Cammy Kerr knows there will be one Dundee United fan in particular giving him pelters at Tannadice today – his best pal Jack.
Friendship will be forgotten for 90 minutes, with the defender determined to help the Dark Blues pick up a vital victory in their bid to beat the drop while his mate in tangerine will be trying to roar his favourites into the top six.
United fans are also looking to gain a measure of revenge for the “Doon Derby” at Dens in 2016 that saw the Tangerines relegated.
However, once the dust has settled this afternoon, Kerr will meet up with Jack to go for something to eat and chew over the game – no matter who has bragging rights.
Kerr, who is in his testimonial year with Dundee, said: “My best pal Jack Inglis is a big United fan and he will be abusing me for 90 minutes.
“He will be giving me it stinking, I know where he sits at Tannadice – he’s already told me where to look in the Eddie Thompson stand.
“But I’ll be avoiding looking up because I know what I’ll be getting off him.
“Do they want revenge for 2016? I won’t go too much into that. It was a good night for Dundee and we don’t want a repeat of that for our sake.
“I have so many United-supporting friends so the banter between everyone is incredible, but that’s what it’s all about.
“I’ve spotted a few of them at other derbies, giving me everything under the sun.
“But I do enjoy it, I tell them they get 90 minutes then it’s forgotten about.
“I will see Jack after the game and we’ll go for food. Whether he’s a United fan or not, we grew up together and he’s always been there for me.
“I can’t just unfriend him because he’s a United fan!”
That friendly rivalry is not unique to Kerr and his pals with similar stories all over the City of Discovery.
‘Friendly rivalry’
And the full-back admitted that is just one more reason to ensure rock bottom Dundee remain in the Premiership so there will be more derbies next season.
Kerr added: “There will be so many people in Dundee in the same boat this weekend.
“They’ll meet up on Saturday morning, go to the pub, put a bet on and the loser will come back after the game to pay up.
“That’s what it’s all about. As much as for 90 minutes Dundee hate United and United hate Dundee, it’s a friendly rivalry and that’s important.
“On Saturday night everyone will be mixing together and there will be loads of banter – just the way it should be.
“Hopefully we can make sure the derbies are still around in the league next season.”
Kerr is fully aware that if it is to happen, Dundee simply have to start winning games.
He added: “There’s no beating around the bush, it’s crunch time for everyone.
“We are under no illusions about how big a game this is – we have to get a result.
“The longer you go without winning there becomes less of a margin for error, so we know that and we have to deal with that.
“You can put all the pressure in the world on yourself but we have to just focus on the game of football.”
Dundee United v Dundee: Key battles in Saturday’s crunch derby clash
