Dundee end drought with dismantling of 10-man Well
DUNDEE finally ended their two-month wait for a win in the Premiership with this Dens Park pounding of 10-man Motherwell.
At long last, Paul Hartley’s side recovered something resembling their impressive early-season form as they ended a wretched run of eight league games without victory to pile more misery on Ian Baraclough’s hapless visitors, who suffered their third straight defeat.
The Dark Blues’ first three points in the league since winning away to Kilmarnock on November 1 were more or less in the bag by half-time after goals from Alex Harris, Greg Stewart and Gary Irvine put them in cruise control, despite John Sutton’s strike which gave the Steelmen brief hope of making a comeback.
Henrik Ojamaa’s red card for elbowing Dundee skipper Kevin Thomson on the stroke of half-time ensured there was no way back for Motherwell, with the Dark Blues eventually extending their lead courtesy of a bizarre Marc O’Brien own goal on 70 minutes.
Dundee, with Bulgarian Kostadin Gadzhalov making his debut having joined the previous weekend, could barely have hoped for a better start.
Harris, on loan from Hibs until the end of the season, picked up a pass from Thomson and cut inside before unleashing a left-foot shot.
There was plenty of power in his effort but it was the deflection off Stephen McManus which saw Harris’s shot leave visiting keeper Dan Twardzik wrong-footed as the ball nestled in the bottom corner.
Suddenly, the weight was lifted from the home team’s shoulders, although they did experience a scare within a few minutes of taking the lead. Motherwell’s Dominic Thomas decided to go it alone by dribbling down the left and his low centre fizzed across the face of the goal, with no takers to apply the finishing touch.
After eight minutes, Stewart made it 2-0 to the hosts. David Clarkson flicked the ball to his on-rushing strike partner, whose shot came back off the crossbar. But, like any good striker, Stewart followed in to head the rebound into the net.
Stewart’s exploits in front of goal since signing from Cowdenbeath in the summer have been impressive and, on nine minutes, he had his back to goal before turning to hit a snap shot which Twardzik did well to turn over the bar.
Despite their opening superiority, though, Dundee could not prevent Motherwell from hitting back with a 19th-minute equaliser.
A scorching run down the right by Josh Law ended with a cross to the near post which Sutton gleefully knocked past the diving Scott Bain.
There was no let-up in the pace of play and, as half-time approached, Motherwell were forced to clear their lines when Thomson’s in-swinging corner was headed down by Gadzhalov into the danger area, before being swept to safety.
After 33 minutes, the visitors had Twardzik to thank for a stunning double save, first from Clarkson and then Harris.
But the former Dundee keeper gifted Irvine the hosts’ third goal on 34 minutes. Stewart’s corner looked liked a routine catch for Twardzik but he fumbled the ball and Irvine could not believe his luck, being in the right place to lash the ball high into the net from point-blank range.
The Steelmen’s plight worsened on 44 minutes when Ojamaa, normally such a threat with his blistering pace, was shown a straight red card for lashing out at Thomson.
The pattern remained much the same after the break with the home team making clever use of the extra man, and Clarkson almost extended their lead in 51 minutes, only to see his dipping shot from outside the penalty area go inches wide.
Shortly after, Paul McGowan laid the ball into the path of Stewart, whose curling shot was not far wide of Twardzik’s right-hand post.
Stewart then released Harris down the left in another swift attack but substitute Luka Tankulic failed to connect with his cross.
Dundee rubbed salt into the visitors’ wounds with a fortuitous fourth goal when Tankulic’s shot prompted a collision between O’Brien and Twardzik, causing an own goal.
It was damage limitation now for Motherwell, who face a fight to steer clear of the relegation zone on the evidence of this dismal display.
DUNDEE (4-2-3-1): Bain; McGinn, Gadzhalov, Davidson, Irvine (Dyer 54); Thomson (Tankulic 55), McAlister (Harkins 53); Harris, McGowan, Stewart; Clarkson. Subs (not used): Konrad, Roberts,Schenk,Carreiro. Booked: None.
MOTHERWELL (4-4-2): Twardzik; Reid, Carswell, McManus, O’Brien; Ainsworth (Erwin 60), Lasley, Law, Thomas (MacLean 60); Sutton (Cadden 77), Ojamaa. Subs (not
used): Nielsen, Kerr, Cummins, Watt. Booked: Carswell, O’Brien, Sutton. Sent off: Ojamaa. Referee: Stephen Finnie.
Attendance: 5,105.