When Nacho Novo scored his second goal for Dundee I immediately thought of a heading for this match report. "Super Novo Explodes" with a play on the words Super Novo and a Super Nova, a bright star in the sky. Alas it wasn’t to be as Dundee then proceeded to be ripped apart by a Dunfermline team that played some of the best football I’ve seen any Fife team play for many years.
It was Dunfermline who looked the livelier team at the start and right away it was obvious that they were going to exploit the Christopher Lee fear of crosses that seems to forever plague Dundee. Indeed they could have gone ahead when a free header at the back post is headed over when a goal looked likely.
It was Nacho Novo who began to threaten for Dundee and he almost sets Sara up with a neat flick that is desperately cleared. Not long after the wee man again, turning his man in the box and almost getting clear in on goal.
Hernandez has a great overlap that sees a hard, low cross put out for a corner by a relieved Pars defence. The same player is given a great chance when put in possession in the box but a great save by Ruitenbeek keeps Dundee out.
But Dundee are on top in the middle part of the first half and when NACHO NOVO scores his first goal for Dundee in a competitive match the 2,000 plus Dundee support erupts in adulation of a new hero. It comes at the end of a great 5 man passing move that ends with Caballero rolling the ball into the path of the lively Spaniard and he lashes it past the helpless keeper to put Dundee 1-0 up.
5 minutes later a Refereeing decision that could have meant the result being very different. Nacho Novo appeared to be fouled on the edge of the box but carries on his run and when he slips a superb effort past Ruitenbeek and into the far corner of the net there is no signal from the linesman. The Referee awards a foul that will have to be seen on telly to prove whether it was a correct decision or not. Jimmy Calderwood and the BBC reporters at the game saw no foul by Novo but the Referee’s the boss.
A bit riled by this Dundee respond with a little bit of needle creeping into their game though when Barry Smith is yellow carded for what the Ref deemed a deliberate hand ball it seemed a harsh decision. One wag in the crowd compared the Ref to "Wullie Reilly" a well known Ref in Dundee Sunday Welfare games for many years, and notorious for his controversial decisions.
Dunfermline are coming back and cross after cross is thrown into the box, often missing heads by an inch or so. It was on the cards that we’d lose a goal and probably from a header. Indeed, my gut feeling was rewarded to my disgust when a cross from the right is met perfectly by the head of STEVIE CRAWFORD and his perfect glancing header gives Speroni no chance at all. 1-1.
Sara is then booked for a late challenge though he clearly got a touch on the ball. Just on half time an awful tackle on Nemsadze goes unpunished and Giorgi has to receive treatment before resuming.
Half time summary: Dundee began and ended the half badly but in between had some great spells. Novo and Caballero were looking lively, the midfield were working hard and at the back only Mackay looked a bit nervous when any pressure was put on him. Dunfermline hadn’t looked anywhere near like the team they were rated to be and Dundee could have been two goals up.
The second half sees Dundee almost score in the opening minutes. A miskick by Ruitenbeek and a hooked shot by Sara soars over the keeper and misses the target by only a yard.
Another shocking decision by the Referee came when Hernandez left his man for dead and was about to deliver a cross in the box. A Dunfermline player clearly stuck out a leg to bring him down but the Referee was trying desperately to move himself clear of the two players and obviously wasn’t watching. So from no more than a yard away he failed to spot what I thought was a stonewall penalty.
A Wilkie header flashes over from a Nemsadze corner and a superb fingertip save by Speroni at the other end ensured both sets of fans were being served a real thriller and the end to end football was exciting to watch.
Hernandez sets Sara clear in on goal but he dallies and allows a defender to get back to toe the ball out for a corner.
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But there is still 30 minutes to go and Dundee have still a lot of work to do. Whether the players thought the game was all but won I can’t say. But after this everything seemed to go wrong. Players suddenly looked tired and jaded. Nacho had ran himself into the ground and the pace of the game was beginning to tell, Caballero as well suddenly looked weary and his skill and control vanished.
There was almost 20 minutes to go when CRAIG BREWSTER nodded home a cross from the left to give the Pars the equaliser they didn’t deserve at this point. 2-2.
From then on I have to say the football Dunfermline served up was right out of the top drawer. Great man to man stuff, players using space and running off the ball, every player hungry to go for the three points they so clearly wanted. Dundee, on the other hand, looked like they’d given it their best shot and gave the impression they really didn’t want to play anymore and prayed for the final whistle.
The 3rd goal was inevitable, I think every Dundee fan just knew deep down it was on it’s way and when it came it was a bit disappointing. From STEVIE CRAWFORD’S point of view it was a superbly taken goal. Receiving a pass at a very acute angle on the left he shows amazing composure to chip the ball over the head of the advancing Speroni for a delightful goal. From Dundee’s point of view to see a striker totally unmarked in the penalty box was frightening. 3-2 Dunfermline.
