Goalden Oldies Inverness scraped their way into the hat for the fourth round draw with a less than impressive display against fifth tier Cowdenbeath. It was only after the introduction of olde heads Wotherspoon, Mckay and Carson that we took control of the game in the final ten minutes. Spoony and Mckay got the late strikes to win this tie over a hard working Cowdenbeath who can be well pleased with their performance as they shut Inverness down all over the park for eighty minutes. In truth, the mascots looked more impressive in the warm up than the Caley Jags strikers as they scored goals like a boss. Robert on CTO: That was a hard watch. Cowdenbeath more than matched us until the triple change. Ferguson will have learn’t a lot about some players. Two great goals put an artificial gloss on a poor performance. I’ll cut Welsh some slack as he is still building up fitness after so little game time, and he made one magnificent cross field pass to Shaw. Delaney and Sheridan were the worst of the bunch, with most players guilty of slack passing and poor control in general. It could have been different if our two early chances had gone in, one cleared off the line and one resulting in a good save. However, we didn’t kick on at all, reverting to square and backwards passing with little movement or threat. When we got scoring chances, we tended to pass rather than shoot when a shooting opportunity was on. After the break, Brooks had a tame effort and Sheridan should have had two easy goals but messed up the opportunities. Thank goodness we stepped up several gears when Mckay and Wotherspoon came on. We need to get Wotherspoon tied up for longer. Of the starting eleven, I’m struggling as to who get pass marks. Maybe Shaw and Ujdur but that would be about it. Brooks and Longstaff worked very hard but without damaging Cowdenbeath. FULL TIME: 2-0 More detail to follow>>> Cup ties are all about getting into the next round and that's what Inverness did....just. Unlike Dundee United and Arbroath, who have parted company with Dick & Dom. Not an impressive performance by any means, but Big Dunc will have learnt that some of these players need to move on in January. We had made half a dozen changes to the normal Championship team lines but I'm struggling to find many positives from that. No surprise that we looked much better when Mckay, Wotherspoon and Carson entered the game. A couple of flashes of brilliance and it was game over. Well done to Cowdenbeath who got their game plan right and snapped at our heels all afternoon making life difficult for us as we tried to break them down but failed badly. Sheridan looks off the pace but still had a couple of opportunities to score, something he would have done with his eyes shut a number of years ago. Brooks runs around like a headless chicken without threatening. Misplaced passes all over the park today, but one man not guilty of that was the impeccable Nikola Ujdur who was my MotM. His nearest rivals only played for the final ten minutes, Mckay and Wotherspoon and after that the mascots Ava and Rio were head and shoulders above the rest of the squad. Dunc's happy enough, that's good enough for me Date: 25/11/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1037 Referee: Graham Grainger Inverness CT: 2 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: C Mackay; Duffy (Carson 70), Ujdur, Devine, Delaney, Longstaff (Lodovica 90+1), Welsh (Davidson 89), Gilmour, Brooks (Wotherspoon 71), Shaw, Sheridan (Mckay 70) Subs (not used): Ridgers; Harper, Hyde, Thompson Scorers: Wotherspoon (80), B Mckay (84) Booked: none Sent Off: none Cowdenbeath: 0 Manager: Calum Elliot Lineup: Hepburn; MacPherson, McNab, Jordan, Tait, McLaughlin (Chalmers 77), Docherty, McDonald (MacDonald (77)), Butterworth, Jack (Berry 54), MacPherson (Cunningham 77) Subs (not used): Blair; Walker Scorers: none Booked: Docherty (34), Tait (90) Sent Off: none a

Wood you believe it? Big Dunc was looking to remain unbeaten in six, but Inverness were without half a dozen long term injured players including more recent casualties, Jake Davidson, Austin Samuels and Aaron Doran. Captain Sean Welsh was on the bench after a recent back injury. Dunfermline have their own long term absentees but had Deniz Mehmet back between the sticks after his head knock last week and Machael O'Halloran was fit enough to make the bench, with Alex Jakubiak and Craig Wighton as strong back-ups. Best early moments saw Dunfermline hit the post four times inside a couple of minutes but fortune favoured the visitors. Make that six hits on the Inverness woodwork, but Danny Devine showed them all how to hit the net two minutes before the break as tempers flared at the end of the half. More woodwork in the second half and Dunfermline salvaged a point with three minutes left through McCann...... in off the post! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Floodlights on from the start as the visitors set the ball rolling at 15:00 on a rather grey day. First corner of the game to the Pars but it came to nothing as did the Caley Jags' first corner minutes later. Lewis McCann had the first serious attempt but his header was poor and it bounced into the ground without troubling Ridgers. Nathan Shaw was blocked at one and immediately Danny Devine thwarted Matty Todd at the other end as he tried to break through on goal. Owen Moffat dipped a shot over after twenty minutes with Ridgers watching closely. The Pars hit both posts when McCann turned and shot and the ball bounced perilously close to the line before being cleared after hitting the other post. Moments later Hosler slid in and hit the post once more and the rebound came off Devine to hit the post again. After an Inverness corner, Billy Mckay had a low effort blocked in a crowded box. Ridgers saved from Ritchie-Hosler, then on the half hour Cammy Harper missed what is generally described as an open goal at the back post after a Mckay sclaff found it's way to him but he sliced wide. Wood you believe it! Incredibly the Pars hit the woodwork another twice after Morgan Boyes played a loose pass back. McCann hit the inside of the post then Moffat's effort came off the bar from the rebound. From another home corner a Boyes header went agonisingly close to opening the scoring. Danny Devine showed his strikers how to do it a couple of minutes before half time as he drilled into the net. Amazingly, the visitors made it to the interval without conceding, the posts, however, were battered and bruised as were Gilmour, Harper, Chalmers and Hamilton after a clash with yellow cards dished out in a frantic ending to the half. HALF TIME: 0-1 If anything the rain was heavier as the second half kicked off with no alterations to either side and Inverness making some early headway to no avail. Harper fired a cross into the box which David Wotherspoon almost connected properly with but it went wide. Touch wood, but it was a much more positive start to the second half for the visitors. Harper did well to clear away a dangerous McCann cross with substitute Jakubiak lurking with intent. Inverness survived another cafuffle in the box involving Jakubiak again and minutes later he was looking for a penalty under a Devine intervention. A seventh strike off the woodwork saved the visitors again from a thunderous Otoo effort from distance. Lewis McCann levelled the game with three minutes left. Unfortunately the post helped the Pars this time as McCann's effort went in via the post. FULL TIME: 1-1 An incredible game with Woodwork named as MotM with seven tremendous saves and one assist at the end as the Pars got the reward their endeavour deserved. Great finish from Danny Devine for the opening goal, scoring like a Pro. Nobody could grudge Dunfermline their leveller although it came at a time when we looked most comfortable and likely to see out the game for all three points. It's a funny olde game as they used to say. Date: 18/11/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 5034 Referee: Euan Anderson Dunfermline: 1 Manager: James McPake Lineup: Mehmet; Fisher, Hamilton, Otoo, Ritchie-Hosler (O'Halloran 70), Allan, Todd (Jakubiak 60), Chalmers, Edwards, McCann, Moffat (Wighton 70) Subs (not used): Sharp; Little; Fenton, Comrie Scorers: McCann (88) Booked: Chalmers (45), Hamilton (45+3) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Ujdur (Duffy 65), Devine, Boyes, Harper, Gilmour, Anderson, Wotherspoon (Welsh 84), Shaw, B Mckay (Longstaff 65) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Delaney, Lodovica, Thompson, Brooks, Sheridan Scorers: Devine (43) Booked: Gilmour (45+2), Harper (45+3), Duffy (74) Sent Off: none a

Talkin bout a revolution A trip to Dunfermline beckons this Saturday as Dunc's revolution picks up pace. Unbeaten since his arrival, the Caley Jags take on 5th place Dunfermline Athletic in another tough encounter. A win for Inverness would see Dunc's men climb above the Pars but it's big ask. This will be your only Championship fix this weekend, so the opportunity is there for one of these sides to make up some ground on those above them. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/Info Supporters Bus Full Cowdenbeath Cup Tie Battery Farm ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 10 9 5 31 22 +9 Away 24 9 10 5 29 26 +3 Neutral 2 0 1 1 3 4 -1 Total 50 19 20 11 63 52 +11 Our home and away encounters with the Pars show similar statistics with only five defeats at East End Park. Last season Dunfermline were heading back into the Championship after a season in League 1 where they bounced back up as Champions. Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Dunfermline 1 - 1 (H) 2 - 0 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 3 (A) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 0 (H) More points thrown away: Full report (Jan 2022) 1 - 1 Inverness wasted an opportunity to put pressure on the top of the table after squandering a first half lead through Shane Sutherland. Steven Lawless levelled from the spot in the second half with ten minutes remaining after David Carson was adjudged to have blocked a cross with a flailing arm. Another drab performance after a first half full of promise. No surprise really given recent performances, but frustrating nonetheless. A very disappointing second half from Inverness after a first half that was full of promise. Maybe Danny Devine going off injured just before the interval decided our tactic for the second half, or maybe Dunfermline just realised they could get something from the game. That point lifts them off the foot of the table for now, our point puts us in second position when we really should have been knocking on Arbroaths door at the top. Whatever the reason, the fans are getting somewhat disgruntled as we are without a win in five games now. It does seem like a long time ago that we absolutely thrashed Morton 6-1 on 11th December. Only four points from our last five games, or four points from a possible fifteen. That's not the form of a team going for promotion. Sort it! Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Dunfermline v Inverness CT is the only Championship fixture tomorrow 1. Dundee Utd 13 9 4 0 33 6 31 2. Raith Rovers 12 8 3 1 20 13 27 3. Partick Thistle 13 6 4 3 26 20 22 4. Airdrieonians 13 5 2 6 12 17 17 5. Dunfermline 11 4 2 5 12 13 14 6. Ayr United 13 4 2 7 17 25 14 7. Queens Park 13 3 4 6 18 27 13 8. Inverness CT 11 3 3 5 11 12 12 9. Arbroath 11 4 0 7 16 22 12 10. Morton 12 2 2 8 12 22 8 Last Time Out Inverness romped home agsinst Ayr United after scoring three first half goals in a ten minute spell before the break. David Wotherspoon scored twice and Billy Mckay crashed in a penalty in a dominant first half. The second half was an anti-climax with Ayr scoring a penalty of their own through Jamie Murphy. The points were more important than the performance and it pulled Inverness clear of the bottom team Morton. Last Five Games: W D W D W In the first meeting between the clubs this season it ended all square in the Highlands in September. Nathan Shaw's early goal cancelled out ten minutes before the end by a Chris Hamilton header. FULL TIME: 1-1 The two new loan payers aquitted themselves well without setting the pulses racing. The defence did appear to be more rigid although we were found wanting at the equaliser. Nathan Shaw was the most likely to cause problems and so it proved. Poor decision by Ridgers to decide to flap at thin air for the goal but made amends to earn our point with a tremendous save later. Pars were much more direct than us and you couldn't grudge them their point. However that point still leaves us floundering at the foot of the table with one point from a possible twelve. Dunfermline's last game saw them go down narrowly to a late goal from Chris Mochrie as Dundee United continued unbeaten at the top of the table. United lead in the first half through Fotheringham before Owen Moffat levelled the game ten minutes after the interval. Mochrie hit the winner with just five minutes left on the clock. Last Five Games: L L L W L Latest Team News Half a dozen still missing with Boyes picking up an injury but Dunc is hopeful he will make the squad. So not much change from last week in terms of squad numbers and big Dunc still grappling with the players names Dunfermline manager James McPake had keeper Mehmet and striker Michael O'Halloran taken off injured last Friday against United. Alex Jakubiak replaced Craig Wighton after the hour and he looked threatening. Joe Chalmers is still at East End Park. Pars team in 1-2 loss to the Arabs Mehmet (Sharp 45) Fisher Hamilton Otoo Comrie (Hosler 75) Allan Chalmers Edwards O'Halloran (McCann 22) Moffat (Todd 55) Wighton (Jakubiak 60) Subs Not Used: Fenton, Little And finally the tables are starting to turn Talkin' 'bout a revolution Yes, finally the tables are starting to turn Talkin' 'bout a revolution, oh, no

