Do Not Stray From The True Path

Last updated : 08 November 2010 By Ed_ScottishFitba
Dundee United manager Peter Houston will be hard at work today helping David Goodwillie realise his potential after the striker continued his goal-scoring form despite a troubled week. Goodwillie was dropped from the starting XI for the game against Hamilton at New Douglas Park after being arrested following an alleged disturbance in Glasgow in the early hours of Wednesday morning. He was released without charge but Houston felt he had to leave him out after the striker failed to complete a full week of training. But, with United unable to turn superior possession into goals, the striker came on in the 69th minute and calmly slotted home the only goal of the game seven minutes later after Hamilton failed to clear Paul Dixon's cross. Houston also dropped Barry Douglas after the left-back was involved in the midweek night out and was without Danny Swanson, who suffered facial injuries. The United boss felt let down by the players who defied his wishes to go out during the week but he will try to steer Goodwillie on to the right path.

Houston said: "I needed him. I'm not going to cut my own throat by not playing a guy like David Goodwillie. He didn't prepare properly for the game by not being in training but I had to bring him on as Danny Cadamarteri took a knock and Johnny Russell started to tire. My sole thinking was winning the game and if David Goodwillie scores the goal that's fine. He has been disciplined but I will try to help him rather than discard him. He is as good as anyone in the league as far as I'm concerned. The world is his oyster if he starts to concentrate solely on football. He has got to screw the head and try to take on board what I and previous managers have tried to tell him. We hope the penny drops."

Goodwillie's indiscretion came at a bad time for Houston as a tight hamstring meant he felt unable to start Jon Daly, who came on at the same time as the Scotland Under-21 striker. But he was pleased with his makeshift strikeforce, who had scored five goals between them in a closed-doors friendly against Inverness in midweek. Houston said: "I have got to give credit to Johnny Russell and Danny Cadamarteri. Hamilton's back three are not the youngest and our front two worked them really hard and ran them into the ground."

Hamilton manager Billy Reid was at a loss to explain why his team failed to build on their derby win at Motherwell the previous weekend. Dougie Imrie headed home in the opening minute but referee Calum Murray had already blown for a goal kick after his assistant Lawrence Kerrigan controversially flagged when Marco Paixao appeared to have kept the ball in before crossing. However, Accies took almost 90 more minutes to seriously threaten again when substitute Damian Casalinuovo crashed a shot off the woodwork. Reid said: "I don't think we played well at all. There wasn't a lot in the game. In the first half I thought United were slightly better but created nothing. The first half was dull, it was a poor spectacle. The second half was two teams trying to get going but it didn't really work. They brought on their two main strikers and it certainly gave them impetus. But it was a poor goal from our point of view. We didn't deal with the header, we were all over the place."
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