For all the praise I have given Dundee in this column for their performances – if not their results – over the past few months, their showing in last Sunday's derby against Dundee United may have set a few alarm bells ringing among the Dark Blues support.
It is now just two wins in 13 league games for Steven Pressley's side.
When results aren't going your way, good performances at least allow you to make the old football argument that if you keep doing the right things, eventually the results will turn.
The problem with what happened at Tannadice was that – particularly in the second half – the performance simply wasn't there as Dundee meekly succumbed to a 3-0 defeat.
The result leaves Pressley's side ninth in the table, still just five points above second-bottom Kilmarnock, who occupy the relegation play-off spot.
There is still work to do between now and the end of the season if they are to secure their Premiership status.
After Sunday's defeat, Pressley admitted "now we have to show our mettle". He knows that a repeat of their derby performance over the remaining games could lead to an anxious end to the campaign.
Their saving grace could be the fact that three of their four remaining fixtures are at home, starting with a Dens Park clash against 10th-placed St Mirren on Saturday.