Dunc on the Up Inverness added Sean Welsh to the ever expanding longer term injury list suffering from a recurring back injury, but Luis Longstaff was fit enough to make the bench. Ayr United had Logan Chalmers, Jamie Murphy and Anton Dowds as a triple threat up front. Despite this, Inverness cruised home without having to get out of second gear. Three goals inside the last ten minutes of the first half ended the game as a contest. Two from David Wotherspoon and a penalty from Billy Mckay. Ayr got a consolation penalty in a poor second half, but it was an important three points for the Caley Jags and Big Dunc ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A bright and calm afternoon saw the teams take to the pitch with a growing army of disciples watching from the stands. As kick-off approached, a shrill whistle from the referee saw the crowd fall impeccably silent to commemorate those that made the ultimate sacrifice during the conflicts...... lest we forget. An early injury to birthday boy Cammy Harper was a worry for Duncan Ferguson but that wasn't enough to keep Cammy from his own party. In truth we gave a mediocre Ayr United too much respect. That was until David Wotherspoon tapped in from one yard after we opened the Ayr defence inside their own box. He added a second with the aid of a deflection as we looked to kill the game and the icing was on the cake when Billy Mckay buried a penalty after Reading tripped Charlie Gilmour in the box in the final act of the first half. HALF TIME: 3-0 The second half was the epitome of an anti-climax. After the opening ten minutes of the second period when we toyed with Ayr and looked likely to run up a Rugby score, neither keeper was over exerted and the game deteriorated as a spectacle. With Ayr looking unlikely to breach our defence they were awarded a stonewall penalty when Rose was brought down by Ridgers as he raced onto a ball into the box. Murphy drilled home the resultant spot kick. In fairness to both sides, the damage was done in the last few minutes of the first half which took any urgency out of the game, especially for Inverness. FULL TIME: 3-1 As comfortable as it was it was still a poor second half where we should have gone on to put Ayr to the sword. As it was, the result was huge in the context of our season and we can overlook the turgid performance in the light of three excellent points and a step up the table to eighth place with games in hand over some teams. More Match Reaction to Follow>>> Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Big Dunc is on the march 1. Dundee Utd 13 9 4 0 33 6 31 2. Raith Rovers 12 8 3 1 20 13 27 3. Partick Thistle 13 6 4 3 26 20 22 4. Airdrieonians 13 5 2 6 12 17 17 5. Dunfermline 11 4 2 5 12 13 14 6. Ayr United 13 4 2 7 17 25 14 7. Queens Park 13 3 4 6 18 27 13 8. Inverness CT 11 3 3 5 11 12 12 9. Arbroath 11 4 0 7 16 22 12 10. Morton 12 2 2 8 12 22 8 Robert on CTO: The first half hour was pretty even but we had an explosive 15 minutes before half time which settled the game. Wotherspoon is proving a real asset and I hope we extend his contract beyond January. Mckay did brilliantly to start the build up to the first goal. Wotherspoon squeezed his second in from a very tight angle and Mckay buried the penalty. None of us saw that all coming after 30 minutes. We were pinned back for most of the second half and Ayr’s penalty made it slightly nervy but we saw it out. My only complaint is that we invited Ayr on to us too much in the second half. However, Ridgers did not have much to do. We lost Anderson at half time, presumably to injury, but hopefully a precautionary change. The picks for me were Wotherspoon, Mckay and Boyes. Credit also to Harper who nullified Chalmers to the point we didn’t see Chalmers after the break. 11 points out of 15 and up to 8th. If we can win at Dunfermline in our first game in hand next week we will be 5th. Well done guys! Date: 11/11/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2259 Referee: Iain Snedden Inverness CT: 3 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Ujdur, Boyes, Devine, Harper Carson (Duffy 57), Gilmour, Anderson (Longstaff 45), Wotherspoon (Brooks 89), Shaw, Mckay (Sheridan 78) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Thompson, Delaney, Lodovica Scorers: Wotherspoon (32, 43), B Mckay (45+2 pen) Booked: Anderson (27), Brooks(90+2) Sent Off: none Ayr United: 1 Manager: Lee Bullen Lineup: Mutch; McAllister, Stanger (F Ecremont 12), McGinty, Reading, Chalmers (Rose 45), Syla, Senga (Amartey 69), Murphy, McKenzie (McGeady 79), Dowds (Young 69) Subs (not used): O Ecremont; Smith, Bryden, Scorers: Murphy (61 pen) Booked: none Sent Off: none a

Ayr Do for Dunc Ayr United are next up for big Dunc as his salvage operation gathers pace after a great away point at Tannadice last week. We're not quite at the Big Dunc's revolution stage, more of an evolution but we are heading in the right direction after a poor start to the season. Ayr come up North on Saturday for a 3:00pm start sitting in fifth place on goal difference with 14 points looking to get back into the top four. We could strike a crucial blow to their aspirations should we come out on top as we are five points behind them with two games in hand. It's a six pointer this early in the season! Big talking point this week in the Highlands is the departure of Sporting Director John Robertson as he leaves to "pursue other opportunities". All the best to Robbo in his new venture and one can't help but imagine that might free up some wages for a player or two. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match Ticket Info & Lest we Forget John Robertson Leaving ICTFC Cowdenbeath Cup Date Confirmed ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue for H2H v Ayr Utd Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 10 11 3 39 26 +13 Away 26 12 6 8 47 32 +15 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 50 22 17 11 86 58 +28 Only eleven defeats overall versus Ayr United but they held the upper hand over the last two encounters both home and away. We have had some tremendous games against the Honest Men over the years with five, six and even seven goal games an occasional feature of these clashes in bygone days. Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Ayr Utd 0 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 2 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 2 - 2 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 2 - 2 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 2 - 2 (H) Ayr took the points in the first encounter this season at Somerset Park 0 - 1>>> Pointless: Notable absentees for Ayr were last seasons Championship top scorer Dipo Akinyemi who has gone to York City and long time servant Michael Moffat who spent eleven years over two spells at Somerset Park scoring 77 goals in 263 appearances. Dodds was without Roddy MacGregor and Lewis Nicolson with knee injuries. Sean Welsh has a groin injury and also missed out again as did Austin Samuels and Max Ram. Adam Brooks returned to the bench and Danny Devine replaced the missing Wallace Duffy. New sensation Keith Bray started with Inverness down to only six on the bench. Injuries starting early this season already it would seem with six missing.. Ayr got off to the perfect start after just eight minutes when Francis Amartey, Dempsey and Sam Ashford combined for Amartey to slot home the opening goal. Mark Ridgers saved on his line from Nick McAllister as Ayr looked to double their lead. Keith Bray was blocked going into the box and from the follow up Albinson saved from David Carson at the expense of a corner. Plenty of half chances for both sides to score in the first half with Devine going close for the visitors but Albinson tipped over. Longstaff also went close on the break but his shot bounced just wide. Billy Dodds fell foul of the referee on the interval and had to watch the remainder of the game from the stands. (See how he likes it!) HALF TIME: 1-0 Longstaff saw his header saved ten minutes after the interval as Inverness looked to get back into the game. A spate of substitutions on the hour for Ayr and Harry Lodovica replaced Bray for the visitors before a Jake Davidson cross found Nathan Shaw, but his effort came back off the post. With twenty minutes remaining Shaw was blocked in the box as we chased for a leveller. Substitute Aiden McGeady shot wide approaching the final ten minutes and Cammy Harper failed to hit the target at the other end. Aaron Doran fired a free kick wide from a tight angle and McGeady missed again as time was running away from us. Ridgers tipped over from Pendelbury in the 90th minute and the as so often, the game slipped away from us to leave us bottom of the table with Arbroath. FULL TIME: 1-0 Another defeat leaves Inverness pointless at the foot of the table with Arbroath as Ayr got their first win of the campaign thanks to an early goal from Francis Amartey. Not for the want of trying, but Inverness could not find an equaliser and that will pile more misery on under fire boss Billy Dodds. Our injury situation seems never-ending and we could only muster six on the bench. Dodds watched from the stand in the second half and will now know why we are concerned... The natives are no happy on CTO with many asking for a total clearout from top to bottom, questioning the length of contract offered to Billy Dodds. The buck stops at the very top and that is a massive concern for all. Top scorer Billy Mckay was a forlorn figure and was not best pleased at being subbed. Something is wrong that's not right. Sort it now before we leave this league at the wrong end of the table. Thankfully things have changed somewhat. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Last Time Out Big Dunc fashioned us into a squad prepared to dig deep at Tannadice and it paid off as we came away with a credible draw against the League Leaders. A wonderful team goal manufactured from inside our own box all the way down the left wing before Harper crossed for Shaw to drill home from fifteen yards. Total football, great goal! The Arabs levelled five minutes later when Holt thundered in a bullet header to share the spoils. Some outstanding performers on the day with Ridgers making crucial saves, defenders putting their bodies on the line, midfielders helping out at the front and the back whilst remaining creative, and strikers.... erm still missing plenty, but also tracking back to help out. Last Five Results: L W D W D Ayr United are without a win in their last three games and were pegged back by Queens Park last Saturday in a 2-2 draw. Two first half strikes from Anton Dowds had Ayr cruising, but Bannon scored after the break and five minutes into time added on Paton claimed a point for the Spiders in a dramatic finale with his sixth cincher goal of the season. Last Five Results: W W L D D <<< There's your top scorers in the Championship ahead of Friday nights encounter between Dunfermline Athletic and Dundee United. Brian Graham has almost scored as many goals as the Caley Jags have in the Championship (8). That's something that Ferguson needs to address if we are to climb the table into a challenging position (at the top end). Nathan Shaw is our top scorer this season with three Championship goals to his name. Despite netting his 102nd goal with a penalty in the 3-2 loss to Airdrie in the League Cup group stages, Billy has only netted once in the Championship since then at Arbroath some five games ago. He has three goals in total, two in the League Cup group stages. That's not a great return from your top striker. Latest Team News We are still without any of our half dozen longer term injured players. Sean Welsh missed out again last week and will join the long term club. Luis Longstaff and Jake Davidson were also injured at Tannadice. Wallace Duffy returned from the bench to replace an injured David Carson who is a doubt this week. Danny Devine and Morgan Boyes started at Tannadice after being out for a couple of games. According to our stats, Mark Ridgers should make his 250th appearance for his home town team. Another clean sheet would be fitting and most welcome. Ayr did settled down after an inconsistent start and still have Logan Chalmers. We know what he is capable of. Anton Dowds netted twice last week and he is their top scorer with 5 strikes. Former Motherwell player Jamie Murphy and ex-ICT loanee Chalmers have four goals apiece. Ayr team v Queens Pk: Dowds Mutch Ahui McGinty Stanger Reading Chalmers (Senga 75) Young Syla (Smith 45) Murphy (McGeady 79) Rose (Bryden 64) Dowds (Amartey 75) Subs not used: O & F Ecremont, McKenzie, McAllister Apparently their bench was full of Ecremont. Well, that's what I thought he said Lest We Forget: With this game being played on Remembrance Day, the club will be offering Free Entry to UK Forces personnel, past and present. One Adult & One Child per application. (home or away support) FORCES GO FREE

Point on the Road Dunc's return to Tannadice would be hindered by some key players missing. Welsh and Longstaff failed to recover but Boyes and Wotherspoon were in the starting XI. Sheridan was on the bench which looked a bit devoid of flair. United had a strong line-up with Ross County loanee Jordan Tillson replacing the injured Docherty. A big crowd of over 7500 were on hand with 270 visiting fans making the journey in eternal hope. Inverness opened the scoring through Shaw but Holt levelled the game quickly. United had the possession but Big Dunc went back up the A9 with a hard earned point ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A decent crowd were on hand to witness Kai Fotheringham being influential early on with an effort superbly blocked by Cammy Harper followed by Mark Ridgers saving his next effort as the hosts looked to get off to a flier. The early possession was dominated by the Tangerines. Billy Mckay and Nathan Shaw advanced into the home box but the defence managed to mop up the cut back. Mckay saw keeper Jack Walton block with his legs in the 24th minute when maybe he could have put his laces through the ball. From the resultant corner Danny Devine headed over from a great position five yards out. United then had a close one when Middleton's shot come cross went inches wide as they stepped up their intensity ten minutes before the interval. Nikola Ujdur was first into the book for fouling Tony Watt. Ridgers again saved from Fotheringham from outside the box and then another brilliant save from Kevin Holt at close range before Scott McMann shot over with the goal gaping. The visitors were playing a dangerous game as United applied the pressure but Morgan Boyes headed over as Inverness ventured forward a minute before the break. Despite the pressure it was all square at half time. HALF TIME: 0-0 No changes at the interval and surprisingly it was Inverness that opened the scoring with an exceptionally slik move down the left from their own penalty box. A great counter attack from the Caley Jags as Harper advances down the left side and his low cross found it's way to Shaw, via Anderson, and he fired a low effort past Walton from 15 yards to open the scoring! Superb! However it might be a long forty minutes now! In fact the lead was short lived. Wallace Duffy had just replaced David Carson five minutes later and Holt promptly powered in a bullet header from Fotheringham's corner. Holt headed wide ten minutes later as the substitutes started to enter the field of battle. Ten minutes to play with United pressing for a winner and Cillian Sheridan on for Billy Mckay. Holt was blocked as he tried to get one on target and Declan Glass suffered the same fate with the visiting defence working overtime. Ridger's saved at his near post from Middleton deep into time added on as United searched for a winner but Inverness held on for a valuable, well earned point. FULL TIME: 1-1 More match reaction to follow>>> Tremendous point on the road. It was a backs to the wall performance at times but our defence was up to the task of slowing down the top scorers in the Championship. Mark Ridgers was in superb form with his back five blunting the top scorers. Full marks to Ferguson for adapting the shape with key players missing at a difficult venue. Two brilliant goals and a point on the road at the league leaders den. The Big Dunc revolution gathers pace. Delighted Dunc>>> Full Highlights>>> Date: 04/11/2023 Venue: Tannadice Park, Dundee Attendance: 7602 Referee: Don Robertson Dundee United: 1 Manager: Jim Goodwin Lineup: Walton; Freeman, Gallagher, Holt, McMann, Sibbald, Tillson (Mochrie 79), Middleton, Fotheringham (Cudjoe 67), Watt (Glass 67), Moult Subs (not used): Newman; Denham, Graham, Duffy, Moore, Stirton Scorers: Holt (56) Booked: Gallagher (42) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Ujdur, Devine, Boyes, Harper, Carson (Duffy 55), Gilmour, Anderson, Shaw, Wotherspoon (Delaney 85), B Mckay (Sheridan 69) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Brooks, Lodovica, Thompson Scorers: Shaw (50) Booked: Ujdur (36) Sent Off: none a

