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LEE WILKIE: Mentality is key for Dundee in Championship title chase – Partick Thistle is a huge first test

Dundee players celebrate against Queen's Park.
Dundee players celebrate against Queen's Park.

Dundee have made a really impressive start under new boss Gary Bowyer.

There can be no complaints over how they have approached their Premier Sports Cup games and the results that have come.

A good sign is, though, that Bowyer isn’t 100% happy with everything.

He wasn’t pleased with the second half against Forfar and certainly not with the goal they conceded, despite being 5-0 up at the time.

It’s all about standards and, regardless of the scoreline, players should be playing like it is 0-0 at all times.

The Dens boss knows there are harder tests to come for his side and mentality will be key.

Demanding

I think he’ll be well aware that he has a good squad at his disposal and the Dark Blues will be favourites in the Championship this season.

Ability shouldn’t be an issue so mentality is where they could let themselves down, if they don’t approach matches in the right mindset.

Gary Bowyer gives his post-match team talk on the pitch after beating Queen’s Park.

Bowyer will demand that certain standards are met.

And certainly against Partick Thistle on Saturday.

Dundee got a taste of what might await them in the Championship when they faced Hamilton and Queen’s Park in the Premier Sports Cup.

But Ian McCall’s side will be a different proposition altogether.

This is the real stuff starting now.

Partick Thistle

Partick are a good side and were pushing towards the top of the Championship towards the end of last season.

I fully expect them to improve this campaign.

They will be well organised and hard to break down.

Partick Thistle boss Ian McCall.

In McCall, they have a manager who knows exactly how to prepare his side for a game like this.

And he likes nothing better than upsetting things for the opposition.

Danny Mullen’s return will no doubt cause a bit of fuss as well – that’s a strange move, I have to admit.

I can guarantee McCall will send his team out at Dens Park looking to keep things tight and bring on grumbles from the home stands.

Dictating at Dens

This, though, will be what Dundee face all season.

If they want to win this league, they need to be strong at home.

And be able to handle the pressure that comes with being favourites.

Most teams will come to Dens and play tight, it’s all about how the Dundee players handle things.

Dundee defeated Forfar 5-1 on Saturday.

It is important they dictate how the match goes.

Credit to them, they’ve certainly done that in their League Cup matches so far.

But we all know how difficult a league the Championship is to get any sort of run going, any sort of consistency.

The team that does do that, generally goes on to win it.

So Saturday will be a huge test to overcome for the Dark Blues.

But they’ve got players playing with confidence, Alex Jakubiak is banging in the goals and looking very much the part.

Things are good for Dundee so far – but here comes the crunch.

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