Dundee Sign Craig Samson.

Dundee are set to complete the signing of goalkeeper Craig Samson in time for him to report for pre-season training with the rest of the squad at Dens Park on Monday. The former Kilmarnock, Dundee United and Ross County man has agreed a one-year deal and should put pen to paper over the weekend. Boss Alex Rae had several options to consider and has opted for the 23-year-old because, he believes, he will provide a strong challenge to Ludovic Roy for the No. 1 jersey next term. “As I’ve said all along, Ludo had a great first year with us and he will start pre-season as No. 1, but I want competition for as many places as possible and Samson should provide that,” said Rae. “He’s still young, but he has good experience and is ambitious. He won’t be coming here thinking he’ll be sitting on the bench, he’ll be fighting for his place and that’s what I want.” Samson joins full-back David Worrell and wide man David O’Brien as new summer arrivals and they are likely to be joined by at least another two signings in the next few weeks.

Norwich Bid For Dixon Turned Down...........

Dundee have rejected an offer from Norwich City for Paul Dixon — but the Dark Blues face a battle to keep their highly-rated full-back this summer. The 20-year-old is well known to Carrow Road assistant boss Jim Duffy, who handed him his debut during his second spell as manager at Dens Park. He and Canaries gaffer Peter Grant are among those who have been monitoring Dixon’s progress and that has led to a bid to take him to the Championship.

That move was confirmed by Dundee chief executive Dave MacKinnon and, while he was quick to stress it had been dismissed, there is no question the club face a struggle to hang on to the defender. For their part, Norwich admitted it was unlikely there would be an immediate upping of the bid, believed to be in the region of £100,000 — less than half his employers’ valuation.

A string of other English clubs are also interested and there have even been suggestions that, here in Scotland, Rangers are also admirers. More attempts to lure him away from the City of Discovery are set to follow. Dixon has only a year of his current Dens deal to run and has stalled on signing an extension. Which might push Dundee towards selling him if offers come in now, rather than face losing him a reduced fee near to or at the end of his contract.

Dundee Sign Two and Plan For Next Season.........

Dundee have completed the signings of former Rotherham United full-back David Worrell and David O'Brien, the winger having left Stirling Albion. Worrell and O'Brien were out of contract and are the first of six summer signings planned by Dundee. O'Brien, 23, leaves after helping Stirling win promotion to Division One. First Division Dundee have also confirmed that manager Alex Rae will receive an increased budget for next season. But chairman Bob Brannan has stressed to the Tayside business community that further cash will have to be raised to balance the budget. Chief executive Dave MacKinnon pointed out that the club is considering developing land for housing. Dundee are looking at developing the Dens Park side of their stadium "with a new South Stand as part of the development". MacKinnon has held initial discussions with a building developer.

Latest From Dens.

Dundee will parade two unnamed signings on Wednesday and promise four other new faces this summer. The First Division club also confirmed that manager Alex Rae would receive an increased budget for next season. But chairman Bob Brannan has stressed to the Tayside business community that further cash will have to be raised to balance the budget. Chief executive Dave MacKinnon pointed out that the club is considering developing land for housing.
Dundee are looking at developing the Dens Park side of their stadium "with a new South Stand as part of the development". MacKinnon has held initial discussions with a building developer.

Latest News From Dens Park.

Dundee have announced details of a further three pre-season friendlies. After welcoming Millwall to Dens Park on Saturday, July 14, the Dark Blues travel to Montrose on Tuesday 17th, host Motherwell on Tuesday 24th and are at Stenhousemuir on the 25th. They are still attempting to fix up home matches on the 21st and 28th against English opposition. And Dundee will either be heading for the Highlands or north-east England for a short training camp early on in the process of building towards next term. Player-manager Alex Rae hopes to unveil an addition to his squad later this week.

Clear Out Starts At Dens.

Dundee have started building for next season by telling Ross Harris and Craig Higgins they will not be offered new contracts at Dens Park. And manager Alex Rae will not bid to keep on-loan trio Jay Shields, Kevin Smith and Robert Campbell at the club. A bounce game was held as well and rumours say that Nathan Lownes impressed and he might get an offer.

Clyde 1 Dundee 1, Broadwood Stadium, 28/April/07.

Clyde and Dundee drew 1-1 at sunny Broadwood on Saturday, and with only the main stand open a few Dundee fans missed the kick-off. We started brightly and Brian Clark missed the target after a great move. But he scored a cracker from the edge of the box withe a great low drive. As we tried to finish the game off Alex Williams shot home to level things up at halftime. The second half was pretty end of the season fair and the only down point was Derek Lyle's dismissal. The striker received a straight red card 14 minutes from time for a tackle on Robert Harris and then appearing to stamp on the defender on the ground. Well l never saw that! So that's it for another season and it was a improvement from last year, hopefully we can bring in the six players we need to make a challenge next season.

Latest From Dens.

Friday: Dundee are to allow frontman Craig O’Reilly to leave Dens Park.The 19-year-old former Raith Rovers striker, who has a year left on his contract, has spent the season on loan to East Fife. Craig is available for a nominal fee,and lower division clubs have been notified.Dundee will be without suspended defender Gary Smith for tomorrow’s final game of the campaign at Clyde but that opens the door for skipper Gary McKenzie to return. Also set for a place in the starting line-up, after completing his one-match ban, is Alex Rae.Meanwhile, former Dundee United keeper Tony Bullock has emerged as a possible signing target for the Dark Blues as they seek someone to challenge Ludovic Roy for the first-team jersey next term.
Wednesday: Good news for Dundee as goalkeeper Ludovic Roy signed a new two-year deal, also committing his future to Dens Park was young midfielder Brian Clark.Manager Alex Rae is also hopeful of adding a few more players for next season, and has arranged for a trial game to take place later this week.The club also revealed season ticket prices for 2007-08 which are:Adult season tickets for existing holders are £240 if bought before 30th June 2007. Senior citizen tickets are £115, Under 18s £90, under 12s £18 and students £94On or after 1st July 2007 Adult season tickets are £250. Senior citizen tickets are £120, Under 18s £95, under 12s £18 and students £99.If you want to retain your existing seat then you should renew before 30th June.Tickets go on sale on Tuesday May 1st 2007.

Dundee 1 Hamilton 0, Dens Park, 21/April/07

Dundee struggled to overcome Hamilton on Saturday but at least we won the game thanks to a controversial penalty converted by Derek Lyle earned Dundee a narrow victory over Hamilton at Dens Park. The pivotal moment came on 62 minutes when referee Crawford Allen ignored Bob Davidson's shove on Alex Neil to allow him to cross. In the scramble that followed David Elebert pulled Kevin McDonald to the ground and Lyle scored from the spot. Dundee defender Gary Smith was later dismissed for an off-the-ball incident involving David Elebert.It was good to see youngster Brian Clark make his first start for the club and he was unlucky not to score in the second half.At least it still gives us a chance to finish third but we need to beat Clyde and hope Hamilton don't win.

Latest News From Dens.

Dundee have received a major fitness boost with the news that midfielder Paul McHale has not torn the medial ligament in his knee. McHale strained the joint in training last week and will still be out for the remaining two games of the season. It means he will be out for a matter of weeks rather than months, and should be fit for the start of preseason training. Dundee will be without player-manger Alex Rae following his dimissal at Partick Thistle last weekend. Dyron Daal has resumed training and, if he does not suffer any reaction to his knee problem, the on-loan striker will feature for the home side. Hamilton go to Dens Park clash knowing that a draw will secure third place in the First Division. Dundee have also slashed admission prices for children to just £1 as a thank you to the fans for their support.

Partick Thistle 2 Dundee 1, Firhill, 14/April/07.

Partick secured their First Division status with a narrow win over 10-man Dundee who had player-coach Alex Rae sent off in the 90th minute. The Jags went in front after 17 minutes when Adam Strachan crashed the ball high into the net from 10 yards. Dundee levelled five minutes later when Derek Lyle scored his 14th goal of the season. The Jags got the winner after 53 minutes when Derek Young fired low past Ludovic Roy.

Injury Blow For McHale.

Dundee midfielder Paul McHale could be facing months on the injury list, with fears that he may have suffered medial ligament damage in his knee. What at first seemed a run-of-the-mill training incident has resulted in a serious problem for the player, who has been a key man for the Dark Blues since joining in January. McHale will be sent to see a specialist next week to discover the extent of the damage, and manager Alex Rae is hoping for a positive outcome. Meanwhile Danny Griffin should play at centre half again, he looked a much better player last week. It will be a tough game against Partick Thistle who are not safe from the drop yet.

Daal Goal Rush Won't Earn Him Dons Deal

Dyron Daal has been told his five goals in four games for Dundee are not enough to guarantee his Aberdeen future. The Dutchman was sent out on loan to Dens Park after struggling to break into the Dons side.He netted twice against Ross County at the weekend to clinch a 3-2 win for the Tayside team and has also produced a match-winning double against Airdrie United the previous weekend having scored on his debut for the Dark Blues against Queen of the South.Jimmy Calderwood is monitoring the 23-year-old striker's contribution to the Dundee cause, but is refusing to get carried away on the back of his player's goal rush.He said: "Obviously I'm getting reports on Dyron's performances and it is great to see him scoring goals for Dundee. We've had positive reports, but seemingly he could have scored 12 goals, never mind five, with the number of chances he has had."As far as next season is concerned, I haven't been able to give Dyron's situation a minute's thought."We have to get our own business out of the way in the SPL before we move on to that."Of course we have to be fair to the player and can't keep him hanging on forever."He has three games to go with Dundee between now and the end of the season and by then we will have to let him know what our plans for him are.
Team News For Firhill.
Paul McHale picked up a knee injury in training yesterday and is struggling to face Partick Thistle. Time will tell if he makes it or not. Gary McKenzie will miss the game due to suspension.

Dundee 3 Ross County 2, Dens Park, 07/April/07.

Paul Dixon returned to the side, and Danny Griffin played center half in place of injured Gary McKenzie. We started well and Dyron Daal scored a double as Dundee sent Ross County tumbling to the foot of the First Division table. Daal raced through to convert after 20 minutes and doubled his tally 12 minutes later when he robbed defender Andy Dowie and executed a neat finish. Sean Higgins hit back with a glorious overhead kick, only for Paul McHale to restore Dundee's two-goal advantage with an 18-yard strike.Dundee held on for the final 16 minutes when Michael Gardyne fired home. A good three points for us, pity the second half was not as good as the first.

LATE NEWS.

Dundee are set to play Millwall at Dens on the 15th of July. I'm on holiday so will miss that one.

Latest News From Dens.