First Home Win Duncan ferguson was looking for his first home Championship success as the Diamond's visited the Caledonian Stadium. He would be without some key players. Unfortunately Welsh, Duffy, Doran, MacGregor, Nicolson, and Samuels were all out with Devine, Boyes, Ujdur, Harper and Carson all struggling to make this one. New signings David Wotherspoon and Cillian Sheridan were in the squad. As it was, Carson, Ujdur, Devine, Harper and Wotherspoon all started with Boyes and Sheridan on the bench. Airdrie had Gallagher and Todorov up front with Player Manager Rhys McCabe on from the start. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Decent afternoon for a game of football and Airdrie took advantage of the good conditions to control the early possession although they never troubled Ridgers, one shot clearing the North Stand into the car park. The next one went five yards over the bar. The best Inverness could offer was a blocked shot on the edge of the box after our best move of the game. We came more into the mix and David Wotherspoon spooned a shot over the bar from five yards after Keeper Josh Rae had saved from Billy Mckay. He really should have scored but he made amends five minutes before the break with a tremendously calm finish. He showed real class unlike the open goal he missed earlier. The move began on the left with Longstaff then when it came to Wotherspoon in midfield he flicked it deftly to the right side where Gilmour fed Shaw. He drove down the wing before cutting the ball back to Spoony who turned in the box to roll the ball into the unguarded corner of the net from twelve yards after making the space for himself. Class! HALF TIME: 1-0 After the interval Airdrie retained the ball better but we threatened when Gilmour went down after a challenge in the box. Shaw picked up the loose ball but his shot was charged down as he tried to pick out the top corner from the edge of the box. A spate of substitutions disrupted the flow of the game and the visitors made a late push to salvage a point. However, we defended well despite half of our back four being substituted with Ujdur dominant. The big defender made a couple of crucial blocks, one in particular as Frizzell pulled the trigger, the ball deflecting over the bar. Despite the late pressure from Airdrie, Ridgers was not overly exerted although he made a couple of crucial catches and punches clear to hold on to the clean sheet and more importantly all three points. FULL TIME: 1-0 The fabulous execution of his goal was a great introduction for David Wotherspoon but for me the Man of the Match and new version of Bobby Mann was Nikola Ujdur. The Aussie defender is solid, strolled through the game unflustered and can pick a pass. Good graft in midfield but Sheridan and Big Harry need some work done. Shaw picked up a booking at the end when Big Dunc sent him back onto the pitch to get treatment Robert on CTO: This is what Saturday evenings should feel like! The second half was a hard watch at times, but we got the job done. Ridgers dealt with everything and a few timely blocks and some poor finishing helped too. The first half was quite even and we scored at the right time as Airdrie seemed to be getting on top. It was a great, calm finish by Wotherspoon which more than made up for the one he skied earlier (in his defence I thought it came on to him very quickly). I also thought the referee did us a big favour early in the second half. On a different day Anderson would have been penalised and a penalty awarded. However I thought we should have got one shortly after too. It’s nice not to be gifting goals although we did have some squeaky bum moments in defence, with Airdrie’s right wing back causing a lot of problems. Mckay and Wotherspoon worked their socks off. Longstaff and Shaw tried to push forward but also helped the full backs well. Anderson and Gilmour are developing a good partnership. But the biggest credit must go to our walking wounded. Last night all of our starting defenders were on the injury list, and Carson and Devine cannot have been fully fit when they were subbed in the second half. Udjur was not quite as composed today but did what he had to, whilst Harper had a bit of a torrid time defensively at times but credit them both for getting through the game. Sheridan could prove an asset when he is fully match sharp, with one defensive tackle standing out for me today. Lodovica and Brooks still do not convince me though. We may lose ground on Tuesday when some of our opponents play and Saturday will be a big test at Tannadice. But let’s enjoy the moment. It’s long time since we’ve had a home win to kick start a Saturday evening. OCG: Eye bleeding at times but we were able to grind out a win! We need points at moment and pretty football can wait. Good to see us becoming a bit more streetwise under Ferguson eg keeping ball in corner as long as we could in last couple of minutes. Full Highlights from ICTFC Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts 1. Dundee Utd 10 7 3 0 28 4 24 2. Raith Rovers 9 6 2 1 14 9 20 3. Partick Thistle 10 4 3 3 19 16 15 4. Airdrieonians 10 4 1 5 9 14 13 5. Arbroath 9 4 0 5 15 17 12 6. Ayr United 10 4 0 6 12 18 12 7. Queens Park 11 3 3 5 14 22 12 8. Dunfermline 9 3 2 4 9 10 11 9. Inverness CT 9 2 2 5 7 10 8 10. Morton 9 2 2 5 9 16 8 Date: 28/10/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2218 Referee: Calum Scott Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson (Davidson 78), Ujdur, Devine (Delaney 78), Harper, Longstaff (Brooks 62), Gilmour, Anderson, Wotherspoon (Sheridan 68), Shaw, B Mckay (Lodovica 67) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Boyes, Thompson, Scorers: Wotherspoon (37) Booked: Lodovica (90+1), Shaw (90+3) Sent Off: none Airdrieonians: 0 Manager: Rhys McCabe Lineup: Rae; Megwa, McCabe (Aiken 67), Watson, Fordyce, Hancock, Frizzell, McStravick (McGregor 69), Telfer, Todorov, Gallagher (McGill 77) Subs (not used): Hutton; Taylor-Sinclair, O'Connor, McMaster, Dunlop Scorers: none Booked: Frizzell (53) Hancock (90+1) Sent Off: none a

Injuries R Us With last weeks game falling foul to the weather, it might have been a blessing in disguise with one or two struggling to have made the postponed game against Morton. An extra weeks recovery might mean that we will be better equipped to face a sprightly Airdrie side who have consolidated themselves in the top half of the Championship. Game kicks off at 3:00pm at the Caledonian Stadium this Saturday and we might get a glimpse of new signings David Wotherspoon and Cillian Sheridan. Unfortunately Welsh, Doran, Boyes, MacGregor, Nicolson and Samuels are all out with Devine, Ujdur, Harper, Duffy and Carson all struggling. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match Info/Tickets David Wotherspoon Cillian Sheridan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 8 4 0 4 13 12 +1 Away 7 2 2 3 9 15 -6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 15 6 2 7 22 27 -5 Only the last couple of fixtures have any relevance. The 1-0 home win was in March 2002 when Ross Tokely played and Martin Bavidge scored the winner........ Wait a minute: Ross Tokely is still playing and scoring winners 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 3 (H) 1 - 0 (H) 0 - 3 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 0 - 6 (A) 1 - 1 (A) 4 - 0 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 0 - 2 (H) March 2002: Steve Paterson's 300th game in charge produced a very welcome 1 - 0 victory which stopped a slide down the league. Ian Broadfoot reports: Caley Thistle lay fourth last Saturday but slipped to seventh in midweek without kicking a ball. This win resulted in a climb to fifth. The first half was a nervous period with Caley Thistle trying hard but achieving little. Airdrie's best chance came in the first minute when they were awarded a free kick 20 yards out. Mark Roberts drove the ball goalwards and Nicky Walker dived to make a good save. In 13 minutes a high David Bagan cross proved troublesome to Airdrie keeper Allan Ferguson but he tipped it over. Five minutes later a Barry Robson corner from the right reached Grant Munro beyond the back post but he could only bundle the ball over for a goal kick. Stuart Taylor created a chance for himself at the other end in 29 minutes but he wasted it with a scuff past the post. In 33 minutes the home sides best first half chance fell to Dennis Wyness after good interplay with Charlie Christie but the striker hit it over from 10 yards. A minute later Owen Coyle reached a corner at the back post but left it to Taylor but he mishit to concede a goal kick. The tempo of the match changed in 50 minutes when Robson sent over a cross from the left and Martin Bavidge scored at the back post despite Ferguson getting a touch. This lifted Caley Thistle and calmed a few nerves. They kept on top after that but could not score a second goal. Robson strode through the Airdrie defence just after the goal but his shot deflected off Alan McManus. On the hour mark Ferguson raced out of goal to the touchline to just beat Bavidge to the ball. Ferguson saved Airdrie again in 76 minutes when he dived at the feet of Wyness as he stretched to reach a Bavidge curling ball but it went harmlessly for a goal kick. The nerves returned in the last few minutes as Caley Thistle worked hard to preserve their lead. With three minutes left Airdrie nearly stole an equaliser when a seemingly harmless Taylor header beat Walker but came back off the post into the relieved keepers arms. Despite a seemingly endless three minutes of added time Caley Thistle held on to win. Championship Fixtures FRIDAY 27th OCTOBER Dundee Utd v Arbroath Fc Queens Pk v Partick Th SATURDAY 28th OCTOBER Ayr Utd v Morton Inverness CT v Airdrieonians Raith Rovers v Dunfermline Last Time Out Inverness were held to a no scoring draw at home to Partick Thistle. A game of few clear chances with Partick squandering the best a few minutes from the end. Still, the clean sheet was welcome. We have already played Airdrie twice this season during our defensive blunder sessions. Airdrie took full advantage winning both games. 3-2 in the Highlands on League Cup duty and 2-1 at the Shyberry Excelsior Stadium in our 3rd Championship game of the season. Nathan Shaw's second half goal was too little too late after a Cammy Harper og inside the first minute and top scorer Gallagher on the half hour did the early damage in that one. Last Five: D L L W D Airdrie also played out a draw in their last game which went ahead on Friday night in a downpour. It ended 1-1 with Queens Park after Airdrie had taken a first half lead when an error in midfield by Queens Park allowed Callum Gallagher to run through to finish with aplomb. Queens got their point when keeper Josh Rae presented Jack Turner with his opportunity which he gladly took. Last Five: L W W L D Latest Team News This was prepared for the Morton game that was postponed. Having played in the North of Scotland Cup semi-final at Nairn, Duncan Ferguson will now be without at least two of those that were beaten by Nairn. It was mainly a second string squad with some returning from injury. However, Danny Devine came off with a swollen knee and Sean Welsh now has a back injury. Add Boyes with an eye infection, Aaron Doran with a hamstring, Wallace Duffy with who knows what and longer term Roddy MacGregor and Lewis Nicolson then Ferguson does not have his troubles to seek. The good news is David Wotherspoon could be ready after playing 45 minutes on Wednesday night. Jay Emmanuel Stewart (JET) has been on trial this week. So, hopefully the extra week will see one or two be in a better place injury wise and Wotherspoon has had another week in his legs to get back up to speed. Cillian Sheridan has become the latest player to sign on until January. He's been around a bit but could still do a job for us surely. Big misses for us will be Sean Welsh, Morgan Boyes and if Ujdur, Harper and Carson fail to make it then we will be scraping the bottom of the barrel again. Aaron Doran (hamstring) and Austin Samuels (knee) have joined the long term casualy list with Roddy and Lewis. So injuries are us once more. Dunc is hopeful one or two might be fit enough but it's a waiting game after three weeks of inactivity. Airdrie v Queens Pk team lines:- Rae Megwa Watson Fordyce Hancock Frizzell McMaster Aiken (Telfer 62) McStravick Gallagher (Todorov 62) McGregor (O'Connor 78) Subs not used: Hutton; McCabe, Dunlop, McGill, Cassidy, Spalding. Airdrie have been playing some slick stuff of late and this will be a tough one, even with a full squad. Callum Gallagher is top scorer with six goals. Former Caley Jag striker Nikolay Todorov has scored a couple this season but does not always start.

