Dunfermline 0-2 Hamilton: Jefferies unsure of wage worries

Published on 04/02/2013 02:06

With a career in the dugout spanning three decades, Jim Jefferies knows when players are trying to pull the wool over his eyes.

The Dunfermline manager conducted a 45-minute post mortem into
Saturday’s Scottish Cup fifth round defeat and asked his charges if a fourth successive month of wages woe 
 undermining their efforts.

No, was the response, but after his side collapsed to a third straight loss and surrendered £15,000 for reaching the quarter-finals, Jefferies said: “There is a bit of malaise going around because of the finances of the club and I asked the players if that was affecting them, and they were to be honest.

“They did say it was not affecting them. I can only trust them, although they didn’t sound very convincing about it.”

On loan St Johnstone forward Stevie May opened the scoring with a 25-yard drive before Jon Routledge, who missed a gilt-edged chance in the first half, sealed the victory .

Routledge said: “I was really disappointed with the chance I missed. I should have scored. I was hoping I would get another one to make up for it and luckily I did.”