McGowan draws on positives from loss

Togetherness makes the difference as Dundee frustrate life out of Gers

Paul McGowan insists that although Dundee were beaten at Ibrox on Saturday, their overall performance shows just how far Paul Hartley’s side have come in the last few weeks.

The Dark Blues travelled to Ibrox in determined frame of mind, buoyed by the last two wins against Hamilton and Motherwell, games in which they had also kept clean sheets.

They frustrated the life out of Rangers and looked certain to secure a potentially priceless point but were undone at the death thanks to a Harry Forrester goal deep into stoppage time.

The defeat, combined with results elsewhere, sent Dundee back to the bottom of the Premiership table but McGowan defiantly insists that if the team can produce more performances of the quality shown at Ibrox, then they will soon be climbing the table.

He said: “Definitely. I fully back the players and the manager. The last couple of weeks we have been brilliant.

“Maybe not as pretty, but we look solid. Two clean sheets, 2-0 and 1-0, then you come here and hold on for 90 minutes without Rangers really opening us up.

“They had a few crosses in, a few long shots, but they never really carved us open and made any chances. It’s just disappointing.

“We felt we dealt with the crosses. The one we didn’t deal with, he has put a great header on. It was a good finish.”

Prior to the Hamilton game, Dundee had lost six straight matches in a row.

When asked what has been the difference in the last few weeks, McGowan said: “I just think the togetherness. We had it, but our confidence was zapped. I don’t know why. When you start losing games, it becomes a bad habit.

“When you keep losing and losing, you start thinking, ‘Where is this next win going to come from?’ We got together.

“We didn’t become a bad team overnight. We just started from the basics, working hard, getting clean sheets.

“Big Marcus (Haber) has come in. Craig (Wighton) has started showing his ability. I’m sure we will get out of this situation. If anyone saw us in the last two weeks, it was the exact same performance that we put in.

“We’ve got to take some positives out of the game, but we’re disappointed. To come to Ibrox and be disappointed shows how far we have come since the start of the season.”

Rangers dominated the opening proceedings and manufactured a great chance in the ninth minute when Josh Windass played in Joe Garner who pulled his shot just past Scott Bain’s right-hand post.

Rangers were in full control of the game, bossing possession with the Dark Blues – playing in pink – struggling to get out of their own half.

Home goalie Wes Foderingham finally had a save to make in the 25th minute when he had to dive to his right to keep out a dangerous 30-yard Tom Hateley free-kick.

The same Dundee player took the resulting corner and he found Haber in space at the far post but the big striker seemed to be caught in two minds and produced a tame header that was easily dealt with. The second half followed a similar pattern to the first with Mark Warburton’s men well on top but struggling to find a way past the dogged Dark Blues.

Hartley’s men were hanging in there and had an opportunity of their own in the 67th minute when Hateley whipped in a free-kick from the left edge of the Rangers box with Foderingham pulling off a fantastic fingertip save to deny him.

Dundee then had another great chance when Haber sent a low cutback in from the right with James Vincent looking certain to have a tap-in but Rangers’ Jason Holt raced back to make a vital last-ditch interception.

Bain then came to his side’s rescue with a superb diving stop from a Holt shot.

Rangers continued to huff and puff but it seemed certain they would find no way through as the clock ticked down but then in the third minute of added-on time, Joe Dodoo put a cross in from the left to fellow sub Harry Forrester who sent a glancing, backwards header past Bain to break Dundee hearts.

For Dundee, the pain of conceding the late goal was exacerbated by the fact it sent them back to the foot of the table after consecutive wins over Hamilton and Motherwell had lifted them off bottom spot.

But manager Paul Hartley said: “We’re not too worried about that if we keep performing like that. We have shown over the last month that we’re a different team now.

“We’ve got some good games coming up that we can get some points from, but we have got to keep working like that and work even harder.”

Defender Darren O’Dea also feels Dundee are on the right track.

“As a team we’re a different animal than we were a few weeks ago,” the Irishman said. “We look so solid, we don’t look like we are going to concede, and we had our chances.

“When we were on a bad run, the problem wasn’t losing to Celtic and Hearts, it was not beating the teams around us. We have Inverness next week who are doing well at the minute, but they are the games we are expected to win.”

We didn’t become a bad team overnight. We just started from the basics, working hard, getting clean sheets.

PAUL MCGOWAN