North of Scotland Cup Semi-Final Nairn are the Penalty Kings Defeat for Dunc Build up: Station Park was the venue for this North of Scotland Cup Semi-final tie against Nairn County. Inverness got here after defeating Rothes in a very tight affair on a stormy night at the end of September. Keith Bray scored the only goal of the game early in the first half. Nairn County have played twice to get here, a 3-2 win over Lossiemouth followed by a 5-0 thrashing of Forres Mechanics on a rain soaked night at Mosset Park. The goalscorers on September 13th were Andrew MacLeod x 2, Callum MacLean, Ciaran Young & Scott Davidson. Here's the Nairn side from that night at Forres>>> Two first half goals from MacLean and MacLeod set Nairn up for the win despite the atrocious weather. Young headed in ten minutes after the break before Forres were reduced to 10 men with Brady being red carded. MacLeod scored his sixth goal in five games for Nairn when he rifled home from just inside the box. Davidson ended the scoring five minutes from the end. Nairn Facts: They were founded in 1914 and play at Station Park. They have played in the Highland Football League since 1919, winning their only league title in the 1975–76 season. The club’s record goal scorer is the legendary Davy Johnston who scored 286 goals in his two spells with the club. This also included scoring a record 73 goals in the 1963–64 season. Their first five games this season: Scored 1 goal. Last five games: Scored 18 goals (after the game at Forres). Nairn now sit in tenth place in the table having won four of their last five games W W L W W Tonights Game New signing David Wotherspoon the former Hibs and St Johnston midfielder made his debut for the Caley Jags tonight who also welcomed back from injury defender Danny Devine and Captain Sean Welsh. A great opportunity for some of the fringe players to stake a claim for a first team berth with Harry Lodovica, Robert Thompson, Lewis Hyde and youth player Sam Nixon all starting with Cammy Mackay between the sticks. Nairn had former Inverness legend Ross Tokely in defence alongside experienced player manager Steven Mackay. Best of the action brought to you from>>> Kick-Off: Caley Thistle almost score in the opening minute. Great ball from Jake Davidson finds Harry Lodovica unchallenged, but he nods wide of the post. 6' | 0-0 Adam Brooks' tame shot from inside the box is saved by the feet of Dylan MacLean as Nairn get clear. ICT then have a good move as Robbie Thompson meets a good ball from Lewis Hyde inside the box but he fires his effort just wide. 9' | 0-0 Chance! The ball breaks to Wotherspoon through on goal but his effort is turned behind by Dylan MacLean for a corner. Nairn get resulting corner clear. 13' An exciting opening spell. 2 big saves from Dylan MacLean, 3 Nairn corners and a handful of half chances. Inverness are threatening on the break but Nairn seem really up for the challenge. 17' | 0-0 Offside. Adam Brooks has the ball in the back of the net after meeting Harry Lodovica's cross in the box but the offside flag is up. 22' | 0-0 Good run from Sean Welsh through the middle and he has a go from about 30 yards but his effort is over the bar. 24' I Ross Tokely booked 26' | 0-0 Good play from Harry Lodovica and he forces a save from Dylan MacLean after meeting a lay off from Adam Brooks in the box after a long ball from Danny Devine. 31' | 0-0 Lewis Hyde has a go from about 25 yards but his low effort is held by MacLean. 33' | 0-0 Sean Welsh's floated in free-kick finds Harry Lodovica in the box but his header is over the bar. 34' | 0-0 Lewis Hyde drives through the middle and the ball breaks to Jake Davidson on the right and his drilled cross is inches past the post. 35' | 0-0 Wotherspoon's cross finds Lodovica in the box but his header is just past the post. 37' | 0-0 Good play from Robbie Thompson in the box after receiving Jake Davidson's ball but his effort is over the bar. 41' | 0-0 ICTFC Sub: Keith Bray on, Sean Welsh off 43' | 0-0 Lewis Hyde's ball finds Adam Brooks in the box and he lays it back to Harry Lodovica and the striker's effort is held by Dylan MacLean 45' | 1-0 Goal. Nairn County take the lead through Ross Tokely with a wee dink HALF TIME: 1-0 HALF TIME Sub: Shae Keogh on, David Wotherspoon off. 48' | 1-0 Early pressure from ICT in the second-half as Keith Bray sees his header held. 51' | 2-0 Goal. Nairn double their lead through Steven MacKay with a close range header. Free kick taken well, flicked on by Ross Tokely and Steven MacKay puts it away! 58' | 2-0 Chance as Keith Bray's corner breaks to Zak Delaney in the box but he can't fully control it as it goes over the bar and behind. 63' | 2-0 ICTFC Sub: Jack Walker on, Danny Devine off. 65' | 2-1 GOALLLLL! We pull one back through Harry Lodovica who produces a great strike from 25 yards! 66' Chance for Nairn: Strong response to the goal as Nairn create a series of half chances at the other end from kickoff. 69' | 2-1 Speculative effort from Nairn's Andrew MacLeod but his effort goes just over the bar and behind. 74' | 2-1 Robbie Thompson had a go from just outside the box but his effort is held by Dylan MacLean 79' Chance for Nairn: Andrew MacLeod swings a corner in right on top of the keeper. Half the ground thought it was in, unfortunately it was just over. End of a positive spell for Nairn. 81' Chance for Nairn: George Robesten pounces on a rolled out ball, and cuts it across to Ciaran Young, he turns the defender and tries to get a shot away, too tight of an angle and hits the side netting. Dylan MacLean pulls off another top save at the other end from Adam Brooks. 88' | 2-2 GOALLLLL! Harry Lodovica gets his second of the match to make it 2-2! Good finish from inside the box via the post! 90' | 2-2 Harry looks for the hat-trick as he has a go from range but his effort is over the bar. FULL TIME: Nairn County 2-2 ICTFC We go straight to a penalty shootout! Penalty Kicks Nairn: Macleod , Dey , Tokely , Gillies , Young , Robeston , Mackay Inverness: Davidson , Walker , Hyde , Brooks , Thompson , Harry , Delaney Defeat at Station Park despite a brace for Harry as Nairn hit seven perfect penalties to win the shoot-out after the game ended 2-2. Sean Welsh left the field before the interval with an injury. Ross Tokely left his ICT legendary status at home as he scored one, had a hand in the second and scored a penalty in the shoot-out, all at the ripe old age of 44. Congratulations to Nairn and something for big Dunc to ponder over. Nairn will face Ross County in the Final after they beat Brora Rangers 3-0 tonight with a hat-trick from Alex Samuels. Date: 18/10/2023 Venue: Station Park, Nairn Attendance: **** Referee: Kevin Buchanan Nairn County: 2 (Pens 7) Macleod , Dey , Tokely , Gillies , Young , Robeston , Mackay Manager: Steven Mackay (player manager) Lineup: D Maclean; C MacLean, Tokely, Dingwall, Mackay, Nicolson (Dey 64), McKenzie (Gordon 86), Gillies, Robesten, MacLeod, Young Subs: Munro; Carnihan, Davidson, Eadie, Gordon, Dey, MacDonald Scorers: Tokely (45), Mackay (51) Booked: Tokely (24), Young (54) Sent Off: none Inverness CT XI: 2 (Pens 6) Davidson , Walker , Hyde , Brooks , Thompson , Harry , Delaney Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: C Mackay; Davidson, Devine (Walker 63), Sam Nixon, Delaney, Brooks, Welsh (Bray 41),Hyde, Thompson, Wotherspoon (Keogh 45), Lodovica Subs: Corey Patterson; Jack Walker, Shae Keogh, Calum MacLeod, Ben Meacher, Keith Bray Scorers: Lodovica (65, 88) Booked: Devine (50) Sent Off: none a

Thistle be the day This will be the day that Duncan Ferguson made his bow to the Caley Jags fans. The weather might have dampened the atmosherics, but inside the stadium it was a warm welcome for Big Dunc. He was without the long term absentees (MacGregor & Nicolson) plus more recent victims in Sean Welsh, Danny Devine and Wallace Duffy. After the first win last week, it was an unchanged starting XI that took to the sodden turf. Partick had our olde foe Brian Graham up front. Enough said ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷ Heavy overnight rain made for wet conditions on the park and around the Highlands. Both sides made heavy weather (no pun intended) of a tedious first half where neither keeper had to earn their corn. Partick started liveliest without threatening before we got to grips with the game. Ujdur headed tamely wide from a Harper corner as he couldn't get any purchase on the ball. Shaw made a clumsy touch from a Gilmour cross from the left side and the chance was gone as Sneddon snapped up the loose ball. A loose ball forward allowed Partick a shooting opportunity but Ridgers gathered comfortably. After the break the visitors cut along the byeline and it ended with Fitzpatrick rolling the ball onto the post before being cleared. Doran was looking for a penalty after being upended in the box but nothing given. From an Inverness corner, Partick broke forward at pace and it ended with Ridgers saving a low twenty-five yard drive from Graham. Shaw made a tremendous tackle to win back the ball before Gilmour was eventually set up for a shot but he dragged his low effort a yard wide. Billy Mckay turned on the edge of the box but his curled effort drifted over the bar with Gilmour looking for a return pass as he ran into the box. Milne rode a couple of challenges before slicing his parting shot wide from eighteen yards. Best chance of the game fell to the visitors three minutes before the end after Ridgers parried a swerving shot from McInroy. It fell to Adeloye but he blazed his hooked effort well over the bar from five yards. Inverness mainly looked comfortable without overly troubling keeper Sneddon and it ended all square in a very wet Highlands. FULL TIME: 0-0 Neither side can complain about a point apiece but Partick will now know that they can not expect to pick up easy points against us. In fact had Gilmour placed his shot within the bounds of the posts then we could have taken all three points. Meh! Another step in the right direction for Inverness who matched high scoring Partick Thistle all over the park. Best for Inverness were the tricky Longstaff, the unflustered Ujdur and the driving force of Gilmour, with Ridgers doing his bit at the end Date: 07/10/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2374 Referee: Dan McFarlane Inverness CT: 0 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Ujdur, Boyes, Harper, Longstaff, Gilmour, Anderson, Shaw (Brooks 86), Doran (Samuels 65) B Mckay (Lodovica 86) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Davidson, Delaney, Hyde, Bray, Thompson Scorers: none Booked: none Sent Off: none Partick Thistle: 0 Manager: Kris Doolan Lineup: Sneddon; Ngwenya, Muirhead, Neilson, Milne, McInroy, Robinson, Bannigan, Lawless, Graham (Macdonald 74), Fitzpatrick (Adeloye 73) Subs (not used): McGinley, Alston, Williamson, Stanway, Mitchell, Williams Scorers: none Booked: Bannigan (72) Sent Off: none a

Dunc get's off to a flier Dunc's reign of apprehension got off to a promising start at Gayfield as Inverness opened the scoring in the tenth minute through Luis Longstaff who scrambled the ball into the net after a Nikola Ujdur header was not dealt with by keeper Gaston. Longstaff then turned provider as Aaron Doran turned his driven cross into the net after half an hour. Other chances came and went: Nathan Shaw not catching his shot plumb from the edge of the box making it comfortable for Gaston to flop on the ball and save and Billy Mckay not making the most of a great break forward, his low shot a bit of a dolly for the keeper to block. HALF TIME 0-2 Billy Mckay added a third just after the interval lobbing Gaston perfectly with an assist from his own keeper Mark Ridgers. At 3-0 Shaw again might have done better when one on one with Gaston but he chose the wrong option and took himself too wide and the chance was gone. Arbroath came back into it with strikes from Ross Stewart and Michael McKenna to set up a grandstand finish. Stewart's goal was as massive a fluke as you will see. Ujdur attempted to thunder the ball clear on the edge of his own box. Unfortunately Stewart anticipated this and turned his back on the defender expecting him and ball to go flying forward. Alas it looks like it cannoned off his arse and it floated over the despairing flail of Mark Ridgers and into the net. Unbelievable, you couldn't write it, however, I just did. McKenna's goal favoured the hosts as it bobbled off a couple of bodies before he despatched it behind Ridgers off his near post with a tidy finish. With much biting of fingernails, Dunc got off to a winning start after a lengthy period of time added on and that means that we are no longer bottom of the table (just). Phew! FULL TIME: 2-3 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ferguson was without the services of Roddy MacGregor, Lewis Nicolson, Sean Welsh, Wallace Duffy and Danny Devine. Nikola Ujdur made his debut last week and looks like a solid unit and both he and Aaron Doran started. Ricky Little returned after suspension for Arbroath with Jay Bird relegating Dünnwald-Turan to the bench. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ More match reaction to follow>>> The fans were looking forward to this one with a mixture of fear, trepidation, apprehension, pessimism, optimism and excitement in equal proportions. Dunc has certainly got the fans talking again and there's a feelgood factor lurking just round the corner. Rome wasn't built in a day, however Ferguson was not the foreman. Time will tell if this will be a successful appointment, but he has the full backing of the fans at the moment. Arbroath were off the back of a four game winning run. We were on downward spiral since the start of the season, the reason why Dunc is here now. As it happened, we escaped with all three points... Speaking to BBC Sport, Inverness CT manager Duncan Ferguson: "I thought my players were magnificent, we really should have had a lot more goals on the counter attack. "To a man, the players put their bodies on their line for the club. They gave 100% effort and showed a lot of resilience, we just need to be a bit braver on the ball. "To deliver a win for the fans, it was a great moment for myself and the team." From CTO: Great to get the win but that was hard work to watch in the second half. From cruising at 3-0 to hanging on for dear life and looking like we might easily lose in the space of a few minutes, we still look fragile. Well done to the boys for steadying a bit towards the end and hanging on. And top marks to big Dunc for coming over to the fans and showing his delight at the end Full Highlights Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Off the bottom at last 1. Dundee Utd 7 5 2 0 16 3 17 2. Raith Rovers 7 5 1 1 12 8 16 3. Partick Thistle 7 4 1 2 17 9 13 4. Arbroath 8 4 0 4 15 11 12 5. Airdrieonians 7 4 0 3 7 10 12 6. Dunfermline 7 3 2 2 9 8 11 7. Queens Park 8 3 0 5 11 19 9 8. Ayr United 7 2 0 5 9 16 6 9. Inverness CT 7 1 1 5 6 10 4 10. Morton 7 1 1 5 8 16 4 Date: 30/09/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1723 Referee: Don Robertson Arbroath: 2 Manager: Dick Campbell Lineup: Gaston; Steele, Little, O'Brien, Stewart, Dow (Stowe 63), Slater (Balde 70), McKenna, Gold, Hylton (Dünnwald-Turan 85), Bird (Mcintosh 63) Subs (not used): Adams; Lyon, Norey, Jacobs Scorers: Stewart (69), McKenna (79) Booked: Slater (47) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 3 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Ujdur, Boyes, Harper, Longstaff (Davidson 75), Gilmour, Anderson, Doran (Samuels 55), Shaw, B Mckay (Delaney 64) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Thompson, Bray, Brooks, Lodovica Scorers: Longstaff (10), Doran (31), B Mckay (48) Booked: Gilmour (88) Sent Off: none

