Dundee fans awoke this morning to the devastating news that their club is soon to go into administration. It was predicted by friend and foe alike over the past few months and although it does not come as a surprise the news was still a shock to the system.
With debts reputed to be in the region of £13 million it seems the banks and tax man are chasing cash that just isn’t there.
When Dundee were promoted in season 1997/1998 it seemed the good old days were back at Dens Park. The arrival of the flamboyant Ivano and Dario Bonetti brothers was soon followed with a glut of talented foreign players that had the fans out of their seats with the football on display.
No one can deny this was as exciting a roller coaster ride as any follower of the dark blues had experienced for many a long year. Claudio Caniggia, Julian Speroni, Zurab Khizanishvilli, the wee magician Beto Carranza, Fabian Caballero, Nacho Novo, Giorgi Nemsadze, to name but few, regaled us with their presence and will go into the Dens Park hall of fame as superb artists at the game of football. They allowed us in some small way to touch the face of Heaven and gave us back our self respect after many years in the lower divisions. They established us in the SPL where we’ve now been for 5 years. Those of us who only exist as fans saw only the football and didn’t fully realise or care what happened on a financial level. "Leave that to the accountants, they’ll sort it out."
But the presence of such entertainers came at a cost. High salaries, a large pool of players and the constant underachieving by a team that on paper should never have been out of the top 4 in Scotland meant that the success that had to follow in order to balance the books did not materialise.
Jim Duffy inherited a lot of the players, and of course, the debts, and even a Scottish Cup Final and a wee fling in Europe as a result has not dimished the cash outflow.
No one can fault the effort and desire of the Marrs as directors of this club. They gave their all and more. But it was a gamble, just as they gambled and turned from street wise kids from the Fintry housing estate to millionaires in a very short period of time. But football is in a bad way, the transfer market has all but died for provincial clubs, and such gambles outside the Old Firm have very little prospect of success. If they failed in any way, it was a heroic failure that deserved a far better ending. I salute them for dreaming the dream that we all shared.
Now Dundee fans pin their hopes in the hands of Gio Di Stefano the millionaire Italian director who, if he is to be believed, has the means to bale the club out of some of their problems. If he does so he will be a people’s hero of the highest order. If he doesn’t the future looks bleak.
Like a lot of fans I don’t fully understand what administration really is. I know it means the club’s finances are looked after by a posse of men in grey suits who can decide how many players have to be sold or their contracts not renewed in order to reduce the outgoings each week. Other than that I am ignorant. As I said, I’m a humble fan who only wants to watch the "fitba".
The example of Motherwell who went into administration not so long ago is one Dundee fans will hold up as proof there can be light at the end of a long, dark tunnel. They’ve weathered the storm and are high in the league, building their side on a mixture of youth and experience and producing some fine players despite their financial problems.
True Dundee fans will rally round their team, nothing is surer. The future is uncertain for now. At present the prevalent emotion is one of despair. But the pride is still intact and the willingness to fight for the cause is raging within.
Dundee, my Dundee, our darkest hour may soon be approaching. But "from out of darkness cometh light". The sun might go down for a while, but it will rise again. Unfurl the flags and stay true to your team and the cause. Never have you been needed more.