Dundee could add another foreign keeper to their books after a Slovakian trialist impressed boss Alex Rae in a closed-door game this week. The experienced performer, who the Dark Blues are not naming for the time being, did enough in the friendly against Montrose to be added to the list of possibles for next season. Not still interesting him, though, is the English midfielder who had been with Norwich and who also got a game on Tuesday. And Dundee are adopting a “wait-and-see” policy with loan striker Dyron Daal. The Dutchman’s three goals in three games since he started his loan from Aberdeen have seen the Dons hint they will probably be offering him a deal for next season after his amateur contract with them expires in the summer. There has been no concrete offer from Pittodrie, though, and the Dens men believe they still have a chance of landing the big man on a permanent deal if he continues to impress. There are no injury worries for Saturday’s home clash with struggling Ross County. Aberdeen's Jamie Winter is also on trial for a few days. (Picture Above)

Dundee 2 Airdrie 1, Dens Park, 01/April/07

Dundee put behind them a desperate first-half performance to notch their first win in four games, to say the Dark Blues were awful in the opening 45 minutes would be an understatement.But they improved sufficiently to edge out spirited Airdrie in an end-to-end second period.Dundee claimed the spoils thanks to Dyron Daal—who had enough clear-cut chances to have mustered a five-goal haul—netting twice.While that was rough on the relegation-threatened Diamonds, whose showing was worthy of the point that would have left them shy of the play-off spot only on goal difference.Airdrie’s 17th minute opener was a personal disaster for Gary McKenzie. The Dens skipper was caught in possession 25 yards out by Ian Harty and failed to react to the situation, leaving Harty to bear down on Ludovic Roy and net with a composed finish.Taking the lead was no more than the Diamonds deserved. Before netting, Harty had brought a decent save out of Ludovic Roy and David Proctor was thwarted by a timely McKenzie challenge.And they could easily have stretched that advantage with Roy having to claw a Gary Twigg shot round his post.Dundee levelled on 27 minutes, completely against the run of play, when Daal headed home Rae’s cross.Airdrie remained on top, though, and both Harty and Graeme Holmes should have done far better than blaze the ball over from terrific positions.In the early stages of the second half Stuart Taylor evaded the attentions of McKenzie to meet a Steven McDougall cross, but from a tight angle couldn’t put his header away from Roy.Dundee had an opportunity to steal a lead shortly after that when Daal found himself clean through, but he shot straight at Stephen Robertson.McKenzie’s day very nearly went from bad to worse when a Holmes cut-back rebounded off him and was destined to find his own net until Roy came to the rescue.On 56 minutes Dundee edged in front from their first corner of the game, Bob Davidson heading Gavin Swankie’s delivery back across goal for Daal to nod in.And the Dutchman could easily have added to his tally—completely missing the ball after a Smyth mistake allowed Gates’ cross to find him unmarked, then once again shooting straight at Robertson.Airdrie, who’d been denied a penalty when Gary Smith clearly shoved Taylor inside the area, had become decidedly fragile at the back.Going forward, though, they remained a real threat. Substitute Stephen McKeown might have levelled after being picked out by Twigg, but his finish failed to trouble Roy.A Twigg effort with 11 minutes remaining did test the goalie, but he responded by making a terrific save. Despite his side laying siege to the home goal in the closing minutes and being harshly treated by the outcome, Diamonds manager Kenny Black felt the defeat had been largely self-inflicted.Daal and Paul McHale were booked along with Airdrie’s Smyth, Taylor and Neil McGowan. A good three point for us but we made hard work of it. Lets hope we can win the last four game to set up next season.

Dundee Set To Sign Winger.

Dundee are poised to add Stirling Albion winger David O’Brien to their squad. The move is believed to have been agreed and O’Brien should make the switch to Dens in the summer.The left-sided 23-year-old has made over 180 appearances for the Forthbank club since coming through their youth system in season 2001-02.While not commenting directly on the O’Brien interest, Dens manager Alex Rae did reiterate he is desperate to add to his squad in preparation for the 2007-08 campaign.“We need a few new bodies—there’s no doubt about that,” he said.

St.Johnstone 2 Dundee 0, McDiarmid Park, 25/03/07

Dundee played some football in the first half, but the midfield just laid too deep.St Johnstone closed the gap on First Division leaders Gretna to four points with victory over Dundee.The hosts came to life after a lacklustre first half and Jason Scotland fired the opener after a neat turn inside the box. Martin Hardie extended the lead in the 61st minute, latching on to Peter MacDonald's flick-on, blasting his shot into the roof of the net. Despite losing Kevin James to a head injury, Saints held on for the win.Dundee got Paul Dixon sent off in the second half, we were very poor in the second half and it was a good job Ludovic Roy was in good form in the goals.

Latest News From Dens Park

Dundee's board has won control of the Scottish First Division football club after agreeing a deal with its receivers and bank. Chairman Bob Brannan said: "We have control of the shares.
"The financial restructuring agreed with the Bank of Scotland will be concluded in the next few weeks. "And we will then be looking to attract new investors into the club to return Dundee FC to its rightful place in Scottish football." Dundee went into administration in November 2003 and have been in Division One since their relegation in 2005. Directors Peter and Jimmy Marr announced this month that they were to leave the club after nine years of control at Dens Park.
Six of Peter Marr's companies had gone into receivership. A number of offers were received after he and his brother put their majority shareholding up for sale. But Fraser Gray and David Whitehouse, joint receivers of P&J Taverns Ltd, which owns the majority shareholding, accepted the current board's offer. Bidders needed to provide proof of funding and their ability to service the club's financial obligations.
Team news.
Dundee expect top scorer Derek Lyle to be fit to lead the attack. Alex Rae might return with long-term absentee Scott Robertson out, but he will not require surgery and should be fit before the end of the season.

Queen of the South 2 Dundee 2, Palmerstone, 17/March/07

Andy Barrowman's last-minute goal rescued a point for the Doonhamers against Dundee.
Stevie Murray put the home side in front after 13 minutes when he fired home from 15 yards.
Dundee equalised after 31 minutes when Paul Dixon pushed the ball through for on-loan striker Dryon Daal to score. The visitors took the lead after 55 minutes through Bob Davidson, before Barroman's late leveller secured a point for Ian McCall's side. So a point dropped by the dark blues, it is a hard place lately to pick up points.

Late News..........Dundee sign striker.

Dundee this evening signed striker Dyron Daal from Aberdeen on a loan deal until the end of the current season. Formerly with Utrecht, Volendam and Ajax, The 6' 4" Dutchman joins up at Dens after scoring twice in seven appearances for the Dons. Darren did well in his early days at Pittodrie, but broke a hand and struggled to get back into the Aberdeen side. He should make his debut on Saturday at Queen of the South.

English pair want Dixon

English pair Bolton Wanderers and Southampton are set to go head-to-head this summer in a battle to capture Dundee full-back Paul Dixon.The Premiership and Coca-Cola Championship outfits are among a cluster of clubs from down south who have been in regular attendance at Dark Blues games this term. When scouts have turned up, it has been generally accepted the player under the microscope was teenage midfielder Kevin McDonald, but Dixon’s displays at left-back have drawn increasing attention.In particular, he has caught the eye of promotion-chasing Southampton, who are set to lose teenage wonderkid Gareth Bale to Manchester United, Arsenal or Spurs.That would leave a vacancy on the left of their defence and, right now, Dixon is top candidate to fill the void.Former Hearts boss George Burley will have to fight to get his man, however, and Bolton have been putting together their own dossier on Dixon’s strengths and weaknesses. Any bid from St Mary’s is likely to prompt a counter offer from Sam Allardyce at the Reebok Stadium.Today, Dens boss Alex Rae was stressing there have, so far, been no offers and, while he would not be surprised if that situation changes in the summer, he has reiterated he will be fighting to keep his talent.“As I keep saying, we are building here and I do not want to sell any of my best players. It would take an exceptional offer for us to allow any of them to go,” Of more concern to Alex today was an attempt to bring a player in for Saturday’s visit to Queen of the South using the emergency loan system.With top scorer Derek Lyle still a big doubt and Bryan Deasley out for the rest of the season, the manager would like another striker in and has been making moves to that end. Midfielder Scott Robertson will be fit for selection, despite breaking his nose against Gretna on Sunday.

Marrs to end Dundee involment

Marr has been in charge during a turbulent era for DundeeDundee directors Peter and Jimmy Marr are to leave the club after nine years at Dens Park.
In a statement, Dundee confirmed that the brothers have tendered their resignations to the club's board.
"Dundee FC can confirm that Peter and Jimmy Marr have notified the board of their decision to resign as directors of Dundee FC," it read.
"The board would like to put on record their appreciation of the positive contribution they have made."
The Dundee businessmen has witnessed turbulent times at Dens during their time on Tayside, with the club going into administration in November 2003.
Rumours say that an agreement with the club's bankers is due to be finalised which will secure Dundee's future.
The arrangement with the bank will also ensure that the club remains full-time.
Marr, who along with brother Jimmy, bought the club from Canadian businesman Ron Dixon nine years ago, has recently seen six of his companies go into receivership.
Despite the period of administration the Marr brothers are attributed with saving the club from closure

Dundee 0 Gretna 1, Dens Park, 11/March/07

"It's hard following the Dees as you don't which team will turn up. One game it's 11 footballers the next it looks like Billy Smart's circus has turned up. Today it was like watching a clown's car with all the bits falling off. The Gretna goal was a comedy of errors between MacKenzie and Roy. Dundee's penalty was such a poor effort by Davidson, this was a crucial time just before halftime. We had chances in the second half but simply couldn't hit the target. Gretna are no great shakes, but Dundee contrived through schoolboy errors to lose this game.Tell you one thing the centre-back partnership between MacKenzie and Smith doesn't inspire confidence when the rest of the team are playing poorly. They simply cannot cope with the added pressure. Last comments came from the crowd. As I left the ground everyone was saying how this was their last game this season. The news seconds later that MacKenzie won Man of the Match simply brought an ironic cheer. All round a very depressing day as there seems to be nothing left to cheer for the rest of the season." Post by Super Mac.( dundee supporter)
Well that sums up todays game at Dens, we missed Derek Lyle and in one of our few good moves Kevin McDonald should have burst the net, but he missed the goal altogether. We must improve on certain area's of the team.

Late News

It is understood former chief executive and majority share holder Peter Marr is to stand down from the Dens board in the coming weeks. Several companies owned by Marr and his brother Jimmy went into receivership last month.

