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Partick Thistle 0-0 Inverness CT

Caley Jags pay the penalty
 
Partick Thistle survived to earn a point after the woodwork saved them twice and keeper Jamie Sneddon denied Sean Welsh from the spot after guessing the right way. Inverness were well on top but it's only a point which means Killie pull further away at the top. Performance of the day was from Arbroath who came from two down to beat Dunfermline Athletic 4-2.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Inverness were looking to bounce back after their midweek shocker against Arbroath and being knocked off the top perch, and Partick were hoping to get back to winning ways after drawing with Morton and Dunfermline in their last two. Neither club would achieve what they were hoping for in a 0-0 draw.
David Carson was still on leave and Cammy Harper was not ready to return with Shane Sutherland posted missing.
 
RIG saw the game like this:
Obviously if you don't take your chances you can't really say you deserved to win but we should have got the three points yesterday. We had by far the better chances but for some good saves, desperate defending and a bit of bad luck we just couldn't force the ball into the net. Walsh, Gardyne and Mckay all had great chances in the first half (still don't know what happened with the Walsh effort as I was sure it had gone in and turned to celebrate). Welsh's penalty was poor but Sneddon timed his movement off his line well. I always feel that penalties should be struck high(er) rather than low as it makes it easier for the keeper to get a stop. Doran hit the bar / forced Sneddon into a save not long after and also had another "penalty" claim waved away (though it looked like it was outside the box) before MacGregor turned a close range effort over the top.

Partick seemed very subdued. Aside from a disallowed goal towards the end, which would have been oh so cruel, I can't really think of any time Ridgers was overly troubled. Sure he had saves to make but they were all pretty comfortable. Odd move from McCall to move Tiffoney over the ICT left after Deas got yellow carded. I assume he wanted Tiffoney to try and draw a foul and second yellow from Deas but he wasn't up for that and completely snuffed one of their better players out of the game. It was superb performance from a defender on a tightrope for so much of the game.

Duffy on the other side was also much improved, perhaps as a result of having Walsh in front of him. Allardice and Welsh dominated the middle of the park and we looked a lot better attacking with Mckay, Doran, Gardyne and Walsh although we still aimed a few aimless balls towards Mckay were he was dominated in the air by the Partick CBs. With MacGregor and Jamieson coming on later on this seemed to disrupt us more than anything but I guess the likes of Doran were tiring and we needed to freshen things up.

Despite not getting the win that was easily one of our best performances of recent weeks and I would have taken a point before the game but given how it played out it was definitely 2 points dropped.

Onto Ayr next week!
 
Although this was a much improved performance from Tuesday night's dismal showing against Arbroath, the lack of a cutting edge came back to haunt us. Walsh and Gardyne both hit the frame of the goal which denied access to the net and with Sneddon guessing the right way to dive we missed out on a glorious opportunity from the spot. Best on the day were Scott Allardice who was back in midfield, Aaron Doran and Wallace Duffy back in at right back.
 
 
 
 

From YouTube
 
 
Date: 30/10/2021  Venue: Firhill, Partick Attendance: 2527 Referee: Gavin Duncan 
 
Partick Thistle: 0
Manager: Ian McCall Lineup:  Sneddon; Foster, Mayo, Tiffoney (Murray 86) Holt, Bannigan, Akinola, Docherty, Smith (Gordon 63), Rudden, Graham (Hastie 63) Subs (not used):  McGready, Turner, McKenna, MacIvor Scorers: none Booked: Docherty (59), Rudden (82) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 0
Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup:  Ridgers; Duffy, Broadfoot, Devine, Deas, Gardyne, Welsh, Allardice, Walsh (MacGregor 86), Doran (Jamieson 79), Mckay Subs (not used): C Mackay; McAlear, McDonald, Duku Scorers: none Booked: Deas (19) Sent Off: none a
By tm4tj in Reports 2021-22 ·

