ATHLETIC are awaiting the results of an x-ray to determine the seriousness of a knock picked up by Kyle Benedictus on Saturday.

The Pars captain was substituted with 20 minutes to go during the draw at Inverness Caledonian Thistle with a foot injury, which boss James McPake hoped post-match would just result in bruising.

Benedictus was sent for an x-ray on Tuesday and, when he spoke to Press Sport, McPake said they were still awaiting results from it.

He also revealed that forward, Craig Wighton, missed the game in the Highlands with a "wee niggle in his knee picked up in training", but didn't believe it to be a serious issue.

Dunfermline go to Championship rivals Dundee United in the SPFL Trust Trophy this weekend, a game that McPake said he "would very mindful of who we need to protect".

When asked for an update on his skipper, he said: "It's still pretty sore. We'll assess him later on in the week.

"I think it got x-rayed today (Tuesday), so we'll get the results of that, and we'll just assess where we are with that. Wighton's the same - we'll wait and see, but we certainly won't be taking any risks.

"That's not because it's the SPFL Trust Trophy. What we don't want to do is risk players for a prolonged period of time.

"Craig just got a wee niggle in his knee that he picked up in training, completely unrelated to the knee issues previously, which is a bonus. It's not a serious one but we'll make sure we get it right.

"It's an opportunity (against United) for the full squad. It's not being dismissive of this game, but we understand just where it ranks in terms of importance with the league games coming up.

"We're obviously out the Viaplay, which was disappointing not to get through. Again, it's not dismissive of the game, but also it's a game that we'll want to go up and use for certain reasons. We'll use it for minutes for people like Kane (Ritchie-Hosler) and Owen (Moffat), but also we want to put a competitive team on the pitch as well.

"We'll assess that later in the week."

When asked if a game in the tournament for lower league clubs - which Dunfermline reached the quarter-finals of last season - was an opportunity to manage the squad, McPake replied: "I think we consistently do that week-to-week. It's not a case of managing it. Rhys Breen was out the team for example on Saturday, which would've been disappointing for Rhys, but his attitude was outstanding.

"We look at games in isolation, particularly in the league, and what we think can cause the other team problems, and where we can help ourselves.

"This comes into a different category if I'm honest. This is one where we can look at squad management, particularly minute management, or injury management of some that are maybe carrying wee aches or pains. We'll assess that later on in the week and pick 11 players that can go up there and go out and try and get a positive result.

"We keep saying to the players not to waste a game. Every game's a chance to impress, not just us, but the fans that are there, and add the reserve games into that as well.

"They're a great chance to go out and top your minutes up, but impress everyone watching with eyes on the weekend as well.

"The team we pick will be the best team we feel that can go up there and get a result for this football club, but we'll also be very mindful of who we need to protect."

McPake added that Matty Todd was doing more walking with his moonboot off, but has "still a wee bit to go" before he's back in contention to play, while Deniz Mehmet is "still doing bits and pieces every day on the training pitch" and "shouldn't be too far away" as the pair continue their recovery from ankle injuries.