We are scheduled to take on Queen of the South at Palmerston this Saturday afternoon should Bert allow a window of calm to let the game go ahead. Two wins on the trot for Scott Kellacher and his administration hit squad have given the Caley Jags a glimmer of hope of avoiding relegation to League2. I'm sure Scott would rather that we played this weekend to keep us on a roll, but Bert might put a stop to that. The sad news that Dumbarton have also entered administration has given us further incentive to maintain our form and focus on gaining another place in the table. It's not the way we would like to escape relegation, but the antiquated rules in operation hit those that can ill afford them and that's the sad state of the game outside of the top table. Anyway, should the weather relent, then Palmerston it is for us.
INVERNESS CT: DL D DWD D DL /WL DWW Our season got off to a slow start with a draw at home to Dumbarton followed by a penalty defeat at Annan. Another two draws against Montrose (h) and Kelty Hearts (a) before our first win of the season over Queen of the South at the Caledonian Stadium. We beat Stirling Albion 3-0 to send us into a fourth Rnd tie away to Livingston thanks to a brace from Adam Brooks and a strike from Adam MacKinnon. That was followed up by us throwing away a two goal lead at Alloa to end up with a 2-2 draw six minutes later. A Danny Devine volley and Calum MacLeod with his first goal for the club were the scorers at Recreation Park. Last time out we had a disappointing 1-1 draw at home against Cove Rangers who opened the scoring through Adam Emslie. James Nolan on loan from Manchester United's youth squad levelled the game before the hour. Next up was a home game against Stenhousemuir. Quite frankly this was a dull game with neither side able to score although Musa Dibaga did make a wonderful penalty save in the first half. Relegated Arbroath was our final game of the opening round of fixtures and despite creating enough chances, we came away from Gayfield with our second defeat of the League1 campaign. Away from League duty last weekend, we put up a good fight against Livingston in the Challenge Cup at Almondvale but lost out 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out after it finished 2-2 over the ninety minutes. Paul Allan and Charlie Gilmour were our scorers during the ninety minutes.
Our first game in the second round of fixtures turned out to be Duncan Ferguson's last stand. It ended like his first game in charge, a win as we defeated Annan 1-0 at home. Administration and management removal followed by five players being released and fifteen points being wiped off our total. First game after Admin was at Dumbarton with Scott Kellacher as head coach and Billy Mckay his assistant on and off the park. Alas it ended in a 3-1 defeat after a promising first hour. Kelty Hearts came North next and went away with a point in a 1-1 draw. Kell's got his first win in week (unlucky for some)13, a deserved 2-1 win at top of the table Cove Rangers. Alloa were up next at Inverness in matchday 14 and another 1-0 win thanks to a second half strike from Charlie Gilmour.
Our first win of the season was in the Duncan Ferguson era on Matchday5:
A first half goal from Billy Mckay in a turgid encounter was enough to secure all three points. A bit of pinball around the visitors goal ended with Billy scoring from close range. Referee Gavin Duncan was the focal point of many a strange decision as he ignored two big penalty claims for the hosts, and a brilliant goalline clearance from an Adam Brooks effort kept Queens in with a chance. Despite a late flurry from Queens we held on for our first win of the League 1 campaign. The downside of these industrial challenges today was that both Duffy's left the field injured, Flynn on a stretcher. Duncan Ferguson was also red carded for continually questioning the referee's decisions. One in particular when Brooks was booked for simulation instead of being awarded a penalty. Baffling incompetence from the ref! On the plus side, the pitch looked in fantastic condition.
The points were more important than the performance. However, it was encouraging to kick-start our season today and put us only three points off the pace in the table. Billy Mckay beavered away on scraps and got his reward in the first half and Brooks was unfortunate a couple of times. Musa Dibaga did not have too much to deal with, but he seemed to read situations well and took the pressure off the defence with some good catches under pressure, especially when Queens were hurling massive throw-ins into our penalty box in the final quarter of the game. Devine and Savage were solid in the heart of the defence but it was disappointing to lose both full backs to injury. That goal was Billy Mckay's last goal for the Caley Jags and his 113th for the club. Time for some more now the shackles are off.
This is how the table looked after Matchday5
Team
Pld
Gd
Pts
1
Kelty Hearts
5
5
9
2
Stenhousemuir
5
3
9
3
Alloa Athletic
5
2
9
4
Queen of Sth
5
1
7
5
Inverness CT
5
0
6
6
Montrose
5
0
6
7
Annan Athletic
5
-4
6
8
Dumbarton
5
0
5
9
Cove Rangers
5
-3
4
10
Arbroath
5
-4
3
Here's the scheduled fixtures and the current table after Admin for Inverness & Dumbarton
Pos
Team
Pld
Gd
Pts
1
Kelty Hearts
14
10
22
2
Arbroath
14
1
22
3
Alloa Athletic
14
5
21
4
Stenhousemuir
14
2
21
5
Cove Rangers
14
4
20
6
Queen of Sth
14
-3
18
7
Montrose
14
1
17
8
Annan Athletic
14
-15
14
9
Inverness CT
14
0
4
10
Dumbarton
14
-5
0
Queen of the South's tale of the tape at Palmerston (7 games).
Home wins: 5 v Cove Rangers 2-1, Annan Athletic 2-0, Arbroath 2-1, Montrose 1-0, Dumbarton 2-1.
