Play-Off Final 1st Leg

 

Having scraped into the play-off final, we find our route to Championship survival blocked by a two leg play-off encounter against a team we often struggled against, Hamilton Accies, one of lifes great relegation dodgers. They did eventually make the drop into League 1 a season ago but will fancy their chances against a struggling Caley Jags. They seemed to hold the Indian sign over us in season 2022/2023 with four wins out of five encounters, albeit one was a Challenge Cup game at NDP when we fielded a team of youths and Mark Ridgers during one of our worst peroids for injuries. We did win at NDP towards the end of that season with Billy Mckay scoring three minutes from the end. Overall, the stats are even, Accies one game to the good out of 31 meetings.

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Match/Ticket Info

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Accies Access: Admission: Adults £20, -18 & +65 £10. Accies season ticket holders 1/2 price on production of their cards at the gate. Cash only at turnstiles. Card payments at shop

Venue

Pld

Won

Drn

Lst

For

Agst

+ / -

Home	17	5	4	8	25	23	+2
Away	14	7	2	5	20	18	+2
Neutral	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	31	12	6	13	45	41	+4

He Scores When He Wants:  2 - 1 A long trip on a Tuesday night to face your bogey team is not ideal, especially when it gets to the business end of the season. That's what faced the Caley Jags as we looked to win our sixth game on the bounce against struggling Hamilton Accies who have already beaten us four times this season. Inverness could go third, but Accies would be hoping to put some distance between themselves and bottom side Cove Rangers. As it turned out it remained goalless at the interval with Deas seeing a header saved by Fulton just before the break. Connor Smith scored direct from a free kick after the interval but Nathan Shaw equalised three minutes later. Billy Mckay won all three points with a poachers goal in off the post with three minutes left and that's how it ended. Phew!

Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Accies

2 - 1 (A)

1 - 2 (A)

0 - 3 (H)

0 - 2 (A)

0 - 1 (H)

4 - 0 (H)

1 - 1 (A)

1 - 2 (H)

1 - 2 (A)

2 - 1 (H)

How did we get into this mess

Our demise has been well documented this season in the Championship where we got off to a poor start before relieving Billy Dodds of his duties after winning 1 point in our first six games. In comes our saviour, Big Dunc. However all is not well and we just kept our heads above water thanks to Arbroath being rubbish. Onto the play offs and an insipid performance at Links Park left us all wondering if our time has come to drop into oblivion. Our performance certainly would not look out of place in the lower leagues. We clung on for a 0-0 draw away from home and scraped a 1-0 win at Inverness with Billy Mckay saving our blushes. Everything about the club has negative undertones at the moment.

Well travelled and long suffering Caley Jags fan Gringo said:  That was my first game of the season and my first chance to see with my own eyes how gash ICT have become. That was one awful unentertaining game and by far the worst I've seen from the team I support. No passion, no urgency, no desire, no creativity...nothing. Square balls across the back line time after time. Can't keep possession. Can't shoot. Two game against a part time outfit and we can only bag one goal. There needs to be drastic improvement against Hamilton and I fully believe Dunc is incapable of doing that with this bunch of players. Hamilton will be a tough hurdle to overcome and I fear the worse. 

John Rankin's Hamilton Accies on the other hand are rightly in a positive mood after an excellent season in League 1 finishing second to all conquering Falkirk and conceding the same amount goals as the Champions. Hamilton's stats for their League campaign with (ict in brackets). Won 22 (10) Drawn 8 (12) Lost 6 (14) Goals for 73 (41), Goals against 28 (40) 

Top Scorers

1. Kevin O'Hara 16
2. Euan Henderson 10
3. Ahkeem Rose 7
4. Lewis Smith 5 (Lewis also tops the assist chart with 11)
5. Kyle MacDonald 5
6. Reghan Tumilty 5

ICT loan player Jake Davidson has also bagged a couple of goals for Accies but will be ineligible to play.

Hamilton did face Championship opposition in the Challenge Cup, losing 4-1 to Raith Rovers. That game was nicely poised at 0-1 until Lee Kilday was red carded after 54 minutes. Raith capitalised and scored a further three goals with Zanatta netting for Accies. Let's not forget, Accies also have an artificial surface which is something Ferguson bleated about after the Montrose game at Links Park.

Accies team v Alloa: Lyness; Longridge, Kilday (Owens 68 ), Barjonas (Rose 68 ), Henderson (Hastie 78 ), Martin (Murray 84), O’Hara, L. Smith, McGowan, Tumilty, Williamson (Davidson 45).

Subs Not Used: J. Smith; Redfern, Winter, Hendrie.

 

Inverness latest Team News

Here's Dunc's briefing: Sean McAllister out with recurring injury. Sounds as though the rest will be as you were and Charlie Gilmour is hopefully fit to play some part. Don't look for any drastic changes.

 

 

2 minutes ago, forresjags said:

Cannot afford McKay to be playing 2 yard sideways passes. 

No idea why he has dropped so deep been doing it for weeks and it's so f***ing frustrating.

 

He’s pretty much been a midfielder recently but presumably he is doing what he is instructed to do by the manager.

2 hours ago, hislopsoffsideagain said:

The potential consequences of losing don't bear thinking about. I don't see us bouncing back quickly like Dunfermline or Partick did after recent relegations, and I can't see us surviving several years in League One like Falkirk have.

