Dundee will bring their Irish adventure to a close this afternoon as they take on Fleetwood Town in Waterford.
The opportunity for new boss Tony Docherty and his staff to take the team away is a “massive” one for the Dark Blues as they gear up for a return to top-flight football in the season ahead.
In fact, it was one of Docherty’s stipulations for taking on the job to replace Gary Bowyer earlier this summer.
That’s how important he feels it is, kicking off the season to come on the right footing.
‘Build’
“It’s been really good. I’m really pleased with the facilities, they’ve been excellent,” he said of their Johnstown Estate Hotel base.
“The hotel is really good, everything about it. The food and everything is looked after.
“The pitches are on-site which is great.
“I’m really pleased with the boys and the spirit they’ve shown.
“We want to build on that but I see there is a good group of boys.
“That will be so important this season. That’s why we do these trips.
“But they need to contribute to that and from what I’ve seen they are massively contributing.
“There is a really good atmosphere about the place.”
Everything on hand
There’s been a lot crammed into just a few short days at the Johnstown Estate, located around a 45-minute drive west of Dublin.
The base has been used by the Republic of Ireland national team as well as a number of SPFL clubs – Docherty had been there before with Aberdeen.
And snuck in a couple of videos too while no one was looking 🤫
Excuse the crap camera work and apologies for any swearing but footballers, you know… pic.twitter.com/heSmAHgSkP
— George Cran (@di_cranio) July 7, 2023
Pitches on-site – whether football, rugby or Gaelic football – as well as a gym and swimming pool, everything is on hand for visiting sports teams.
There was even a bored-looking horse next to the pitches, seemingly unimpressed with the efforts of the Dark Blues.
There has been some down time for the players, a trip to Cullentra House Stables to pick up some tips from triple Grand National-winning trainer Gordon Elliott got them away from the grind.
No night out on the cards, however.
Courier Sport were there on Friday to see the first part of the double session while the players had even trained the morning of Wednesday’s game against Bray.
‘Finer details’
Having all that on hand as well as players spending so much time together is key, particularly when integrating new players.
Doherty’s desire for a few days away with his team was echoed by assistant manager Stuart Taylor as he sat down with Courier Sport at the training centre.
But it’s not solely about team spirit.
“Trips are massive. People speak about camaraderie and team bonding, these trips are made for that,” the former Hamilton Accies boss said.
“But they are also for getting finer details into the players, getting that extra session.
“All the wee bits and pieces that make a difference, you have the opportunity to spend longer on the grass.
“These trips are huge, they are really good for a lot of different reasons. So we’re fortunate the club have been able to take us away to a nice hotel with good facilities.
“We’ve also got two good games on as well.”
‘Physical and robust’
The first of those at Bray Wanderers ended with a 5-1 victory but English League One side Fleetwood are expected to bring a sterner challenge in the second one.
It will be an early start for the Dundee players with pre-match prep to be taken care of before the two-hour bus trip to the south-coast city of Waterford for a 12.30pm kick-off.
Having spent plenty of time in the English lower leagues, Taylor knows exactly what will face the Dark Blues when they take on Scott Brown’s side.
“Fleetwood will be very physical and a robust side. I’ve played against them a couple of times in my time down in England,” he added.
“I know they will be well-drilled. It’s obviously a different manager with Scott Brown now but that’s the English mentality.
“The robustness and resilience they have as a club because of the amount of games they play.
“It will be a tough game.
“There will be opportunities to defend balls into the box from different areas, different angles.
“It will be a good challenge.”
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