Partick Thistle -V- Inverness CT - Preview

Onerous task at Firhill
 
Not always a happy hunting ground for the Caley Jags, we travel to Glasgow to take on the often high scoring Partick Thistle at Firhill. We did get the better of them last time we met, but only after a tortuous first half when we could have been three down. We turned that game around after the interval and ran out 3-1 winners in a dominant second half. Saturday's game is a 3:00pm kick off.
MATCH INFO & TICKETS
PPV STREAM FROM PARTICK
OFFICIAL PREVIEW
SUPPORTERS BUS 07462218717
 
Venue - Head2Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 9 5 7 33 30 +3 Away 19 5 5 9 21 28 -7 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 40 14 10 16 54 58 -4 First Competitive Meeting Aug 4th, 1998 League (H) 1 - 0 Most Recent Competitive Meeting Sep 11th, 2021 League (Championship) (H) 3 - 1 Last 10 Competitive Meetings
3 - 1
(H)
1 - 3
(A)
1 - 3
(H)
2 - 1
(A)
1 - 2
(H)
1 - 0
(A)
3 - 2
(H)
1 - 1
(A)
0 - 0
(H)
0 - 2
(A) Biggest Victories Apr 30th, 2016 League (A) 4 - 1 Jan 10th, 2009 Scottish Cup (Rd 4) (H) 3 - 0 Apr 27th, 2002 League (H) 3 - 0 Heaviest Defeats Dec 13th, 2014 League (H) 0 - 4 Highest Attendance Feb 23rd, 2002 Scottish Cup (Quarter Final) (A) 8,700 Highest Home Attendance Mar 5th, 2002 Scottish Cup (Quarter Final Replay) (H) 5,037 Our last win at Firhill was on 22nd March 2019 when Tom Walsh scored a stunning volley to win all three points in this 2 - 1 game: Inverness went back in front when Polworth chipped a ball into the box and a cheeky flick from Doran saw substitute Tom Walsh lash a left foot volley home from fifteen yards with ten minutes left. Tremendous goal by Walsh who had scored the winner last time Inverness were here with an equally stunning strike.
Over to you Mr Walsh, time to get the finger out and get back to doing what you do best.

 
 
We lost our top spot in midweek as Killie overhauled us having been five points behind us last Saturday morning.
    Pld W D L F A +/- Pts 1. Kilmarnock 11 7 2 2 14 7 7 23 2. Inverness CT 11 7 2 2 13 6 7 23 3. Arbroath 11 5 4 2 19 9 10 19 4. Raith Rovers 11 5 4 2 18 13 5 19 5. Partick Thistle 11 5 2 4 23 14 9 17 6. Ayr United 11 3 3 5 10 15 -5 12 7. Hamilton Academical 11 3 2 6 11 23 -12 11 8. Queen of the South 11 3 1 7 10 15 -5 10 9. Morton 11 1 5 5 7 14 -7 8 10. Dunfermline 11 0 7 4 7 16 -9 7 Other fixtures this Saturday
Arbroath v Dunfermline
Killie v Queens
Morton v Hamilton
Raith Rovers v Ayr United      
Last time out we failed miserably against Arbroath on a totally miserable night for football. We lacked any real penetration and when your most reliable player errs, then you know it's not going to be a good night. Credit to Arbroath though, they did what they had to do to get the three points and top scorer Michael McKenna's wind aided free kick found the net to give the Smokies all three points. The defeat was hard to take, but the manner of defeat has been a cause for concern in recent weeks. Lack of guile and quality up front and lack of pace at the back has seen us struggle, even against ten men, twice.
Partick fared little better as they drew 0-0 with Morton following a 0-0 draw with the Pars. However, go back a further week and they ransacked a hapless Hamilton Accies 1-6 at NDP.
 
Latest Team News
David Carson is still absent but Cammy Harper has resumed training although he is unlikely to be fit for this game. 


