Craig Wighton is determined to do his bit as Dundee attempt to maintain the feelgood factor at Dens Park right now by taking three points at Partick Thistle tonight.
And while the 19-year-old is well aware, despite now sitting in mid-table, the Dark Blues remain perilously close to the bottom of the league, he believes recent form suggests that can be a temporary predicament.
Despite his tender years, the last couple of months have seen the local boy develop into an influential player as Paul Hartley’s men have improved from an early-season slump to drag themselves out of the basement.
In fact, a haul of 13 points from the last eight games ahead of this week’s fixtures has only been bettered by the top two in the Premiership — Rangers and Celtic.
And Wighton believes Friday’s dramatic win over Hearts was another sign Dundee are heading in the right direction.
“Everyone has been in a great mood and it’s a good environment to be in just now,” he said.
“The first half against Hearts wasn’t great and the start of the second half wasn’t good because we conceded the second goal early.
“However, after that, we showed our character. To score three goals against a good Hearts side is a positive.
“I was impressed with them and they played really well in the first half. We shouldn’t underestimate what a good result it was. I was really impressed with the way they moved the ball about when they were on top.
“We changed things and it worked, so we should take a lift from that.
“Now it’s Partick and we’ve got a good record there but I’ve seen them and they are a good side.
“They were unlucky against Rangers and went to Celtic and lost narrowly, then they got a good result at Ross County.
“Same as us, they’ll be confident. On the back of our result on Friday the mood is high and we believe we can do well and get three points.”
And Wighton genuinely believes recent form augurs well for the rest of the campaign — but it’s up to the team to prove that, and as soon as possible.
“We’ve had a few hard games recently. We only just lost out at Rangers and I thought we were unlucky at Celtic as well. Apart from that, we’ve played teams round about us and done well.
“If we can go to Firhill and get the three points, we should have a wee gap to the teams below us and we’ll be looking to build on that.”
If Wighton believes the players deserve recognition for the improvement of the past couple of months, he’s quick to add gaffer Paul Hartley also deserves a pat on the back.
Not least because, unlike most other managers whose teams have been at the wrong end of the league, he’s shown faith in young players like him and good mate Cammy Kerr.
Both have been regular starters and, even when the pressure’s been on, have more than held their own.
“Cammy’s done really well since he’s come in and made the position (on the right side of the park) his and that’s what I’m looking to do up front.
“The manager has shown a lot of faith in me and I want to repay that by continuing to do well.
“The teams we’ve played against, there hasn’t been a lot of boys in the starting line-up or coming on, so credit to the boss for giving us our chance.
“I’m only 19 but people maybe forget I’ve been around the first team for a few years. That definitely helps.”
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