ATHLETIC forward Lewis McCann has described the misfortune that befell he and his team-mates the last time Inverness Caledonian Thistle visited as "ridiculous".

The 22-year-old was the hero in November when the teams played out a 1-1 draw at KDM Group East End Park, netting in the 87th minute to cancel out former Par Danny Devine's opener for the Highlanders.

All three matches between the clubs, who meet again this afternoon, this season have been drawn, but McCann insists he's never seen a game like the last one along the Halbeath Road.

Dunfermline hit the woodwork EIGHT times on an extraordinary afternoon and the Northern Ireland under-21 cap is hoping they will have more luck on their side as they seek to end their home fixtures with a result that will mathematically secure their Championship status for next term.

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A point will do it for the Pars, who are six points above second bottom Queen's Park, with a superior goal difference, with two games to go.

When he was reminded of being the hero the last time Duncan Ferguson's Inverness travelled to East End, McCann laughed: "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 (last Friday); they played really well.

"But we’re just focused on ourselves and what we can do - and hopefully we won’t hit the post as much!

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"I’ve never experienced anything like that before. It was ridiculous.

"There was something like four in the first-half, and then I hit the post again, Ewan (Otoo) hit the post, I think Hammy (Chris Hamilton) hit the post. It was ridiculous.

"It was 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."

With Inverness just one point above second bottom and the relegation play-off place, the stakes are perhaps higher for them than Athletic, for whom it would take an unlikely sequence of results for them to finish there.

"We’re not thinking about that. We’ve always just taken it game by game anyway," McCann continued.

"We always want to win, and they’ll be coming down really wanting to win to secure a place in the league, but we’re not completely safe either. 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.

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"There’s stress at every game we play because no matter what the game is, we always want to win. It’s just who we are as a group. We’re all competitive.

"But the gaffer’s just tried to keep it the same as it has been every other week. He’s gone very in-depth on what they [Inverness] do. 

"It’s serious when it needs to be serious, and it’s playful when he wants to release a bit of stress, so, it’s not like people are panicking or anything."

That competitive streak within the squad extends to off the training pitch, with teqball games keenly-contested.

McCann revealed he and Rhys Breen team-up to play, with the centre back noted as being "really good at it".

The forward said: "It’s something the gaffer tries to do quite a lot. He likes to have a relaxed environment and not create anything too stressful.

"He did it all last season and he’s done it this season as well, but it gets quite competitive at times!"