Livingston 1 Dundee 3, Almondvale, 03/March/07

Dundee scored three times in the second half as they came from behind to stun Livingston at Almondvale. Livingston took the lead thanks to a 50-yard run from Graham Dorrans, who left two defenders in his wake, before slotting the ball past Ludovic Roy.Bob Davidson levelled from the penalty spot after the striker had been foolishly felled by Stuart Golabek. Davidson then volleyed in from a McHale cross, before Kevin McDonald rounded off the scoring with a 20 yard effort. It was a lot better than the last few weeks and we played well in the second half. It's also good that Bob Davidson got his first goals for the club, and my m.o.m was Kevin McDonald who had a great game capped with a fine goal. The only sour bit was the injury to Derek Lyle, but hopefully he will be fit for Sundays home game against Gretna.

Hamilton 1 Dundee 0, New Douglas Park, 24/Feb/07

Dundee lost 1-0 at Hamilton on Saturday, in what was another poor performance we just never got going. Alex Rae was back in the team with Kevin Smith upfront, the Accies were the better side for long spells. Hamilton scored in the first half from a free kick and the Hamilton striker scored with a free header. Into the second half and we struggled to string three passes together and the only two efforts on goal were Paul McHale's shot which just went over the bar, and a Derek Lyle header near the end. Hamilton seemed to be able to put our defence under pressure with ease. Another poor result for the Dark Blues and with Gretna losing we have missed a golden chance to close the gap. Only St.Johnstone can catch Gretna now!

Receivers called in to Marrs' businesses

Dundee F.C. owner Peter Marr moved swiftly today to stress the football club’s future remained secure despite six companies owned by him and his brother Jimmy being forced into receivership. Jobs in some of the Marrs’ other businesses are under threat after Glasgow accountants Krolls were appointed receivers for Justice Homes, Camperdown Construction, Demryan, Call-a-Keg, Marbelles Ltd and P & J Taverns.
P & J Taverns own the brothers’ majority shareholding in the football club, but today the Marrs insisted it would not be affected.
“I have already spoken to the receivers and they have said they have not been appointed to become involved in the club,” said Peter.
“I have been assured of that and this will not effect the day-to-day running of Dundee F.C. or the restructuring deal we are working on with the bank.”
While bankers HBOS are continuing to back plans for the football club, it was a withdrawal of their support for the six companies that led to today’s move.
And Peter Marr admitted the problems stemmed from moves to save the Dark Blues after they went into administration in November 2003 with debts of £23 million.
In order to keep the club afloat, the brothers had to provide personal guarantees running well into seven figures and that has put a huge burden on their other interests. Peter declined to put a figure on the debt, but all the companies now in receivership are in the red.
He, though, remains hopeful the threatened jobs will be saved and the businesses will be sold as going concerns.
“We were speaking to the bank and hoped to sort something out. That has not been possible, but I do not want to be critical of the bank. We have had to close Camperdown Construction’s site on the Perth Road, where we are building town houses, but I think something will be sorted out there.
“The other businesses are still operating normally and, while it is a matter for the receivers, I know they are looking to keep them open.”
Peter did express sympathy for those workers whose futures were now in doubt.
“I feel for them, but I really do believe Krolls should be able to save their jobs,” he said.
A spokesman for Krolls said, “The receivership of P & J Taverns does not affect Dundee Football Club as it is an entirely separate legal entity.”

Dundee 1 Clyde 4, Dens Park, 17/February/07

In what was the biggest shock score line in Scotland last Saturday, Dundee got well beaten by 4 goals to 1. We lost a goal after just 73 seconds, when a weak free kick went to the net, with keeper Ludovic Roy looking a bit slow. The whole defence struggled in the first half, and it was not a surprise when Clyde scored the second on 12 minutes, again a bad goal and it was 3-0 soon after when Bryson scored with a header. And the bully wee made it 4-0 seven minutes from halftime.
Into the second half and at least we did get efforts on target and sub Khalid Hamdaoudi scored 8 minutes from time. But we have to remember that Clyde had won the game in the first 40 minutes. And yes I did stay to the end of the game.

Latest From Dens.

Paul Dixon will miss Saturdays game against Clyde at Dens, due to the booking picked up against St.Johnstone. It looks like Bryan Deasley will need a operation to fix his long term ankle injury.
A statement from the club today about the future: “The directors of Dundee FC continue to work with Bank of Scotland on the restructuring of the club’s finances,” it read.
“This process has taken considerably longer than anticipated by either party, but there is commitment and goodwill from both sides to finalise matters in the shortest possible timeframe, although it is not possible at this time to place a date on the completion of the exercise.
“No insurmountable barriers are foreseen by either party — no further statement is anticipated until the exercise is concluded.”
Once the deal has been done it is expected Dundee will retain some debt, which will allow them to retain ownership of their major asset — Dens Park. Hopefully that will done in the next few months and before the start of next season.
Meanwhile, it was confirmed today that Bryan Deasley will require surgery to cure his ankle problem. The wee striker will undergo an operation tomorrow and won’t see action again this season.

Dundee 2 St.Johnstone 1, Dens Park, 10/Feb/07.

Dundee beat St.Johnstone 2-1 on Saturday to close the gap to 1 point, in the race for second place. In what was a dreadful day of weather Dundee played some excellent football on the deck, with the Perth saints using the long ball for most of the game. Saints had a great chance when they won a penalty in the first half, but their player took the kick too quickly and Ludovic Roy made a good save. I'm glad that he had a few saves before he faced the spot kick. 0-0 at halftime Saints scored on 55 minutes when after we hit the post, a big long ball, and for once Scotland got the better of McKenzie to round Roy to score.
At least we did not let our heads go down and got level when Swankie was pulled back in the box, and Derek Lyle scored with ease( well he made it look easy) Then as both teams going for a winner. Gavin Swankie scored a wonder goal, when he cut inside to chip the saints keeper from maybe 25 yards out, and send the home fans wild. We kept the ball well for the last few minutes to win this tayside derby.
I thought that Gavin Swankie had a great game and captain Paul McHale looks like the steal of the season. There was no failures in the home team and things are looking better for next season.

Latest News From Dens Park.

Dundee have a full squad to pick from for the game of the day in Scotland, when we entertain second place St.Johnstone at Dens Park. I think Alex Rae will make few changes to the side which won at Airdrie, but Bob Davidson might keep his place. I thought he played very well when he came on, and his link up play was excellent.

Police seeking missing sponsor

Police in Fife have confirmed they are hunting for a Kirkcaldy-based man who has disappeared allegedly owing Dundee and Raith Rovers football clubs an estimated £200,000. Ben Stevens (34), a Signatures4u.com director, is also alleged to have taken around £100,000 from his business partner, Carnoustie-born Craig Stewart, and £30,000 from an unnamed former Dundee player for a property deal.
Dundee FC has signed a one-year shirt sponsorship deal said to be worth £50,000 with the sports memorabilia firm, with the company having an option to extend that for a second year.

Dundee 3 Airdrie 0, Excelsior Stadium, 03/02/07

Dundee beat Airdrie 3-0 at the New Excelsior Stadium , in what was likely the best all round performance of the season. We took control of the game quickly and in Paul McHale we have a great looking signing. To the goals and the first one on 36 minutes when Derek Lyle scored with a shot on which the Airdrie keeper made a mess of. Letting the ball through his legs.
Into the second half and we scored twice in a four minute spell. first Scott Robertson played a good one two with Bob Davidson to run on and score, and Derek Lyle was put through to wrap up the game at 3-0.
A good days work and the signs are good for next season on this display. It also puts us up to third in the league and sets up Saturday's home game against second place St.Johnstone.

Craig Signs and Jay is Staying.................

Dundee have signed Montrose centre half Craig Higgins, the 21 year old started his career at Aberdeen and played for Stranraer last season. Also good news in Jay Sheilds is staying until the end of the season. Likely to leave tonight is captain Bobby Mann who is set to sign for Peterhead.

New signing Khalid Hamdaoui turned on the style as a Dundee side made up of youngsters bolstered by four trialists came from two down to draw 3-3 with a full strength home side in a closed door match at Stenhousemuir. Hamdaoui scored a brace, and was also involved in Dundee's other goal, scored by Bryan Deasley, the Dutchman also hit the post twice.

Ross County 0 Dundee 0, Victoria Park, 27/Jan/07 and Latest News.

Dundee returned from Dingwall with a hard-won point after a 0-0 draw, in a game which had few chances.Bob Davidson had the best chance for the visitors when he was put through on County keeper Craig Samson but the former Ranger shot wide.Best for Dundee on the day was Gary McKenzie.Dutch trialist Khalid Hamdouia was introduced as a second half substitute.

Dundee have signed Khalid Hamdaoui, the Dutchman having made a good impression in training and during a twenty minute substitute appearance as a trialist at Dingwall on Saturday. 25 year old Hamdaoui has signed until the end of the current season. He'll take part in a closed door match away from Dens on Tuesday evening and hoping to join him in earning a deal at Dens will be three other trialists, Togo international Didier Paass and Ghanaian Akwasi Okyere and another, as yet unnamed player.Ross Harris has joined Bobby Mann in asking for a transfer but although there's been interest in the players there's been no firm movement from other clubs and both players will remain available for selection while on Dundee's books.

Two More Trialists.

Dundee have Didier Paass on trial this week, the winger has been playing in Germany. Also former Ajax youngster Khalid Hamdaoui will arrive later in the week. Meanwhile Bobby Mann has been talking to two clubs, one it Hamilton and maybe SPL club (Dunfermline?)
Dundee are trying to fix up a friendly for the early part of next week so that manager Alex Rae can watch on-trial pair Khalid Hamdaoui and Didier Paass in match action. both have done well in training.Meanwhile, transfer-listed Dark Blues skipper Bobby Mann has turned down Hamilton Accies.
Dundee have a full squad to pick from for Saturday's game at Ross County, manager Alex Rae will have a few decisions to make.

Dundee 1 Queen of the South 0, Dens Park, 20/Jan/07

Dundee made it five wins in a row at Dens after winning 1 nil,the home record is now very good and if the away record was better we would be putting pressure on Gretna. It was also good that the three new signing all done well. Midfielder Paul McHale caught the eye and the two strikers will get better the more games they play. Derek Lyle scored the only goal just after halftime heading home a great Gavin Swankie cross, and he should have got his second but missed a sitter from 6 yards out. It was a good performance and one which we can build on.

Bobby Mann Asks For Tranfer.

Club Captain Bobby Mann has asked for a transfer and the club have granted his wish. He has been in and out of the team since Gary McKenzie regained his fitness. Rumour says he might be on his way to Peterhead, who are about to go fulltime.
Dundee will play Airdrie on Saturday 3rd of February, the game was called off last weekend due to a waterlogged pitch. Meanwhile Dundee have announced that Callum Macdonald and Graham Hay have been released from their contracts. Macdonald, who has recently been on loan at Peterhead, has joined The Blue Toon on a permanent deal.

