Dundee United in pre-season injury wait as Tannadice duo referred for scans

Owen Stirton and Jort van der Sande will have the severity of their knocks assessed on Wednesday.

By Alan Temple

July 2 2025, 7:00am

Dundee United boss Jim Goodwin. Image: SNS

Dundee United will learn the severity of injuries to strike duo Owen Stirton and Jort van der Sande following scans on Wednesday.

Stirton, 18, limped off just 15 minutes into the second half against Brechin City on Saturday after taking a rap to the ankle.

He left Glebe Park on crutches.

Van der Sande, meanwhile, missed out altogether after suffering a slight calf strain in training the prior week.

The unfortunate Owen Stirton was dealt an injury blow — The unfortunate Stirton was dealt an injury blow. Image: Richard Wiseman / Dundee United FC

Boss Jim Goodwin said: “Owen rolled his ankle, but it (the damage) is more the middle of the foot than the ankle. He’s still a little bit tender and sore to touch.

“We’ll just get him a scan to rule out anything too serious.

“Hopefully, there’s no bone damage and it’s just a little bit of bruising and maybe a little bit of a strain on the ligament. That shouldn’t keep him out too long, I don’t think.

“Jort van der Sande has just got a little tweak in his calf.

“We don’t think it’s anything too serious but he’ll be getting a scan on Wednesday, along with Stirton. Then we’ll have a clear indication as to what the issue is with both of those guys.”

Van der Sande: Trim and determined

And Goodwin was fulsome in his praise for van der Sande, revealing the Bonaire international – who became a dad to a baby boy, Fender, last month – has returned to training trim and fired-up.

Van der Sande went through the entire campaign without finding the net for the Tangerines last term, but Goodwin believes he has risen to the close-season challenge laid down to several players.

Dundee United's Jort van der Sande in action for the Tangerines — Jort van der Sande in action for the Tangerines. Image: SNS

“I had a good conversation with Jort at the end of last season,” revealed Goodwin. “We had individual conversations with all the players that we were holding on to, and put pre-season programmes in place for them all.

“We gave them different objectives regarding where they needed to be when they returned, because we want the whole group to get fitter, stronger and more athletic.

“As part of that, we put some demands on one or two individuals to show that they’re serious about the season ahead. Jort most certainly has shown that. He lost a bit of weight and his body fat came down.

“His all-round fitness improved during the off-season.

“He’s come back in a really good frame of mind, ready to make a positive impact on the season.”