mind a little bit but he’s always supportive of you missing chances and trying different things. He’s always about how you react. If I miss an easy chance and I’m there throwing my hands in the air and sulking, he’s going to be annoyed by that. If I have a good reaction to it then he doesn’t mind I’ve missed the chance.
“It sounds stupid saying it, but if you’re not there you’re not going to get the chance. So, you’ve always got to be switched on. If you’re thinking about a chance you missed in the first-half, and you’re not in the right position in the second-half to get the chance and try to score it, then it affects the game and could affect the team.”