Queen of the South 3 Dundee 3,aet (qos win 4-2 on pens) 16/Jan/07

Dundee were knocked out of the Scottish Cup last night at Palmerstone , the game ended 3-3 after extra time and The Doomhammers won 4-2 on penalties. Teamwise Bobby Mann was left on the bench along side Kevin McDonald. I missed the game due to my work So to the game: Dundee had fallen behind to a goal from Stephen Dobbie just before half time but rallied to equalise through Derek Lyle, before the same home player hit the target again, Deasley pulled Dundee level in 83 minutes. It looked all over when Sean O'Connor put the home side back in front with four minutes left but Lyle forced the ball home two minutes later to scenes of joy from the travelling fans. Onto the penalties, Paul Burns and Bobby Mann scored before Ludovic Roy saved Eric Paton's spot-kick. Derek Lyle then hit the post to level things up. Jim Thomson put Queens 2-1 ahead in the shoot out before Gary Smith's effort was saved by Corr. The attempts by Willie Gibson and Dundee's Paul Dixon were successful, leaving Neil Scally with the task of scoring to put his side into the 4th Round, where they will play Cowdenbeath at home.What I find strange is only one striker took a penalty, otherwise it was all defenders.

Deasley's New Deal and Cup Replay News.

Good news for Dundee fans the club has signed Bryan Deasley until June 2009, he had 18 month of his current deal left, but has added another year and on a better contract.
Newly fixed up Deasley will be back in the squad for tomorrow night’s Scottish Cup replay at QOS after recovering from hamstring trouble. And he will be joined on the trip to the borders by Kevin McDonald. He is over a groin problem. New signings Paul McHale, Kevin Smith and Rangers kid Bob Davidson are ineligible, but Gary Smith will be back in the squad now he’s free from suspension.

Tommy Coyne

Tommy Coyne's son is set to have a trial with Dundee this week, he played as a trialist for Stirling Albion on saturday. This was on their website:
'Coyne looked a useful player but the rumour is that he is going to Dundee for a trial so his signing for the Binos might be a long shot'
So time will tell if it's a rumour or not?

Warsaw and Krakow November 2006

MONDAY.
I left Cupar at 08:20 to travel down to Prestwick Airport via Edinburgh and Glasgow, all my trains were on time and l had plenty time to check in. The flight left in time and we were in Warsaw in no time. Weather wise it's much the same as Scotland-it's raining! I got a taxi to my hotel, which is in the centre and close to the railway station. I get booked in quickly and my room is a bit basic but does the job as I travel down to Krakow tomorrow morning.I go out for a few pints first in an Irish bar which is pretty empty, but the beer is going down well, and after two pints I move on to another bar, more local this time and I have a meal as well, which is very good. Then I find a student’s bar, which is selling large beers for half price, works out about 30 pence a litre. After a few more I head back to my hotel, got to be up early for the trip down to Krakow.
TUESDAY.
I get up around 07:30 quick shower and head for breakfast, a very good choice but no Porridge! Anyway times goes quickly and I head for the railway station for the 10:05, it's costs 90 zloty for a return journey. The train is on time and it's like the train from a Harry Potter film! But at least it's on time and we set off on a 3-hour journey, ten minutes into the journey and we get free coffee and a choc biscuit, you don't get that with First Rail! As we travel down through the countryside I notice that a lot of small farms are rebuilding their houses and farm outbuildings. A sign that money is coming back into the country, an other thing is between farms there does not seem to be fences. And all the fields are in strips, not what farmers do in this country. Any way time goes quickly and I arrive in Krakow at just after 13:30. Had a wee bit trouble finding my hotel, but got there in the end. It's much a better hotel (newer) than the one in Warsaw, and the room has a double bed and works out cheaper as well. I get my bag unpacked and head off a walk around Krakow, it looks a very nice place with a big main square and plenty shops and bars. I head up to the ticket office to find out how to get a ticket to go and see Auschwitz’s and the Salt mines. I get them okay and head off for a beer and a meal. I end up in a Georgian bar and have a chicken dish, which is very good and very spicy, with a big helping and side salad and potatoes, and very good value for just £9 and that includes tip and two beers. After that I go for a walk around the centre and end up in a bar/disco, which is in a cave. Where I meet some people from Wales who are having a guide show them the best pubs in Krakow, they ask me to join them and it turns out to a great night out, after a few bars we finish up in a pub The Dog in the Fog, where we try different strong polish vodka (very good) but has a good kick to them. The Welsh lads are heading back to Cardiff tomorrow and we all head back to our hotels at 01:20. I did sleep that night!
WEDNESDAY.
I get up for breakfast at 07:45, feeling okay after last night and head for breakfast, which went down very well. The bus for Auschwitz’s leaves at 09:10 and I get there in time, after a few pickups at a few hotels we set off, up over the hillside and it takes about one and a half hour, we get shown a film about the history of this dreadful place. We arrive and we are gathered in groups to get shown round. It seemed a very eerie place with no birds singing ect, and we get shown some of the conditions the prisoners had to live in, then some of the torture chambers (I won't go into detail) but everybody should go and see it for themselves, as it should never be forgotten. After a small break we go up and see the other camp Birkenau, which was more a death camp for most of the poor people who would only survive around 6 months if they were lucky, it's just the sheer size of this camp which struck me, and they had to live in huts which the army used to keep their horses in.It only happened 60 years ago and should never be forgotten, on our bus there was a mixture of young and old. One man said to me it was his third trip here and he said it was not getting easier at each visit. We had a small break before heading back to Krakow, getting back around 17:00. I went for a McDonald's meal and after that head off to a Milk Bar for a few pints! Real milk I had a Banana milk shake and then a Strawberry one. It was a fine change from Lager (I should have had a meal here) they looked good. After that I go back to my hotel and get changed, then go out for a few pints, this time I end up in a English style pub and it's full of workers from Britain. I met a few lads from Glasgow and we have a few beers, then I had a late meal around 21:00. After that I head off to a bar near my hotel, it's one the locals use and it's very old. The beer is going down well and after a few it's time to head to my hotel. Going to see the salt mines tomorrow plus travel back up to Warsaw.
THURSDAY.
Get up early for breakfast and my hotel say they will keep my bag safe until I get back. We leave for the salt mines at the same time as yesterday, it’s only half a day trip and it goes quickly. It’s a long way down to the mine four hundred steps, some the things that they have done is breath taking (I only wish is that I took) my camera with me. At least at the other end you get a lift back up a lot easier. The day goes quickly and after a quick coffee it’s back on the bus to Krakow and back to my hotel. I have some time to spare and manage to get a Wisla Krakow top (149 zloty=£27) in the big shopping centre next to the railway station. Anyway I got the 15:00 train back to Warsaw and it arrives on time, booked into my hotel, which is the same chain as the one in Krakow. After a quick shower I head off to see a bit of Warsaw, the traffic is a bit mad with trams, buses, and cars going in all directions. To cross the road you have to go underground and it’s easy to get lost as there are routes going all over the place. I did get a tram to see a bit, but it’s getting too late and I don’t want to get lost on my last night in Poland! I go for a polish meal just to get a feel of the local dishes. And I start with Pieczarek (soup), then Kurczakiem (Chicken) and finish with Sernik (cheesecake) washed down with two large Zywiec beers. Totally stuffed I head up to a local bar near my hotel and it’s like it’s never changed since the 1920’s, I’m sure the fish in the tank is that old! After a few beers I head back up to my hotel. Going home after breakfast.
FRIDAY.
Up early and I pack my bag before going down for breakfast, it’s the best on this trip and the choice is just first class. After that pay my bill and get a taxi to the airport for my flight home, it all goes quickly and before I know it I’m back in Scotland, I get the train back to Cupar via Glasgow/Edinburgh arriving home at 18:00, a bit tired but I have had a good few days away and must say the Polish people are very friendly and went out of their way to help you.
Footnote for Tommy and Harry.
If you get drunk and get lifted you have to spend the night in the drunk tank (jail) and wear blue pyjamas, and then pay 250 zloty to get out. I never saw anyone totally drunk on this trip (not even) myself!

Dundee game off, and we sign Bob Davidson.

Dundee have signed striker Bob Davidson on a 18 month deal, he has been at Rangers for 3 years. He was on loan to Boston United at the start of the season, but injury cut that short. That's three players in and if we can add two more Then 'the future is looking dark blue' for our football club.

Tomorrow's game at Airdrie United is called off due to a waterlogged pitch.

Latest News From Dens.

Dundee have completed the signing of Clyde captain Paul McHale. The Dens Park side had earlier agreed a pre-contract deal to sign the midfielder, 25, in the summer. But the Scottish First Division side have successfully negotiated his early release and he is expected to make his debut against Airdrie on Saturday. Dundee boss Alex Rae said the club have also signed former Aberdeen defender Gary Smith after his successful loan spell from Cowdenbeath. Smith has signed a deal until the end of the season after being released by the Second Division side.

Alex Rae is also trying to sign up on loan Jay Sheilds for the rest of the season. Other new signing Kevin Smith should make his debut as well.

Dundee Sign Kevin Smith.

Dundee have signed Sunderland striker Kevin Smith on loan, until the end of the season. The club tried to sign him at the start of the season, but the move was blocked. With Anthony Stokes signing for Sunderland has helped.He goes into the squad for this weeks game at Airdrie United. Meanwhile Kevin McDonald and Bryan Deasley have a good chance to be back this Saturday. Alex Rae is talking to two other players, believed to Rangers pair Bob Davidson and Brian Gilmore. We also set to offer Clyde's left back Eddie Malone a deal.

Dundee 1 Queen of the South 1, Dens Park, 06/Jan/07

Dundee could only draw 1-1 with Queeen of the South at Dens on Saturday in the 3rd Round of the Scottish Cup tie. With only twelve fit players to pick from. Alex Rae even had to play upfront. We started brightly and had a few chances but Queen's keeper was in fine form. We did score on the 38th minute when Derek Lyle scored with a header from a Paul Dixon cross. But Queen of the South scored with the last kick of the ball of the first-half.
We again started well in the second half and had a few chances. But the Doomhammers came back into it and Ludovic Roy had a few good saves. We then lost Gavin Swankie to injury and Alex Rae also came off for Brian Clark and striker Robert Campbell. In the closing stages Clark just about scored from 20 yards out but a Queen's defender cleared off the line.
So the replay will be a week on Tuesday, and if we get through we will play Brechin City or Cowdenbeath at home in the 4th Round.

v Queen of the South, Dens Park, Scottish Cup 3rd Rd.

