Dundee youngster Brian Clark came within inches of becoming the Scottish Cup hero for Dundee, but fate decreed a return trip to Queen of the South for the Dens Park side instead.
Clark would still have been acclimatising himself to the wintry conditions, having cast off his tracksuit and emerged from the bench to replace Gavin Swankie for the home side, when his chance arose.
Suddenly the ball fell to the youngster and with his first drive he instinctively guided a low drive towards goal. But, while Clark was probably preparing himself to receive the adulation of his fellow Dundee team-mates, the ball was almost impossibly cleared off the line by Queen's defender Eric Paton.
The two sides will now have to do it all again a week on Tuesday, but Dundee had looked set to secure Cup progression. Striker Stephen Dobbie almost used his good fortune to open the scoring when Gary MacKenzie's clearance cannoned off his legs and flew just wide of the post.
Derek Lyle then saw his right-foot shot saved well by Colin Scott after Alex Rae had robbed the keeper of the ball and the Dundee player/manager should then have done better when he blasted over from six yards.
But the home team took the lead on 37 minutes. Scott Robertson switched the ball to Paul Dixon on the left who sent a cross to the back post where Lyle was on hand to head home.
The visitors, though, dug deep and drew level on the stroke of half time when Paton's throw into the box was only cleared as far as Sean O'Connor, who sent a half volley into the far corner of the net from 12 yards.
Missed chances then dominated the second half and none more so than Dundee youngster Clark's late chance to prove the hero. Oh well, there's always next time.
Dundee: Roy, Griffin, Dixon, Shields, MacKenzie, Mann, Harris, Robertson, Lyle, Rae (Campbell 76), Swankie (Clark 84). Subs not used: Reidford, Johnson, Forsyth. Booked: Rae Queen of The South: Scott, Paton, McQuilken, Lauchlan, Scally, Thompson, Robertson (O'Neil 75), Dobbie (Weir 84), O'Connor (Henderson 89), Burns, Moon. Subs not used: Corr, Sloan. Booked: Robertson, Burns.
Ref: C Allan. Att: 2,681.
