They had not played particularly well and had just dropped two points at home to a limited but well-organised Morton side, but the Dundee players were still given a standing ovation at the end of Saturday’s game at Dens.
That was in recognition of the fact that once again this small, close-knit group of players had overcome the fatigue factor and given their all in a dark blue jersey.
It was Dundee’s third game in seven days and it was obvious that the sapping schedule had taken its toll on several members of the squad, many of whom have been playing without a break for weeks.
The zip and pace that had been evident when they overcame league leaders Raith Rovers in Kirkcaldy on Tuesday night was missing however what was not lacking was the “Dee-fiant” spirit which saw Barry Smith’s side extend their unbeaten run to a remarkable 17 games.
Dundee took the lead with their first attack of note in the 26th minute when some good build-up play by skipper Gary Harkins ended with Sean Higgins hitting a crisp finish from just inside the Morton box to net his fourth goal in three games.
However, the Greenock side looked the more likely to score in the second half and they earned their reward when Allan Jenkins cashed in on a deflected Sean Fitzharris shot to prod home past Rab Douglas.
With almost 15 minutes remaining, Morton pushed for a winner but the Dark Blues would not be denied and clung on to secure a precious draw which has extended their lead over bottom club Stirling to 10 points.
No one exemplified the determination within the Dundee ranks better than tireless winger Nicky Riley, who deservedly won the sponsors’ man-of-the-match award.
“That was a good point,” he said. “We always knew it would be a hard game against Morton.
“They are a physical team and we were aware that they would come here and try to stop us playing.
“Personally, I thought that was my best performance in the last couple of weeks, as I feel I have not been playing well.
“However, the run we are on is frightening and everyone is doing brilliantly.
“We have had a couple of trialists in here and there, but it is basically the same 11 turning out week in, week out.
“Obviously, when you are playing games on a Tuesday and then on Saturday, it leaves a lot of the boys feeling tired.
“But we have the fight and desire to keep going for 90 minutes.
“For instance, when we played Raith at Dens a couple of weeks ago, we never gave up and scored in the last five minutes to win the game, which just shows that the fitness of the team is brilliant.
“But with so many matches coming round and with such a small squad, it is hard on the legs.
“We have a couple of suspensions coming up, but thankfully we have been lucky so far injury-wise apart from myself, of course, when I hurt my hamstring.
“It is good that we do not have a game this midweek so we will just prepare properly for Saturday’s match against Partick.”Robertson qualityOne of those trialists Riley alluded to was Craig Robertson, who played his second game for the club he has supported all his life against Morton.The Lochee United player famously donated the £14,000 he raised from his testimonial match to help the Dark Blues in their bid to escape administration.
And instead of lining up for the junior side against Ballingry Rovers on Saturday, the 30-year-old accountant, who starred at Raith last week, was at the centre of Dundee’s midfield and once again produced a quality show.
“Craig has not looked out of place at all,” added Riley. “He came in on Tuesday against Rovers and did brilliantly.
“It was a harder game for him against Morton as we did not play as well as we did in Kirkcaldy.
“But he did well again and he deserves enormous credit stepping up from the juniors.”
There has been criticism from some quarters that Dundee, who are still operating under a transfer embargo, have been taking advantage of league rules as they have no chance of actually signing the trialists.Dundee ‘flying’However, Morton scorer Jenkins, who confessed he feared he would be flagged for offside at his goal, is not one of those critics.
“I think a point is a good result up here as Dundee have been flying,” he said.
“They have used a few trialists, but if that is the road they need to go down, then that’s just the way it is.
“To be fair to them, they have paid the penalty (for going into administration) by being deducted 25 points and they are just trying to start again.
“If they need to bring in trialists, then I do not have a problem with it.
“They had a boy from the juniors against us and I said to him at the end that I thought it was fantastic what he did with his testimonial money and that he must be loving it out there.
“I just wished him all the best.
“But Dundee are a massive club and they must be kicking themselves now because if it was not for the penalty, they would be cruising at the top of the league.
“I have experienced administration before when I was at Gretna so I know what the players are going through.”
Dundee boss Barry Smith said, “It is another point towards where we want to be out of the relegation zone.
“Expectation levels have risen because of the run the boys are on but Morton are a good team.
“We also have to remember we are using the same guys week in, week out and they are bound to get tired.
“To be fair, the boys are disappointed with the result and we will be looking for a reaction in the next game.”
The Courier asked to speak to Craig Robertson after the game but the request was turned down by the Dundee board.