Derek Lyle might make tomorrow's game against Queen of the South, after going down with flu. He has also signed a new deal that keeps him at dens until the end of next season. Meanwhile Kevin McDonald and Gavin Swankie are still struggling to make it.
Hopefully we can win tomorrow and start a Scottish Cup run.

Dundee Sign Paul McHale.

Dundee pulled off a signing coup today by securing the services of Clyde skipper Paul McHale for next season — and work to get the midfielder for the rest of this season is ongoing.
The 25-year-old has signed a pre-contract agreement that confirms his arrival at Dens Park on a one-year deal during the summer. Alex Rae is also talking to two other players, and hope to bring them in before Saturday's game.

v Livingston, Dens Park, 02/Jan/07

A second-half surge by Dundee saw them get the new year boost they desired as they beat Livingston at Dens Park. The visitors should have led after an enterprising first-half showing.
But, when a Ross Harris shot was parried by goalkeeper Craig Wight, the ball rebounded into the net off the back of the unfortunate David Mackay. And Scott Robertson sealed Dundee's better second-half display eight minutes from time with a well-struck volley from a Bryan Deasley cross. that's Four home wins on the trot for Alex Rae's Dark Blues.
Looks like their will be no new faces in time for tomorrow's home game v Livingston. Striker Gavin Swankie should return after injury made him miss the trip to Gretna.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to Family, Friends and all who follow Dundee F.C . Lets make 2007 a better year all round.

We play Livingston on Tuesday and let's hope we get a great result to start the New Year. My English team Oldham are going great guns and thumped Notts Forest 5-0 at Boundary Park and now sit second in the table. Mon Latics let's go for it. And they play Wolves on Saturday in the F.A Cup. A big test for The Latics.

Partick Thistle and Gretna Games.

Dundee beat Partick Thistle 3-1 at Dens, in what was a very good performance. To the game and Partick scored in the first few minutes after some slack play closing down.Allowed Young to net with the help of a big deflection. But we came back and great play from Swankie and Lyle, and Deasley scored with a cool lob. Not long after and a great defence splitting pass to Lyle who's shot was saved by the keeper, but Deasley followed up to make it 2-1. That was the score at half-time. The second half was mainly all Dundee and only some good saves stopped up running riot. We did get a third when Rae and Lyle set Swankie away and he scored the killer third to seal the points.
So in the end a good 3 points and should set us up for the trip to Gretna on Saturday.
I missed the game at Gretna due to having the Flu.We lost 1-0 and by reports we did not play too well. I also see that Bobby Mann was left out and Gary Smith came back after injury. Lets hope that we can get a cup run going and finish up the league a bit before the end of the season, and Manager Alex Rae can bring in the right players this Month.

Statement From The Club.

Following the disciplinary problems at Clyde FC on the 16th of December regarding our player Andy McLaren, the Club and the player have held frank and open discussions regarding the matter, and it has been mutually agreed to terminate Andy McLaren’s contract forthwith. Whilst the Club won’t condone such indiscipline, it does though respect the player’s willingness to accept that his actions have brought the Club into disrepute, and we sincerely wish him well for the future.

Clyde 2 Dundee 1, Broadwood, 16/Dec/06

In what was a vital game for both clubs, Dundee again lost away from home. In a tight first half Clyde scored on 35 minutes when poor defending let Arbuckle to score from 8 yards. Worse was to follow when Jay Shields gave away a penalty and it was 2-0 at the break.

Dundee tried hard to get back into the game in the second half, but like so many times this season we can't play the simple ball. We did get a wee lifeline with 5 minutes to go , Alex Rae was fouled in the box and Gavin Swankie made it 2-1. What was to follow was total madness from Andy McLaren, he first got booked when he tangled with the goalkeeper, then got send off after clashing with Eddie Malone, then got a second red card in the tunnel after the linesman spotted Andy punching a Clyde player when leaving the pitch. Then he got a third Red Card for kicking a hole in the Ref's door.

Andy might not play for the club again and he will get hammered by the league. Dundee will decide Andy's fate on Wednesday.

Rumors

Rumors have been circulating around Arbroath websites that Dundee are interested in signing Bryan Scott in the summer when he is a free agent. Bryan signed for Arbroath in the summer and before signing for Arbroath, he played for junior side, Scone Thistle. He is a striker and in his first game for Arbroath against Queen's Park at Hampden, he scored 2 and set up 1.
Bryan is quite tall, at a height of 5 foot 11 inches and has scored 5 goals for Arbroath so far this season and has also picked up 5 yellow cards.
He will be a free agent in the summer when it is understood Dundee intend to sign him. A couple of Arbroath sites have suggested this move may happen but only time can tell.

Perth and The Build-up for Clyde

Dundee lost 2-1 at Perth on Saturday, losing two soft goals in the first half. Gavin Swankie scored a good goal in between. We changed things in the second half and pushed the Saints back and Derek Lyle should have scored, after a great flowing move. Jay Shields played the second half and looked very much the part.
Czech trialist Ondrej Novotny scored on his debut for Dundee in a bounce game against city rivals Dundee United, we won the game 3-2 and Alex rae had 7 trialists in his squad. Gary McKenzie scored as well, the young defender is on his comeback after being injured for the last two and a half months.
Former Dundee midfielder Darren Magee has been found dead at his parents’ home in Glasgow. My thoughs are with his family.

Dundee's Tennent's Scottish Cup cup tie v Queen of the South will be played on Saturday 6 January 2007. Dundee United will play on the Sunday. Great I can have a beer now.
Brian McGinty will return to St.Mirren after his latest injury, the on loan striker has not been able to play enough games to really impress.

Novotny impresses in Dens trial

CZECH TRIALIST Ondrej Novotny made a promising initial impression on Dundee yesterday, scoring for them in a 3-2 win over neighbours Dundee United in a hastily arranged bounce game at Dens Park.
And the 18-year-old FK Jablonec front man last night revealed his hopes of following fellow countryman Jiri Jarosik and Libor Sionko into the SPL.
“I’ve watched Jiri Jarosik since he came to Scotland,” said Novotny, who hopes to join the Dark Blues on loan for the remainder of the season. “I saw him play very well against Man United in the Champions League when Celtic won and that tells me that Scotland is a very good place to come and play and, of course, I would like to.
“Jarosik is quite a big name in Czech football—maybe not as big as Pavel Nedved—but he’s still well known having played in the Premiership and now at a big club like Celtic.
“There is obviously Libor Sionko as well at Rangers who scored for them in their last game.
“What I’ve noticed about Scottish football is that it’s very fast, physical and there’s a lot of hard tackles.
“But I like that style of play. I think I could handle it and it would make me a bigger, stronger player.
“That was what struck me after watching the St Johnstone v Dundee game last weekend.
“I enjoyed the game against Dundee United. It was competitive like all derbies and that’s something I like.
“I’m here on trial until Sunday so we’ll wait and see what happens after that. It will be up to my club and Dundee if something is going to happen.”
The friendly was put together after United’s planned reserve fixture with St Mirren and a closed doors game the Dark Blues had organised at Stirling Albion fell victim of the weather.
Meanwhile, news that Steve Tosh is being released by Gretna has provoked interest at Dens

St.Johnstone Build-up.

Meanwhile Brian McGinty will miss Saturday's trip to Perth after injuring his hamstring again and Jon Boggan has went down with a unknown bug. Alex Rae is hoping Gavin Swankie and Brian Griffin will be fit.

Meanwhile, fellow centre-half Greg Strong is mulling over an offer to extend his stay at Dens.The former Livi man’s contract expires at the end of the year and the Dark Blues would like him to extend that deal until the end of the season.However, while Strong has admitted he is enjoying himself at the club, he has asked for a week to weigh up his options before giving an answer.

Gavin Swankie, Danny Griffin and Jon Boggan should be fit for this weekend, it's great that Alex Rae has just about a full squad to pick from.

Dundee's Callum McDonald has joined Peterhead on loan until middle of January. Coming to Dens on loan is Hibs youngster Jay Shields, his brother Dene plays for Gretna.

Dark Blues line up Czech duo

Dundee are to welcome two highly-rated young players from the Czech Republic to Dens next week with a view to possibly taking the pair on loan for the remainder of the campaign.
Dark Blues chief executive Dave MacKinnon has struck a deal with Czech side Jablonec which will see striker Ondrej Novotny (18) and midfielder Pavel Patka (19) arrive at the club on Monday, along with a coach.
“They are coming over for a week to see what they think of us and we think of them and if everything is okay we’ll hopefully arrange to keep them here on loan for the rest of the season,’’ said MacKinnon.
“Both players are keen to come to Scotland because they believe that will assist their development and we feel this is definitely an avenue worth exploring.’’

Dundee 3 Ross County 1, Dens Park, 2-December-06

Dundee came back to beat Ross County on Saturday, in what was a game we should have won in the first half. It was well into the second half when Robertson put County ahead against the run of play. Robert Campbell did hit the post with a good strike.But in the final 15 minutes we scored 3 times, the first when player-boss Alex Rae finished with a well placed shot from the edge of the box, then a few minutes later Derek Lyle pounced on a mistake by County keeper Samson to put us 2-1 up. And then Andy McLaren scored the goal of the game running onto a long ball from our keeper Ludovic Roy taking a great first touch and cooly scoring with a classic strike. Kevin Mcdonald should have made it 4-1 right on time but put the ball over the bar from a great position.
A great 3 points and good as Gavin Swankie, Danny Griffin did not play.

Ross County Build-up

Ludovic Roy missed training yesterday but only because it was indoors. Derek Lyle has a stiff neck but should be okay for Saturday's game.Meanwhile Alex Rae will be in England tomorrow night to watch transfer targets for the January window.
Dundee hope to announce good news in two weeks time about the future of the club, in the first time in a decade we are set to break even this season. The debt will likely be around £8 million, they say it won't affect football matters.
Also Alex Rae says that midfielder Jon Boggan will get his chance in the next few weeks, it's about time he was given a chance.

Brian McGinty will likely miss the the game, but Danny Griffin and Ludovic Roy should be fit.

Brian McGinty and Ross Harris have been added to the squad for this weekend's game, only Andy McLaren will miss out.

Dundee 1 Airdrie 0, Dens Park, 25/Nov/06

Dundee won 1-0 on Saturday, thanks to a 37th minutes debut goal from Gary Smith, he headed home after a Gavin Swankie corner which was headed on by Bobby Mann.In what was a poor first half we could have scored just after when Derek Lyle put one over the ball from 3 yards out. Into the second half we played quite well but we could not add with Robert Campbell missing a sitter from 6 yards. Airdrie did have chances as well and hit the bar twice. But we must be happy with the result and it keeps us close to the top.