Ian McCall had this starting XI out on Tuesday night in a 0-0 draw at Morton: Sneddon; Foster, Akinola, Mayo, Holt, Bannigan, Docherty, Turner, Tiffoney, Rudden, Graham
 
By tm4tj in Previews 2021-22 ·

Inverness CT 0-1 Arbroath - Report

Punchless and Pointless
 
Inverness toiled to make any headway in a dour first half, the poor fare on display being matched only by the miserable weather. We improved in the final ten minutes before the interval but clear chances were at a premium. After the break and some initial half chances for the hosts, McKenna scored with a cross/shot free kick that caught out the keeper, possibly wind assisted. Inverness still struggled to create clear openings, an all too familiar habit of late. They could have doubled their lead soon after but Ridgers was in the right place to put Little's header over the bar. Thereafter we ruined what little chances we had by a lack of quality around the box and stout defending by Arbroath. Well done to them, they did what they had to do, we need to take a long hard look at how we are going about our business.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Caley Jags were looking to get back to winning ways after dropping points to Hamilton and Raith in recent games and Arbroath were looking for their first win in five games which has seen them slip just off the pace at the top of the table.
The pitch was watered more heavily than Starks Park after a day of dark clouds and rain with a blustery wind getting stronger heading towards kick-off.
Duku and Mckay were the preferred partners up front with Gardyne and Sutherland on the bench. David Carson and Cammy Harper were still missing and Allardice was at right back. Bobby Linn was on the bench for Arbroath with Nouble and Dowds up front and scoring midfielder Michael McKenna in behind them.
After a minutes silence in memory of Walter Smith, play got underway with Arbroath attacking the North Stand.
A scrappy opening to the game saw the ball being moved around like a hot potato with nether side keeping possession for any length of time.
In the 14th minute Manny Duku chased a lost cause and when he whipped the ball into the box it appeared to graze the face of the crossbar before running out.
Arbroath forced a series of corners which we eventually hoofed clear to take the pressure off the defence.
A free kick from Aaron Doran almost bounced into the net as the wind played havoc with the flight of the ball, but it was a difficult watch in the first quarter of the game.
Nouble bounced a couple of players off him as he cut into the box on the left but we eventually blocked his route to goal.
Walsh snatched at a ball on the edge of the box and Gaston made a bit of a meal of it but gathered it at the second time of asking. Moments later Doran almost curled an effort into the net after turning his marker inside the box but his shot drifted just wide. 
The hosts had upped the intensity just before the break but had still not made the breakthrough. 
Half Time: 0-0
Shooting towards the North Stand after the break we found ourselves a goal down out of nothing. Top scorer Michael McKenna took a free kick out wide from a crossing position. Unfortunately for Ridgers, he curled it into the net with the keeper flapping at the ball as the wind held the ball back. He might not want to see that one again. Like the weather, we spoiled the fans night by being totally useless in front of goal with most efforts going wide or being blocked and the visitors still looked menacing on the break when they stopped their time wasting. Last chance fell to Saturday's saviour Sean Welsh but he hooked his shot high over the bar and that summed up our night. Horrendous!
We looked like a Highland League side at times and our inability to fashion out clear opportunities is worrying. Good week for Killie who started it 5 points behind us and now sit top of the table.
with Killie scoring a late penalty at Ayr, they have taken the lead at the top of the table on goal difference as we appear to be found wanting when the push comes to the shove.
Thoroughly disappointing game, performance, result and weather and it gets even tougher at the weekend as we take on Partick Thistle.
 
 

 
From CTO SteveA, he's not pulling any punches...
I've seen some bad performances at the stadium but that must be up there with the worst. Horrible game. We never threatened, couldn't pass the ball and looked bang average all over the park. We showed next to no urgency and got exactly what we deserved. I might of missed the man of the match announcement or maybe whoever was picking it decided that none of our players deserved it. If it was the latter I would fully agree with them. Every one of them was shocking. 
From CTO caley100 is no a happy bunny either:
Hopeless, inept, clueless and that was the referee! ICT were not far behind, As has been said before we have been very poor and tonight showed that we are papering over the cracks. So many poor passes, and failed lay offs to nobody, and a complete lack of idea's in the opposition box. The ref was awful, truly awful, He let them get away with murder, then ignored the time wasting **** of a keeper.
Not happy. 
Just let this Arbroath FC tweet sink in...
 
