Dundee’s pre-season seems to be progressing nicely.
After a few months’ worth of negative stories, just being able to say that feels good.
Beating Peterhead convincingly in midweek is a sign that the performance curve is going in the right direction and that there’s every chance the Dark Blues will be peaking at the right time – Tynecastle on Friday, October 16.
Yes, James McPake will be hoping to get out of his Betfred Cup group but that’s not the real start of Dundee’s season. It’s all about the league and flying out of the blocks to give Robbie Neilson and Hearts something to worry about.
I think you’ll see a more versatile Dundee compared to the last campaign.
James has been trying three-at-the-back and I believe he’ll mix up his formation and tactics to suit the teams they’re facing.
Part of that will be adopting a more direct style at times.
Saying that Dundee were guilty of over-passing it last year would be a fair claim.
It was maybe a trap they fell into because they had so many players in midfield who were comfortable on the ball and wanted to drop deep.
Mixing it up will keep opponents guessing.
It was a really positive sign to see their new loan signing from Celtic, Jonathan Afolabi, scoring on Tuesday night from outside the box.
I’d like to see Dundee do that more.
Afolabi – who I liked the look of when he played against Arbroath for Dunfermline last season – has shown he’s got the technique to be effective from distance. And nobody needs to be told that Charlie Adam is one of the best from long range in the game – with a dead-ball at his left foot and a moving one.
Dundee looked to have signed well. James will have proper options off the bench and options to change things tactically.
The key to a pre-season is making sure your team is in a better place for the start of a new season than they were at the end of the previous one.
It’s looking that way for Dundee.
* The number of young players getting a taste of first team action in pre-season has also been great to see.
Already, it has been vindication of making sure the academy kept going despite all the financial cuts.
I know from speaking to Barry Smith that there is a strong crop of 15 and 16-year-olds at Dens and Ewan Murray must be one of the best to have been given his chance before his 16th birthday.
By all accounts he didn’t look out of place either.
* Connor Smith is the latest recruit on loan from Hearts at Arbroath.
I always feel it’s important to have a couple of full-time players in the squad and we’ve got high hopes that Connor will make a big impact at Gayfield.
The fear that this season won’t be completed in the lower leagues is hanging over us all, there’s no getting away from that.
But we’ll be the best prepared we can be in the hope that the virus doesn’t get out of control in the football world and that the finances allow the part-time game to start the campaign and see it through.