Airdrie Build Up

Gary McKenzie played for 1 hour for the reserves on Monday night, it will be two weeks before Gary can get his match fitness up.Brian McGinty and Ross Harris will both miss tomorrow's game due to injuries, Gary Smith is poised to start his first game he came on as a sub last week at Dumfries.
Legend 1970's striker Billy Pirie will make the draw at half-time as part of ' the Ure Dundee ' there is prizes for people who donated to the fund. Which now stands at £152,000.
Bobby Mann says we have to be positive for tomorrow's game and close the gap at the top of the league which stands at 10 points.

Queen of the South 2 Dundee 0, League, 18/Nov/06

Left Cupar on the 09:52 Virgin train to Carlisle getting there at 12:10, got the connection for Dumfries at 12:18 arriving at 12:55. So everything so far is on time at a cost of £36.60 I would hope so. Made my way to The Spread Eagle pub for a few prematch pints, there is a few Dundee fans in and times goes quickly. I meet up with Neil and Russell and we head for the game.
Dundee start brightly in the first 10 minutes, but we can't find that cutting edge and we look to be control when we give away a soft penalty, Greg Strong letting Weir get past him and Ludovic Roy brought him down, John O'Neil scored with ease, into the second half and after just 3 minutes Alex Rae made a mess of a pass and Weir ran onto it and played in O'Neil to cooly beat Roy to get his second goal.
After that Gary Smith came on in place of Strong, and later on Mclaren and deasley both came on, but we can't play our way back into it. The final whistle sounds and it's another 3 points lost on the road. My man of the match goes to Scott Robertson who put in a lot of effort today.
We head back to The Spread Eagle pub to get final scores ect, with St.Johnstone getting beat it makes the result even worse, we then head off to have a pint in The Hole in Wall and The Globe pubs. We get the 18:30 train back to Glasgow Central arriving at 20:27, then I get the 21:00 train to Edinburgh then finally the 22:38 train back to Cupar at 23:35.
A long day with all the travelling I just hope we can start getting some results to reward the loyal dundee away fans.

Dundee Sign Gary Smith

Chief Executive Dave Mackinnon confirmed this afternoon that experienced former Aberdeen and Hibs defender Gary Smith will arrive at Dens on a loan deal until January. Gary is currently with Cowdenbeath who he joined after leaving Hibs at the end of last season.
He will certainly help our squad and he can play right across the back four, he might make his debut at Queen of the South this Saturday.

Livingston 2 Dundee 3, 11/Nov/06

Dundee beat Livi 3-2 in what was our first ever win at Almondale, Gavin Swankie scored in 16 minutes to give us the lead with a low shot.That was the half-time score Livingston got level in 48 minutes when Ross Harris scored a own goal, but he made up for his mistake in 63 minutes setting up Derek Lyle put us ahead.Gavin Swankie scored to make it 3-1 with a volley, Livi did score in injury time when Liam Fox netted.
It was a debut for young Craig Forsyth who filled in for paul Dixon and done well for someone so young, his dad Stewart played for Dundee in the 1980's.

Dundee 1 Gretna 3, 04/Nov/06

Dundee lost 3-1 to Gretna on Saturday, we took the lead when Brian McGinty scored his first goal for the club with a good finish to a flowing move. Then Gretna got a soft looking penalty the refs are not giving us much this season so far! Into the second half and we start to gain the upper hand, but Andy McLaren got himself sent off getting booked twice for dissent. He should know better and Gretna scored two late goals to win the game. Kevin McDonald got a broken nose and Paul Dixon took a hard tackle but hopefully both will be fit for Saturday's game at Livingston.

Memories From Perugia (Dundee Fan's)

From Chico 62: Just a wee gem from the Perugia trip which still makes me smile. I travelled with my father, amongst many others (from the Perth 62 Club), and had a great time, despite the score.The day after the match we travelled back to Rome and thought we should do the tourist sights before flying back. So, we got the bus trip around the sights and stopped off at the Colloseum where we were approached by some guy trying to flog us guided tours which we were not interested in. His efforts to engage us in conversation included him spotting the Dundee shirts and scarves and saying, "Ah, you football fans ?" To which we replied, "Aye, Dundee." His response was, "Ah, Dundee United - good team." Now, after watching our beloved Dark Blues get beat (the dream was over), and being very tired having been up drinking till late, this was not something we were too keen to continue. So, my father's response ? "No, DUNDEE, now F*** OFF !"Absolutely brilliant ! Even into his 70s, you can't take the Dee out of a True Dee !

From Stoo: My trip to Italy was a bit of a nightmare. I lived in Dublin at the time and so travelled alone to Italy, flying via Stansted to Pisa (I wasn't aware Ryanair flew to Ancona, which is closer) then getting the train to Perugia and planning on meeting up with my cousin the next day. I will always remember the sheer number of Dees in Stansted airport, including a thought of how unwise some people were to wear a t-shirt that said "peh eating, arab hating, dee til eh deh" on the back.I got to Pisa and with my pidgin italian managed to get directions to the Tower, then I made my way by bus to the train station and got shouted at by my angry bus driver. After getting on the wrong train, thanks to communication problems with the advisor on the platform, I changed in Firenze and continued on to Perugia, being fined on the train for not stamping my ticket in those little orange box thingies. After queuing ages for a taxi at the station I got fleeced by the taxi driver before arriving at my hotel, where we received a more-than-friendly welcome, only to realise that I'd forgotten to buy an adaptor so I could recharge my phone, and it was almost completely dead. I had something to eat in the hotel and went to bed, thankful for getting to my hotel after the journey from hell.The day of the game was only marginally better. As my phone was dead I managed to leave a message for my cousin to this effect and that I was likely to be incommunicado. Once in town I followed the singing to the city square, sorry, piazza, where I saw a few familiar faces. We got our bus tickets for the trip out to the game and I bumped into my cousin before enjoying a few pre-match pints with him and his friends before taking a rather entertaining journey out to the stadium. Once there I was glad I brought my fleece, although I made the mistake of lending it to my cousin who hogged it for the entire match leaving me to freeze with only a wafer thin saltire to wrap around myself. We were subsequently locked in the stadium for a bit before being allowed to board our buses back to the city centre, only to find that all public transport ceased at 8.30PM and I was stranded (my hotel was on the outskirts of the city). So, I started walking, and after what seemed like an eternity later hung around outside a hotel for a while before flagging down one of the 30 or so (reportedly) taxis within Perugia. That taxi driver must've thought it was his birthday as he got a big fat tip because I was so relieved to get home.The next day I travelled to Rome to spend 2 nights there, and had another nightmare journey, before enjoying a full day whizzing around the place and seeing all the sights of Rome using the excellent Metro system. I flew back to Dublin the next day and was never so glad to get back there.Saying that, I wouldn't have changed it for the world, as I got to see my beloved team play on foreign soil in the UEFA Cup against a Serie A side. Happy days. I remember little about the game other than the fact that we got beat 1-0 (3-1 on agg) and it wasn't much of a spectacle. I've still got my intact spare ticket for the game as I ended up with two. It might be worth soi was in Perugia to see the Dees and had a brilliant time. we made it into a holiday actually, think we were there for about a week. stayed in a cottage about an hour outside of Perugia, think it was called Matingnania or something. the town nearby was weird hardly anything there and was alwyas pretty quiet.we went up to Perugia most days to checl things out. i met Fabritzio Ravenelli and Gio De Stefano, got my photo takin with Ravenelli still got it on my comuter and show it to anyone who comes round. day before the game we went to the stadium and because i had Dundee top on two reporters from the local press came and spoke to us. asked us prediction for the score and who our favourite players was etc( at the time i believe i had N.Novo on the back of my top) next day we bought the paper (called il GIORNALE dell' UMBRIA) and there we were on page 40 wth the headline La vacabza-ultra dei Campbell which i think means something like the ultimate vacation for the Campbells. was quite a big article and had us telling them all about our holiday, the teams and how Italians are mental drivers.still think we could have beaten Perugia that night, if we had taken our chances who knows. was absolutly freezing that night so a goal would have been good so we could have jumped around a bit to ehat up.doesn't feel like 3 years ago and its sad to see how much times have changed for the dees, hopefully one day we can get back to the standard of football that got us into the Uefa Cup.mething some day.

From Hill4life:i was in Perugia to see the Dees and had a brilliant time. we made it into a holiday actually, think we were there for about a week. stayed in a cottage about an hour outside of Perugia, think it was called Matingnania or something. the town nearby was weird hardly anything there and was alwyas pretty quiet.we went up to Perugia most days to checl things out. i met Fabritzio Ravenelli and Gio De Stefano, got my photo takin with Ravenelli still got it on my comuter and show it to anyone who comes round. day before the game we went to the stadium and because i had Dundee top on two reporters from the local press came and spoke to us. asked us prediction for the score and who our favourite players was etc( at the time i believe i had N.Novo on the back of my top) next day we bought the paper (called il GIORNALE dell' UMBRIA) and there we were on page 40 wth the headline La vacabza-ultra dei Campbell which i think means something like the ultimate vacation for the Campbells. was quite a big article and had us telling them all about our holiday, the teams and how Italians are mental drivers.still think we could have beaten Perugia that night, if we had taken our chances who knows. was absolutly freezing that night so a goal would have been good so we could have jumped around a bit to ehat up.doesn't feel like 3 years ago and its sad to see how much times have changed for the dees, hopefully one day we can get back to the standard of football that got us into the Uefa Cup.

FromTayzurri:My memories,back early from Majorca family holiday to Prestwick,Stansted cold floors, gun totting copsflight to PisaLeaning Tower of Pisa,Dodgy Mini bus to Perugia arranged by Helen ??? Irish womanHotelPizza, Peroni, ****ing in closeys, pipersMarching, singing on buses,queing, baltic crap terracing, singing our hearts out too early,giant aussie keeper & sara fighting,riot police, waiting for burning terracing at home end to go outRun back to station, hotel, beer, bus to PisaLeaning Tower of Pisa (again)Stansted,PrestwickHome knackered after 48 hours with about 4 hours sleep - brilliant.Great memories - would love to it again.RegardsTayzurri

From tilly_dee:Woman with child in buggy was on my bus, god knows how she managed it.My trip with my father & son started at Prestwick, flying to Rome. Car was hired from there, drove to Perugia (nightmare !!! Dad thought he would have to change his underpants half way there, as we converged with a huge lorry at one of the tolls) Arrived in Perugia, on the day of the game with no hotel booked, but luckily first one we tried managed to accomodate us.Walked up to town, met the Dundee hordes sang with Gio outside the teams hotel. Went to game on those buses, remember being frozen even with fleece. Back to hotel to drown sorrows, realised there were many more supporters booked in, drank the bar dry.Back to Rome follwing morning, done the sigtseeing bit with the tour on the bus and back to Stanstead that evening. Stayed in Travelodge and flew back to Prestwick following morning.Would not have missed my first venture oversea's with Dundee F.C for anything. Oh for these times again.