North of Scotland Cup A new era for the Caley Jags began at Mackessack Park as Duncan Ferguson's new team took on Highland League side Rothes in the second round of the North of Scotland Cup. Big Dunc was announced yesterday and it's fair to say he might not know much about his new charges. He will know even less about Rothes. They were originally founded in 1907 as a Junior club, Rothes Victoria, and turned Senior on 4 May 1938 as Rothes FC. Rothes have won the Highland League once, in the 1958–59 season. Mackessack Park is named after one Douglas Mackessack, a local laird and whisky magnate and an early benefactor of the club. In 2020, The Speysiders won their first honours in 41 years, defeating Buckie Thistle 2–1 in the Highland League Cup final to win the trophy for the first time. Here's one that Duncan might like: Rothes play in tangerine shirts, colours they inherited from Dundee United after purchasing the floodlights from Tannadice Park. Rothes sit 10th in the Highland League just now and after a slow start they have picked up a bit of form over the last few games WLLLLDWWLW Tonights Game >>> Inverness had a youthful side on the park with Davidson, Delaney, Hyde and Samuels the main first team squad players and Harry Lodovica getting a start. 9' | 0-1 GOAL! ICTFC take the lead through Keith Bray after a good move from the Caley Jags! 22' | 0-1 Davidson's cross finds Lodovica in the box but his header is tipped onto the bar. HALF TIME: Rothes 0-1 ICTFC HT Subs: Calum MacKay and Leo Walker on, Jake Davidson and Austin Samuels off 68' | 0-1 Good play from Keith Bray as he cuts inside and shoots but his effort is tipped over the bar and behind. ICTFC Sub: Calum MacLeod on, Zak Delaney off. 84' | 0-1 ICTFC Sub: Shae Keogh on, Harry Lodovica off. Inverness move into the third round where they will play Nairn County on October 18th after a Keith Bray goal was enough to beat Rothes at Mackessack Park. 9' | 0-1 GOAL! ICTFC take the lead through Keith Bray after a good move from the Caley Jags. Well played to Rothes who made the Caley Jags work really hard for the win, especially in the second half, and were maybe deserving of taking the tie into extra-time. The other winner on the night was Agnes, who went down a storm and limited the quality on the park. More detail and match reaction to follow>>> Date: 27/09/2023 Venue: Mackessack Park, Rothes Attendance: **** Referee: Gordon Morrison Rothes FC: 0 Manager: Ross Jack Lineup: McCarthy; Haspell, Finnis, Macdonald, McDade, Johnstone, Pollock,Robertson, Williamson, Morrison, Wilson (substitutions not known yet) Subs (not used): Marshall; Thomson, Milne, Shewan, Proudfoot, Cruickshank, Shepherd, Kerr, McConnachie Scorers: none Booked: none Sent Off: none Inverness CT XI: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson? Lineup: Cammy Mackay; Davidson (Leo Walker 45), Sam Nixon, Jack Walker, Delaney (Calum Macleod 68), Brooks, Hyde, Bray, Thompson, Samuels (Calum Mackay 45), Lodovica (Keogh 84) Subs (not used): Patterson; Scorers: Keith Bray (9) Booked: none Sent Off: none a

Late Strike Ruins the Day Another very late goal ruined what had been a reasonably resolute performance by managerless Inverness. However, the end result remains the same and we went down to an avoidable sclaff in time added on when substitute Chris Mochrie poked the ball home after Ridgers had cleared a bouncing effort away from the top corner only for the United players to react quickest to prod the ball into the bottom corner with the aid of a deflection. Meh! It doesn't rain but it pours... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ With Robbo and Charlie Christie in the dugout, we were looking for a change in fortunes. That never happened on the injury front with MacGregor, Nicolson, Welsh, Devine and Duffy all missing out. Nikola Ujdur made his long awaited debut after coming up from down under. Still, it was a lovely afternoon for a game with a big away crowd bolstering the attendance to over three and a half thousand. Some of the football in the first half was pleasing on the eye as crisp passing and movement were the order of the day. However both sides were lacking a cutting edge as clear chances were hard to come by. Dangerman Louis Moult went off injured after the half hour to be replaced by Tony Watt. The closest anyone came to breaking the deadlock was five minutes before the break when Archie Meekison hit the post when he probably should have scored. Plenty of neat football on display and plenty of passion but a lack of goalmouth activity kept the score blank at the break. HALF TIME: 0-0. Aaron Doran and Billy Mckay went wide of the target in the opening fifteen minutes after the interval as we probed for that decisive opening. Ridgers kept out Watt as he broke into the box to keep the score level and moments later Jordan Tillson was red carded for a late tackle on Charlie Gilmour. Austin Samuels then had an effort deflected behind for a corner and minutes later his powerful drive went wide as we pushed ten man United back. Ujdur had a solid debut and was replaced by Zak Delaney after 78 minutes. Maybe that lifted United as the big guy is a solid unit and played a big part in unifying our defence up until his departure. As the game passed the ninety minutes, Boyes was penalised some forty yards out in the midfield area and picked up a caution. The free kick for United was curled into the box. It bounced up towards the top corner where Ridgers pawed it away possibly with the help of the bar. Gallagher kept it alive and Mochrie stabbed it goalwards. The last touch might even have come off a defender. It mattered not as the ball rolled into the net for what proved to be the winner. There was still some anxious moments for United to endure as we fired the ball across their box a few more times but sadly for us, the elusive killer pass was still missing and another defeat it was. That left us scunnered once again! Full Time: 0-1 A bit unfortunate to come away with nothing as we looked solid for the most part with new signing Nikola Ujdur looking like a body not to be messed with. However, following his substitution, United threatened more and got the break of the ball to snatch a winner from the jaws of a draw. We put a lot into that game and the performance was decent. However the result remains the same, a one goal defeat. Bottom line is 1 point from six games and only half a goal per game. Time for the strikers to do their bit. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts We face 3rd place Arbroath away in our next game 1. Dundee Utd 6 4 2 0 12 2 14 2. Raith Rovers 6 4 1 1 10 7 13 3. Arbroath 7 4 0 3 13 8 12 4. Dunfermline 6 3 2 1 9 5 11 5. Partick Thistle 6 3 1 2 14 9 10 6. Airdrieonians 6 3 0 3 6 10 9 7. Queens Park 7 3 0 4 10 15 9 8. Ayr United 6 2 0 4 8 14 6 9. Morton 6 1 1 4 8 15 4 10. Inverness CT 6 0 1 5 3 8 1 Airdrie 1-0 Raith Rvrs Pars 3-1 Morton Inverness CT 0-1 Dundee United Partick 0-3 Arbroath Date: 23/09/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 3503 Referee: Calum Scott Inverness CT: 0 Manager: John Robertson/Charlie Christie Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Ujdur (Delaney 78), Boyes, Harper, Longstaff (Samuels 60), Gilmour, Anderson, Shaw (Lodovica 90), Doran (Thompson 59), B Mckay Subs (not used): C Mackay; Davidson, Hyde, Brooks, Bray Scorers: none Booked: Anderson (2) Boyes (90) Sent Off: none Dundee United: 1 Manager: Jim Goodwin Lineup: Walton; Grimshaw, Gallagher, Holt, McMann, Docherty (Mochrie 80), Glass (Fotheringham 60), Middleton, Sibbald, Meekison (Tillson 60), Moult (Watt 35) Subs (not used): Newman; Denham, Graham, Freeman, Stirton Scorers: Mochrie (90+3) Booked: Docherty (25) Watt (45) Meekison (58) Tillson (65) Sent Off: Tillson (69) (second yellow) a

The Post Dodds Era Kicks-Off Life without Billy Dodds starts on Saturday, and it couldn't be tougher with Champions elect Dundee United visiting the Caledonian Stadium for a 3:00pm Cinch Championship encounter to round off a week of turmoil down the Longman. It was a no brainer really. The Board terminated the contract of Billy Dodds, and by association, Barry Wilson was struck off as well. No wins in our opening five games and only one point from fifteen had Inverness languishing at the foot of the table on our own. DoddsBall was in full swing. It was a sacking in the making after Dodds got a stay of execution with a Cup Final against Celtic at the end of last season. The big mystery was why was Dodds given a two year extension and who rubber-stamped his contract? The other mystery is where does John Robertson's loyalties lie and who pays his wages as he is more often than not seen at the Global Energy Stadium in Dingwall? Two down and more to go is the current theme coming from the support, so who is next? John Robertson and Charlie Christie will oversee this fixture on Saturday and until a new managemnt team is appointed. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Billy Dodds & Barry Wilson Match/Ticket Info ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue: H2H v Dundee Utd Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 33 10 10 13 35 43 -8 Away 28 7 10 11 36 42 -6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 61 17 20 24 71 85 -14 United do have the edge over us but we have had our moments. A 4 - 0 thrashing of United at Tannadice in 2010 will live long in the memory banks. Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Dundee Utd going back to Oct 20th 2018: Only one win over the last ten games!!! 1 - 2 (A) 0 - 3 (H) 1 - 4 (A) 0 - 3 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 0 - 2 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 0 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 1 (A) The last meeting between the sides at the Caledonian Stadium was in November 2019 and the home fans were left scunnered in a 0 - 3 defeat. SCUNNERED: Dundee United cruised to victory in the Highlands as disparity on the park mirrored that off the park. United were worthy winners as Inverness struggled to find any momentum and it was left to desperation and Mark Ridgers to keep the score down. Shaun Rooney deflected a forced Paul McMullan cross/shot into the net. A reaction save from Siegrist blocked a James Keatings effort before the break but that was as good as it got for the hosts. Nicky Clark stroked in the second as we unravelled and a cheap penalty saw Lawrence Shankland complete the scoring, but not the agony as we failed to trouble the United keeper with a series of fluffed attempts whilst United looked more likely to increase their lead. A poor day at the office that had the home fans shaking heads long before the end as we lose ground on the three teams above us. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Table ahead of Ayr thrashing Queens Park 5-2 tonight 1. Raith Rovers 5 4 1 0 10 6 13 2. Dundee Utd 5 3 2 0 11 2 11 3. Partick Thistle 5 3 1 1 14 6 10 4. Arbroath 6 3 0 3 10 8 9 5. Queens Park 6 3 0 3 8 10 9 6. Dunfermline 5 2 2 1 6 4 8 7. Airdrieonians 5 2 0 3 5 10 6 8. Morton 5 1 1 3 7 12 4 9. Ayr United 5 1 0 4 3 12 3 10. Inverness CT 5 0 1 4 3 7 1 Friday 22nd September Queen's Pk 2-5 Ayr United Saturday 23rd September Airdrie v Raith Rvrs Dunfermline v Morton Inverness v Dundee Utd Partick v Arbroath Last Time Out We didn't know it at the time, but It turned out to be Billy Dodds last game in charge. Ironically, it happened to be our best performance of the season. However, the result remained the same, and we lost a 23 year unbeaten record to Raith Rovers who find themselves top of the league ahead of this weekends fixtures. An aesthetically pleasing first half gave way to a less impressive second forty-five before we succumbed to a late sucker punch when Jamie Gullan hammered home after a defensive lapse. Hard one to take but that's what happens when you're down. Championship form so far: L L L D L One Point from fifteen The Arabs are everyones favourites for the title, but they dropped two points last week when Morton came back to earn a point shortly after Mathew Cudjoe had been sent off. Robbie Muirhead capitalised on a defensive error on the hour after Louis Moult had given United a first half lead with his fifth strike of the season. Championship form so far: W D W W D Eleven Points from fifteen Latest Team News The Robertson/Christie combo will be without MacGregor, Nicolson and Welsh who have been out for a few weeks and nothing has changed there. However, we are in limbo, therefore who knows if Robbo and Charlie will rock the boat too much. It's a difficult enough task to pick up a team low on confidence, even moreso when the title favourites come calling. Harry Lodovica will be available for selection after his red card at Arbroath. Here's Ryan's Dad>>> Dundee United (Manager Jim Goodwin) In: Declan Gallagher, defender (St Mirren); Louis Moult, forward (Burton Albion); Ross Docherty, midfielder (Partick Thistle); Kevin Holt, defender (Partick Thistle); Liam Grimshaw, midfielder (Morton). Loan in: Jordan Tillson, midfielder (Ross County); Jack Walton, goalkeeper (Luton); Oliver Denham, defender (Cardiff City). Out: A number of players were deemed surplus to requirements at Tannadice as United up their game in their bid to bounce back into the Premiership. Charlie Mulgrew retired and the exprienced Steven Fletcher and Peter Pawlett are away amongst others. Louis Moult is a proven goascorer and will need close attention. Glen Middleton is a handful as well and an able provider. To be fair, as expected, United appear to have the strongest squad on paper. Dundee United Team v Morton last week 1-1: Walton Grimshaw (Meekison 84) Gallagher Holt McMann Tillson Glass (Sibbald 69) Middleton Watt (Fotheringham 68) Anim Cudjoe (58) Moult Subs not used: Newman; Freeman, Stirton, Graham, Mochrie, Denholm ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Don't forget, there's still an open meeting at the Innes Bar to discuss our current plight amongst other things. Dodds no more. But there's still Gardiner, Robertson and more to discuss. Come along and have your say. Innes Bar (Beer Garden) 61 Innes Street Inverness IV1 1NR TIME: 12:00-2:15

Record Breakers Never had there been a better time for Raith Rovers to break the Caley Jags hoodoo! Inverness, without a win in their last eight games, and Billy Dodds and the management team under fire. A 23 year run of games without a win for Raith Rovers was brought to an end today when Jamie Gullan smashed home from 15 yards with five minutes left. It was harsh on Inverness who dominated for long spells earlier in the game, but it leaves the management with some tough decisions to make. There will be dancing on the streets of Raith tonight! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Billy Dodds was without MacGregor, Nicolson, Welsh, Duffy and the suspended Lodovica. Robbie Thompson started and Anderson, Devine and Billy Mckay returnrned to the starting XI. Rovers looked to have a strong line-up and were looking to consolidate at the top end of the table. Inverness dominated the first half with Raith keeper Dabrowski making three or four great saves to deny Anderson, Boyes and Gilmour with Billy Mckay also being blocked close to goal. Danny Devine did have the ball in the net, but his header was adjudged to be offside. HALF TIME: 0-0. Almost a goal at the start of the second half but Raith survived the scare. Raith grew into the game after the break and Ridgers was eventually called into action with a double block, scooping the ball away from danger. The inevetable happened with three minutes of normal time left when Gullan thumped the ball home after a poor clearance fell to him. Carson was then turned and Gullan hammered home to end the hoodoo. That got the monkey off their backs. Adam Brooks had an opportunity to level the game in time added on but never got enough purchase on the ball and MotM Dabrowski saved comfortably FULL TIME: 1-0 Despite a promising first half where Raith would have had no complaints had we gone in at the interval three ahead, the hosts stuck at it and sneaked a goal in the last few minutes to put them top of the league on their own. A much improved performance from the visitors where the defence did not look like conceding.... and then it happened. More details to follow>>> Highlights from RRFC Date: 16/09/2023 Venue: Stark's Park, Kirkaldy Attendance: 2846 Referee: Chris Graham Raith Rovers: 1 Manager: Ian Murray Lineup: Dabrowski; Millen, Watson, Murray, Dick, Vaughan (Mullin 64), Smith (Easton 64), Stanton (Gullan 85), Brown, Hamilton, Byrne Subs (not used): McNeil; Connolly, Arnott, Hannah, Masson, Scorers: Gullan (87) Booked: Dick (62) Watson (90) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 0 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Devine, Boyes, Harper, Longstaff, Anderson, Gilmour (Brooks 87), Shaw, Thompson (Bray 71), B Mckay (Samuels 82) Subs (not used): Mackay; Davidson, Delaney, Hyde, Doran Scorers: none Booked: Gilmour (8), Devine (84) Sent Off: none a