 
Date: 26/10/2021  Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1909 Referee: Craig Napier 
 
Inverness CT: 0
Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup:  Ridgers; Allardice, Broadfoot, Devine, Deas, Doran (Gardyne 62), Welsh, MacGregor (McAlear 71), Duku (Jaimeson 62), Mckay Subs (not used):  C Mackay, Duffy, McDonald, Sutherland Scorers: none Booked: Deas (32), Broadfoot (86) Sent Off: none Arbroath: 1
Manager: Dick Campbell Lineup:  Gaston; Chris Hamilton, Little, O'Brien, Colin Hamilton, Clark, Stewart (Gold 82), McKenna, Donnelly (Craigen 71), Dowds (Hilsen 71), Nouble Subs (not used): Antell; Henderson, Swankie, Linn Scorers: McKenna (54) Booked: Craigen (85) Sent Off: none a
By tm4tj in Reports 2021-22 ·

Inverness CT -V- Arbroath - Preview

Matchday 11
 
A busy night of Championship Football has Arbroath heading North to the Caledonian Stadium for a 7:45 kick-off on Tuesday night. The Smokies sit seven points behind the league leaders in fifth place despite being the second highest scorers in the Championship, but four draws and two defeats have held them back slightly.
The first game this season at Gayfield ended in a scarcely deserved away win thanks to a neat dinked finish from Shane Sutherland as he bore down on Gaston in the Arbroath goal. 
 
Dinky Shane

Matchday Info - Tickets - Streaming
 
Venue - Head 2 Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 19 15 2 2 53 17 +36 Away 18 9 3 6 26 22 +4 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 37 24 5 8 79 39 +40 First Competitive Meeting Aug 13th, 1994 League ((Div 3)) (H) 5 - 2 Most Recent Competitive Meeting Jul 31st, 2021 League (Championship) (A) 1 - 0 Last 10 Competitive Meetings
1 - 0
(A)
1 - 0
(H)
1 - 1
(A)
3 - 1
(H)
0 - 1
(H)
0 - 3
(A)
2 - 1
(H)
0 - 3
(H)
7 - 0
(H)
2 - 0
(A) Biggest Victories Jul 30th, 2016 League Cup (Group C) (H) 7 - 0 Heaviest Defeats Nov 9th, 2019 League (A) 0 - 3 Aug 2nd, 2016 Challenge Cup (Under 20s) (H) 0 - 3 Highest Attendance Aug 10th, 2019 League (H) 2,298 Highest Home Attendance Aug 10th, 2019 League (H) 2,298 The stats for this home fixture lie heavily in our favour with 15 wins from 19 fixtures and only 2 defeats. However, those defeats have come recently and we lost this one 0 - 1 in December 2019 when Luke Donnelly scored the only goal in December 2019. Fortunately, we won both home fixtures last season, but we seem to have difficulty breaking Arbroath down and end up clinging on somewhat. Changed days from the 7-0 results of yore.
    Pld W D L F A +/- Pts 1. Inverness CT 10 7 2 1 13 5 8 23 2. Kilmarnock 10 6 2 2 13 7 6 20 3. Raith Rovers 10 5 3 2 17 12 5 18 4. Partick Thistle 10 5 1 4 23 14 9 16 5. Arbroath 10 4 4 2 18 9 9 16 6. Ayr United 10 3 3 4 10 14 -4 12 7. Queen of the South 10 3 1 6 10 14 -4 10 8. Hamilton Academical 10 2 2 6 10 23 -13 8 9. Morton 10 1 4 5 7 14 -7 7 10. Dunfermline 10 0 6 4 6 15 -9 6 Despite those defeats for Arbroath, it's still been a successful season so far and Dick Campbell can be pleased with his part time sides progress. The two losses were against Inverness & Raith Rovers which tells you all you need to know about their resilience.
Fixtures on Tuesday night
Morton 19:30 Partick Th
Ayr United 19:45 Kilmarnock
Dunfermline 19:45 Raith Rovers
Hamilton Accies 19:45 Queen of the Sth
Inverness CT 19:45 Arbroath FC
On Saturday we face a tough trip to Partick
Last time out
We laboured for a point against ten man Raith Rovers. Aidan Connolly had given Raith the lead but Sean Welsh drove through a ruck of players from just outside the box to earn the point. Disappointing given Raith played the whole of the second half with ten men and also had to replace to important players through injury. However, a point would have been acceptable before the game and no major damage to our title aspirations with Killie the only ones to close the gap.
Here's the goals from Starks Park
  