Gretna at Dens on Saturday

Dundee might give new signing Jon Boggan a start place for Saturday's vital home game against Gretna, in a game we must win after last Saturday's setback at Firhill. Jon done well on Tuesday's night closed door friendly against Stirling Albion the game ended 3-3.
Hopefully Ludovic Roy will be fit to play, he trained on Thursday, which hopefully is a good sign.

Partick Th 3 Dundee 1, Firhill, 28/Oct/06

Got the 10:19 train to Glasgow, getting there at 12:00. Then got the underground up to St Georges Cross and made my way to Munn's Vaults where I had a few pints with the Glasgow Dee's. Time passed quickly and it was time to go to the game. I met Vic and Nicky in the ground they had been shopping and left Dundee at 07:30.
To the game and we start well and we could have taken the lead, but against the run of play and Thistle took the lead with a well taken goal. Poor from our point of veiw as we did not close them down quick enough. The Alex Rae got booked for dissent. Then not long after that Alex Rae made a great run and from 18 yards he levelled the game at 1-1. Then after celebrating too much the ref booked Alex again and off he went. Then just before half time Thistle scored from a corner, but it did look like a corner and again poor marking.
Into the second half and we again look good and in control and only a great save from the Thistle keeper stopped Andy McLaren from scoring with a clever lob. But with about 20 minutes to go and the ref gave Partick a soft looking penalty and that was the end of the game for us.
Bryan Deasley came on and at least he got a run out.
After the game I went back to Munn's Vault and had a few beers with the Glasgow Dees and a few from the Aberdeen Branch. A good day out and the only down point was the score.I left Maryhill around 19:30 getting home to Cupar at 21:30.

Ian Rae's View on Vllaznia

I set off on Wednesday morning from home & parked in my office car park in Edinburgh Park. A pre-ordered taxi turned up to take me to the airport. The taxi driver – who claimed to be a Hearts fan – didn’t recognise my Magners top & thought I was off to watch Celtic play! I’d have thought the kilt would have made him realise that I was following a Scottish (not Irish) team. Still I was in too good a humour to mention 1986 and all that!

On arrival at the airport, there were a few TV cameras – who I coolly tried to ignore as I collected my ticket – from Dave (come on the Dens) the tour operator. I have to admit that the whole airport thing was a bit weird. For example, I’d decided that a good breakfast was a sound plan (with all the beers likely to be getting drunk soon), so I approached the checkout with a plate of food – only to be passed by Jim Duffy. “Morning boss” was all I could think of!

Through departures I met up with some more dees – the web site editor, Kenny (I think) from the Aberdeen Dark Blues – who’s writing a book on the championship season – and more. It was a pleasant surprise to order a pint of Caledonian 80 at the bar for £1.65 or something – do they really sell beer that cheep in Edinburgh Airport departures all the time?

Then to the plane. We were slightly behind schedule at this time – I think the plane was a little late turning up – but we all got on. Out came the bar first – which was quickly emptied. The players – up at the front of the plane – were first to be server – with a tray of chilled water. Quite right too – we were drinking for them!

Immigration at Tirana airport was pretty straight-forward (compared to some places I’ve been). Whilst in the queue for passport control – I heard a shout from behind – and turned around to see Deeko – the other Glasgow Dee who’d made the trip. Deeko had travelled over with his brother (Colin) via Heathrow and Budapest. His impeccable sense of timing meant that he got to share the bus back to the Sheraton with the rest of us. Meanwhile the team bus had headed up to be closer to the Shkodra, apparently they’d hired some villa close to the ground. Which, considering the journey up there, was a very good idea.

The Sheraton, however, was an excellent base. Excellent outdoor pool, with beer on service, and a relaxing bar inside. However, I reckoned the beer was probably more expensive than outside. So after a quick couple in the Sheraton, Deeko, Colin, Billy (Ferrari’s, Cupar Fife) and Gary (Cupar Angus, Perth 62) and I headed out into town.

It was sunset at this time, though as will later be explained, it was all I really saw of Tirana by foot in daylight! The central area – right next to Deeko’s hotel – was pretty busy during the day, but thee appeared to be no traffic lights or give way. Basically the rule seemed to seemed to be whichever vehicle or person got into that place of road had “right of way”.

Deeko and Colin hung their scarves out of their window – “claiming” another hotel for the dark blues. And off we went in search of food, after another beer, of course. We ended up eating around the corner, in a place just off the main street. The food was pretty good, and most waiters understood English (“beer”) or German or Italian. Here we were reminded of the fact that local kids are always trying to sell you cigarettes. We were sitting outside, right next to the pavement, and the kids could just walk up and offer fags. Colin decided that he wanted some cigarette papers (skins) so we tried to ask the kids, miming rolling a cigarette. We thought we were not making any progress, as they seemed to disappear. It was a complete surprise when they re-appeared holding what seemed to be 20-40 big fat joints (you know, the cone shaped kind. Call me an old square – but I did not fancy trying one to find out what it was.

It’s worth also mentioning that the people were super friendly, and the local ladies just as beautiful as you might find in Glasgow, Dundee or Nice! (Says he trying to be politically correct!).

The rest of the night we spent wandering around. There was the bar where the student from London wouldn’t serenade us with her fiddle. The nightclub that switched the music on when we arrived and I had an apologetic conversation with the staff in terrible German. There was the huge out-door bar with a video screen playing the Fashion Channel (I think) or something like that!

Around the area from the main square back to the Sheraton were a lot of ministry buildings. Apparently this part of town, which also contained the biggest villas, used to be a closed area private to Communist Party members. Anyway, the ministry buildings seemed to be very important, and most were guarded by the military (complete with guns). However the guards were very friendly and directed us towards bars and nightclubs. I think we maybe even got a photo with one of them. Throughout this “pub crawl”, of course, we were always bumping into one bunch of Dundee fans or another.

And so it came that we ended up in the Cowboy bar. When we arrived there were a bunch of dees sitting outside, and more in-side singing. We tried to sing outside, but being a residential area, we were ushered in side where we could make as much noise as we wanted. The DJ helped out by playing as many good songs as he could (Oasis, Hey Jude, etc). When he played songs that we couldn’t sing along to we typically would drown out the music with a quick chorus of “Cheer up, Ian McCall”.

I’d lost track of time at this point – I suspect that it was close to 1 when we arrived, but is was around 4:30 before I got to my bed, so I’ve no idea how many beers I had in the Cowboy bar. I do remember some Tequila appearing & participating in a round. Probably a bad idea looking back on it.

And so it was to prove the next morning., I got up in time for breakfast (10:30) but just kind of looked at it. The good news was that we didn’t have to check out until the bus came at 1. So back to bed I went until it was time for the bus.
This was a rough bus journey & I’m not talking about the road. It was only eventually, after maybe an hour and a half on the bus, that I started to recover. Funnily enough shortly after when the road took a turn for the worst. Eventually we stopped for a break that meant that I got some much-needed fresh air. Being a football bus, we also stopped at this pub – the owner must have thought it was his lucky day – and the kilts were getting a lot of respect from the passing locals.

There was supposed to be a police escort in, but it took too long for the boys in the pub to get back in the bus, so the police left with the other bus. We were dropped right at the ground and tickets were handed out.

At this point, having not had breakfast, Gary and myself set out to find something to eat. We sat at the most likely place and asked for something to eat. With some difficulty we realised “yes, what do you want” was the reply. No menu. So was asked in hope for pizza, chips, and the guy seemed to indicate that he had some meat. Reluctantly (and hungrily) we agreed. The meat was a kind of soup – well meat cooked in a pot with some stock cubes. Still another waiter (in Liverpool) top came out and chatted to us, so we also got a plate of chips & the guy at the next table bought us beer! Not that we needed the money.

On the way back to the ground we met up with a crowd of Dundee fans and sat serenading the locals on their way to the ground. We set off in good time for the game (maybe in around 40 minutes before kick-off). The plan was to have time to hang up the flags. However, we were in a small part of the ground – with no open terrace nearby. There were already a few flags flying behind the goal – so I tried to get to the front, to climb over – no go. Around the back – again the police weren’t letting me past. So again I tried down the front, desperately trying to explain what I wanted and was told to go around the back (that’s right out the gate, & around the outside). Which I did: explaining my self all the way. I had to stop another police dude to knock on the back door of the ground to let me in to hang up the flag. All while the team warmed up. And the way back was not easy either – even at the gate when, thankfully, one of the stewards recognised me as having passed out 5 minutes earlier.

Just to complete the story of the flag. At the end of the game, when we were kept in for 20 minutes, or so, this troop carrier – standing behind the goal – turned away from in front of the flags and headed as if to leave. It stopped and one of the soldiers climbed out of the cab and un-tied our flag. We thought this was more helpful Albanian hospitality (maybe he’ll bring it over) until the soldier folded it up and made for the cab. We all, of course, yelled “no” (loudly) and the soldier dropped the flag & then drove off. A few other guys made for their flags at this time, and since the stadium was empty, the police let us climb over the fence to collect their flags – which I dully did, though very carefully, since I had a £400 kilt on!
The game itself you’ve probably all heard about. Since most of you have seen the second leg by now, it’s fair to say that Vllaznia were not the strongest of opposition, still the team put in a most credible and professional performance to effectively kill the tie off in the first leg.
And so we headed for home. Not before stocking up with beer for the bus home. Which was pretty easy – there was one bar behind the stand we were allocated to & another around the corner stand. Once we’d all been served, the bar was dry. Nothing left apart from water. I don’t think the guy knew what had hit him!

We got a police escort pretty much al the way to the airport, and we were rushed through the airport check-in and on the flight home pretty sharpish. I’d booked an over-night in a travel lodge in Edinburgh, so after getting to bed at around 4:30, I was up 4 or 5 hours later for a day in the office. Still at least I got to beam at the Arabs in the office & show off the flag (of course).

Here’s to the next one!

Dundee Sign Boggan

Dundee have signed midfielder Jon Boggan on a deal until January, he played for Liverpool youths and spend the last two months of last season with Accrington Stanley. Before that the 25 year old was out for 3 years with a knee injury.

