If ever there was an example of the triumph of hope over expectation, it was shown by the small band of loyal Dundee fans who made the trip through to Glasgow to watch their team play Rangers at Ibrox on Saturday.
To say the Dark Blues were on a hiding to nothing would be an understatement.
They had lost their previous five games and were rooted to the bottom of the Premiership table without a point to their name.
They faced a Rangers side looking to bounce back from their defeat to arch rivals Celtic before the international break with their boss Steven Gerrard urging his players beforehand to take out their frustrations on Dundee.
They certainly did that and on another day, the final scoreline could have been one of embarrassing proportions for the Dark Blues.
Dundee losing at Ibrox was no great surprise but looking at the bigger picture, where does this leave Dens boss Neil McCann?
He insists he is coping with the huge pressure he is under to end the wretched run and he said in the Ibrox press room that he would not “chuck it”.
In mitigation, McCann could point to a lengthy injury list that forced him into fielding an untried defence against Rangers while individual errors continue to plague his team.
However, results are ultimately all that matter – I am 100% certain McCann will not throw in the towel it but that decision may be taken out of his hands if his team cannot come up with a result against Hibs next week.