Arbroath had to settle for a draw at the weekend as Ayr United came from behind to get their point in a close encounter. Form player Michael McKenna opened the scoring ten minutes into the second half only for Jonathan Afolabi to level ten minutes before the end. No wins in the last four for Arbroath.
Latest Team News
Billy Dodds has been without David Carson for a few weeks through injury now and he has been on compassionate leave for a couple of weeks now. Cammy Harper missed out against Raith Rovers with a groin injury. As usual, little info filtering through regards injuries and availability.
Dick Campbell has been without Nicky Low and it's unlikely he will make this game. Joel Nouble was a big nuisance in the first game with his robust style and will be a danger. At over 6ft 3in he will be a problem for most defences. He was named as Cinch Championship player of the Month for September and has scored four goals in ten games.
 
Here's Bazza

 
The Caley Jags will face Morton at home in the Third Round of the Scottish Cup

Third Round Ties to take place weekend of November 27th
Unfortunately it's a bit of a damp squib for those looking to visit new grounds. I suspect the Morton fans will be even less enthusiastic given the tie will be played in the Highlands.
However, it's a great opportunity to progress into the hat for the 4th round draw, alas, Morton will feel the same.
 
 
 
 
By tm4tj in Previews 2021-22 ·

Raith Rovers 1-1 Inverness CT

And it goes on...
 
Plenty of endeavour in the first half at Starks Park but little quality in the final third resulted in a game void of goalmouth action over the first forty-five minutes for both sides. Biggest talking point was the sending off just before the break of Ross Mathews for what looked like a rash studs up challenge. Contentious maybe, but straight red dished out. After the break more space saw more chances created but it was Raith that broke forward and scored through Aidan Connolly. Inverness struggled to get back on level terms but eventually did ten minutes from the end when Sean Welsh drilled home from the edge of the box and that ended the scoring. Raith's quest for a win over Inverness goes into a 22nd year. Killie were the only winners in the Championship and closed the gap to three points but Inverness remain top.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rovers were looking for their first win over Inverness in 21 years whilst Inverness were looking to start the seond phase of fixtures on a high and maintain their five point lead at the top of the table. However, Rovers are the form team in the league at the moment and this could have been our most difficult game of the season so far.
Wallace Duffy was in at right back and Michael Gardyne was fit enough to continue up front. Billy Mckay kept Manny Duku on the bench.
A first half without opportunities changed dramatically when Mathews was red carded just before the interval, but it was tepid and goalless at the break.
Half Time: 0-0
Just after the interval Mark Ridgers dived low to his right to push an effort by Tumilty round the post for a corner. It may have been going just wide but he took no chances and dealt well with the shot, and at the other end Shane Sutherland cut inside on the right and went equally close with a low curling left footer that was just wide of the far post with Macdonald at full stretch.
Rovers opened the scoring after good work down the left before Aidan Connolly smashed the ball from Dario Zanatta high into the net from 12 yards. Sloppy marking from the defence but Connolly didn't care as he fired the ball into the top corner for a super finish. 
Jamie Macdonald pulled off a flying save to deny Billy Mckay as Inverness responded against the ten men and a Duku free kick forced the keeper to push the ball over the bar as the Inverness pressure mounted.
Inverness equalised when Michael Gardyne burst into the box on the left side and cut the ball back to the edge of the area where Sean Welsh drilled a low shot into the bottom corner of the net.
Dario Zanatta passed on a great opportunity to win all three points but curled his shot high over the bar and into the stand.
Macdonald scooped up a late header as we looked to nab a late winner but it was too easy for the keeper.
 
Full Time: 1-1
The game petered out thereafter and the points were shared.
Another disappointing show against ten men for half the game, but the point was deserved and very welcome.
Michael Gardyne was again prominent and created most of our openings with a nod to Sean Welsh for steadying himself before drilling home the equaliser.
A useful point at the end of the day with Kilmarnock the only side to earn three points, so not too much damage done by dropping two points, but nonetheless disappointing considering the player advantage after the break plus two enforced changes due to injury.
 
