Halfway house means nothing for leaders yet

UNITED: Table not important right now but Stanton knows it’s a good place to be

Dundee United midfielder Sam Stanton insists the league table means nothing when the season has not even reached the halfway stage.

The Tangerines will reach that landmark game – their 18th out of 36 – when they host Ayr United at Tannadice on Saturday.

It is not too long ago that the Honest Men were going toe to toe with Robbie Neilson’s side at the top of the Championship.

However as they go into the last fixture before Christmas, United sit 14 points ahead of third-top Ayr and 13 clear of second-placed Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

Stanton, who scored the only goal at Arbroath last weekend as the Tangerines won an eighth successive match, said he isn’t paying any attention to the standings.

The 25-year-old said: “The league table doesn’t really mean anything at the moment.

“We are barely even halfway through the season so there are still a lot of games to go.

“We just need to keep doing what we’ve been doing.

“It’s really clichéd but you do genuinely focus on each game at a time and try to keep winning.

“It’s nice to be 13 points clear but we want to win every game we play.”

The hard-earned victory at Gayfield provided a perfect example of how United have changed this season compared to the last few.

He added: “When I came to the club a couple of years ago, I don’t think we would have won a game like that.

“That shows the character we have in the side at the moment, that we can play different styles and get good wins.

“It shows how far we have come. “We have come on leaps and bounds since my first season here.

“We have constantly improved and I think you can see that in some of the performances.

“The whole club in general is in a better place than when I arrived.”

A major part of the Tannadice revival is, of course, the support.

They took more than 3,000 up to Arbroath on a horrible day weatherwise and the players are appreciative.

Stanton said: “We have a great squad with a great group of players and real morale around the team, but we have also got a great relationship with the supporters and it all helps.

“The support was amazing on Saturday in the freezing cold and driving wind. To come out in those numbers made it almost like a home game for us – they were excellent.

“That kind of support drives the team on and we are thankful for the backing they have given us.

“They have been to every single game in their numbers and that has been excellent.

“You need that as a club and we are starting to have a real bond with the fans.”

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The league table doesn’t really mean anything at the moment. SAM STANTON

Picture: SNS. Sam Stanton will be in action against Ayr United again on Saturday.