Dear Members,
What could, and probably should, have been a quiet end to the season for DFC was anything but. After blowing through various chances to secure SPFL status and enduring a remarkable run of VAR and refereeing controversies, safety was finally secured on the last day of the season thanks to a Lyall Cameron double at McDiarmid Park. No sooner was the awards dinner concluded than almost the entire management team led by Tony Docherty was relieved of its duties.
New Head Coach reaction
A couple of weeks later fans were stunned by the news that Steven Pressley, he of across-the-road fame/infamy, was the board’s choice to take over. Combined with the somewhat complicated restructure, in which Pressley was appointed Head Coach and David Longwell became the Technical Manager, it led to some pretty vehement and largely negative commentary on fan forums and social media.
It’s hard to know what to make of this situation from a fan perspective. We have to give any new ‘Head Coach’ a chance. So much will depend on whether he can sign the players needed to secure the Club’s top six target – the initial signings of Paul Digby and Drey Wright suggest the emphasis is being placed on experience – in the next few weeks but it feels as if a huge chance to bring the fans back on board with a popular appointment that everyone could wholeheartedly get behind has been missed. Certainly if the Club does not make a strong start to the new season the pressure on Pressley will be palpable.
Before we close the book on the old regime it’s worth briefly reflecting on the seesaw season of goals galore with a fantastic return of 22 by player of the season Simon Murray in particular being sadly diminished by the flood of goals being conceded at the other end. That defensive frailty continued the pattern from the previous season with so many points being lost from winning positions. It will no doubt become one of the great Dundee conundrums for fans to ponder – what might have been if they had only been able to find a way to combine the excellent attacking football they often produced with solidity in defence. I would like to acknowledge Tony Docherty and his management team for all their efforts and, on behalf of all at D4L, wish them the very best for the future. Let’s hope that they don’t come back to haunt Dundee!
Fan frustrations
Many fans have expressed frustration at the lack of communication from the Club at key moments and the lack of engagement with the media or the wider fan base. As regular readers will know, I and the D4L board have regularly called on Mr Nelms and the Club to be more communicative with the fans. This could be an ideal moment for a reset in that regard. Now would be a fantastic opportunity for the Club to begin consistently engaging with fans and be clearer about how they plan to build a team for next season. This needs to go beyond scripted interviews for the Club’s social media channels and tackle some of the harder questions that are worrying the fans. If Mr Nelms is confident in his vision for the Club then there’s no reason to shy away from such engagement.
One of those harder questions is the status of the new stadium project. We are still waiting to see what will happen regarding the Planning Permission in Principle planning application lodged by Dark Blue Property Holdings in February 2024, despite the previous assurance from Mr Nelms that the Club would be kicking a ball at the new stadium in 2025. Currently the application is being considered by both Transport Scotland and Dundee City Council as the determining Planning Authority. Dark Blue Property Holdings, via their traffic consultants SYSTRA, submitted a further traffic submission on 19 May to address previous objections raised by Transport Scotland over the access and egress point from/to the A90. This will be reviewed and we have to hope that a determination will be reached soon. This shows the challenges in delivering the new stadium, let alone the other development aspects in the PPIP. Let’s hope that Dark Blue Property Holdings and their advisers have now delivered the requisite information so the PPIP can be released and the project can progress to the next stage.
Dee4Life raised questions about the development in early 2024 regarding the delivery, funding and phasing of the development. Many of these points still stand and we believe a close season update on where things sit would be welcomed by all fans. At a time when season tickets are on sale and attention is firmly on next season there is a window of opportunity which the Club could capitalise on to try to get the fans on-side and strengthen their hand as they look to consolidate in the SPFL next season. It’s hard to see a downside to that approach and we believe fans would respond extremely well to being brought into the fold more than they have been in recent seasons.
Future is bright
While the drama of the senior team was playing out, there was some extremely encouraging developments among the youth ranks. While a talented Kilmarnock side proved too strong for Dundee in the Scottish Youth Cup Final at Hampden, the U-16’s and U-13’s both won their respective Club Academy Scotland finals against Celtic and St Johnstone. It suggests the Club is doing a good job of nurturing talent and it has to be hoped that in the next few years we see some of these talented youngsters following in the footsteps of Cameron, Josh Mulligan and Finn Robertson to become first team regulars. Congratulations from D4L to all of the boys in these teams for all that they have achieved.
Off the field, D4L was delighted to be able to continue to support the excellent work done by Dee Promotions. We presented a cheque to them for £2,500. Alison McQueen and the team are to be commended for their efforts and we look forward to continuing to work with them in future.
I will close by wishing all of you a relaxing close season as you recharge your batteries for the new season to come. Let’s keep some optimism that the new Head Coach can bring in the right calibre of players to ensure the Club can progress and firmly establish itself in the SPFL. Wouldn’t it be great to be looking up the league rather than down and challenging for Europe once again?
Best wishes,
Keith Winter
Chairman.
Dee4Life 