Monday, November 26, 2007

Dundee 1 Hamilton Accies 0, Dens Park, 24/Nov/07


Dundee beat Hamilton to narrow the gap on battling Division One leaders Hamilton Accies to three points with a hard-fought victory thanks to a Scott Robertson winner. Robertson stabbed the ball past the goalkeeper after 12 minutes following Milan Palenik through ball after the Dees dominated early play. It was a good goal and we started really well. Hamilton had chances as well but their strikers were having a day off. Into the second half and Hamilton had a great chance to level, when Richard Offiong blasted over a 52nd-minute penalty after MacKenzie's hand ball. The rest of the game was from end to end to the end, but good defending from both defences kept the score the same. So a massive result for Dundee, and I thought Milan Palenik had a great game, but everyone worked hard on a day the result was the most important thing. I also thought that the Ref and Standside linesman were very poor today, with Alex Rae getting send to the stand.....next up is Dunfermline (away) this Saturday.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Dundee 0 Clyde 1, Dens Park, 12/November/07

The Dark Blues made four changes—two enforced—to the side that started against St Johnstone eight days ago. With key midfielder McDonald and in-form striker Davidson falling ill, in came Paul McHale and Jani Sturm.Freddie Daquin dropped to the bench, with Gavin Swankie promoted, while David Worrell took the place of Martyn Corrigan who has gone back to Motherwell following his loan spell. Dundee squandered a decent chance on six minutes when Swankie fired past from inside the box, but other than that the early exchanges were bereft of excitement. Clyde’s first foray forward came on 26 minutes when the impressive Dougie Imrie’s cutback from inside the box had no takers.Scott Robertson shot wide for Dundee a minute later, then the Dark Blues came within inches of the opener when Bully Wee defender Steven Masterton sent a looping header on to his own bar with half-an-hour on the clock. The visitors thought they had taken the lead three minutes before the break when an Imrie corner from the right went past Robertson at the near post and appeared to cross the goal-line before being cleared by Worrell—neither referee Kenny Clark nor assistant David Watt thought so, however, and Dundee breathed a sigh of relief. After the interval, McHale had a shot deflected for a corner then— following a handball by Neil McGregor—Eddie Malone hit a freekick that was comfortably held by Clyde goalie David Hutton. The visitors produced the best move on 55 minutes when a crossfield pass from sub Christian Smith was superbly controlled by Imrie, who cut inside then shot just wide from the edge of the area.Lyle headed past three minutes later following good work from Swankie, who was beginning to make progress down the left, before Dundee’s Gary McKenzie had a header cleared.The Dark Blues were cranking things up now, and when the ball fell to Malone inside the box only desperate defending from Clyde kept their goal intact.Malone then went down inside the box under the challenge of Craig McEwan, but referee Clark pulled play back for a handball against the midfielder, with McHale getting booked for protesting the decision.Sturm beat the offside trap on 67 minutes but could not control the ball inside the six-yard box, then McHale worked his way into the area, but could only fire into the arms of Hutton. Dundee brought on Daquin on 72 minutes to an encouraging round of applause as he swapped places with Sturm. Clyde midfielder Raurie McLennan tested Craig Samson with an effort from 25 yards, which the Dens keeper punched away, before David O’Brien came on for Robertson. The roof then caved in on the home side with just four minutes to go. Man-of-the-match Imrie tormented Dundee out on the left again before delivering a cross into the box, which was deflected past Samson by full-back Dixon. Clyde sub Kevin Bradley was running in at the back post and would probably have scored anyway, but that was no consolation to Dixon. It could have been worse just after the restart when Samson, under pressure from Bradley, made a hash of things—and when the ball fell to Gary Arbuckle he could only blast over with the goal gaping. Dundee’s Milan Palenik had a snap-shot saved in injury-time, but it was Clyde’s day as they climbed off the bottom of the table. A poor result for Dundee, but at least we play Hamilton at Home next.......make or break game for us..........

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Dundee 2 St.Johnstone 1, Dens Park, 03/November/07



Dundee won the game with a stunning second half performance. Kevin McDonald scored a last-minute winner to stun St Johnstone after the visitors looked set for a point. If Dundee giving up the first goal came as no great surprise, it was a shock that it took Saints 17 minutes to break the deadlock for they had pummelled the Dark Blues from the opening whistle. Four times in the opening seven minutes Owen Coyle’s side might readily have scored, but Andy Jackson and Willie McLaren fluffed fantastic chances, Craig Samson saved well from Rocco Quinn and Scott Robertson cleared a Steven Anderson header off the line. The goal when it eventually arrived was shrouded in controversy. Milan Palenik inexplicably allowed the ball to bounce over him leaving Anderson free to find Paul Sheerin, whose powerful strike looked netbound until Gary MacKenzie thrust out an arm to block. MacKenzie claimed he’d been struck between the shoulder blade and chest but it certainly appeared a clear cut handling offence, punishable by a red card as well as a penalty kick. However, referee Iain Brines only yellow carded MacKenzie, reasoning, apparently, that goalkeeper Samson was on the line and therefore might have pulled off an unlikely save. Justice was done when Sheerin netted from the spot, for the sixth time this term. Strangely, having taken the lead the visitors fell out of the game. But Dundee still couldn’t get their act together, Daquin’s header from a Derek Lyle cross which Alan Main saved easily was all they could offer as far as forcing an equaliser was concerned. The tactical changes made by Rae very nearly paid dividends within four minutes of the restart when Robertson burst along the by-line and cut-the ball back only for Lyle to stub his shot wide with Main beaten.
The leveller finally arrived on the hour though when Kevin McDonald, back to goal, held off a number of Saints defenders before rolling the ball into the path of Bob Davidson who, having passed up a couple of half chances earlier, slotted it away. The game threatened to take a fresh twist as St Johnstone came back to life late on, Samson doing well to save Anderson’s header from a Quinn corner before being fouled by Kenny Deuchar and Anderson skying his finish as he slid in to meet a deflected Quinn free-kick at the back post. But in stoppage time up popped McDonald to stick the ball past Main and move Dundee seven points clear of their Tayside rivals. A great result for the Dark Blues, plus a big result as Hamilton lost 2-1.