Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Harkes epitomising the United spirit this season
SATURDAY was a huge victory for Tam Courts and his Dundee United side.
Absolutely massive. I don’t think it can be understated.
Not least because of the nature of their previous showing against the Dons but because of their recent defeats.
Just one point from the previous nine, it was about getting a reaction from his players.
Maybe Calum Butcher’s reaction wasn’t one he was after but the result in the end was all that mattered.
Yes, they were fortunate to see Aberdeen reduced to 10 men in my view, but getting back to winning ways was key.
And it couldn’t have been better timed with Hearts losing at Motherwell.
The Tangerines are now level again with the Jambos in the Premiership and looking strong once more.
United have surprised plenty this term and to be only two points behind Celtic at this stage of the season is credit to the team and manager.
Epitomising United this season is midfielder Ian Harkes.
The American continues to come up with big goals for his side.
That’s a few really important ones this season.
I can’t pretend he was a player I would have picked last season to play a major part this term.
But, fair play to Harkes, he’s really improved his game.
He’s got a great attitude and he’s turned himself into a key player for United.
Courts has talked about the togetherness at Dundee United this season and a result like Saturday speaks towards that.
Because the kind of squad unity we can see at Tannadice is something that can turn edgy games like that into wins.
Sometimes when you properly grind out a result, maybe not playing scintillating football, it feels even better than a well-deserved victory.
Because you’ve had to work for it and the team has worked together to achieve something.
The key now is keep that sort of spirit intact for the rest of the season.
Heading to face bottom side Ross County this weekend will challenge that.
They may be the worst team in the Premiership so far but that’s exactly the sort of game that worries me when things are going well.
We’ve all seen the couponbusters come along and United have to be careful that’s not the case in the Highlands.
They have to treat Saturday’s match like they are playing a rival for third place or they could come unstuck.
That, though, is where the experienced players come in.
Guys like Ryan Edwards and Charlie Mulgrew will be really important in keeping the levels of their team-mates up.
From what I’ve seen of Ross County this season, they are more capable than their form shows.
Obviously they beat Dundee 5-0 but in other matches they’ve played well but come away with nothing.
This is a banana skin for Courts and his men to avoid.
But it’s also an opportunity to get in amongst the top two, if only for 24 hours.