There is an unfamiliar feeling at Dundee this season.
Not only are they chasing down only their third top-six finish this century.
Not only are they well clear of any relegation trouble by mid-March.
But they are also beating Aberdeen – and beating them convincingly.
The 1-0 scoreline didn’t do their performance justice at Dens Park on Wednesday night.
This was a walloping dished out by the Dark Blues.
One that put them back in the top six with four games to go until the split.
Courier Sport was there to analyse all the big talking points.
History
Dundee beating Aberdeen is a very rare occurrence these days.
Only once in the previous 21 meetings between the sides had the Dark Blues managed it.
Just like Wednesday, it was Luke McCowan who grabbed the winning goal in a 2-1 win a couple of seasons back.
That one ended a 13-match winning streak for the Dons with an aggregate score of 37-9 in their favour.
Times have changed, though. This Dundee are a far different prospect and this Aberdeen are a shadow of their former selves.
The Dark Blues are on the up, they have top six in their sights – and they’ll be delighted to have to play a sorry Dons side again before the split.
Performance
Tony Docherty hailed this as one of the best performances of the season.
There’s no denying that. All that was missing was the cutting edge that could have made this a very comfortable evening for his side.
There were strong performances all over the park, the defence was back to being solid, goalkeeper Jon McCracken made key interventions and the front pairing of Curtis Main and Scott Tiffoney gave the visiting defence a torrid time.
But it was the midfield three who really stood out. Mo Sylla has grown into an integral part of this team, a strong and commanding presence that screens the backline.
He wins the ball back and gives it to his two mates in the middle. Luke McCowan has been superb all season and added another goal to his growing collection – double figures now in sight for him.
And Lyall Cameron was excellent as well, rarely wasting a touch never mind a pass. He was a real threat all night.
Unlucky to be denied by Kelle Roos in the first half, he then sent a clever shot just wide of the post. Cameron shone among a stellar team performance.
Squad
Making the display all the more praiseworthy was the fact seven players were missing.
Not just any players, key players were out – Owen Beck, Trevor Carson and Jordan McGhee have been automatic picks this season.
Josh Mulligan impressed against Kilmarnock while Zach Robinson has come up with some crucial goals.
The wing-back areas were a concern with neither first-choice option available.
Beck was a blow and is likely to miss the weekend clash with Rangers but Owen Dodgson put in his best display in dark blue.
The youngster has copped some flak in his short time at Dens but showed his ability on Wednesday.
On the other side Dara Costelloe had an up-and-down game at right wing-back and certainly looks more comfortable higher up the pitch.
But, despite possible issues in certain areas, this Dundee squad showed again it is adaptable and that players are waiting in the wings to take their chance.
That Amadou Bakayoko and Michael Mellon didn’t even get stripped tells how strong this squad is.
Dee-fence
Concern had grown in recent weeks at the number of goals being conceded.
Dundee still have the joint-worst defence in the division.
But they are now on nine league clean sheets this season – Celtic are only just ahead of them with 11.
It’s clear work done on the training pitch over a free weekend paid off.
All the players and staff had had 10 days to stew over conceding that stoppage-time goal against Kilmarnock last time out.
It’s a sign of the character in the squad that they negotiated the last few minutes so well. Aberdeen had been dreadful but, with the score still 1-0, nerves were jangling at the back.
There was a problem, they identified it and worked on it in training. Good signs.
Top-six
This was a major three points in all sorts of ways for Dundee.
They have all but guaranteed they won’t finish lower than eighth. Already that’s job done for this season.
St Johnstone are ninth right now but lie eight points behind their Tayside rivals – they won’t be catching them.
Victory also opened up a four-point gap on Motherwell in the three-horse race for top six.
Hibs, too, showed they still have issues to sort after drawing at Ross County.
It is all to play for – and Dundee have put themselves back in the driving seat.
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