Tale of two Jags



Inverness face one of only three teams to have taken all three points off them so far this season. It's the Harry Wraggs who come North, weather permitting on Saturday for week 16 of the SPFL Premiership campaign, almost half way to the dreaded split.

The league table does not normally lie, but Partick sit ninth on sixteen points, exactly half the total of their hosts tomorrow. That's hard to explain really, considering they gave us a doing at Firhill in September. Aaron Doran had given Inverness an early lead but ten minutes later Partick turned that around to go 2-1 ahead with goals from Steven Lawless and Abdul Osman. Partick were buzzing around and despite Inverness getting to grips with the game in the second half, they fell further behind from a stunning strike by Kallum Higginbotham. They even threw away the opportunity of a fourth when Kris Doolan missed a late spot kick. What made this result hard to bear was the fact that Inverness had not conceded any goals in the previous five league games since the start of the season, but Partick destroyed that run in what was an excellent result for them.

Since then, we have gone on a decent run, winning six and losing two (Dons & Celtic away), and a derby draw with County. Partick have lost five league games over the same period, the lowlight being a 3-0 defeat at Rugby Park. They also suffered badly at the hands of Celtic in the League Cup quarter final, losing 6-0, but they fared better in a recent premiership game losing 1-0.

Partick on their day can be as adventurous as the best of them, their Achilles heel has been defensive frailties which is something Inverness can capitalise on, especially at home. We are unbeaten at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium this season, the only blemishes being the draw with relegation candidates Dross County, and the midweek draw with Dundee. One complaint from the home fans is that it usually takes half a game to get into top gear, but early goals in the cup replay against St Mirren showed that we can start early and finish strong as well.

Inverness' only concern is the permanently injured Richie Foran.

Partick Thistle  have worries over defenders Frederic Frans and Jake Carroll. Jordan McMillan is back training and Nathan Eccleston looks set to return.

John Hughes has been singing the praises of his squad after his subs made an impact at Dens Park and his main conundrum is whether any of the substitutes warrant a start ahead of the regular X1. It's a luxury we have not always been afforded, and having explosive guys like Aaron Doran and Ryan Christie on the bench is always a plus agaist tiring defences. Yogi has also been fending off other clubs who are reported to be showing an interest in hot property, Ryan Christie. Not for sale is the message from Yogi.

tm4tj prediction:- I'm taking Inverness to exact revenge on the Harry Wraggs with a reversal of the September scoreline. We have been consistently solid at home and our second half surges are getting reminiscent of the olde Pele days. Home win for me, by 3-1.