Declan Gallagher is adamant Richard Odada will bounce back from the errant swipe that cost Dundee United two points against Kilmarnock.
The Kenya international entered the fray with 84 minutes on the clock, charged with beefing up the midfield and helping the Tangerines press home their 1-0 advantage.
However, Odada was a split-second off the pace when he attempted to lash a loose ball in the box to safety, instead making slight contact with the waspish Bobby Wales.
The offence was minor – akin to Marcus Fraser’s accidental rap on the heel of Kevin Holt that saw United awarded a spot-kick seven days prior – but enough for referee Steven McLean to give the penalty following a trip to the monitor.
Bruce Anderson fired a wonderful drive into the top-corner from 12 yards to secure a share of the spoils for the visitors.
Lifting the lid on the moments immediately following the full-time whistle, Gallagher revealed that Odada held up his hands in apology – but was met with no blame from his United teammates.
Gallagher: Odada is a great character
“He was devastated,” Gallagher told Courier Sport. “To be fair to the big man – and the character he is – he held his hands up in the changing room when we got back in. But all the boys got around him and told him not to worry about it.
“An incident like that went for us the previous week, and it went against us this time.
“It was a really hard game to come into during the last 10 minutes. You are trying to get up to speed straight away, having not played much football.
“I thought he was doing okay – playing himself into the game well – but these things can happen. None of the boys are going to be holding that against him or give him a hard time about one moment.
“Well, I might give him a hard time about it, but only because I enjoy winding him up!
“Richard is a great character in the changing room and will brush this off and continue to progress the way he has been since coming to the club.”
Gallagher added: “We were all a wee bit deflated because we got so close to the end before conceding the penalty. But the previous week, a couple of penalties went for us. This week, it goes against us.
“These things happen in football, and we’ll pick ourselves up and be ready for the next game.”
‘We have our targets’
That next game is against Gallagher’s former club, Motherwell, and sees fourth-placed United travel to the side only two points behind them.
And despite some initial frustration – especially after the Terrors enjoyed by far the better of the contest against Killie – the Scotland international is keen to retain a sense of perspective following a fine start to the campaign.
He added: “We don’t look at this and think, “what a setback”. We have our targets and we’re still on course to meet them.
“Things are going well. I don’t think anyone would have expected us to be sitting in fourth spot at this point. It’s been a good season, and we just want to keep doing the right things and moving in the right direction.”
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