Dundee 4
Forfar Athletic 0
League Cup (2nd Round)

Match Report

Red-hot Steve Lovell smashed his first ever competitive hat-trick as a professional to see Dundee through to round three of the CIS Insurance League Cup Steve's feat won him the sponsors' man of the match award, but lain Anderson too had a claim for that accolade. He was involved in nearly everything good about the second half performance which saw Dundee eventually canter home some way ahead of the opposition and scored the third of Dundee's four goals.

Many had this match down as a potential upset and Forfar showed early on why they have had such an excellent start to the season. Indeed they could, and should have been ahead at the break against a lacklustre Dark Blues eleven, but the balance of play shifted in Dundee's favour the longer the game went on.

Jim Duffy made two changes to the side who had started the weekend defeat by Motherwell, Brent Sancho returned to the defence and Neil Jablonski came into midfield. Fotheringham and Robb were the players they replaced.

Forfar went into the game in confident mood after a fantastic start to the season, and it was obvious from the word go that they were up for this tie. They pinned Dundee back from the off and there was a real scare in the second minute when Jay Stein rapped a 23-yarder off the top of the home crossbar.

Dundee could barely get a touch in the early stages, but after nine minutes a fine early cross from Anderson saw John Sutton turn only to be denied by a good block from King as he tried to get his shot away. If Forfar could have scored with that early Stein effort then in 16 minutes they really should have, Stein was again involved, picking up a fine back-heeled pass from Tosh he burst into the box and squared from the bye-line to Lunan who only had to roll the ball into the unguarded net from five yards. Fortunately for the Dees, he tried to blast it home and skied his effort high into the Bob Shankly stand.

Forfar continued to be the better and more skilful and entertaining, Stein giving Calum MacDonald a lesson in wide play, but Dundee broke and excellent inter-play wide on the left from Hernandez and Sutton saw the Venezuelan international curl in a great right foot cross, Anderson met it at the back post, but his header from six yards was perfectly placed for Brown to tip over.

With half time approaching Dundee at last got a grip of the game and in the immediate pre-interval period forced Forfar back, but some resolute defending made sure that there were no clear-cut chances. At the break the visiting fans were much the happier with events so far, but that would change as the second period wore on.

Sancho and MacDonald had been booked late in the first half and referee Mr Cassidy obviously had plenty of lead in his pencil as he handed out a flurry of cautions early in the second half. The one he didn't hand out, when Smith, who had just been booked for a foul on Stein, downed Lunan had Forfar boss Ray Stewart doing a fair Ivano Bonetti (in a bad mood) impersonation during his post match chat with the press.

Anderson was beginning to show his skills to a greater degree now that he's switched to the left wing and he came close when Rattray just got enough of a touch on his twenty-yard drive to deflect it past the upright in 57 minutes. There was another booking in 61 minutes as Paul Tosh dived in to challenge Derek Soutar as a cross was whipped in. The striker caught Soutar on the shin and he couldn't continue. In fact he headed for the hospital for an x-ray to assess the damage. Kelvin Jack came on to replace the keeper.

The delay while Soutar got treatment and ultimately replaced lasted over three minutes, but just a couple of minutes after the restart Anderson twisted and turned into a shooting position only to see his shot deflect high over the bar after hitting a defender. The resultant corner brought the opener though, Anderson's set-piece from the left found the head of Bobby Mann and he squared it for Neil Jablonski who's angled header appeared net-bound until Steve Lovell arrived to make sure, heading home from less than a foot out.

That enlivened the Dark Blues and Sutton tested Brown before a real scare at the other end in 69 minutes. Stein curled in a gorgeous ball from a free kick thirty-five yards out and it found Tosh with space. His headed across goal beat Jack, but rolled inches wide of the keeper's right hand post.

It was a real let off, but Dundee were now in command and Sutton twice came close in the following minutes. His strike partner, Lovell, was going to be the star of the evening though and his second arrived in 81 minutes thanks to a wonderful through ball from Anderson, Lovell raced onto it and drew the keeper before curling a fine finish home.

Two minutes later, he was denied a hat-trick as Brown dived to his left to save after the striker had again burst into space. With three minutes left, Anderson got the goal his second half performance merited. Mann picked out MacDonald with a fine thirty- yard pass and the full back laid the ball back to Brady who sent over a great cross that the winger headed powerfully past Brown from six yards out.

That wasn't to be it though, substitute's Larsen and Fotheringham combining to win a penalty in stoppage time, the latter going down for a soft award after Larsen had twisted and turned out wide to make space for the pass. Fozzy wanted to take the kick, but Steve Lovell wasn't going to get involved in any debate, he waved the midfielder away firmly before sending Brown the wrong way as he scored low to the keeper's left to complete his hat-trick and give the game a score-line which was hard on Forfar. Dundee though had created lots of chances in the closing stages, and the second half display was more like the way they can play.

Match report written by Dundee Matchday Programme