Home loss: 1 A 5-1 hammering from Kelty Hearts on 5th October.
Home draw: 1 A 1-1 Draw with Alloa Athletic on 9th November
This was Queens last starting XI in a 2-1 defeat at Dumbarton last week. Michael Ruth opened the scoring in the second half but ten minutes later Queens thought they had secured a point when Kyle Doherty netted. Alas for them, and us, Tony Wallace won the points with a 95th minute winner. McKechnie and Hewitt both have three League goals, as has our own Danny Devine. Queens have scored 12 League goals, the same as Inverness. The main difference though is 11 of those have come at home.
Storm Bert Incoming?
***GAME OFF***
We are scheduled to take on Queen of the South at Palmerston this Saturday afternoon should Bert allow a window of calm to let the game go ahead. Two wins on the trot for Scott Kellacher and his administration hit squad have given the Caley Jags a glimmer of hope of avoiding relegation to League2. I'm sure Scott would rather that we played this weekend to keep us on a roll, but Bert might put a stop to that. The sad news that Dumbarton have also entered administration has given us further incentive to maintain our form and focus on gaining another place in the table. It's not the way we would like to escape relegation, but the antiquated rules in operation hit those that can ill afford them and that's the sad state of the game outside of the top table. Anyway, should the weather relent, then Palmerston it is for us.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Match/Ticket/Supporters Bus Info & Preview
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Our Season so Far on the park
INVERNESS CT: D L D D W D D D L / W L D W W Our season got off to a slow start with a draw at home to Dumbarton followed by a penalty defeat at Annan. Another two draws against Montrose (h) and Kelty Hearts (a) before our first win of the season over Queen of the South at the Caledonian Stadium. We beat Stirling Albion 3-0 to send us into a fourth Rnd tie away to Livingston thanks to a brace from Adam Brooks and a strike from Adam MacKinnon. That was followed up by us throwing away a two goal lead at Alloa to end up with a 2-2 draw six minutes later. A Danny Devine volley and Calum MacLeod with his first goal for the club were the scorers at Recreation Park. Last time out we had a disappointing 1-1 draw at home against Cove Rangers who opened the scoring through Adam Emslie. James Nolan on loan from Manchester United's youth squad levelled the game before the hour. Next up was a home game against Stenhousemuir. Quite frankly this was a dull game with neither side able to score although Musa Dibaga did make a wonderful penalty save in the first half. Relegated Arbroath was our final game of the opening round of fixtures and despite creating enough chances, we came away from Gayfield with our second defeat of the League1 campaign. Away from League duty last weekend, we put up a good fight against Livingston in the Challenge Cup at Almondvale but lost out 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out after it finished 2-2 over the ninety minutes. Paul Allan and Charlie Gilmour were our scorers during the ninety minutes.
Our first game in the second round of fixtures turned out to be Duncan Ferguson's last stand. It ended like his first game in charge, a win as we defeated Annan 1-0 at home. Administration and management removal followed by five players being released and fifteen points being wiped off our total. First game after Admin was at Dumbarton with Scott Kellacher as head coach and Billy Mckay his assistant on and off the park. Alas it ended in a 3-1 defeat after a promising first hour. Kelty Hearts came North next and went away with a point in a 1-1 draw. Kell's got his first win in week (unlucky for some)13, a deserved 2-1 win at top of the table Cove Rangers. Alloa were up next at Inverness in matchday 14 and another 1-0 win thanks to a second half strike from Charlie Gilmour.
Our first win of the season was in the Duncan Ferguson era on Matchday5:
A first half goal from Billy Mckay in a turgid encounter was enough to secure all three points. A bit of pinball around the visitors goal ended with Billy scoring from close range. Referee Gavin Duncan was the focal point of many a strange decision as he ignored two big penalty claims for the hosts, and a brilliant goalline clearance from an Adam Brooks effort kept Queens in with a chance. Despite a late flurry from Queens we held on for our first win of the League 1 campaign. The downside of these industrial challenges today was that both Duffy's left the field injured, Flynn on a stretcher. Duncan Ferguson was also red carded for continually questioning the referee's decisions. One in particular when Brooks was booked for simulation instead of being awarded a penalty. Baffling incompetence from the ref! On the plus side, the pitch looked in fantastic condition.
The points were more important than the performance. However, it was encouraging to kick-start our season today and put us only three points off the pace in the table. Billy Mckay beavered away on scraps and got his reward in the first half and Brooks was unfortunate a couple of times. Musa Dibaga did not have too much to deal with, but he seemed to read situations well and took the pressure off the defence with some good catches under pressure, especially when Queens were hurling massive throw-ins into our penalty box in the final quarter of the game. Devine and Savage were solid in the heart of the defence but it was disappointing to lose both full backs to injury. That goal was Billy Mckay's last goal for the Caley Jags and his 113th for the club. Time for some more now the shackles are off.
This is how the table looked after Matchday5
Here's the scheduled fixtures and the current table after Admin for Inverness & Dumbarton
Queen of the South's tale of the tape at Palmerston (7 games).
Home wins: 5 v Cove Rangers 2-1, Annan Athletic 2-0, Arbroath 2-1, Montrose 1-0, Dumbarton 2-1.
Home loss: 1 A 5-1 hammering from Kelty Hearts on 5th October.
Home draw: 1 A 1-1 Draw with Alloa Athletic on 9th November