AS A young Pars player, Greg Shields remembers raining blows down on a team-mate's wife in a Rosyth pub.

Thankfully, it was all in good fun with massive pillow fights just one of the ways Dick Campbell and Bert Paton tried to keep their players happy on and off the pitch.

Building team spirit and bonding a group of young men together is now a challenge for Shields and the current Pars management and while the methods may change, the aim is exactly the same.

He smiled: "I always remember going to the Gladyer Inn in Rosyth with Dick and Bert, years ago, with families and wives and whatever.

"You're all hammered, there was a big beam in the middle and the two of them came out with these big pillows.

"Someone would pull your name out of a hat and I was fighting against, I think it was Gerry Britton's or George Shaw's wife.

"I never thought about it at the time, but looking back I didn't know her and I'm hitting her over the head with a pillow and trying to knock her off the beam!

"But that's what happened and it was all good fun!

"Looking back, it was great, the coaches did it as a bonding session and everyone loved it. It was good banter and we spoke about it for ages afterwards.

"Ultimately, that's part of our job as if they get on, if they connect, you see it out there on the pitch."

He continued: "Not every player is going to be your best mate but it's important that they trust each other, that they get along and mix well.

"When you have 37 players and probably 22 of them expect to play in the first team or think they're good enough for the first team, how do you get the next 11 to understand they're all in it together?

"Good team spirit and bonding sessions are part of that. It's not about going out and getting hammered, that's another way the game has changed, but it's can we go for a meal, have a sit down and a laugh or go and do something stupid?

"We had a team-bonding with the players and families after the Dundee United game as it is important. We don't want them living in each other's pockets but you want this to be an enjoyable place to be.

"The Dick and Bert years, we were so tight. I was a young boy at the time and we had a really great bond.

"The Jimmy Calderwood era too, it was connected so well and the boys all got along great. That's what makes a dressing room.

"I remember we'd still be there after training, playing table tennis and darts and we didn't want to leave the place, my wife would be on the phone saying, 'Any chance of you coming home?'

"That's what we're trying to do here."