 
 
Highlights from Raith Rovers TV
 
From BBC Sport
Raith Rovers manager John McGlynn: "Ross Matthews has made an aggressive attempt to get to the ball in a game where there were a few challenges going around. "The referee was very quick to make that decision. I think it was a fair attempt and he got the ball, it was the follow through he caught the player."
Inverness CT manager Billy Dodds: "We should do better when they go down to 10 but fair play to Raith, they kept at it. When we got the equaliser I fancied us to win but we ran out of time. "Before the game I'd probably have taken a point but once they went down to 10 I expected three."

 
From CTO Robert: 
I’d have taken 1-1 before kick off and then when Raith took the lead. Credit the players for getting back into it and a draw was a fair result.
It was quite a scrappy game, particularly the first half. Broadfoot was booked in only 50 seconds and the only chance I recall was a Welsh free kick that nearly went over the stand. Neither ‘keeper was tested. The pitch seemed slippery and was not helping with players losing their footing a few times, notably Mckay and MacGregor. So much for plastic surfaces!
The sending off worried me as I thought it would galvanise Raith and, after we started the second half brightly, they got their goal from a cross from Zanatta. It was the only time he got the better of Duffy all game and the scorer got between our defenders to give Ridgers no chance.
After that, I thought we would struggle to break them down, but we had our best spell and got a deserved equaliser when the ball fell to Welsh about 20 yards out and he finished well.
 
Date: 23/10/2021  Venue:  Starks Park, Kirkaldy  Attendance: 1900 Referee: Colin Steven 
 
Raith Rovers: 1
Manager: John McGlynn Lineup:  MacDonald; Tumilty, Berra, Benedictus (Lang 53) Dick, Connolly (Ross 78), Mathews, Zanatta, Spencer, Tait, Varian (Poplatnik 21) Subs (not used):  Thomson; Riley-Snow, Mitchell, Young, Scorers: Connolly (62) Booked: Tait (45+1) Sent Off: Mathews (45+1)  Inverness CT: 1
Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup:  Ridgers; Duffy, Broadfoot, Devine, Deas, Gardyne, Welsh, Allardice (Doran 77), MacGregor, Sutherland (Duku 72) Mckay (Jamieson 82) Subs (not used): C Mackay; McAlear, Walsh, McDonald Scorers: Welsh (79) Booked: Broadfoot (2), Allardice (63), MacGregor (89) Sent Off: none a
By tm4tj in Reports 2021-22 ·

Raith Rovers -V- Inverness CT - Preview

Another top two battle
 
It's a biggy this weekend as we travel to Kirkaldy to take on second place Raith Rovers at Starks Park on Saturday. Standard 3:00pm kick-off in this one which could be a massive indicator as to the outcome of this campaign. John McGlynn has slowly assembled a squad very capable of challenging for the Championship title and I expect Raith to be in the mix come the end of the season.
Raith are in fine form at the moment after a sluggish start to their season. Recent wins over Arbroath, Kilmarnock, Partick, Morton and Queen of the South have catapulted them into second place, five points behind Inverness. They are the form team over the last five games with four wins and a draw.
OFFICIAL PREVIEW
MATCH INFO RAITH
MATCH INFO ARBROATH
PPV RAITH TV £14
SUPPORTERS BUS LEAVES STADIUM 10:00
 
