Worrying times for all at Dens Park

… for a club that should be in the top flight like Dundee, being trapped in the Championship is a financial nightmare

It’s been said all too often over the last couple of decades but it has to be said again – these are worrying times for Dundee.

The cost-cutting has begun, with Jimmy Nicholl and sports scientist Cammy McDermid losing their jobs.

Josh Meekings has decided to move on and you wouldn’t be surprised if others follow him.

As far as recruitment for next season is concerned, you wouldn’t imagine the budget will be very big.

Ross Callachan would have been an obvious signing but Dundee have lost out to Hamilton and I would now expect Christophe Berra and Craig Wighton to stay at Hearts.

Wighton did really well for Arbroath against Robbie Neilson’s United team and I think he’ll get a second chance at Tynecastle.

Hearts have put down a marker by bringing in Robbie and Craig Gordon.

Already, it’s looking like the transfer budget gap in the Championship between Dundee and Hearts will be even bigger than it was between Dundee and United last season.

Every club in Scotland is facing up to tough times but for a club that should be in the top flight like Dundee, being trapped in the Championship is a financial nightmare.

The losses at Dens were already running into millions before all this.

The American owners have been brilliant in covering them for this long but there are only so many times you can keep going to the well before it runs dry.

Keepers needing to play

The latest talk seems to be that Ralph Hasenhuttl wants to keep Fraser Forster at Southampton and that a return to Celtic is dead. But I’m not so sure.

I don’t think we’ll see another loan but I could still see Neil Lennon persuading the club to buy him.

Fraser hasn’t changed as a goalie since Hasenhuttl last saw him so I don’t suddenly expect him to become Southampton’s new number one.

And the last thing a keeper of his age and experience wants is to be back on the bench or not even in a matchday squad.

That’s the reason Craig Gordon has left for Hearts.

Fraser is younger than Craig but he’ll have the same mindset.

Lenny won’t let it drag on for too long because it’s such a vital position but I bet that he hasn’t given up on this deal yet.

Happy birthday to Craig

Happy birthday for yesterday to Craig Brown.

He certainly doesn’t look 80! You won’t find many people who have a bad word to say about Craig. He gave me my first Scotland call-up. In fact, he gave me quite a few. Myself and Alan Main forever seemed to be on the bench!

I had no complaints, though. We had Neil Sullivan and Jonathan Gould in front of us.

Being part of the set-up under Craig for a while helped me when Berti Vogts gave me my debut.

Maybe Craig wasn’t fully appreciated because he had that schoolmaster-type reputation like Andy Roxburgh before him.

But he knew his football – backed up by the time he lasted in management after he left Scotland – and the fact that he took us to two major finals says it all really.

Josh Meekings: First Dundee player to move on.