PARS star Kevin O’Hara is facing a spell on the sidelines after it was confirmed he has sustained a knee injury.

The 24-year-old was missing from James McPake’s squad for last Saturday’s draw with one of his former clubs, Falkirk, and was spotted wearing a brace on his leg at the match.

Prior to the clash with the Bairns, former Alloa Athletic forward O’Hara, who was signed by Stevie Crawford on a three-year deal in the summer of 2020, had played in each of Dunfermline’s 10 matches in both League One, and the Premier Sports Cup, this season.

Although he has yet to find the net this term, his versatility to play in a wider role has made him a key player for McPake, with O’Hara starting in every match until the weekend.

He was, however, substituted in each of Athletic’s two games prior, and McPake confirmed post-match that he will face a spell out.

“We’ll get it assessed and see how he is,” the manager commented.

“Look, it’s a blow for us, but when you see Lewis McCann playing the way he can play, when you see Craig Wighton, you look at Kevin and you put it into perspective.

“He’s a human being. We’re gutted for him in terms of injury but we’ll get him back, we’ll look after him. It’s part of football but he’s a key player for this football club and we will get him back.”

There was, however, better news in relation to centre back Rhys Breen, who was substituted late on against Falkirk after falling to the turf in discomfort.

With Pars’ scheduled SPFL Trust Trophy tie with Celtic B this weekend having been postponed due to international call-offs, McPake said that taking Breen off, which handed a home debut to on-loan Dundee player Sam Fisher, was a precautionary measure.

“He is alright,” he continued.

“It was just at the point where the linesman had told us that there was 35 seconds to go. No way were we going to take a centre back off and allow them to put a ball in the box. Sam (Fisher) came on and then there was two-and-a-half minutes of the game, somehow – a big 35 seconds that!

“It was more caution. Sam’s a fantastic player that I’ve had since he was 16 at Dundee, and we’re delighted to have him here. He’ll contribute to Dunfermline throughout the course of the season but I wasn’t taking any risks when you know the rule, the physio goes on and it’s that late in the game.

“Rhys will be fine, he’s a strong, honest boy, and we’ve got the two weeks if we need it.”