Manager on Friday
Friday, 31st Jul 2015"You can expect a bit of noise and I am sure with it being a derby it is important that we get a result for the fans.
Cowdenbeath face their second Fife Derby in a week and for their manager former Pars striker, Colin Nish, it will not just be a return to his old club but also place him opposition to an old team mate. Allan Johnston is not surprised that Nish has taken on the managerial challenge:-
"We played at Kilmarnock together for a number of years. Me and Nishy go back a long time but it is great to see him get the opportunity to be the manager. He has always been interested in it.
"He is a very good player and still plays - he played at the weekend as well and still has a lot of talent. He has a lot to offer as a player but I have not seen how his team plays. By all accounts they were unlucky last week; I think it was a really close game and there wasn't much between the two teams which speaks a lot for the way they played. Obviously Raith Rovers are a Championship team and so it was a hard game.
"Cowdenbeath have a few new faces but it is the same as any other game, we have just got to concentrate on ourselves. We cannot look too much into the opposition, we have just got to focus on our game. If we play anything like we did last week then we will hopefully score a lot of goals and win games."
The Petrofac Training cup tie at Arbroath was a very pleasing game for the manager and he was happy to recall the good points:-
"You couldn't ask for much more to be honest. It is always good to see your strikers scoring goals. We created loads of chances but we know it is going to be difficult tomorrow. I don't think there were many chances for either teams in the Cowdenbeath v Raith Rovers game. It was a physical, tough game and we know that we can expect that. We are going to have to match them in that department as well."
The full squad is available to the manager with the exception of the suspended Jason Talbot.
"Josh Falkingham and David Hopkirk are back after taking a precaution last week. There is no point in risking people long term when it was just a niggle. They are back and so we have quite a strong squad although we still need players in one or two positions but we are getting there in terms of the size of the squad.
"There is still plenty of time and we are still talking to people. Hopefully we can get something sorted over the next few weeks - I think I have said that before! You never know, it just depends how things pan out."
Saturday will be Allan Johnston's first competitive match in charge of Dunfermline at East End Park and he is looking forward to it having seen the size and enthusiasm of the travelling support last Saturday at Arbroath.
"Hopefully we can get a good crowd here as well who will get behind the team and we can build up a bit of momentum by getting a result."
The Pars manager commented on the 7500 clappers that will be distributed:-
"You can expect a bit of noise and I am sure with it being a derby it is important that we get a result for the fans.
"The pitch is different class, there can be no complaints and I am sure a bit of overnight rain will do it a world of good. It does make a difference when it is wet and the ball is moving quick. You saw that last week especially in the first half.
"There were a lot of positives last week and the boys have set the standard now, we just have to make sure that we repeat that week after week."
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