Full-back Cammy Kerr is determined fans will see the real Dundee in tonight’s clash with Aberdeen at Pittodrie.
The 21-year-old doesn’t mince his words when he sums up the lack of quality in last weekend’s performance that saw the Dark Blues crash out of the Scottish Cup to St Mirren.
But he also knows it’s time to push that defeat to one side and concentrate on maintaining the Premiership form that took Paul Hartley’s team to within a point of the top six at the winter break.
“I think we all know ourselves last week wasn’t good enough and it’s not the way we really are,” said Kerr.
“This is a perfect opportunity to go out there and show everyone what we’re made of.
“Everyone is raring to go because we want to show we’re better than last week suggests.
“We will go up to Pittodrie and be confident, play the way we were before the weekend and, hopefully, that gets us something.
“We have to do that because, as disappointed as we were last week, we have a big game now and that’s what is important.
“At training this week we’ve been bang at it and working hard.
“We are just outside the top six and we want to show that’s where we should be.”
As a right-back Kerr knows this game will see him coming up against two Dons who’ve been in the headlines a lot in this transfer window.
Johnny Hayes has been the subject of two bids from Cardiff City, while Tuesday night saw Aberdeen add Ryan Christie on loan from Celtic.
He rates both highly but the challenge of attempting to keep them quiet and preventing them providing a supply of crosses for centre-forward Adam Rooney is a task he is relishing.
“Every week I play, I look at who I’ll be up against and every week I feel I’m learning because it’s good players.
“Coming up against wingers like Hayes and Christie, it’s not about upping your game because you are also giving your best. It does make you more aware of what they can do when they’re on the ball.
“I enjoy playing against good players, it’s a test and you learn from it. Every week I am just trying to go out and do my job for the team and help.
“I maybe don’t have the goalscoring threat of others in the team but I know I can do my bit in terms of defending and that side of things.
“If I help keep them quiet, I’ve done my job.
“It won’t be easy. Hayes is a very good player and Christie played against us for Celtic at Parkhead when we got beat 2-1.
“He looks a tricky and intelligent player on the ball, so he’s another one we have to watch but we feel we have players who can stop them.”
Kerr reckons one of the best way of stopping those two will be to get on the ball and attack.
Dundee sitting in their own half and hoping for a draw is not an option.
“You can’t do that. We have to get forward as well and, especially with Marcus Haber here now and Faissal El Bakhtaoui and Craig Wighton, we are dangerous up there.
“The things they can come out with are great.
“We know if we can get the ball up to these players and they are on form, there’s very few who can cope with them.
“That’s great, because when you can trust the boys in your team to do the things they can do, it makes it a lot easier.”
This article originally appeared on the Evening Telegraph website. For more information, read about our new combined website.