They'll be dancing on the streets After more than twenty years of trying to beat the Caley Jags, Raith Rovers will never get a better chance to win a game against us than this weekend at Starks Park. The last time we lost, Steps were top of the charts with 'Stomp'. The untennable word is ready to hit the press as Inverness continue their downward spiral after eight big boy games in a row without a win and only one draw to show for it. No excuses anymore, we have underperformed everywhere we go and the current regime are taking this club down to the gutter. Billy Dodds is under fire and rightly so as football is a results driven business. He might be the fall guy here though and none of his seniors at the club is smelling of roses at the moment. Robbo can be seen elsewhere on Saturdays while his team suffer another embarrassing defeat. Scot Gardiner is dishing out jobs for the boys and the stench of failure is unbearable. When will it stop? When will the Chairman wake up and smell the stench? One point from a possible twelve is relegation form. Better managers have been sacked for less. How long do we wait??? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket Info Supporters Bus £20 Supporters Trust ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Supporters Trust have called for an open meeting to discuss the Matchday Experience Survey and the demise of our club amongst other things. The natives are restless and the long knives have been drawn for a while now with most fans not liking the direction we are moving towards. One point from a possible twelve makes us relegation candidates and management decisions are being questioned by a disgruntled support who feel many of these decisions are not in the best interest of this club. Come along and let the voice of the support be heard on Saturday 23rd September before the Dundee United game,12:00 – 14:15 @ The Innes Bar (Beer Garden), 61 Innes St, Inverness IV1 1NR ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H v Raith Rovers Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 14 5 2 40 15 +25 Away 17 9 5 3 34 21 +13 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 38 23 10 5 74 36 +38 We first met Raith in 1999 and went down 2-0. Report by Ian Broadfoot: Caley Thistle lost this game because of a dismal first half performance. They came out fighting in the second half and matched Raith well but produced no goals. Raith took the lead in the ninth minute after a Jay Stein corner from the right - Marvin Andrews rose above Mann to head downwards and into the net. In 24 minutes the second goal came courtesy of an error. Mann was too slow passing back to Fridge and Didier Agathe stepped in and he ran on and volleyed past Fridge from 20 yards. Caley Thistle hit on the occasional breakaway but to little effect. A disappointing afternoon for the home support despite a spirited fight back. Caley Thistle now slip to second bottom of Division 1. Sounds familiar!!! Fast forward to October 28th 2000. Five defeats and a draw later for the Caley Jags, Raith Rovers would win their last fixture against us over 90 minutes. Unbelievably that is 23 years next month. That unbeaten run is under serious threat as under fire Billy Dodds takes his hapless cloggers down to Kirkaldy. I fear there will be dancing on the streets of Raith after this one. Prove me wrong! Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Raith Rovers 2 - 0 (H) 2 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 2 - 0 (A) 3 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 0 - 0 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 1 - 0 (A) Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Ayr United v Partick Thistle (Friday night 19:45) 1. Dundee Utd 4 3 1 0 10 1 10 2. Raith Rovers 4 3 1 0 9 6 10 3. Queens Park 5 3 0 2 8 8 9 4. Partick Thistle 4 2 1 1 10 6 7 5. Airdrieonians 4 2 0 2 5 6 6 6. Arbroath 5 2 0 3 6 8 6 7. Dunfermline 4 1 2 1 4 4 5 8. Morton 4 1 0 3 6 11 3 9. Ayr United 4 1 0 3 3 8 3 10. Inverness CT 4 0 1 3 3 6 1 FRIDAY 15TH SEPTEMBER Ayr United v Partick Thistle SATURDAY 16TH SEPTEMBER Arbroath FC v Airdrieonians United v Morton Queens Park v Dunfermline Raith Rovers v Inverness CT Last Championship game v Pars Our last Championship game saw us gain our first point of the season. However one point from a possible twelve is nothing to crow about. We took an early lead throgh a Nathan Shaw strike with the keeper not covering himself in glory. Alas the confidence is not there and Dunfermline thoroughly deserved their point and probably were unlucky not to take all three but for a great late save from Mark Ridgers. However the defence will be disappointed with the goal we lost as the errors continue to mount up. Current League Form L L L D F3 A6 Latest Team News Billy Dodds will be without MacGregor, Nicolson, Welsh and the suspended Harry Lodovica. We had made eight changes to the starting XI last week against Arbroath, therefore I would expect Billy Mckay, Danny Devine and Max Anderson to be back in the side (should Max be fit). Wallace Duffy was replaced just before the interval last week and is a doubt with a hamstring niggle. Mark Ridgers will surely be back between the sticks, although in his last appearance he was a bit suspect at the Dunfermline goal along with two or three of his defenders. Nikola Ujdur might be over here by next week according to Dodds, i'll no hold my breath... A less than ebullient Billy Dodds What's new at Stark's Park In: Jack Hamilton, forward (Livingston); Keith Watson, defender (Ross County); Kevin Dabrowski, goalkeeper (Hibs); Euan Murray, defender (Hartlepool United); Josh Mullin, midfielder (Ayr United); Dylan Corr, defender (Celtic); Scott McGill, midfielder (Hearts, loan to permanent); Callum Smith, forward (Airdrie). Loan in: Shaun Byrne, midfielder (Dundee). Out: Jamie MacDonald, goalkeeper (Morton); Brad Spencer, midfielder (Falkirk); Tom Lang, defender (Falkirk); Ryan Nolan, defender (Hercules); Connor McBride, midfielder (Gateshead); Greig Young, defender (Dumbarton); Luke Mahady, forward (Bonnyrigg Rose). Loan ended: Isma Goncalves, forward (Livingston); William Akio, midfielder (Ross County); Kieran Ngwenya (Aberdeen). Loan out: Andy McNeil, goalkeeper (Edinburgh City); Kieran Mitchell, forward (East Fife). Last Championship game for Raith Rovers Ian Murray's Raith beat ten man Queens Park 3-2 after coming from behind with two late goals by substitute Lewis Vaughan in the last five minutes. Raith had opened the scoring in the eighth minute through Callum Smith's header. Queens then had William Tizzard sent off before the interval. They hit back after the hour with goals from Turner and Thomas before Vaughan's late brace secured the points that keeps Raith level at the top with Dundee United. Current League Form: D W W W F9 A6 Raith lineup v Queens Park Dabrowski Millen Watson Murray (Ross 84) McGill (Dick 75) Brown Mullin (Easton 75) Byrne Stanton (Vaughan 62) Smith Hamilton (Gullan 45) Subs not used: Thompson; Dick Arnott, Masson A game at the Gleaner Arena, or as we all know it, Boroughbriggs. Good luck to our u18's as they take on Elgin City in the Scottish Youth Cup.

Smoked by the Smokies A visit to Arbroath in the SPFL Trust Trophy saw both sides make a few changes from their Championship personnel. It would appear that Arbroath were taking this more seriously than Inverness although Campbell made four changes to the starting line up this week with Adams replacing Gaston in goals and Jacobs, Hylton and Baldé starting in place of Slater, Dow and the injured Bird. Inverness made eight changes to their side in the spirit of the competition and rested Billy Mckay, Max Anderson and Danny Devine with Doran in for his experience along with youngsters Brooks, Bray and Thompson with Big Harry on the bench. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Little to talk about in the opening exchanges but Arbroath were looking the hungrier side and trying to create with the visitors lacking penetration. David Gold opened the scoring ten minutes before the break smashing the ball in from a Hylton cross. A second followed just before the break after Cammy Mackay produced a spectacular save to deny a Turan header, but from the corner Tam O'Brien tapped in at the second attempt after a scramble in the box. That prompted a rapid response from Inverness when Adam Brooks replied for the visitors two minutes later after goog possession and a cross from Longstaff. Before the whistle Wallace Duffy left the field to be replaced by Cammy Harper in stoppage time. Half Time: 2-1 Charlie Gilmour replaced Austin Samuels at the interval but it was the hosts that went straight onto the front foot. On the hour Doran hit the crossbar after he got on the end of a Longstaff cross to volley from six yards. Big Harry and Nathan Shaw were introduced with Bray and Doran making way with around half an hour remaining. Harry's game was short. He was sent off a couple of minutes after coming on for a reckless challenge on McKenna, lordy lordy Ross Stewart restored the two goal cushion with a vicious strike from just outside the box in the 70th minute. Aaron Steele knocked in the fourth in another melee in the box as we struggled to stop the rot. The smokies could have had a fifth when substitute Slater beat Mackay from eighteen yards but his shot bounced off the post and across the face of the goal. Lewis Hyde reduced the deficit in the final minutes with a header off a Harper free kick to end the scoring. An eventful but unsuccessful afternoon for the Caley Jags. Do I hear the word untennable being passed around? Full Time: 4-2 Regardless of the eight changes made, it was another poor day at the office... The stats don't lie no matter what team you put on the park. That's now seven defeats and one draw in our last eight big boy games (excluding the Inverness Cup Final). Where does Billy Dodds go from here? Most fans, if not all, are bringing out the untennable option. And along with Dodds, is it time for the whole board to resign. By the end of October, it should be clearer. We face Raith Rovers (a), Dundee United (h) and Arbroath (a) again. If we take nothing from these games, then there will be only one option. Date: 09/09/2023 Venue: Gayfield Park, Arbroath Attendance: 780 Referee: Steven McLean Arbroath: 4 Manager: Dick Campbell Lineup: Adams; Steel, O'Brien, Little, Stewart, Jacobs (Slater 72), Cande Balde (Dow 58), Hylton (Stowe 72), McKenna, Gold (Norey 79), Turan (McIntosh 72) Subs (not used): Gaston; Scorers: Gold (34), O'Brien (41), Stewart (70), Steele (84) Booked: O'Brien (75) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 2 Manager: Billy Dodds/Barry Wilson Lineup: C Mackay; Davidson, Duffy (Harper 45+4), Boyes, Delaney, Thompson (Hyde 74), Doran (Shaw 61), Bray (Lodovica 61), Longstaff, Brooks, Samuels (Gilmour 45) Subs (not used): Ridgers; Scorers: Brooks (43), Hyde (90+2) Booked: Boyes (83) Sent Off: Lodovica (63) a

In Dodds We Trust? With no wins in seven games (six defeats and a draw), it's a welcome distraction this weekend as we travel to Gayfield Park Arbroath to take on the 'Smokies' in the third round of the SPFL Trust Trophy. That's no easy task now that Arbroath have pulled their socks up after an opening day trouncing from Dundee United and back to back defeats from Queens Park in the Championship. In saying that, the first three defeats have been against two of the frontrunners in the Championship. However, It might offer us an opportunity to further bed in our latest additions who featured in the draw against the Pars last weekend. Not only that, but it'll be good practice for the Championship encounter at the end of the Month. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Arbroath Match/Ticket Info Supporters Bus £20 North of Scotland Cup ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H v Arbroath Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 17 4 3 59 19 +40 Away 22 10 6 6 30 23 +7 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 46 27 10 9 89 42 +47 Last encounter from last season saw us win 2-0 at the Caledonian Stadium: Two of the Championship form teams clashed at the Caledonian Stadium with both clubs on good runs, Arbroath unbeaten in seven games and Inverness just the one defeat over the last seven. Both clubs needing the win for different reasons, and both clubs capable of taking the points. After a dismal first half goals from Nathan Shaw and a Scott Allardice penalty settled the points in our favour. The downside was a red card for Jay Henderson... Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Arbroath 2 - 0 (H) 4 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 0 (H) 3 - 0 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (A) Last five games including Inverness Cup Arbroath 0-4 Dundee Utd ------- Inverness 1-2 Queens Pk Queens Pk 2-1 Arbroath ----------- Ayr United 1-0 Inverness Arbroath 0-1 Queens Pk ---- Clachnacuddin 1-4 ICTFC XI Morton 0-3 Arbroath ------------ Airdrie 2-1 Inverness Arbroath 2-1 Ayr United ----- Inverness 1-1 Dunfermline What can we expect? Maybe we will see a mixture of new guys, experience and fringe players. Basically anyone that's fit enough and good enough to pull on the jersey. Max Anderson and Morgan Boyes both had decent debuts last week against Dunfermline. However, after a solid first half we started to look jaded all over the park and ended up hanging on for a point. Somethings wrong that's no right and it needs fixing now. Nikola Ujdur still to arrive? Keith Bray was a second half sub last week and Maybe Cammy Mackay will get the gloves. What can Aaron Doran do for us and Billy Mckay needs to show that his extended contract was money well spent instead of having to chase back all over the park to get a kick of the ball. According to Bazza below, we can expect some fringe players in amongst the current incumbents. Welsh might be back in training soon, but the other two are longer term. Arbroath Changes since we last played them In: Leighton McIntosh, forward (Cove Rangers); Kenan Dunnwald-Turan, midfielder (Straelen); Jay Bird, forward (Dagenham & Redbridge); Jess Norey, midfielder (Barking); Aaron Steele (East Fife); Craig Slater, midfielder (Forfar Athletic); Jermaine Hylton, forward (Rushall Olympic); Mark Stowe, midfielder (Linlithgow Rose); Alasdair Adams, goalkeeper (Musselburgh Athletic). Out: Lewis Banks, defender (Altrincham); Sean Adarkwa, forward (Wealdstone); Dale Hilson, forward (Stirling Albion); Cammy Gill, goalkeeper (Montrose); Kieran Shanks, forward (Peterhead); Dylan Paterson, midfielder (Linlithgow Rose); Bobby Linn, forward (Lochee United); Yasin Ben El-Mhanni, forward; Paul Komolafe, forward. Loan Out: Scott Allan. Loan ended: Dylan Tait, midfielder (Hibs); Toyosi Olusanya, midfielder (St Mirren); Scott Bitsindou, midfielder (Livingston); Steven Hetherington, midfielder (Falkirk). Date for your diary, a wee night out at Mackessack Park in Rothes.

