PLAYERS’ SUMMIT HAS GIVEN UNITED FRESH BELIEF
Captain Sean Dillon has revealed how a passionate clear-theair meeting fired up Dundee United to breathe new life into their survival battle.
the tangerines rose to the occasion on Saturday with a thumping win over relegation rivals Kilmarnock at tannadice to offer a glimmer of hope that they can scrap their way to safety.
it was Mixu paatelainen’s strugglers first win in the league since beating Ross County way back on October 31 and brought obvious relief to the tayside club even though they remain 11 points adrift of the ayrshire side at the foot of the premiership table.
Defender Dillon organised the summit in the run-up to Saturday’s must-win match and he believes the meeting helped focus minds as they fight to achieve their own version of The Great Escape.
the irishman, who scored United’s fifth goal against Gary Locke’s men, said: ‘We had a chat about things but you need to do that every now and again and air your opinions. it’s fair to say we changed a couple of things. We mixed things up a little bit more.
‘Overall, you could see little improvements everywhere and it paid off for us.
‘the boys had their say, which was good. it’s not easy but everyone got stuff off their chest which was good. it was just a couple of things we tweaked and, thankfully, it paid off.’
paatelainen adopted a more attacking line-up at the suggestion of his players, with Simon Murray partnering Billy Mckay up front, but what was more noticeable on the day was a new-found vigour and will-to-win that Kilmarnock had no match for.
‘i’m not taking responsibility for the whole thing,’ Dillon added. ‘i had my say and other guys were happy to talk as well.
‘Some might say we could have had it two months ago, or six months ago, but it’s done now and we’ve had a chat.
‘Sometimes little things just eat away at you but you let them go because you have that belief and you’re convinced things are turning. But you maybe get to a stage where you’re not happy and that’s probably what triggered the feeling for a meeting.’
the manner in which United stormed to their first win in 10 league outings was beyond the wildest dreams of even their most eternal optimist and it can hardly be a coincidence that it came just a matter of days after the players’ get-together.
the tannadice faithful have been waiting all season for visible signs of United having the stomach for the fight as opposed to the soft touches who were leaking goals at an alarming rate and, all too often, going into their shells when the pressure was on.
Blair Spittal’s first-half double, allied to further goals from Mark Durnan — an early substitute for the injured Coll Donaldson — and John Rankin on the stroke of half-time meant the tayside club were able to cruise to the three points, with Josh Magennis’ late consolation the only blip.
With the gap now 11 points, Killie are hardly in touching distance but the taysiders do at least have a game in hand.
the tangerines’ next three league matches are against partick thistle, Hamilton and Motherwell — all sides in the lower half — and paatelainen will realise at least six points from nine are needed if they are to harness the momentum gained from Saturday’s victory.
United will need more than just talk but those within the tannadice dressing room are grateful to their manager for giving them the chance to express themselves before it’s too late.
paatelainen might not always be in total agreement with his squad but the players appreciated his willingness to listen on this occasion.
Dillon said: ‘the gaffer and the staff were very open and tweaked things, so they deserve the credit.
‘From day one, the manager’s door has always been open. if you need to talk to him, then it’s no problem.
‘You can have a conversation where he isn’t happy but he’s open to talk. Everyone had their opinion on what needed changing.
‘We were probably a little bit more direct than we have been. But it’s about, individually, looking at yourself and asking if you can do a little bit more or a lot more.
‘i’ve always said we can stay up. if someone laughs at me, i understand that. and just because we won on Saturday that doesn’t mean we’ll stay up but, in my head, i believe we’ll do it.’
United were inspired by Spittal, with the wide man scoring twice while also laying on another two, and the youngster backed up Dillon’s assertion that belief was high in the United dressing room.
‘it’s a start,’ said the 20-year-old. ‘We’ve been saying for weeks that it has got to start somewhere, so we’ve given ourselves a platform.
‘a few things were said, obviously, but now we’ve given ourselves a positive performance and now it’s time to build on it.
‘a club like this shouldn’t be in the position that it is in.’