The turnouts at Dens and Tannadice last weekend showed the fervour for football in Dundee.
Almost 15,000 flocked to see the Terrors and the Dee, with only a couple of hundred visiting fans.
This comes in a season where United have only recently come good and Dundee have continued to blow hot and cold in their title ambitions.
Imagine if both clubs were flying in the top league at the same time how they could grow their support.
The huge travelling United support in particular testifies to the passion Arabs have for their club, evidenced by their 2700 tickets for the game at St Johnstone selling out within 40 minutes.
With 4200 season books already snapped up for next season, everyone wearing a tangerine jersey is duty bound to repay that loyalty, which comes at significant expense for many fans that aren’t that well off.
The Dark Blues meantime have again glimpsed their potential to pull in big numbers when something’s at stake.
Just nine years ago, 10,718 fans flocked to Dens as Dundee beat Dumbarton to clinch the Championship – and 6,800 for the Cove game was a very healthy gate.
A dormant diaspora is desperate to see something created and be enticed back to see the Dee on a regular basis; build it and they will come.
I’ve little time for the small minds who want the other half of the city down and out.
I want both clubs to thrive and prosper and challenge the other big city outfits.
Both have proven in the recent past that there’s the potential to entice big crowds to either side of Tannadice Street.
Both boardrooms need to continue to work hard to unlock that potential.
If the vision and energy is there then there’s absolutely no reason why the two city sides shouldn’t be flying high, and putting the city of Dundee back on the football map in the way they once did.
The SFA moving the Scottish Cup final to a 5.30pm kick off has rightly enraged fans of Celtic and Inverness Caley Thistle.
The truth is that our governing football body isn’t confident enough in our domestic game to think it can go head to head with the FA Cup final in a battle for viewers.
Sadly, they’re probably right.
Many neutrals will find the Manchester United v Man City derby at Wembley a more attractive proposition than what looks like a one-sided affair at Hampden.
That shouldn’t matter though.
The job of the SFA is to promote Scottish football, not bow the knee to a match in another country, no matter how much more attractive it is.
The evening kick-off at Hampden makes what should be a highlight of the season for Celtic fans – and only a very occasional spectacle for Inverness fans – an unnecessary logistical challenge.
The timing makes catching the last train to the Highlands an impossible task, while Celtic’s large contingent from Northern Ireland find their chances of catching a ferry home slimmer than the Highlanders’ hopes of beating the Hoops.
When it comes to paying fans or TV companies, it’s clear who the SFA put first.
