DUFC 2 QOTSFC 0

A first home win for the Terrors since the end of August sees the men in tangerine continue their revival under new manager Robbie Neilson, who now has 10 points from 12 available points since taking over at Tannadice.

It was a well deserved three points too, with United dominating the game from start to finish. Thinking back, I can only think of a couple of chances for Queens - a Dobbie effort blazed over the bar and their big blonde guy going one on one with Siegrist only to hit the keeper.

Having said that, my only gripe with the performance on Saturday was that we didn't create too many clear cut chances, despite dominating the football for long periods. But our possession play was terrific and we really did knock it about extremely well. Even Edge, who has been a hoofball merchant during his time at Tannadice, was using the ball well which was a massive surprise.

A few things jumped out at me during the game. The first is that our high press works. Both goals came from us pressing their players high up the park - for the first we won the ball back on the half way line and then had a couple of crosses into the box (the keeper should have came for the ball that ended up in his net), and the second obviously McMullan pressed the defender and as a result he knocked it beyond his own keeper.

What also jumped out at me was the relationship between the players and the manager. There is already a visible closeness around the group and you could tell with the interactions between manager and players that there is already a good relationship there. The subs coming on were listening intently to the manager and the players at the end were full of smiles when shaking hands with the manager. It's good to see.

Most importantly though is the shape and the tactics are becoming clearer and clearer. I've touched on both the passing game and the pressing we do, but it's a clearer tactical shape now. What I enjoyed on Saturday was the way the three behind Safranko interchanged in their positions and it kept Queens on their toes.

Player ratings:

Siegrist (7) - only required once and saved well when necessary
Murdoch (7) - steady. Never a flashy player but does what is asked
Booth (8) - I thought he had a terrific game to be honest.
Edge (8) - I was worried when Frans was injured in the warm up but he came in and did really well. Maybe he's not finished at the club after all.
Bouhenna (9) - the stand out. I thought he was imperious on Saturday. An excellent defender.
Fyvie (9) - the other stand out. Totally dictated the game from the middle of the park, not just in possession but out of it too, barking at the players, pointing to where they should be. Excellent.
Stanton (8) - the sponsors man of the match, I thought he played well alongside Fyvie and used the ball well
Aird (7) - a little quieter, a little wasteful at times but yet another assist. He must be around double figures for the season now.
King (7) - he's been much better under Neilson. I still feel there are gears to go through.
McMullan (8) - a changed man. Works so hard on and off the ball and constantly involved.
Safranko (7) - another goal for my new hero. Fell out of the game though in the second half and replaced.

Subs: Clark (6) - did well when he came on playing behind the striker. Curran (5) - worked hard, won a few balls, did ok. Barton (2) - not a footballer. Dumpling.