It also left Dunfermline Athletic with the rather undesirable record of being the only club in senior British football without a home victory to their name this season. Even the maligned Blackburn Rovers have won twice in front of their largely hard-to-please fans since the start of the term.
The East End Park crowd last watched their favourites win on May 7, a 3-0 trouncing of local rivals Falkirk a week after they had clinched the first division title. Their glee that day stands in stark contrast to the misery they have endured since. In eight home matches in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League, they have drawn four times and lost the other four. The Fifers have recorded just one clean sheet and failed to score in almost half of those matches (three out of eight). They have netted 11 times in that period – not a terrible record, in fairness – but also conceded 22 in the same spell. It is those defensive frailties that are damaging Jim McIntyre's team this season.
Only twice since the formation of the SPL in 1998 has a promoted team been relegated the following season. A decent start to the campaign has prevented Dunfermline from being left isolated at the foot of the table but Aberdeen's recent resurgence has left them, Hibernian and Inverness Caledonian Thistle as the three in most peril. It is surely far too early for any of them to panic but it should also be noted that only once in the past six seasons has the team propping up the rest at the turn of the year – Hamilton Academical in 2008/09 – gone on to avoid relegation four or so months later.
Injuries undoubtedly have been part of Dunfermline's problem, the loss of as many as 11 players at various times stretching an already slender squad to breaking point. McIntyre has experimented with a five-man defence to try to stop the rot – after starting the season with the same attacking intent shown in the first division – while a failure to adequately defend at set plays has also been a key factor in their struggle. The feeling is that McIntyre still enjoys the backing of most of the Dunfermline support although that may start to wither if results don't improve.
"I have to admit I'm quite surprised by that," admitted Jimmy Calderwood, the former Dunfermline manager, when informed of his old club's winless streak at home. "It's strange because we used to always think of East End Park as a fortress, somewhere the team always had a chance.
"They started well this season, even though they didn't add too many players from last season's squad, and there seemed to be a good spirit there. But I do worry a bit for them now. It's a big step up from the first division and it's been a steep learning curve for some of the players. As a manager, you look at some of the goals they've been shipping and think, what's going on? There have been too many lapses in concentration at the back and that's what's really been hurting them.
"At the moment, Dunfermline are down there with Inverness and Hibs, with Aberdeen having shot up a bit. You have to think Hibs, as a big club, will turn it around, and Inverness have shown something in the last wee while that they can get themselves up the table. That's a worry for Dunfermline but it's early days yet."
There might not be a better opportunity for McIntyre's side to break their duck than on Saturday, with St Johnstone making the short journey to East End Park in something of a slump themselves after three successive defeats. Unfortunately from Dunfermline's point of view, though, the Perth club are undefeated on the road since late September.
"Jim now has a decision to make on Saturday," explained Caldwerwood, now keeping tabs on his old team as a pundit. "Does he go for it and play attacking from the start, which might suit St Johnstone on the counter attack? Or does he try to keep it tight and maybe sneak something from a set-play or a counter?
"St Johnstone have had a good season until the last few weeks and they will be tough opposition. And, if you're Dunfermline, you then look at who you've got next and start to wonder just when that next win is going to come. When you're on a bad run or have not won at home for a while then it certainly starts to play on your mind. You just want to get it any way you can, whether it's a goal that went in off someone's backside or whatever; anything – just to get that monkey off your back. Maybe once they get that first win, then others will follow. That's what they will be hoping anyway."
