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Paul Hartley hails ‘disciplined’ performance as Cove Rangers grind out point at leaders Dundee

The Balmoral Stadium outfit move up to ninth in the table and are now a point clear of Hamilton Accies following the draw at Dens Park.

By Sophie Goodwin

April 29 2023, 6:00 am

Cove boss Paul Hartley dishes out instructions at Dens. Image: SNS.

Cove Rangers boss Paul Hartley admits it wasn’t pretty, but praised his side’s disciplined performance in their 0-0 draw with Dundee at Dens Park.

The draw moves the Balmoral Stadium outfit into ninth position in the Championship and one point clear of Hamilton Accies, with both sides having just one game left to play.

It was a valuable point gained as the result means Cove could still finish in eighth spot if they beat Greenock Morton next Friday and Arbroath lose their final two games.

At Dens, the game was played inside Cove’s half for the majority of the 90 minutes, but Hartley’s men defended resolutely and frustrated those on the pitch and in the stands.

Their tactics worked as Dundee rarely threatened Cove in front of goal, with Scott Fox’s best save coming in the dying minutes to keep out a long-range effort from Lyall Cameron.

Hartley was delighted to see the game plan executed so well with Cove returning north with what could be a crucial point in their bid to beat the drop.

He said: “It was a disciplined performance, so credit to the players. It could prove to be a vital point before the end of the season.

“We’ve managed to move ourselves off the bottom of the table, which is a good thing for our mentality.

Cove’s Shay Logan battles with Dundee’s Luke McGowan at Dens Park. Image: SNS.

“We’ll see what happens in the games (on Saturday), but we’ve always said can we take it to the last day of the season and we’ve managed to do that.

“I’ve been the manager here (at Dundee) and I know what it’s like when you’re trying to win games to win titles, but our message to the players was to frustrate the game to get a result.

“It’s not a beauty contest, it’s a game we’ve tried to pick something up from.”

With the relegation battle going down to the wire next weekend, Hartley says his side are preparing for all eventualities and will be scouting out potential play-off opposition on Saturday.

He said: “We’re preparing for everything, that’s what we have to do as staff.

“All of my staff will be out watching games tomorrow. Wherever we are, we’ll have those games covered and prepare for everything as best we can.”