RELYING on other teams to lose in their survival battle would see Athletic hit “panic stations”, according to Coll Donaldson.

Although he doesn’t think they are there yet, the on-loan Ross County centre back knows that they have to start putting together positive results imminently.

The 26-year-old, who has played eight times since arriving at East End in January, believes that they can take heart from their performance at Arbroath on Saturday, despite the 1-0 defeat.

That said, Donaldson knows that, with nine matches left, Dunfermline have to start winning if they are to pull themselves off the bottom of the table and avoid relegation.

“I’d rather play rubbish and win the game to be honest, and I think that’s easy to say,” he said this week.

“I think it’s probably a slight on us that it’s taken until this week for us to go, ‘Woah, hold on a minute now, this needs to stop’.

“We can’t just go and get beat at Arbroath; we can’t just go and get beat at Kilmarnock; we can’t give up two points at home to Kilmarnock, and probably be the better team, definitely the better team in the second half.

“Points need to start getting put on the board now, and if that’s 1-0 wins where we have 10 per cent of the ball, I’ll take it. The one thing I would say is that it’s not as desperate a situation as others, because there is that positive aspect to performances.

“Whereas, if we were getting beat and just battered in games, giving up a lot of chances and not having many chances ourselves, there wouldn’t be a lot to come in and say to you, ‘We’re still really confident about staying up’.

“I think that’s where the confidence in the group comes from.”

As it stands, the Pars are seven points from eighth place — and safety — which is a position occupied by this weekend’s opponents, Hamilton.

While he tries not to worry about what happens elsewhere, Donaldson knows full well what’s at stake in Lanarkshire.

“Speaking purely from a personal point of view, I don’t even look at the league table. I just try and win three points on a Saturday,” he continued.

“If Queen of the South win away at Kilmarnock, that’s completely out of our control. We have to focus on ourselves.

“As soon as you start relying on teams to get beat, you’re at panic stations at that point.

“We still have enough time, and there is enough ability in that changing room, to look after ourselves.

“When you do play teams around you, you obviously know they’re around you, so those games — just that wee five, 10 per cent — in the back of your head, you’re thinking, ‘We could really do with beating these today, because if we don’t, then they’ll be going however many points ahead of us’.

“I don’t think that’s a bad thing to be honest; I think use that as a positive. The gaffer always talks about playing on emotion, or using whatever to get that extra five per cent, so that has to be something we can use.”