For Liam Fox, Saturday’s trip to Tynecastle must have felt like a particularly cruel exercise in testing the Dundee United coaching staff to breaking point and beyond. Call it a character building experience. A day when blow after thudding blow eventually saw the visitors crumple to the turf, their pride intact despite a defeat that left them stuck to the foot of the Scottish Premiership table.
That the 10 men of United eventually succumbed to the inevitable was no reflection on either their ability or Fox’s tactical masterplan. Because the rookie head coach, only handed the reins at Tannadice back in September, never really got a chance to see Plan A, B or even C in action on Saturday.
From losing selected starter Jamie McGrath in the warm-up to captain Ryan Edwards’ red card, then seeing McGrath’s outstanding replacement, Peter Pawlett, limp off early in the second half, it was quite a day for the brains trust in the away technical area. That they couldn’t quite hang on for a point is no disgrace. With a bit of luck, though, they might have left Edinburgh celebrating a famous victory.
