Away trips to Palmerston can sort out the champions from the also-rans.
So Dundee defender Gary Irvine knows the Dark Blues can make a real statement of intent by beating Queen of the South this afternoon.
When Irvine came away from Dumfries with a win in St Johnstone’s promotion season a few years ago, the self-belief in the Perth dressing room soared.
And he’s hoping that will be the case for the Dens Park men as they look to extend their lead over their hosts to, what could be, an unassailable 11 points.
“It’s a tough place to go,” he pointed out. “This will be a real test for us.
“I’ve been there a good few times over the years. The fans are right on top of you down at Palmerston.
“It’s a hard surface, with it now being astroturf, which adds something else to the game.
“Some will say they’re the in-form team in the division. Over the last month or so they’ve put themselves up into fourth place.
“They’ve crept up. That’s a credit to them because beforehand they were flirting down at the bottom half of the league.
“We will have to go down there and do everything correctly to get the right result.
“They’ll be looking to potentially kick on so we’re very wary of what lies in store. It’s a real achievement if you can go there and win.”
Irvine has always been renowned as an attacking full-back, so new manager Paul Hartley’s football philosophy has been well received.
He said: “I suppose against Hamilton I was given more of a freedom. I was allowed to express myself and get higher up the pitch.
“It’s all about getting forward, like the modern-day full-back. I love doing it.
“I really enjoyed the new kind of role and want to keep doing that.”
Hartley wasn’t a stranger to Irvine when he took over at Dens.
He said: “I was at Celtic with him. It was my last couple of years there.
“I went on an American pre-season tour when he was there. So I knew him from my days at Parkhead and have a lot of respect for him.
“It’s a new manager with fresh ideas. When you get somebody new in it gives the whole place a lift. It’s like any sort of job.
“Now it’s up to us as players to listen to him and take it all in. We’ve got to buy into it.
“The way things went against Hamilton last Saturday was positive.
“I thought we were very good, it was the best we’ve played this season and we were on the front-foot all the time. We managed to see the game out which was massive for us.”
Andy Dowie is the only Queens man who Irvine has previously played with, but he knows enough about the rest of the side to be wary of the threat they pose.
“They’ve got a good mixture of experience and youth who have blended well together,” he observed.
“They have some players who have been there and done it at this level, so we know what to expect.”