| Going into tomorrow’s home clash with Airdrie United, Alex Rae’s team are closer to the bottom of the table than the top, which is 10 points away on the horizon.
Mann, though, believes that, even with a bigger deficit to haul back, the Dens men would still fancy their chances of being in the mix in the final weeks of the campaign — and history is on his side.
“It’s still only November, so, even if we were to go 12 or 13 points behind the leaders, I would still feel we would be capable of catching them by the end of the season,” said the big centre-half.
“I was nine points off the top with six games to go when I was up at Inverness and we ended up winning the title by two points, so that shows the kind of gap that can be closed quickly if you hit a run of form.
“Up there, we went on a winning streak and we knew we had to because there was no way back if we didn’t win each game. That’s the way we should look at it now and try to go on a run.”
He does accept the First Division this season is a league where such runs will be difficult, though the fact every team is capable of picking up victories has, so far, helped Dundee.
“I don’t know if anyone will go on a six or seven game run and it is the kind of league where, even when your going well, it might be three wins and a couple of draws you are getting. We, though, should be looking to win every time we go out, especially here at Dens.”
And, while bottom spot is three points closer than top, Mann is adamant the entire squad is still only thinking in terms of challenging for promotion.
“If we are in the First Division, the fans here will always be looking for a challenge and that is how it should be. You’ve got to be positive, be looking up the table and believe you are good enough.
“If we lose games like this one, that might change, but it isn’t something we will think about — we’ll go in looking for the three points our performance, hopefully, deserves and try to build from there.”
Like his manager has been stressing all week, the fact the Diamonds occupy bottom spot should not be taken as an indication the points will be easy.
“When we played them down there we beat them, but they had 10 men for most of the game and still made it very hard for us, and it will be the same this time.”
After last week’s defeat at Queen of the South, experienced defender Gary Smith is set to be handed his first start, while Andy McLaren is also expected to be included in the XI.
However, there is no place for Ross Harris (swollen ankle) or Brian McGinty (groin), who have been ruled out due to injuries. |