Venue - Head 2 Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 17 13 2 2 36 13 +23 Away 13 7 3 3 26 16 +10 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 30 20 5 5 62 29 +33 First Competitive Meeting Sep 25th, 1999 League (H) 0 - 2 Most Recent Competitive Meeting Aug 7th, 2021 League (Championship) (H) 1 - 0 Last 10 Competitive Meetings
1 - 0
(H)
1 - 0
(A)
0 - 0
(H)
2 - 0
(H)
3 - 3
(A)
4 - 1
(H)
2 - 1
(H)
1 - 0
(H)
4 - 3
(H)
4 - 0
(A) Biggest Victories Jan 12th, 2002 League (H) 5 - 0 Heaviest Defeats Aug 26th, 2000 League (A) 1 - 4 Highest Attendance Apr 3rd, 2010 League (H) 3,562 Highest Home Attendance Apr 3rd, 2010 League (H) 3,562     Pld W D L F A +/- Pts 1. Inverness CT 9 7 1 1 12 4 8 22 2. Raith Rovers 9 5 2 2 16 11 5 17 3. Kilmarnock 9 5 2 2 11 6 5 17 4. Partick Thistle 9 5 0 4 23 14 9 15 5. Arbroath 9 4 3 2 17 8 9 15 6. Ayr United 9 3 2 4 9 13 -4 11 7. Queen of the South 9 3 0 6 10 14 -4 9 8. Hamilton Academical 9 2 2 5 9 21 -12 8 9. Morton 9 1 3 5 7 14 -7 6 10. Dunfermline 9 0 5 4 6 15 -9 5 We have a great record overall against Rovers with only five defeats from thirty games. Three of those have come at Starks Park, the most recent was...... erm, as Don McLean said, "A long long time ago, I can still remember how Raith beat us". It was back in the days when buffalo roamed the plains, Delerium were top of the Pops with Silence and flares were still in fashion. Raith won this encounter in Kirkaldy 1 - 4 when we were still finding our feet in the big boys leagues. Surprisingly that was their second last ever victory over the Caley Jags in all competitions over ninety minutes. The last defeat was in the same season almost 21 years ago to this October day. Mind you, they had some great players in their team back then.
Other Fixtures all Saturday at 3:00pm 
Arbroath v Ayr United
Kilmarnock v Hamilton Academical
Partick Thistle v Dunfermline
Queen of the South v Greenock Morton
Reminder, we play Arbroath at home on Tuesday 26th October in a full night of fixtures. Kick-Off 7:45pm
Last time out
Raith beat Arbroath 2-1 in a Championship game at Starks Park. Dylan Tait scored an early goal and they went two up just on the interval when Ross Mathews headed in. Arbroath notched a goal deep into stoppage time but that result was enough to put Rovers into second place in the table.
Inverness edged out Morton 2-0 in the Highlands. Billy Mckay and Michael Gardyne scored either side of the break as we extended our lead at the top. It was a not overly convincing performance, but it was another three points in the bag.
In the first meeting between the clubs this season, Inverness won thanks to a solitary goal from Roddy MacGregor in a tight affair in the Highlands. And what a goal it was. Boom!

Latest Team News
David Carson is possibly still absent after a family bereavement. Michael Gardyne was patched up to finish the game against Morton after getting a gash on his head. Manny Duku has still to get off the mark and might find it difficult to dislodge Billy Mckay from the strikers berth, but he will be keen to show his former club he has what it takes to make the grade. It's an artificial surface at Starks Park which might limit some of our options. We are thin at the back and Cammy Harper has a groin injury.
James Keatings will not be in the Raith squad as he is on loan at Montrose. Dario Zanatta will be a threat and keeper Jamie MacDonald, Christophe Berra and Kyle Benedictus add plenty of experience to their defence.
By tm4tj in Previews 2021-22 ·

Inverness CT 2-0 Morton - Report

Caley Jags open up a gap
 
Inverness extended their lead at the top of the Championship as the Pars got a late leveller against Killie. The hosts opened the scoring after twenty minutes through Billy Mckay with the credit for the assist going to Mark Ridgers from his quick goal kick. Inverness stepped up a gear after the interval and Michael Gardyne scored the second early in the second half as he crashed a loose ball in the box high into the net. That was enough to see off Morton who battled hard throughout but fell short. It could have been a different story had the visitors made more of their own opportunities. Five points clear after the first quarter: Who knew?
The Goals

