The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Dee desperate to avenge hammering, says Mcdaid
Winger Declan Mcdaid says Dundee owe Hearts one after the 6-2 demolition dished out by the Jambos on the opening day of the season.
And the forward has promised Dees a far better showing from their team this time around.
The Championship leaders head to Dens Park tonight for a 7.20pm kickoff with a five-point lead at the top of the table.
The Dark Blues trail the Jambos by eight points themselves, having played a game more, and Mcdaid accepts they’ll have to win tonight to keep any hopes alive of catching Robbie Neilson’s side.
He said: “It is a game you want to win if you are going to push up the table.
“It will be tough but it is one we are going to try to win to get them back for that 6-2 game.
“We obviously want to try to win the league, so this is a big one if we want to do that we need to beat them on Saturday.
“That’ s what we are aiming for, to get the win and keep trying to close the gap on Hearts.”
Dundee go into the contest on the back of two league victories and remain unbeaten in their last five matches.
Hearts, meanwhile, have won their last five Championship matches after losing to Dunfermline in November – the only league match they’ve not won this season.
Mcdaid added: “Both teams are in good form. They are flying and we have been doing well lately, so it should be a good one and it is on telly as well.
“They gave us a really tough game at the start of the season, so we want to get them back for that.
“I didn’t get on, so it was a difficult watch. I wasn’t expecting what happened at all – I don’ t think anybody was.
“So, we definitely owe them one and we go into this game determined to get them back.”
Mcdaid, though, insists Dundee are a different team to the one that was beaten so comprehensively at Tynecastle.
“Yes, there is a better feel about the place, it is difficult to explain,” he said.
“But it is different from the start of the season and we feel more confident going into games.
“We know we are playing well and we are getting the results to go with that. So, there is a good feeling about the place.”
Asked if Hearts will see the real Dundee tonight, Mcdaid added: “I hope so but I don’t want to jinx it!
“We will just keep doing what we have been doing, playing great and defending well. It should be a better game this time.”
Goals were an issue for the Dark Blues at the start of the campaign but they’ve found the net three times in their last three outings – a first since 1991/92.
Hearts have been racking up the strikes themselves with a massive 14 scored in their last three league matches as well as three netted against Celtic in the Scottish Cup final in between.
Mcdaid expects goals once more at Dens this weekend and has backed in-form striker Osman Sow to come back to haunt his former club.
Mcdaid said: “We were leaking goals before but now we have solidified that. We are scoring more at the other end, so everything is going well.
“We are also doing well from set-pieces and we are now starting to get on the end of Charlie’s ( Adam) deliveries, which we maybe weren’t doing at the start of the season.
“So, the goals are flying in – big Osman is on fire and I am delighted for him. He is a great player and if you give him chances he will take them.
“As long as we keep making them, he will keep scoring them for us.
“But the goals are also coming from centre-halves and we are creating more chances, so it is much better.”
Meanwhile, Dundee’s main man Charlie Adam is a major doubt for tonight’s clash.
Talisman Adam limped off in the latter stages of Tuesday’s victory over Alloa Athletic.
After the match, boss James Mcpake said the midfielder was OK, however he’s now revealed there is “real worry” Adam won’ t be fit, with the problem worse than initially thought.
“We are worried about Charlie,” Mcpake said.
“It’s his thigh again but the injury is a bit different to before, he needs a scan but it’s hard trying to get a scan this time of year.
“We’ll work away on him and give him to the very last minute.
“If Charlie isn’t right, we’ll just have to deal with it.”
There are no further worries for Paul Mcgowan, though, after he was also brought off against the Wasps.
However, there was bad news for striker Alex Jakubiak.
The former Watford man is now likely to be out for two to three months and is scheduled to have surgery on his thigh next week.
Meanwhile, Mcpake says tonight’s clash is a chance to show his team have moved on from the opening day defeat at Tynecastle, though he admits it will take a “mammoth effort” to take three points this weekend.
On the 6-2 opening day defeat, the Dens boss said: “They did their homework on us and it worked that night.
“Charlie Adam and Graham Dorrans didn’t get much of the ball and we conceded sloppy goals at bad times.
“We defended really poorly as a group and we were caught cold.
“But that was a long time ago, we have different players in and are in a stronger position.
“We’re unbeaten in five with two wins on the bounce and we’re looking to make that three. It’s a tough test, we know that.”
Hearts have been relentless for much of the season, winning eight of their nine games and losing just the once to Dunfermline in November.
That’s seen them open up a five-point lead at the top of the table with a game in hand.
AndMcPake says if Dundee are going to get back to the Premiership, they’ll need to put together that kind of form in the new year.
“Consistency is key and I keep going back to that,” he added.
“That’s what will define our season. We need to avoid the ups and downs we had last season.
“Consistency is what gets you out of this league – that’s what’s got Robbie out of this league a couple of times.
“To give yourselves a chance in the play-offs you need consistency through the season. Saturday is a chance to show we are on the right track.”