If you stop and make him think about it, Cammy Kerr admits he just keeps living the dream as a Dundee player.
But the newly-appointed Dark Blues vice-captain insists he’s too busy dealing with real life and what’s coming next to dwell on how far he’s already come from being a fan in the stands.
The life-long Dee was proud as punch when he marked his new contract with being made No 2 to Darren O’Dea when it comes to wearing the armband.
Now, though, he’s already focusing on his next target — making sure there’s a big improvement in results and league position in the looming 2017/18 campaign.
“I was delighted to get my deal extended, then the vice-captaincy came as a surprise and I was delighted and honoured to be given it,” said the 21-year-old.
“When I was a kid supporting Dundee, I would have loved to think I would play for the club and be vice-captain one day.
“Now it’s happened it’s weird because it never really sinks in. People talk to me and say you’ve done this or done that and it’s only then I think about it.
“But most of the time your head is always so switched on about the next game or even the next training session, you probably never get time to just sit back and think, that’s good or I’ve done that up to now.
“And I don’t really want to be doing that, I just want to focus on the next thing, keep trying to get better and to help the team do well.”
For Kerr that means getting back to work and, despite a relatively-short break since the end of last term, he’s delighted the build-up to the new campaign has started.
“I had a week away and then I was back in the gym, so before I knew it I was back in. That’s how you want it.”
“You miss seeing the boys and being in and around the dressing-room, so it’s been good to be back and I feel better for the running we’ve done up to now.”
Dundee kick-off their pre-season programme at St Mirren on Tuesday, then face Arbroath and Brechin, before a home clash with Bolton Wanderers on July 14.
Kerr believes that’ll have the team much better prepared than they were for what turned out to be a disastrous League Cup campaign last July.
“I think we are set up better for the Betfred this year. I think with it being the first season of the new set-up 12 months ago, we didn’t really know how to plan our pre-season for it and a lot of clubs were like that.
“Now teams have settled into it and we’ll be ready. We start with Raith and Barry Smith has made good signings for them, so going there won’t to be easy.”
While coming up against one of his boyhood heroes in Smith will be nice, there’s no question in Kerr’s mind what the big Betfred date will be.
“We’ve got the United game as well. No matter that it’s early in the group stages of the cup, that’s still going to be a massive game for the city.
“It will be nice for our fans going into it as the team in the higher league but it’s still going to be a pressure game.
“But I can’t wait for it. It will be a big crowd and there hasn’t been a derby for a while. Because I grew up watching derbies, for me there’s no other feeling like being in one.
“From a professional point of view it’s coming at the perfect time. It’s our last group game before the league kicks off. Being such a high profile game will give us a lift for the start of the Premiership and Ross County.”
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