Did you know ???

Bobby Ford scored the Premier Leagues first goal on the 31st August 1976 in a 3-2 win over Aberdeen.

September 21st 1950, Dundee broke the UK transfer record when they paid £23,500 to derby for the services of Internationalist Billy Steel.

In season 1898-99 Jack Hillman, Dundee goalkeeper and fans hero of the time was in dispute with the club when during a derby match versus Wanderers he firstly disputed a penalty then proceeded to lean against the post as the kick was taken. The big English goalkeeper was suspended then sold to Burnley for £200. A local company called Wallace Land Oh Cakes later used a cartoon of the penalty incident to advertise their products from the 1970s onwards.

In 1953 when Dundee toured South Africa, they wore an all-tartan strip for their games.

1949, On the final day of the season Alec Stott missed a penalty with the score level at 0-0, Falkirk went on to win & crush Dundee's League title ambitions as Rangers win 4-1 at Albion handed the title to Rangers on the last day of the season by just ONE point. Also in this season Alec Stott equalled Dave Hallidays 25-year record of 39 goals in a season.

Billy Steel became the first Internationalist to be sent off for Scotland.

25/10/52 Dundee magician Billy Steel played in the League Cup win over Kilmarnock despite suffering from severe toothache. In fact a few weeks later the full extent of the problem became public when Steel had to have no fewer than ELEVEN teeth extracted!

1953 43,024 fans packed into dens Park to smash the record gate for a Scottish cup visit of Rangers. The gate receipts came to a grand total of £3270.

How times change, in 1976 Dundee's basic wage of £60 compared favourably with even the Old Firm whose players were on a basic wage of £100. Its doubtful nowadays if most of the Old Firm would pose for a photograph for that fee.

Sadly Dundee legends Bob Shankly (67) and Billy Steel (53) both passed away in the same week in May 1982.

Hamish McAlpines DAD was once on the books of Dundee FC

Enroute to the 1964 Scottish cup final Dundee scored an amazing 30 goals in 6 ties and then lost 2-3 to Rangers.

In season 1993-94 Dundee had players from 7 non-British nationalities at Dens.

May 7th 1994, Ian Anderson (16) stepped into the record books when he coolly converted a penalty kick past then Scotland goalkeeper Jim Leighton in a 4-0 win over Hibs. He was the youngest player to score in a premier league match.

Christmas Eve 1921 saw the antiquated south stand razed to the ground. Jimmy Guthrie, a player from the 1930s told of 3 previous outbreaks of a fire on the same stand. Accordingly to him a dutiful grounds man had doused the flames on each occasion before eventually getting the sack! ;¬)

In 1983 Dundee United were invited to a nationally sponsored exhibition of Scottish football memorabilia in Dundee. Their invitation came on the back of a facsimile of a cigarette card depicting a Dundee FC player, nothing like knowing your place eh ;¬)