Novo is tiring but he’s still giving his all and when he’s one on one with a Dunfermline defender he appears to elbow his opponent and is rightly booked.
Forbes came on for a very ineffective Lee Mair just before number 4 went in. Yet again, learning no lessons, the Dundee rearguard fail to keep tabs on STEVIE CRAWFORD. Once again finding himself with acres of space he picks a ball up outside the box and hammers a low shot with his left foot that rockets off the inside of the post and ends up in the net. 4-2.
Nacho Novo ends up being red carded for a clear use of the studs and he’ll now add to Dundee’s headache by being ruled out of next week’s game against Hibs at Dens.
Milne replaces the tiring Caballero and the game ends with nothing else to report.
Summing up. If Dundee had got a 2 goal lead in the first half there’s no saying how the game might have swung. They didn’t, and that’s football. To think I thought Wullie Young was bad. Here’s a newcomer sure to follow in his footsteps, maybe even worse. A strong penalty claim turned down in the second half, then taking a 2-1 lead. Had the game ended here most Dees fans would have been more than pleased with the effort and performance of their team.
But the last half hour saw 3 goals from Dunfermline and I have to say a very classy display by them. The slick first time passes, the ability to get players into spaces and know that they were there and finding them there with accuracy and a great team spirit. In that half hour they gave us a lesson in football and could have scored more. Why is Stevie Crawford not in the Scotland pool for Wednesday night? Berti are you asleep or what? Stevie Thomson instead of this guy? No way.
Being a Dee I can’t say that I feel happy to have seen such a game, the score went the wrong way for me to say that. 7 goals against in 2 games isn’t very heartening either. But if I had been a neutral I think I would have been more than delighted with the standard of play and the skill on display. 6 goals as well.
FORM RATING; JULIAN SPERONI – Had one excellent save in the second half and many good clutches. No chance with 3 of the goals, might have done better with the 4th, though he was maybe unsighted. DAVE MACKAY – a game he will want to forget. He looked nervous and shaky throughout and not sure to do with the ball other than punt it up the field when it came his way. BARRY SMITH – perhaps our best defender, Barry was fired up and made many brilliant tackles and clearances. The question that has to be answered is whether he or Lee were given the job of marking Crawford. Someone obviously didn’t do their job properly. LEE WILKIE – Good in the air as always, but a tad careless at times when he seemed to be trying to be too clever and gave a few balls needlessly away. Perhaps the Scotland game was on his mind but this wasn’t Lee at his best. JONAY HERNANDOZ – this guy’s an amazing overlapping wing back, he’s almost like another striker when he makes those lung bursting runs into the box and he has great skills and can cross a great ball with that left foot. BUT, he’s vulnerable when caught upfield and at times when defending his man marking and tackling leaves a few doubts. Why not play Marocco Left Back and try this guy left of midfield? OK, sorry JD, I’ll stick to being editor. GAVIN RAE – Had his good and bad moments. Did do a lot of strong running at the defence and worked his socks off in the game. But I still always feel he’s slow in parting with the ball and he doesn’t have the vision to spot players in space. GIORGI NEMSADZE – I don’t think Giorgi’s back to his best, nor is he fully match fit. But he certainly gave the Dundee fans plenty of effort though we saw little of his scintillating skills and runs at the opposition. As this just could be the last glimpse we’ll have of him in a Dundee jersey it’s a pity he couldn’t have signed off with a win. LEE MAIR – I feel sorry for this kid. He isn’t a midfielder, nor does he play on the left side. He’s played out of position and what’s more, he just doesn’t seem to have the composure or the vision to be a midfield player. With Novo up front we need more players with the ability to find him in space. Can’t fault Lee for effort and work rate, but is he ready for regular games every week? NACHO NOVO – my man of the match without a doubt. Sharp, works extremely hard and is a fan pleaser. Took his goals like an aged veteran and was robbed of a third. Then, in true Jekyll and Hyde fashion he shows the other side of his game and gets himself sent off out of sheer frustration for two moments of madness. He is still coming to terms with the pace of the game in the SPL and he looks a tasty one for the rest of the season, I have some sympathies for his frustrations today, he deserved to be on the winning side but he must learn to control his temper. FABIAN CABALLERO – Excellent in the first half, it was like we were seeing the old Fabian in action again. Hungry for the ball, great control, neat touches and was even coming back to tackle and winning balls in the air. Second half he seemed to drain of all energy and in the end was very tired when taken off. JUAN SARA – Still has that tendency not to go for a ball he doesn’t think he’s a chance of winning or reaching. This makes it easy for defenders who don’t like being chased or harried. He had his moments did Juan and he worked hard for long spells, coming back to help out the defence at times as well. But 3 games and not a goal yet. Maybe next week, Juan-Two-Three. BARRY FORBES – wasn’t really on for long, looked hungry and keen but needs games to get the feel of the SPL. STEVEN MILNE – on for a few minutes only and like Forbes not long enough to make any impact.