Level Pars A flurry of transfer activity saw three new players join the Caley Jags ahead of this game. With Billy Dodds under pressure from the fans, Max Anderson and Morgan Boyes not only turned up at the Caledonian stadium, but were in the starting XI. However, we have to wait a bit longer to see Nikola Ujdur once all his paperwork is rubber stamped down under. Sean Welsh missed out again along with a couple of longer term absentees. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A cagey opening ten minutes was disrupted two minutes later when Nathan Shaw took on a speculative shot from distance. It was low and maybe the keeper thought it was going past, but it went under his body and trundled into the net off the post to give Inverness a much needed opening goal. Keeper won't want to see that one again. Shaw was prominent in most moves forward and Charlie Gilmour fired a couple of fierce shots a yard or two wide. Adam Brooks had the ball in the net nearer half-time but was adjudged to be offside with Sharp again looking suspect as he tried to save the shot. Little else of note in a turgid first forty-five played in blustery conditions. HALF TIME: 1-0 After the break, if anything, it was even more turgid with any fluent breaks forward coming from the visitors. Substitute Keith Bray did well to create an opening for himself but his finish was weak and saved low to his right by Sharp. The Pars earned their share of the points when Hamilton headed in after a short corner was chipped into the box by Moffat with Mark Ridgers caught in no mans land. Soft goal to give away with ten minutes remaining. With a couple of minutes left Ridgers made amends when Moffat looked favourite to score but the keeper did well to save low to his left and keep the score level. FULL TIME: 1-1 The two new loan payers aquitted themselves well without setting the pulses racing. The defence did appear to be more rigid although we were found wanting at the equaliser. Nathan Shaw was the most likely to cause problems and so it proved. Poor decision by Ridgers to decide to flap at thin air for the goal but made amends to earn our point with a tremendous save later. Pars were much more direct than us and you couldn't grudge them their point. However that point still leaves us floundering at the foot of the table with one point from a possible twelve. Date: 02/09/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2388 Referee: Mathew MacDermid Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Duffy (Bray 69), Devine, Boyes, Harper, Brooks (Longstaff 82), Carson, Anderson (Davidson 87), Gilmour, Shaw, B Mckay (Samuels 87) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Delaney, Doran, Lodovica, Thompson Scorers: Shaw (12) Booked: Duffy (46), Brooks (58) Sent Off: none Dunfermline Ath: 1 Manager: James McPake Lineup: Sharp; Fisher, Benedictus (Allan 71), Comrie (Moffat 59), Hamilton, Chalmers, Otoo, McAnn, Edwards, Summers (Tod 84), O'Halloran (Ritchie-Hosler 59) Subs (not used): Little; Sutherland, Breen, Fenton Scorers: Hamilton (80) Booked: A Tod (90) Sent Off: none a

Finger Out Time With the fans restless, it's time for the Caley Jags to get their season started and get some points on the board. Many fans have lost any lingering faith in the current regime from the top to the bottom and would like to see change. Yes, it's only three games into the season, but the signs are there for all to see. A lack of direction on and off the park is worrying. Who replaced Robbie Deas? The answer is nobody. Hence our defence is riddled with errors at the moment. Deas leaving has been known for at least six months yet we have done nothing about it. Why? We have been scraping the bottom of the transfer barrel for a while now and performances on the park have reached an unacceptable level. The fans are disgruntled, the manager is getting some heavy flak, the Sporting Director is seen more at Dingwall at the weekends commentating on other sides whilst his own team are floundering, the CEO is taking us down a perilous route with no light at the end of the tunnel after a series of money making ventures have failed. We were well warned, now it's time for the Chairman to speak out before it's too late. We face Dunfermline on Saturday in what many believe could be a season defining encounter. Win and we will paper over the cracks for a while, lose and the only real option is wholesale change from the very top. As Richard Osman would say, we are pointless. The Pars have claimed four points from their opening fixtures; it's time to close that gap. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match & Ticket Info Max Anderson Morgan Boyes Nikola Ujdur ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H v Dunfermline Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 23 10 8 5 30 21 +9 Away 24 9 10 5 29 26 +3 Neutral 2 0 1 1 3 4 -1 Total 49 19 19 11 62 51 +11 We missed the Pars last season as they were busy getting themselves promoted from League 1 along with Airdrie. Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Dunfermline 2 - 0 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 3 (A) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 1 - 0 (A) The last time we met was a 2-0 win for Inverness at the Caledonian Stadium at the end of season 2021/2022 Inverness took a massive step towards a play off place by defeating Dunfermline Athletic for the first time this season. An encouraging but goalless first half where Reece McAlear had hit the post was replaced by a two goal second half with chances at both ends. The deadlock was broken by a man who only scores screamers. Reece McAlear lashed the ball across the keeper and into the top right corner of the goal from a difficult position wide on the inside right area. What a strike that was but it only woke the Pars up from their lethargy and they had three or four great opportunities before substitute Austin Samuels sealed the points after he sprinted on to a through ball from Aaron Doran to slot neatly behind Mehmet in goal. Comfortable thereafter for the remainder of the game and an excellent three points to strengthen our hold on third place. Last Time Out Despite Billy Dodds oddly claiming we started well against Airdrie, we went a goal down after 35 seconds. And just to rub it in, it was an own goal as Cammy Harper prodded a deflected cross past Mark Ridgers before the sugar had been added to the coffee. The second goal was another defensive masterclass (NOT) as Devine was caught unawares when Davidson tried to play a short ball to him. Top scorer Calum Ferguson needed no second invitation to bury it behind Ridgers and once more leave us chasing the game. Not even with Airdrie being reduced to 10 men could we get anything. Our MotM Nathan Shaw pulled a goal back in the second half but we were unable to complete the comeback thanks to a combination of keeper Josh Rae, the woodwork and some rank rotten finishing. That was on the back of defeats to Queens Park and Ayr United. Meh! The Pars lost their big Fife derby match with Raith Rovers thanks to a Sam Stanton first half goal. It was a tight affair with Rovers just shading it. Rhys Breen and Ewan Otoo went close after the break for the Pars and Stanton almost added a second in front of over 7500 fans but the hosts fell just short. Dunfermline opened their campaign coming from behind to beat Airdrie 2-1 (Otoo & Allan) and followed that up with an encouraging 1-1 draw at Tannadice. Wighton had put the Pars ahead and it took United until the 95th minute to make their point. Pld W D L F A +/- Pts 1. Queens Park 4 3 0 1 6 5 1 9 2. Dundee Utd 3 2 1 0 8 1 7 7 3. Raith Rovers 3 2 1 0 6 4 2 7 4. Airdrieonians 3 2 0 1 5 4 1 6 5. Partick Thistle 3 1 1 1 6 5 1 4 6. Dunfermline 3 1 1 1 3 3 0 4 7. Morton 3 1 0 2 5 7 -2 3 8. Arbroath 4 1 0 3 4 7 -3 3 9. Ayr United 3 1 0 2 2 6 -4 3 10. Inverness CT 3 0 0 3 2 5 -3 0 Championship Fixtures Saturday 2nd September Inverness CT v Dunfermline Arbroath v Ayr Utd United v Airdrie Morton v Partick Rovers v Queen's Results so far Inverness 1-2 Queens Pk Ayr United 1-0 Inverness Airdrie 2-1 Inverness Dunfermline 2-1 Airdrieonians Dundee Utd 1-1 Dunfermline Dunfermline 0-1 Raith Rovers Latest Team News Inverness moved into the transfer market to try and arrest our slump and have secured a season long loan for Max Anderson from Dundee. Does this tell us that MacGregor and Welsh might be out for some time or that Glimour and co are not up to the task? Welsh and MacGregor missed out at Airdrie again along with long term Lewis Nicolson. Aaron Doran also missed the Airdrie game. Not sure what's up there as he played in the Inverness Cup game against Clach and looked sharp. Apparently we are actively trying to source a defender to plug the gaps........... And, ask and ye shall get. We have signed defender Morgan Boyes on a season long loan from Livingston and he will be available for selection for the Pars game tomorrow. We have also signed Nikola Ujdur, an Australian defender, on a two year deal. Sean Welsh is still out so I would expext Max Anderson to be in with a shout of starting this one. Here's our latest Max Dunfermline have some new faces. We won't concern ourselves with who they don't have, but here are their latest signings: In: Michael O'Halloran, forward (St Johnstone); Kane Ritchie-Hosler, midfielder (Rangers, loan to permanent); Ewan Otoo, defender (Celtic, loan to permanent); Sam Fisher, defender (Dundee). Loan in: Harry Sharp, goalkeeper (Dundee); Ben Summers, midfielder (Celtic). Joe Chalmers is still at East End Park and Michael O'Halloren and Craig Wighton are an experienced partnership up front. Pars Team v Raith Rovers last week Sharp Fisher Benedictus Breen (Sutherland 86) Comrie Chalmers Otoo McCann Edwards Wighton O'Halloran (Summers 63) Subs not used: Little; Hamilton, Allan, Fenton, Tod

Diamond geezers do it again Inverness were without Aaron Doran and Sean Welsh but Danny Devine returned to the defence and Keith Bray started. Hat-Trick Harry was on the bench with young Adam Brooks. Airdrie had new signing Gavin Gallagher on the bench alongside Nikolay Todorov but Colin Telfer missed out with player manager Rhys McCabe. Top scorer Calum Gallagher is the man to keep an eye on. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ WTF! Inverness went behind in the first minute when Cammy Harper scored an own goal. So much for cutting out errors at the back. We chased the game thereafter without creating too much and Calum Gallagher doubled our deficit after half an hour to make our task even more onerous. Austin Samuels hit woodwork and another shambles of a half closed at 2-0 for the hosts with Frizzell booked on the whistle. Depressing stuff from the visitors with no cutting edge. Five minutes after the break Airdrie were reduced to ten men when Adam Frizzell received his second yellow card. Nathan Shaw scored to half the deficit with twenty minutes remaining. We threw everything at Airdrie but Rae was equal to all our efforts and we slumped to our sixth defeat in a row. What now Billy? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ WTF! Inverness go behind inside the first minute when Cammy Harper tries to cut out a deflected cross from Lewis McGregor but knocks it into his own net under challenge instead. So much for cutting out errors at the back. Wallace Duffy responded in the third minute but his drive went high and wide and sinner Harper put a good cross into the box but Keeper Josh Rae did well to gather confidently. The hosts were looking for a penalty when Aiken went down in the box and Gallagher fired wide. Nothing given. Keith Bray got on the end of a Nathan Shaw cross but his effort was blocked as we looked to get back on level terms. Just after the half hour Bray was close to getting on the end of a David Carson through ball. Surprise surprise! Chasing the game from thirty-five seconds in, we lost a second goal when Calum Gallagher shot into the bottom corner from inside the box, Danny Devine culpable this time, although the pass from Jake Davidson caught him unawares. Is there no end to our error strewn defending? Austin Samuels hit woodwork, Taylor-Sinclair had blocked his effort onto the post as we struggled to get a foothold in this game with half-time approaching. A great run from Gallagher almost added a third and Samuels was booked as his frustration showed five minutes before the interval. Charlie Gilmour curled over after Rae's clearance fell to him and Shaw missed the target as we desperately searched for a way back. HALF TIME: 2-0 Luis Longstaff replaced Jake Davidson at the break and Billy Mckay was denied by Rae at his near post five minutes into the second period from Longstaff's cross. From the resultant corner Devine's header came off the post and was saved by the keeper then Moments later Frizzell was red carded for his second bookable offence, a late challenge on Bray, having been booked in time added on at the end of the first half. Mckay went close again but was blocked as Inverness looked to take advantage of their superior numbers. Airdrie re-jigged after the sending off with Todorov and O'Connor entering the field. McGregor brought Mark Ridgers into action and likewise at the other end with Shaw on target. Shaw did pull a goal back from close range after seventy minutes when Longstaff's shot came back off the post as we went for broke. Ridgers cut out a cross from Aiken as he broke forward with ten minutes left. Airdrie were living dangerously and Shaw went close again with five minutes left on the clock and he was denied by Rae a minute later. In time added on Sub Robbie Thompson was denied by Rae as he kept Airdrie ahead. Despite a big effort in the second half it ended with Airdrie taking all three points. FULL TIME: 2-1 Chasing the game after more defensive blunders, we squandered numerous opportunities to get back into it before Shaw scored. Alas, Rae was in good form and a combination of him and poor finishing means we are now bottom of the league on our own after six successive defeats, (three in the league), and the errors keep coming. All this against ten men for near 40 minutes. The long knives are well and truly drawn... Date: 26/08/2023 Venue: Excelsior Stadium, Airdrie Attendance: **** Referee: Dan McFarlane Airdrieonians: 2 Manager: Rhys McCabe Lineup: Rae; Ballantyne, Watson, Fordyce, Taylor-Sinclair, Frizzell, McMaster, Aiken, McGregor (Hancock 82), McGill (O'Connor 58), C Gallagher (Todorov 58) Subs (not used): Hutton; McCabe, Dunlop, Cassidy, G Gallagher Scorers: Harper (35sec og), C Gallagher (32) Booked: Frizzell (40+2, 50), McMaster (90+3) Sent Off: Frizzell (50) Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Davidson (Longstaff 45), Duffy, Devine, Harper, Samuels (Brooks (59)), Carson (Delaney 72), Bray (Thompson 83), Gilmour, Shaw, B Mckay (Lodovica 72) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde Scorers: Shaw (70) Booked: Gilmour (28), Samuels (40), B Mckay (66) Sent Off: none a

