Tony Docherty has delivered a few home truths to his Dundee squad as a relegation scrap currently looks more likely than a top six push.
The Dark Blues still have ambitions of making it consecutive top half finishes but are seven points off that and just six ahead of bottom side St Johnstone. Dundee head to Motherwell on Wednesday night and Docherty knows with just six games left there is no room for any further error.
He said: “We just had a long, honest chat with the players. There has to be a realisation that there is only one way out of this and it has to be down to the players and staff to buckle down and work hard to eliminate the individual errors and to give us more of a chance to win football matches.
“Your experience comes to the fore. That came to the fore in the dressing room. It is something where there has to be a collective responsibility. I am always coming out and saying things we need to do better but it has to be a collective. We are making too many errors on the pitch. Sometimes it is about shuffling the pack and another player comes in but it is different individuals who are making these mistakes and we need to take responsibility for that.”
Docherty stated there were some angry words after the weekend defeat to Ross County. Now he wants to see that turned into a spirit that can still put Dundee’s season back in the right direction.
“I said all along that we need a certain amount of wins,” the Dundee manager stated. ”We are now running out of games. We are now down to six.”
“I still keep that target and I still challenge the players to try and get to that target. We are making it really, really difficult for ourselves. There is frustration and an anger. There is also a belief because I still believe we have enough in that dressing room, if we all really pull together and show that collectiveness that can get us out of this situation.”
Motherwell are one place above Dundee and an away win would haul them back to within a point. Docherty has insisted that his team need to get back to basics. He added: “We need to do the basics right in the game. We need to defend better, pick up more second balls and to have more of an attacking intent in their final third.”