The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Golden oldie’ s young at heart as Dee bid to stun champs
Dundee defender Liam Fontaine is relishing the chance to show he n still cut it at emiership level.
The former Bristol City, bs and Ross County fender turns 36 next onth but insists he is where near finished. Fontaine has stepped in replacement for injured ntre-back Lee Ashcroft in e last two games, playing s part in two victories d two clean sheets. And he played an integral le in last season’s omotion run that saw the rk Blues step up to the p division through the y-offs.
This season game time s been more limited, but ntaine is determined to ake the most of his ance right now.
He said: “You get a lot of bs these days who focus using younger players. But us older ones can ll do it. You know urself as a player if you e past it.
I don’t feel anywhere ar past it, I feel I am still fit as anything and my dy is in good condition. But I appreciate it every me I take the field in a ining session, because ere are lads of my age I ew up with and played th who had to stop years o.
I have had my fair share injuries throughout my reer, including a couple bad ones.
The last one was pturing my Achilles at ss County.
It was great to get back m that but every time I take the field now, whether it is a training session, coming off the bench against Motherwell or getting back into the team, I just appreciate every minute I am out there.”
One of Fontaine’s five league starts this term came against today’s opponents Rangers.
Playing a back three, the Dark Blues earned plaudits for their performance, despite losing out 1-0 to a Joe Aribo goal.
Though the 35-year-old accepts heading to Ibrox will be a difficult task, he says that display can give Dundee confidence heading to the home of the champions.
“We are under no illusions that it is going to be tough going down there,” Fontaine added.
“When we played them here, they obviously won the game but I thought it was quite close.
“We have to bring the same attitude we had that day to Ibrox.
“Yes, they are the champions and will get the respect they are due but at the end of the day, it is a game of football and you have to go and impose yourself and not just be part of the occasion.
“You never know what can happen – we have to go there and just believe.
“I think we have enough players in the team who have played down there and know what to expect.
“The atmosphere is going to be electric and these are the games you look forward to playing in.
“We are on a good minirun at the moment so there is no saying we can’t go there and get a result.
“We just have to believe. As I said, the game here was close and we missed a penalty that day.
“I felt we deserved a point from that game, but we now look forward to going to Ibrox.”
Boss James McPake believes his hungry Dundee side are forging a strong connection with their supporters.
The manager has been thrilled with the response his players have had from their fans after the impressive back-to-back wins over Motherwell and St Johnstone.
McPake feels the current vibe at the club is as good as it has been since he captained Dundee when they last finished in the top six in 2014-15.
He said: “I’ve been here eight years, almost, and I said to Gowser (longserving midfielder Paul McGowan), the appreciation the team got on Wednesday was the best I’d seen since the first season when we came up and got into the top six, when we were playing great football and Greg Stewart was cutting inside and putting it in the top corner. Gowser agreed.
“The appreciation they’re giving the players is great and they deserve it. It was a pity the crowd weren’t here last year when we got promoted through the play-offs, because they would have got that (supporter appreciation) but they’re earning it now with their performances.
“I know we’ve had nights here like when Craig Wighton scored against Dundee United, but they’re different. I’m talking about games against teams like St Johnstone and Aberdeen.
“The supporters are starting to get behind us because we’re putting in a shift, working really hard and playing attacking football. We had 20 attempts on Wednesday, which is exciting.
“We’ve let them down at times, of course we have. The Ross County game (a 5-0 home defeat), we’ll bring it up and we’ll use it. It wasn’t good enough, but we’ve got to enjoy games like Wednesday and last Saturday because they’ve been really good performances.
“Those performances have also been there in certain other games that we’ve not seen out. St Mirren first game of the season, Hibs at home, Motherwell away, we were worthy of the win.”
December is an exceptionally busy month for all cinch Premiership sides, but McPake is relishing it.
He said: “People were saying it’s a tough schedule but ask anyone involved in football, you want to have games.
“The wee break (in November) was good because we worked on a lot and I think you’re seeing that now. We also got some people up to speed.
“But now the games are coming quick and fast. It’s great when you’re coming in midweek to recover and then setting up for going to Ibrox on the Saturday.”