That I'm afraid, is the reality.

2 goals down at half-time, and with our scoring record a reversal would be nothing short of miraculous.

But I don't think it's that bad.

Perhaps a chance to regroup, purge and hopefully bring our own youth players into the squad and let them grow and thrive.

I'd rather see a team primarily of Highlanders representing my town and pushing for promotion, no matter how long it takes!

 

 

Lawal and Carragher on for Gilmour and Duffy. 

Edited May 15, 20242 yr by Robert

We can't score, end of, so I have no faith that we can turn it round and that pains me to say it.

I had no confidence before kick off and even less now.

We can't cope with their fast pace, high tempo, high press style of play and seeing the pitch being watered (even though its 4G or whatever you call it) tells me that Hamilton will continue in the same way. 

Individual errors, trying to play a style that we just can't play. Referee has also been questionable and both sides could have had a penalty.

22 hours ago, bdu98196 said:

While I get peoples dislike for SG being at the club (and I am no fanboy either), statements like this keep being made. However, nobody ever substantiates it with the costs involved or define the club performance metrics set out by the board and whether he has delivered or otherwise (and if this is considered to represent value).

It would also be interesting for fans to state what their expectations for SG performance would be?

I'd expect concerts to make money and not rip off local businesses. I'd expect not to give contract extensions to crap managers then replace them 6 games later with another incompetent manager with an name just to boost his ego. I'd expect not treating fan groups with utter contempt. I'd expect not launching BS roof building schemes then taking money and quietly cancelling it. I'd expect not bringing us to the brink of part time football, relegation or worse. 

I wouldn't be surprised if he has no KPIs at all. I think Morrison just employed him and let him do whatever he wants. 

Edited May 16, 20242 yr by Fraz

11 minutes ago, forresjags said:

Cannot afford McKay to be playing 2 yard sideways passes. 

No idea why he has dropped so deep been doing it for weeks and it's so f***ing frustrating.

 

Ferguson in the P&J this week saying that's where he's being played so Billy is doing as he's instructed.

Would you settle for 2-0 tonight? Gives us a chance at least in the 2nd leg, if we can get our act together.

We are second to every ball.We don't seem to know what the plan is.Playing Billy so deep has not worked in any games.

We look rattled and shell shocked.We need a goal and keep them at no more than two to have any chance on Saturday of pulling off a miracle.

2 minutes ago, Yngwie said:

Would you settle for 2-0 tonight? Gives us a chance at least in the 2nd leg, if we can get our act together.

At this point yes I probably would. Even 1 goal this half would be a huge bonus.

Get in!! Right back in it!

Yes   Pepple!!!!

People with his first touch. We have the momentum, let’s get level!

Were our fans chanting “you don’t know what you’re doing” at Ferguson because he was bringing Pepple on for Samuel? It was a change that was needed, Samuel offered nothing tonight, and has paid dividends instantly.

3 minutes ago, Yngwie said:

Were our fans chanting “you don’t know what you’re doing” at Ferguson because he was bringing Pepple on for Samuel? It was a change that was needed, Samuel offered nothing tonight, and has paid dividends instantly.

The commentators said Pepple went to the away fans to wind them up as they were making those chants.

We need to learn from this for Saturday. The subs have made the difference. 

Edited May 15, 20242 yr by Robert

Chants were at Ferguson and I read it more as being for taking Samuel off than Pepple on.

Longstaff should have been the one hooked.

We're still trying to walk the ball into the net. Someone needs to have the balls to shoot!

Longstaff off at last    

That looks bad for Devine. 

We need to approach Saturday the way we’ve played the second half. Hamilton are nothing special and are there for the taking. We can’t show them any respect.

No doubt Ferguson will be delighted with a 2-1 defeat !

19 minutes ago, STFU said:

Chants were at Ferguson and I read it more as being for taking Samuel off than Pepple on.

Longstaff should have been the one hooked.

Fair enough. I just went with what was said on TV as to why Pepple reacted as he did.

I said a few weeks ago that Pepple deserved a start as he roughs defences up. 

Not ideal being a goal down, reckon a draw would have been fair. Longstaff tries too hard to get the ball to his right side and everytime got crowded off the ball, Lawson should start ahead of him on Saturday. I'd also start Pepple with Samuel up front and drop Billy to the bench

Much better second half and players that finished the game should be our starting 11 on Saturday,ie without Duffy Longstaff and Co.Billy needs to play in a normal number 9 position.

Well done for fightback.What a difference Lawal and Pebble made.

We need to know what we have to do on Saturday and that is play better than first half and more like second half.

1 hour ago, forresjags said:

Cannot afford McKay to be playing 2 yard sideways passes. 

No idea why he has dropped so deep been doing it for weeks and it's so f***ing frustrating.

 

He’s doing what he’s been told to do. 

Yet again we're hamstrung by our manager and his bizarre team selections and mentality. He just about got it right by the end.

The one saving grace is that Hamilton look really poor.  They're considerably worse than every team we've played in the Championship and they are there for the taking.

We need to be proactive on Saturday. Starts needed for Lawal, Pepple, Carragher and either Macgregor/Macallister depending on fitness.