Inverness were looking to bounce back after their miserable performance against whipping boys Hamilton Accies who were ransacked 6-1 by Partick Thistle last night. 
The Caley Jags were without David Carson due to a family bereavement and Cammy Harper who took a knock at Elgin last Saturday. That left us a tad short for defenders. Reece McAlear came into midfield with Scott Allardice deputising at right back with hat-trick hero Billy Mckay partnering Shane Sutherland up front. Manny Duku was on the bench.
Despite their lowly league status, the visitors were looking sharp in the early stages and Thomas Allan danced down the left wing and sent a cross into the box which hit the outside junction of post and crossbar with Mark Ridgers keeping a close eye on the ball.
Reece McAlear drove wide with the aid of a deflection after good set up play down the Inverness left, the ball spinning out wide for a corner. Slack play at the other end saw Morton get the ball into the box and two attempts were blocked by last ditch tackles, Devine doing brilliantly to stop Gavin Reilly's effort from going on target from ten yards. Let off for the hosts.
When Kyle Jacobs header went wide from a Morton corner, Ridgers spotted Billy Mckay lurking around the centre circle. His hastily taken goal kicked bounced off a defenders head and Billy anticipated superbly to stride forward before notching his 71st goal for the Caley Jags as he placed the ball into the net with his left peg low across the keeper.
Michael Gardyne was instrumental in offering Mckay another shooting opportunity on the half hour but Billy dragged his shot wide of the goal.
Shortly before the interval, Jimmy Knowles shot across the face of the goal after good build up play from the Ton across the park. Moments later Ridgers dealt with another effort from Knowles. Just before the whistle, a clash of heads led to an extended tea break as Michael Gardyne came back out after receiving treatment. Thomas Allan was not so fortunate and was replaced by Mark Russell.
Half Time: 1-0
Despite his injured head being plastered over, he was alert enough to get onto the loose ball after Roddy MacGregor and Mckay were blocked inside the box, Michael stepping onto the ball to smash home the second goal and his fourth in four games.
McAlear saw an effort saved before substitute Manny Duku should have opened his Championship account. He was fed through on the left side of goal by Gardyne, but caught the keepers legs with his angled shot which ran out for a corner. Likewise, Morton should have scored after a long range shot by Reece Lyon was pushed out by Ridgers, but the follow up header from Gary Oliver was knocked wide.
Lewis Jamieson shot wide as Inverness kept the visitors options down to a minimum and by the end of the game it was another three points in the bag without over exerting ourselves.
Morton did have their moments and should have scored, but thems the breaks.
MotM performances from Michael Gardyne and Roddy MacGregor and another good display at the back from Danny Devine.
 
 
 
 
From CTO Robert
A deserved win, but on several occasions at 0-0 and 1-0 we did our best to let Morton get into the game by poor passing and some comic book defending. Ridgers’ kicking was not to his usual standards, but the one that counted was great vision and very accurate to set Mckay up for a cool finish into the corner. Gardyne pounced for the second after Mckay could have scored in the same move. We could, and possibly should, have got more against a poor defence, with Jamieson coming closest.
CTO Doofers Dad  
The recent games against the bottom 3 have shown there are no easy games in this division, yet we are 5 points clear at the top.  We must be doing something right.  This season we seem to be managing to win games that are pretty finely balanced.  The difference seems to be that the team are all working really hard for each other and when we have those "heart in the mouth" moments there is a real collective effort to clear the danger.  Pressing hard and winning the ball back then gives us more chance of creating opportunities up front. Maintaining the level of intensity and the team spirit will be essential if we are going keep the challenge for promotion going.
Doddsy's a Happy Bunny

 
Match Highlights from ICTV
 
 
 
 
 
Date: 16/10/2021  Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1900 Referee: Mike Roncone
 
Inverness CT: 2
Manager: Billy Dodds  Lineup:  Ridgers; Allardice, Broadfoot, Devine, Deas, Gardyne, Welsh, McAlear (Doran 61), MacGregor, Sutherland (Duku 58), B Mckay (Jamieson 77) Subs (not used):  C Mackay; Duffy, McDonald, Walsh Scorers: B Mckay (20), Gardyne (49) Booked: Allardice (36) MacGregor (76), Duku (90) Sent Off: none Morton: 0
Manager: Gus MacPherson Lineup:  Hamilton; McEntee, Lithgow, Strapp, Blues, Jacobs, Oksanen, Allan (Russell 45), Oliver, Knowles (Muirhead 62), Reilly (Lyon 69) Subs (not used): King, Ledger, McLean, McGrattan Scorers: none Booked: none Sent Off: none a
By tm4tj in Reports 2021-22 ·

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