Pars suffer mass exodus

Dunfermiline have announced eight first-team players have been released as the club try to cope with relegation from the SPL.

Chris Smith, Bernardo Fernandez, Alex Keddie, Austin McCann, Martin Hardie and attackers David Graham, Steven McDougall and Pat Clarke have all been given free transfers by the Pars and are now searching for new clubs. Manager Jim Jeffries broke the news to his squad and announced he himself has taken a pay cut in a bid to help the financial situation at East End Park. He told the club's official website: "The club is aware that when you go down and have to rely on younger players coming in, inconsistencies creep in and they can have highs and lows. "The emphasis on the players I bring in must be from the younger element and the reason for that is because of the wage structure we can offer them. "I am sure that the supporters would buy into a team of predominantly younger players with a blend of experienced ones trying to put on a good show. If we stick to the players we have and didn't come up, it would be a massive problem the following year."