It's Coming Home as Harry Claims the Match Ball The Inverness Cup has been revived and there was a 'one off' game to decide who will look after this substantial trophy for the next year when it will all be done again between the Caley Jags and Inverness Clachnacuddin. It's a whopper of a trophy capable of holding many a dram and it was first played for in 1895 when Caledonian won the inaugural event. Last played for in season 2005-2006, Forres Mechanics are the current holders. The 'Can Cans' are the oldest association football club in the North of Scotland and are one of only two original teams to play in the Highland League since its first season in 1893, the other being Clachnacuddin. A fairly youthful Inverness XI took to the pitch bolstered by Doran, Duffy Samuels and a couple of newstarts in Brooks and Harry Lodovica who set the tone with a first half hat-trick. Lewis Mackie bagged the last goal after Calum Ferguson scored for Clach. That meant that Inverness CT have now won this trophy eight times. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Inverness Cup Final: In front of an estimated crowd of 400ish, Adam Brooks had an early effort tipped onto the post and behind by keeper Daniel Rae. After quarter of an hour Austin Samuels was put through by Robbie Thompson but he dragged his effort wide, however five minutes later big Harry Lodovica headed home an Aaron Doran corner via the underside of the bar to open the scoring. Cammy MacKay then had to look lively to keep out Connor Bunce's free-kick after twenty minutes. Big Harry and Lewis Hyde both went wide but keeper Rae then brought down Big Harry and he picked himself up before converting his penalty on the rebound after Rae had saved the initial spot kick. Harry notched his hat-trick moments later when he headed in from Doran's free kick. Straight from the restart Clach won a penalty of their own but Calum Ferguson's low spot kick was saved by Cammy Mackay. HALF TIME: 0-3 Into the second half and Aaron Doran shot wide before Clach pulled one back when Ferguson scored to narrow the gap. Inverness had made some changes prior to the goal, Lewis Mackie, Jonathan Bain, Calum MacLeod ON, Wallace Duffy, Adam Brooks and Austin Samuels OFF. Mackie thumped in from inside the box fifteen minutes after coming on to restore our three goal lead. With the game running away from Clach we fielded another couple of substitutes into the final five minutes: Sam Thompson and Ben Meacher on, Aaron Doran and Ali Nixon off. As it was, Harry's Hat-Trick set us up nicely and Lewis Mackie rounded it off with an excellent strike for Inverness to regain the Inverness Cup for the eighth time. All the best to Clach for the season ahead and they battled well having previously lifted this trophy fourteen times. Robert on CTO: We ended up with only MacKay, Hyde and Lodovica (and arguably Robbie Thomson) on the pitch from our first team squad, plus five from the Academy and two first year Graduates, so a creditable result in the circumstances. Image from @TMPfoto As Frank Bruno used to say after his fights: "where's Harry?" Well, here he is with the match ball after scoring three in the final. It was his first start for the club and what an impact he made. He's a big lad at full stretch and will be a handful for defenders once he gets up and running. Man of the Match for his first half heroics but there were also some accomplished performances from some of the younger players on display, notably Robbie Thompson and Jack Walker, and even olde codgers like Aaron Doran put in a good shift. Great confidence boost for all and a smashing strike from Lewis Mackie for the fourth goal. I see that Clach have signed goal scorer Calum Ferguson who started his career at Inverness ten years ago before moving on. Date: 22/**08/2023 Venue: Grant Street Park, Inverness Attendance: 400 Referee: Gordon Seago Clachnacuddin: 1 Manager: Jordan MacDonald Lineup: Rae; D Morrison, Cormack, S Morrison, Sutherland, Ferguson, Anderson, Bunce, Riddle, Nicolson, Hennem Subs (not used): MaCleod, Mitchell, Adams, Cooper, Mackenzie, Calder, Urquhart, Macphee, Peterkin Scorers: Ferguson (64) Booked: none Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 4 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: C Mackay; S Nixon, Duffy (Mackie 60), Walker, A Nixon (S Thompson 85), Brooks (Bain 60), Thompson, Hyde, Doran (Meacher 85), Samuels (Macleod 60) Lodovica. Subs (not used): Ridgers; Scorers: Lodovica (16, 36, 39), Mackie (75) Booked: none Sent Off: none

Inverness Cup 'Final' The Inverness Cup has been revived and there will be a 'one off' game to decide who will look after this substantial trophy for the next year when it will all be done again between the Caley Jags and Inverness Clachnacuddin. It's a whopper of a trophy capable of holding many a dram and it was first played for in 1895 when Caledonian won the inaugural event. Last played for in season 2005-2006, Forres Mechanics are the current holders. The 'Can Cans' are the oldest association football club in the North of Scotland and are one of only two original teams to play in the Highland League since its first season in 1893, the other being Clachnacuddin. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It's the Inverness Cup this Tuesday at Grant Street Park, 7:30pm kick-off. Pay at the Gate (Cash or Card) £10 Adults, £5 Children/Concessions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From Am Baile: The Inverness Football Memories Project has warmly welcomed the revival of the historic Inverness Cup, which was first played for in 1895 when Caledonian lifted the trophy. Caledonian would go on to win the trophy 19 times, a record equalled by local rivals Inverness Thistle. The trophy was introduced by the Highland Football League for teams resident within the burgh of Inverness – namely Caledonian, Citadel, Clachnacuddin and Inverness Thistle. Both sides have got off to a poor start in their respective league campaigns so this game will offer the managers the chance to experiment a bit. As far as Inverness are concerned maybe the opportunity to give youth an opportunity to establish themselves and also some much needed game time for those returning from injury. Adam Brooks has missed out recently with bruising and swelling so maybe he will be able to make an impact. I would expect more game time for Keith Bray and surely Cammy Mackay will get the gloves. Anyway, it will surely be an enjoyable occasion with the added incentive of a Trophy at the end of the game. Usually a great surface at Grant Street. Come along and support this event. BARRY WILSON: “We’ll make plenty changes from our last game against Ayr. It’s important for the boys who were on the bench and some of the younger boys to get game time. We’ll make plenty changes but we’ll still have a good strong squad out.”

Ayr Dump Caley Jags Notable absentees for Ayr were last seasons Championship top scorer Dipo Akinyemi who has gone to York City and long time servant Michael Moffat who spent eleven years over two spells at Somerset Park scoring 77 goals in 263 appearances. Dodds was without Roddy MacGregor and Lewis Nicolson with knee injuries. Sean Welsh has a groin injury and also missed out again as did Austin Samuels and Max Ram. Adam Brooks returned to the bench and Danny Devine replaced the missing Wallace Duffy. New sensation Keith Bray started with Inverness down to only six on the bench. Injuries starting early this season already it would seem with six missing.. Ayr got off to the perfect start after just eight minutes when Francis Amartey, Dempsey and Sam Ashford combined for Amartey to slot home the opening goal. Mark Ridgers saved on his line from Nick McAllister as Ayr looked to double their lead. Keith Bray was blocked going into the box and from the follow up Albinson saved from David Carson at the expense of a corner. Plenty of half chances for both sides to score in the first half with Devine going close for the visitors but Albinson tipped over. Longstaff also went close on the break but his shot bounced just wide. Billy Dodds fell foul of the referee on the interval and had to watch the remainder of the game from the stands. (See how he likes it!) HALF TIME: 1-0 Longstaff saw his header saved ten minutes after the interval as Inverness looked to get back into the game. A spate of substitutions on the hour for Ayr and Harry Lodovica replaced Bray for the visitors before a Jake Davidson cross found Nathan Shaw, but his effort came back off the post. With twenty minutes remaining Shaw was blocked in the box as we chased for a leveller. Substitute Aiden McGeady shot wide approaching the final ten minutes and Cammy Harper failed to hit the target at the other end. Aaron Doran fired a free kick wide from a tight angle and McGeady missed again as time was running away from us. Ridgers tipped over from Pendelbury in the 90th minute and the as so often, the game slipped away from us to leave us bottom of the table with Arbroath. FULL TIME: 1-0 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Another defeat leaves Inverness pointless at the foot of the table with Arbroath as Ayr got their first win of the campaign thanks to an early goal from Francis Amartey. Not for the want of trying, but Inverness could not find an equaliser and that will pile more misery on under fire boss Billy Dodds. Our injury situation seems never-ending and we could only muster six on the bench. Dodds watched from the stand in the second half and will now know why we are concerned... The natives are no happy on CTO with many asking for a total clearout from top to bottom, questioning the length of contract offered to Billy Dodds. The buck stops at the very top and that is a massive concern for all. Top scorer Billy Mckay was a forlorn figure and was not best pleased at being subbed. Something is wrong that's not right. Sort it now before we leave this league at the wrong end of the table. Date: 12/08/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1989 Referee: Peter Stuart Ayr United: 1 Manager: Lee Bullen Lineup: Albinson; McAllister, Stanger, McGinty, Reading, Amartey (Pendelbury 58), Smith (Musonda 82), Dempsey, Ashford (Rose 58), McKenzie, Bryden (McGeady 58) Subs (not used): Mutch; Ecrepont, Tomlinson, Watret, Ahui Scorers: Amartey (8) Booked: Smith (74), McAllister (89) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 0 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Davidson, Devine, Delaney, Harper, Longstaff (Doran 73), Carson, Gilmour, Bray (Lodovica 58), Shaw, B Mckay (Brooks 66) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Thompson Scorers: none Booked: Delaney (28), Longstaff (45+1) Sent Off: none a

Matchday One Bogey side from last season Queens Park were the visitors on Matchday One with a much changed side and a new manager in Dutchman Robin Veldman. We had a few changes ourselves but the man in charge is still Billy Dodds. Roddy MacGregor and Lewis Nicolson were long term casualties before a ball has been kicked in earnest and Sean Welsh and Danny Devine were nursing knocks. Billy Mckay received his award for his record breaking exploits before kick-off and it was game on. Queens domination on this fixture continued as they went in at half time one goal up through Dom Thomas. Tommy Robson added a second just after the break and in a late push Jake Davidson scored for the hosts. Keith Bray was denied a last minute leveller by McKenna. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Same old same old: In a brisk opening to the game Jack Thomson flashed a volley just wide after a sclaffed clearance from Jake Davidson. Wallace Duffy headed over from a corner in the second minute and at the other end Mark Ridgers was brought into action to deny Jack Thomson. Nathan Shaw also had an effort from the edge of the box saved comfortably by Callan McKenna. A good move forward ended with Charlie Fox blocking Charlie Gilmour as he pulled the trigger after seventeen minutes and Billy Mckay went close but he dragged his effort wide of the mark. Queens were enjoying the majority of the possession and on the half hour we gifted them an opportunity when Harper got mugged. Barry Hepburn then fed Dom Thomas who scored into the roof of the net. Inverness responded and Shaw saw McKenna save his free kick. Ridgers then saved from Jack Spong as Queens dominance continued. However we were still able to carve out chances and McKenna did brilliantly to deny Mckay just on the interval from a Jake Davidson cross. HALF TIME: 0-1 Austin Samuels shot into the side netting from five yards at the start of the second half but it was Queens who added a second three minutes into the half through Tommy Robson, rolling the ball into into the bottom corner to leave us chasing the game after a comedy of defensive errors offered Queens the opening. Delaney was the main culprit this time. Thomas had an effort saved minutes later as Queens dominated play. Ridgers then saved from Louis Longridge at the expense of a corner kick as Queens Park threatened to run away with the game. Robson was then denied by the overworked Ridgers as QP looked to kill the game off. Substitute Keith Bray was denied by McKenna's legs as we probed for a way back into the game. Samuels blazed another shot high and wide and that brought about the introduction of Harry Lodovica. With time slipping away Davidson scored with a close range header from a Cammy Harper corner, the ball going in via the underside of the bar. Alas it was too little too late for Inverness who went down to an opening day defeat. FULL TIME: 1-2 Disappointing result to start the campaign. Robert on CTO: That was a very disappointing afternoon. We started fast but from about the fifth minute Queens Park started to dominate possession and just seemed sharper than us. Both teams had chances before we gifted the goal. The early goal in the second half really killed it and we only started showing some urgency after Bray and Hyde replaced Gilmour and Longstaff. Davidson got what turned out to be a consolation. Both ‘keepers had good saves and on another day there would have been more goals. As others have said, Bray was the pick of the players, followed by Shaw, Mckay and Duffy. Date: 05/08/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2030 Referee: Graham Grainger Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Davidson, Duffy, Delaney, Harper, Samuels (Lodovica 70), Carson, Gilmour (Hyde 58), Longstaff (Bray 58), Shaw (Doran 78), B Mckay Subs (not used): C Mackay; Ram, Devine, Thompson Scorers: Davidson (86) Booked: Bray (78) Sent Off: none Queens Park: 2 Manager: Robin Veldman Lineup: McKenna; Longridge, Tizzard, Fox, Robson, Hepburn, Turner, Thomson, Spong, Thomas, Paton Subs (not used): Ferrie; Bannon, Healy, Bruce, Fugaccia, Williamson, Reid, Jarrett, McLeish Scorers: Thomas (31), Robson (48) Booked: Tizzard (16), Robson (28), Thomas (90+6) Sent Off: none a