Dundee United defender Ryan McGowan has revealed how he put derby rivalry aside to help comfort a fellow professional.
McGowan was one of the quickest to react after Dundee captain James McPake dislocated his kneecap after a challenge on John Rankin during Saturday’s match at Dens.
He cushioned his opponent’s head and kept talking to him as the medical staff raced on to the pitch.
On a day of doom and gloom for United as they lost the game 2-1, McGowan was a credit to his club for the way he dealt with the clearly distressed McPake.
The Australian said: “It wasn’t nice to see.
“You could tell by everyone’s reaction how serious it was.
“I have played against James over the years and you build up a professional relationship with players.
“All footballers think: ‘That could be me.’
“You don’t want to see a fellow professional injured regardless of it being a derby game.
“I was one of the first ones there so I was just trying to calm him down.
“You are in something of a daze, I guess, when you see your knee like that and he was kind of freaking out a bit.
“I didn’t quite know what to say to him but I tried to get him as relaxed and comfortable as possible.
“Sometimes it can take 20 seconds for someone to come on and tell an injured player what to do so I tried to help.
“I was just making sure he was OK.”
McGowan also revealed that McPake will be getting bombarded with best wishes from Tannadice.
He said: “A few of us got his number off the Dundee boys so we will be making sure we send him a text and hope that he is all right.”