Partick Thistle Build Up

A young Dundee side lost 1-0 at McDiarmid Park last night, Owen Coyle scored the only goal with twenty minutes to go. It was a Forfarshire Cup Tie. Included in the Dundee side were Brian McGinty, Bryan Deasley and Ross Harris.
At Dens there was a Question and Answer session with George Knight,Dave McKinnon and Alex Rae which lasted two hours, it went well by reports on the Dundee FC website.

Ludovic Roy and Alex Rae has slight knocks, but should be fit for Saturday.

Dundee 1 Hamilton 1, Dens Park, 21/10/06

Dundee drew 1-1 with Hamilton at Dens on Saturday, Brian McGinty made his debut and will need a few games to get his match fitness up. Hamilton scored first after sloppy play in our midfield lead to a cross being headed on and McLeod headed past Ludovic Roy. Dundee should have scored when the ball fell to Paul Dixon, but somehow he hit bar from close range. Into the second half and we started very well and the ball will just not break. But after a Andy McLaren header was dropped by the Hamilton keeper Greg Strong scored his first goal from 6 yards. We then pushed forward for the winner, but Hamilton had a couple of chances and one of them Roy made a great save. Near the end and Andy McLaren shot home from 6 yards, but it hit a defender on the line and came back out. So in the end we had to settle for a draw.

Hamilton Buildup...........................

Dundee today signed St Mirren striker Brian McGinty on loan until January. McGinty will be in the squad for the visit of Hamilton Academical to Dens on Saturday. The six foot one inch tall, 29 year old, scored 16 league goals in 90 starts for the Paisley club. And Kevin McDonald will be fit to play.

Should be a good open game as both teams look to put the pressure on the league leaders.

Ross County 1 Dundee 0, 14/October/06

I stayed at Dave Cooper's on Friday night for the early start for the trip up to Dingwall, up at 06:30 got ready and left at 07:05 to walk down to Doc Stewarts. The Doc Azzurri's bus is leaving at 07:30. My mate Dougie Laing did not make it sleeping in. So I was glad Karen and Susan are on the bus.
We left just after half seven and the plan is to stop at Newton Stewart for breakfast, in which was really good bacon and egg roll was just what we needed. Next stop was Conan Bridge getting there at 12:00 just in time to watch Celtic beat Dundee United 4-1. The pub is called The Duck and they put on food which is first class, plus the weather is also very nice.
We leave for Dingwall at 14:30 and it's only 3 miles away. We have to buy a ticket for the game from a portacabin. At least the £12 is good value.
On to the game now and we struggle for the whole first half and we are lucky just to be only 1 nil down. We are a wee bit better in the second half, but the ball won't break for us and the games runs away from us.
I also met Alex Benvie at the game and it's the first time I've seen him in a few years. Alex used to have the programme shop at Dens in the 1980's.
We leave and the journey is quite quick and we stop off at Dunkeld for one hour for a drink and something out of the chip shop. We get back to Dundee just after 9pm. It's been a good day out, only the result was the only downpoint.

Young Scot's Win

Kevin McDonald fired Scotland into the elite group stage of the UEFA European Under 19 Championship at the Falkirk Stadium this afternoon, the Dens kid striking twice early in the second half to break the deadlock after a dour first period. Playing as a second striker alongside David Goodwillie Kevin was perfectly placed twice to net from close range and ensure qualification as Germany beat Bosnia in the afternoon's other group match.
The match eventually finished 4-0 with the scoring being completed with goals from Hibs Darren McCormack and Rangers' Steven Lennon. Keeper Scott Murray had to make do with a place on the bench, but given the commanding performances in both group games of Motherwell's Alan Martin that's understandable. Now the Scots head into the massive challenge of Germany on Tuesday evening with the comfort of knowing that they are already through to the next stage of the tournament.

Airdrie and St.Johnstone

I missed the Airdrie game due to Calum's stag weekend in Cork, but the 1 nil victory was a great result for the club. If you did not know Derek Lyle scored the winner from the penalty spot after Gavin Swankie was fouled in the box.
Last Saturday we drew 1-1 with St.Johnstone at Dens we started the game very well, but Derek Lyle got sent off after the linesman flagged, it seemed a bit harsh. Perth saints scored midway through the half and it looked that we would struggle. But the fighting qualities that the club has just now pulled us through. In the second half we took the game to our hosts and it was no surprise when after good play by Gavin Swankie, who passed to Andy McLaren who shot home. A good draw for us and great performances from Andy McLaren and Paul Dixon.
Dundee have Cameroon striker Issac Mopi on trial this week, Alex Rae has said he has done well and will play in a bounce game next week. Ross Harris should be fit for the trip to Dingwall a week on Saturday, it's a bonus as many thought he had broken his leg on Saturday.

Gretna Build Up

Can't wait until Saturday, so that we can gain revenge for that awful Scottish Cup Semi-Final performance on 1st of April. It's pay back time most people will think we have no chance, but we will bust coupons this week.
I even finish work on Saturday at 06:30, so it's no sleep for me as the bus leaves Dundee at 10:00..........so bring it on.

Perugia 2003

I left Cupar on the Sunday afternoon to stay at Mike's, Dougie Laing picked me up. The Donnas were supposed to play but the tour was cancelled. So we just had a few drinks round the pubs in Broxburn. On the Monday I got my hair cut and final shopping done before we leave for Italy early morning, there is 13 of us going in total. Morning arrives and Andy and Gordan pick us up to take us to the Airport, Karen, Nathan, Susan, Natasha, Colin, Alan and Damian all arrive about the same time and we all get checked in for the 06:30 flight to Stanstead. A quick flight down and we arrive on time, we have 4 hours to wait before the Rome flight. So we get checked in and went for a look about the airport, loads of Dundee fans are milling around and there seems to be a few Newcastle Und fans in the bars. John arrived from Spain so it's off to the departure lounge now and a few bottles of beer before the flight, which leaves at 12:30. Time goes quick and before we know it we are stepping onto the Ryanair plane heading for Rome, a very quick flight and we touch down on time. We are getting picked up to take us down to Perugia; it will take 3 to 4 hours. We set off and it's a long enough journey, we stopped once for a break and we arrive at our Hotel The Sangallo Palace, it looks very nice and has a swimming pool and is very central.
We all get checked in and after getting freshened up we head for the city square. I can't believe the escalators up through caves and finally getting to the top, it looks a very medieval city and we reach the Fountain, where there is a few bars. We head for the Shamrock where the place is jumping with Dundee fans, a few pints in there and we go to the next bar where l meet Billy Finnegan who is here for 6 nights and some of the Edinburgh lads. The bars runs out of beer and have to get more delivered, the locals are very friendly and everybody is in high sprits, then some thugs start throwing bottles about, it turned out it was some Leicester fans looking for trouble, we just head back to our Hotel it's around 1am.Next morning I realise it's not my adidas bag, l remember Phil Kirk at Rome airport with the same kind of bag. Tonight's ref and linesmen are staying at our hotel and Karen and Susan tried their best to bribe them, after breakfast we head off to get Perugia top ect and after about 2 hours shopping we head for the Shamrock for something to eat and a dinner time pint. Great news for myself when Phil Kirk came in and it turns out he's got my bag, the only problem is his hotel is outside Perugia. So we get a taxi to swap over bags, we pass the ground on the way. It's quickly done and it's back to the square for a few more pints before we head for the game. There are now about 2,000 fans in Perugia and the place is buzzing with even Ravanelli out to meet the fans.
It's time to head for the game now, so it's down to the bus station to get transport: the council are laying on the buses. There are loads of Dundee fans and some will struggle to get out,as it's very busy. We are now all singing and hoping Dundee can get a result tonight, we manage to get on maybe the tenth bus so off to the Renato Curi Stadio we go. It takes around 10 minutes, we quickly get into the ground and most of the Dundee fans are in already,the Perugia fans are very noisy and colourful, the toilets are just a hole in the ground. The players come out to warmup and it's not long now to kick-off.
Dundee start the game very poorly, with Caballero back hopes of a good start.But it did not happen, Perugia started to come into the game and missed a sitter after a mistake from Lee Wilkie, but thankfully Ze Maria put his effort over the bar. Dundee's best chance came just before half time when nacho Novo put his shot wide of the post. Then Perugia miss the best chance of the game so far, the ball falls to the back post and Margiotta seemed certain to score but Spearoni makes a great save. At least we are still in the tie but have to force our way back in, as Perugia's four midfielders are over running us.
Into the second half now and some good play by Gavin Rae put's Novo through with a half chance but the keeper makes a good save. Then the move of the game Caballero to Sara then on to Rae who has just the keeper to beat, but alas the keeper saves. Then in the next move Sara goes down in the box, shouts for a penalty are in vain. A minute later all hell breaks loose after a reckless tackle from Sara has the keeper losing the plot and all of a sudden 15 players are jostling at each other. Dundee send on Carranza and Duncan McLean in a last bid to save the tie.But minute's later Perugia score with a quick break away, Spearoni saves but the ball breaks to Margiotta who knocks it into the empty net despite Lee Wilkie's effort on the line. The time goes quickly now and as the final whistle goes the big Dundee support clapped Perugia off the park. We can be proud of our efforts, but Perugia just proved too strong over the two ties.
Back to the Hotel after the game, as the bars are shut at 11pm because of the trouble last night. an early night was the best idea as we head back to Rome after breakfast. I feel a we bit hungover and the bus journey was a nightmare, with one stop and some Dundee fans were taken out to the airport. Back to Rome we finally arrive at our hotel at 14:20.
After getting booked in and a much needed shower we hit the bar outside. After a few bottles of Peroni Dougie,Gordan and myself went out to see the Colosseum, which is very impressive. Back by the underground train into the centre we got something to eat before landing into a Cuban Bar a bit dodgy to say the least! Later on we meet up with the rest of the party Colin, Andy and John had not even left the street. They caused a riot (friendly) in a Polish bar. Mike,Karen, Susan and Natasha went out to see the Trevi Fountain, which we did not have time to see. After a few more beers it was time to hit our beds, as we leave for home in the morning. After breakfast it's time to get packed up and head for the Ryanair bus to take us out to the Airport for the flight to Stanstead. Time to do some duty free shopping and before we know it we are at Stanstead. We all go for something to eat and a few beers and it's time for the Easyjet flight, it's running late but we get back into Edinburgh at 6pm.
We all say our goodbyes Gordan gives me a lift back to Dundee via Perth. After a quick pint in the rail bar I get the 20:30 train back to Cupar. Very tired it's been a long day, a very enjoyable trip. Bring on the next one.