Jim Goodwin is adamant there was nothing “sinister” about Dundee United’s failure to be ready for a 3.45pm kick-off against Rangers after being accused of “trying to make a point” by Ian McCall.
United’s preparations were hit by travel chaos on Saturday, with the squad forced to endure four-and-a-half hours on the team coach due to the disruption caused by Storm Bert and several accidents along their route.
Despite leaving Dundee at 9.30am (30 minutes earlier than usual), the bus was unable to go via Perth due to closures and, instead, had to divert towards Edinburgh – only for the Queensferry Crossing to be shut.
United eventually arrived in Glasgow at 2pm and, with the players requiring a quickfire meal, the Tangerines were not ready to commence the action until 3.55pm – 10 minutes later than the already-rearranged start time.
McCall sensed some dark arts at play, telling BBC Scotland: “I think Jim Goodwin is trying to make a point here.
“I’m pretty sure they would have asked for 4pm and, by hook or by crook, he is going to try and get it as close (to 4pm) as possible.”
The late start will be included in referee Don Robertson’s match report to the Scottish FA as a matter of course but, given the unavoidable circumstances, is unlikely to be taken any further.
Goodwin: Nothing ‘sinister’ in additional delay
“The players needed a pre-match (meal),” said Goodwin. “They’d been on a bus from 9.30am.
“Certain people were saying we should just go straight to the stadium and play the game on an empty stomach and things like that, which is just ridiculous.
“They (Rangers) asked for 3.30pm and we managed to get 3.45pm. Unfortunately, we weren’t ready for 3.45pm. But we’d done everything we could to get ready.
“It’s not just a case of running off the bus, sticking on your strip and playing. We’ve got player welfare that we need to consider. The players need to get warmed up to avoid injury.
“Some of them have strapping they need to get from the medical team. All of these things add up. There was nothing sinister in anything that happened.”
A monumental effort at Ibrox
Goodwin continued: “The weather; the accidents – it all mounted up.
“If people think that’s any sort of advantage for us – lads sitting on a bus for four hours – I can tell them it is NOT an advantage.
“The Rangers players would have been sitting in comfort in Ibrox; in the players’ lounge, dressing room or whatever.
“For our players to put on the kind of performance that they did was monumental.”
Goodwin ‘wasn’t trying to be clever’
Meanwhile, Goodwin insists he was not seeking to “disrespect” Gers boss Philippe Clement after coming out on top of the mind games between the two bosses.
The United gaffer was open about his desire to frustrate Rangers and turn their fans against them due to the “negativity” around the club, prompting Clement to bristle that he “likes it when other people motivate my players”.
As it happened, the first half played out exactly as Goodwin predicted – with the hosts leaving the field to a cacophony of jeers – before an improved performance by the hosts secured a share of the spoils.
But it did little to alleviate the pressure on the embattled Belgian.
“I wasn’t trying to be clever,” added Goodwin. “I just was stating the obvious.
“We know the expectation that’s on those two teams – and we know that fans can be quite fickle at times, if things aren’t going according to plan.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for Philippe Clement, and it wasn’t a case of disrespecting anybody.”
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