Dundee were given a sharp lesson by Arbroath in what can happen if you aren’t at it in the Championship.
That’s a lesson they will have to learn quickly if they are to keep in touch with in-form Queen’s Park.
The Red Lichties are fighting for everything at the moment as they struggle at the foot of the table.
And they approached yesterday’s game like a local derby should be approached.
They got in about Dundee right from the off. And they fed off the moans and groans from a big crowd at Dens Park.
That’s the biggest disappointment from the Dark Blues, for me.
Feed off atmosphere
It feels like they do this a lot when there’s a big crowd in at Dens, they don’t turn up.
This was a chance for Gary Bowyer’s side to show they can dominate this league.
They were top of the league going into it, hosting a team near the bottom with a big crowd behind them.
A backing like that should inspire the players.
But it didn’t happen.
And, in fact, it was Arbroath who seemed to feed off the atmosphere.
When things go bad, they go really bad
The goals conceded by the Dee were very poor.
Three straight from set-pieces isn’t the Dundee we’ve seen lately.
But this team has shown a habit in the past when things go bad defensively they go really bad.
Before this game they had one of the better defences in the division but then ship four at home to ninth place?
Dundee need to be better than that if they are to win promotion.
Experience
The red card played a huge part in the final result, of course.
That’s two games in a row where they’ve had a man sent off in the first half.
Against Ayr they dealt with it well and, for a spell against the Red Lichties, they did as well.
Going down to 10 men, though, doesn’t help.
And I think boss Bowyer maybe regrets going with two young players in the middle in Ben Williamson, who saw red, and Fin Robertson while leaving Shaun Byrne on the bench.
There are times where experience is required, certainly in a title race.
And someone just having a word in Williamson’s ear after his first yellow to keep things calm for 10 minutes or so would have helped.
Freshen up
I do think we’ll see changes on Friday and Bowyer will certainly want to bring in new faces in the transfer window.
Yesterday showed Dundee need to freshen things up if they are to win this division.
Overall, though, it’s certainly not time to panic.
There’s a reason Dundee were top going into this game and that’s because they are having a good season.
And I don’t expect this to affect their chances of winning the league too much.
But they certainly can’t afford more days like this.
Having a game so quick, on Friday, is a good thing.
But the Dark Blues will have to play far, far better if they are to come away from Stark’s Park with all three points.
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