Dundee Utd4–0Aberdeen

For the first Ne'er day match at Tannadice for 19 years, manager Jim McLean made one change from the side beaten at Easter Road, Jim Mclnally returning from injury for Dave Narey. Although we took the early initiative it was Aberdeen who came closest to scoring in the sixth minute when Guido van de Kamp beat out Mason's first time shot from 15 yards. Territorially, the first half certainly belonged to us, but Aberdeen, content to hit us on the break, almost took the lead three minutes from the interval when substitute Paul Kane stole in at the far post to meet a Ten Caat cross. But once again Guido van de Kamp was in the right place at the right time to block the substitutes effort. Our best scoring opportunity of the opening period came midway through the half when Mason cleared a netbound John Clark header off the line, from an Andy McLaren corner, with Snelders well beaten. However, it has to be said that it was a first half of few goalmouth thrills.

Ray McKinnon replaced Andy McLaren at the interval and play at the start of the second half was decidedly scrappy, until we struck in the 53rd minute. John Clark played the ball long out of defence up the right to Duncan Ferguson, who sped towards goal, fended off two challenges as he got inside the box before shooting past Snelders with the aid of a deflection. Two minutes later, Jim McInally split the Dons defence wide open and Aberdeen were lucky not to find themselves trailing by a further goal. However, the visitor's luck didn't hold good on the hour mark when Dave Bowman powered over a cross from the right which Mixu Paatelainen met and knocked the ball down and up over Snelders only to be cleared off the line, but not before it had crossed the line in the linesman's opinion to put us two ahead.

Conscious of having tossed away a two goal lead the previous Saturday, we maintained our attacking momentum and two goals in as many minutes in the last ten minutes completely floored Aberdeen. First Darren Jackson knocked a Duncan Ferguson head flick into the air before sending a glorious scissor-kick volley raging into the top left-hand corner. A minute later Darren Jackson got in behind the visitor's defence as he ran on to a Jim McInally cross and beat Smith before stumbling, but regained his balance quickly enough to despatch the ball behind Snelders from eight yards out to put us four ahead. Three minutes from the end Guido van de Kamp had one of his few moments of second half activity, pulling off a great save from Jess's long range shot to complete a miserable afternoon for the visitors as we recorded our biggest ever Premier win over Aberdeen and equal our best win of the season to mark a highly satisfactory start to the New Year.