Saturday saw one of the biggest games of the Scottish Premiership season as eleventh-place Dundee hosted bottom-side St Johnstone at Dens Park. And as is so often in the case in these 'must-win' six-pointers, it disappointedly ended in a draw.
It was a result which suited neither side. Kilmarnock's defeat at Ross County meant a little ground was gained in the bid to avoid relegation trepidation altogether, but St Johnstone remain three points adrift at the bottom of the table, and while Dundee will be thankful for snapping a five-game losing streak, it doesn't exactly instil a lot of confidence that they were unable to defeat the league's worst team at home. With away trips to Dundee United and Hibs, along with tough home fixtures against Rangers and St Mirren, it's difficult to see where the next win is coming from before the split (insert Barry Ferguson-related joke here).
Recently it’s felt like every team has managed to ground out victories at crucial times in highly competitive division below the top two, Dundee have slipped from mid-table mediocrity towards the trap door and supporters are now split as to whether they still trust manager Tony Docherty to save them.
The manager's approval rating could scarcely have been higher going into this season. Last term Dundee had come up from the second tier, essentially having had to rebuild most of the squad following the departure of several first-team players in the wake of their Scottish Championship title win (not to mention manager Gary Bowyer), and became one of the most entertaining teams en route to a top-six finish.
But after a four-match unbeaten run to begin this campaign, along with advancement to the League Cup quarter-finals, things soon took a turn for the worse and they’ve never really recovered. A big reason for that was the sale of Luke McCowan on transfer deadline day to Celtic. A £1million fee for a then-26-year-old who was in the final year of his contract was a good bit of business, but he hasn't been replaced effectively. Scott Fraser was recruited for the creative role in the middle of the park, but he was injured soon after making his only start in the 1-0 win over Motherwell in mid-October and hasn't been seen since.
Injuries to experienced and key players has been a theme of Dundee's season, and it's here where you can excuse Docherty for the struggles. Joe Shaughnessy only just returned from nearly a year out with a knee injury, while his replacement Clark Robertson has been plagued by a series of fitness setbacks since joining himself last summer. He's also recently lost Seb Palmer-Houlden for at least a month, making Simon Murray (who has been an excellent addition since being signed by Docherty from Ross County for a six-figure fee) the only fit out-and-out striker available.
There's a debate to be made whether many managers would've done better and, indeed, if there's someone else able to step in and immediately improve things. However, this is where the case for the defence ends and the one from the prosecution begins.
Murray may well be the only real option up front, but it was a deliberate decision by club management not to try and sign another one in January, a move which was particularly peculiar after Curtis Main was allowed to leave for Ayr United.
The same goes for the absence of McCowan. It's been known for a while that Fraser wouldn't be able to fill the void, yet Dundee have tried to press ahead without doing much to address the issue. Cesar Garza is a centre-midfielder signed in the January window, but he's more of a stopper than McCowan, who got his move to Celtic on the back of impressive goals and assist numbers. Besides, even though Garza’s impressed when he's played and was one of the better players against St Johnstone on Saturday, Docherty has been oddly hesitant to use him from the start on occasion.
It's led to the strength of Dundee's team last season, the trio in the middle of the park, becoming something of a weakness this term. Lyall Cameron can still produce moments of magic, but his form has massively suffered with much greater responsibility placed on his young shoulders, while Mo Sylla has struggled as the season has continued without McCowan to fully balance things out.
Despite these toils, Docherty has largely kept a three-at-the-back system and has been accused of stubbornness from the support for not changing when it hasn't been working, which leads us to the most damning piece of evidence: Dundee's dreadful defensive record.
This is an issue which goes back to last season when they conceded 68 goals, the most in the league other than Livingston, who finished bottom of the table by ten points and still only conceded two more. This campaign Docherty's men are on track to concede 80 goals. If that happens, that would be the most goals against for a top-flight side since Dunfermline Athletic in the 2011-12 season (who gave away 82 and were relegated).
As stated before, injuries have been an issue, but they've still got a worse record than a St Johnstone side who have recently been playing diminutive winger Drey Wright as a centre-back. This has been a chronic problem under Docherty's stewardship and he doesn't seem to have an answer for it now that Dundee are no longer capable of outscoring opponents.
It's hard to say what happens next. Club MD John Nelms is both known for making managerial changes when it's too late (Paul Hartley and Neil McCann) and for making moves which seem pretty illogical (sacking James McPake after two consecutive wins). There's still enough supporters who are behind Docherty so he will likely remain for now. But things have to change soon, something which makes Friday's Scottish Cup trip to Tynecastle all the more daunting.
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