No time now for any hard luck stories

The Dundee manager and players were in full agreement that they deserved to take something out of Saturday’s game. Certainly, few neutral observers would have begrudged the Dark Blues at least a share of the spoils in a match that was a hard watch at times.

They started brightly and the heads didn’t drop after the concession of the scrappy Sean Clare goal.

Dundee also stood up to the physical challenge from a Hearts side that contained more than one player who would not have looked out of place at Murrayfield as Scotland took on Wales in the Six Nations rugby. The referee Nick Walsh also did the home side few favours.

But once all the hard-luck stories are put to one side, the simple fact remains that with the season edging to a conclusion, it was another game Dundee failed to take a point from.

Hamilton were also defeated by Motherwell on Saturday but remain three points clear of the Dark Blues, while St Mirren play Kilmarnock tonight and it seems certain that this nail-biting, three-way relegation dogfight will go right down to the wire.

It would be one of the shocks of the season if Dundee take anything from this Sunday’s game against champions Celtic but the next fixture, against the Buddies in Paisley, is shaping up as pivotal to their survival chances.

Hopefully by the time that game comes around, frontman Andrew Nelson will have recovered from his heel injury – the dynamic former Sunderland man’s absence was keenly felt again on Saturday.