Unblemished v Unbeaten

Unbeaten seems to be a common theme between the sides for this weekends SPL match at Ibrox.  Rangers are fresh from their unbeaten, in fact, unblemished start to their league campaign while Inverness remain unbeaten in the leagues away from home since last  November.  

Penalties were the talking points of last weeks matches for both sides.  Russell Duncan correctly adjudged to have been brought down by a rash challenge from Killie's Momo Sissoko. Harsh maybe, but the ref was given no option, while at Parkhead Willie Collum was put on the spot after Kirk Broadfoot apparently saw a leg trip him up in the box.  The decision by Collum has seen threatening phone calls made to the whistler and Neil Lennon calling for clarification over the incident.  So what's new, an Old Firm manager upset by a penalty decision going against them; give us a break.  Who would be a referee or assistant.  Constant barracking from frenzied fans and pressure pot decisions being made without the help of HD telly and slow-mo to make things easier for you.........no thanks.  It's no surprise that the number of top class referees in this country are in decline as they find themselves thrust into the spotlight for doing their job.  Anyway, the aftermath of the penalty decisions were excellent away victories for Rangers and Inverness.

And so to this weeks clash at Ibrox where you will have the luxury of a combination preview from the pens of Ginger Jaggy, (he assures me he spellchecked it), & Alternative Maryhill (he assures me it's a brief one).

On Saturday, writes Ginger Jaggy, the CaleyThistle fanfare makes its way down the A9 to Glasgow for our first away league trip to one of the old firm. This weekend we go to Ibrox to face league leaders and reigning champions Rangers. Most people will look at this match and expect another Rangers victory as they haven’t lost a point all season. But on the weekend of Halloween the travelling faithful will hope that some ghostly goings on happen, and that Rangers end up being haunted by that memorable night 2 seasons ago. On the 4^th of March 2009 we made the long trip to Ibrox in grave danger of relegation. Rangers in contrast were on their way to a 52^nd League title and so the odds were stacked against us getting anything. The game went like most people expected, Caley Thistle sat in and Rangers attacked and with a little luck we would hold out, (take note Craig Levein), but in the dying seconds with a little help from David Weir we snatched a most unlikely but memorable three  points. The goal scorer was Hearts bound Ian Black from the penalty spot which gave us all hope that we would stay up. As it turned out, it was in vain and we were eventually relegated, but that night will live with the many supporters who travelled down on a midweek evening to be rewarded by a wonderful result.

Ones to remember

 In 2005 on the 29^thof October a Craig Dargo goal was good enough to earn a point at Ibrox with a 25 yard dipper, but it was the season after that we really made our mark against Rangers. For years it was Celtic who shivered when the name Inverness Caley Thistle was brought up, but now Rangers were also getting the colly wobbles as we remained unbeaten all season against the Ibrox side.  The first result was another fantastic shock 1-0 victory at Ibrox with ex Caley Thistle striker Graeme Bayne scoring the only goal in October’s encounter. Later on that season in Inverness we came from behind to claim a second victory over Rangers. A Nacho Novo penalty was first canceled out by a great finish by Darren Dods just on half time. The winner was worthy of  the champions league final let alone an SPL match. John Rankin's 30 yard belter was enough for a second victory over Rangers and ended the tenure of Rangers manager Paul Le Guen. Walter Smith took charge for a second spell and even he couldn’t get the better of us that season as again thanks to Dargo we stole a point and ended the year unbeaten against the most successful side in the Scottish game.

Form Guide The form of these two sides is unbelievably good coming into this game. Caley Thistle as we all know has had a storming start to the season after winning promotion. We go into this game on the back of a four games unbeaten run, with three wins and a draw. It all started back at Paisley, and continued with victory over Kilmarnock last weekend. We even managed to throw in a pair of games undefeated at home with a victory over Aberdeen and a draw against St Johnstone. But it is our away form that is sustaining us. It is now eleven months since our last defeat on the road on league duty. But, we all know it won’t be easy as the defending champions have not dropped a single point and go into this on the back of last weekend’s great 3-1 result at Celtic Park in the first old firm game of the season. The scintillating form of Kenny Miller who has really filled the boots of Kris Boyd and cannot stop scoring could be a major factor in the outcome of this one.

Ginger Jaggies prediction This will be a very tough game, probably the toughest so far this season. Inverness are on a good run of form and have shown that we can’t be taken lightly this season. I think Butchers boys will put up a brave fight which will be backed by our fantastic vocal away support who on so many occasions has been our 12^thman this season. But unfortunately Im going to say Rangers will win this one. Maybe by the odd goal, but I hope to be proved wrong on Saturday, and that we can take a point, or even better, all 3 points (with a disputed penalty). I hope for everyone who is going, including me that it will be another memorable day and that everyone will have a great time see you there people.

GJ says 1-0 Rangers win

And Alternative Maryhill looks forward to the game like this

Unstoppable force versus immovable object? Saturday sees the meeting of two of the SPL’s form teams. Inverness Caledonian Thistle have recorded three wins and a draw in their past four league games and are unbeaten away from home this season: in fact, the club’s unbeaten away run stretches back to November 2009. Rangers, meanwhile, have a 100% record in the league this season and are also unbeaten in the Champions’ League despite being drawn in a group where few people gave them any chance of success. The current records of each club have come as a surprise in some quarters. Despite Caley Thistle’s tremendous run to the first division title, many assumed they would struggle with the transition back to SPL football and few would have predicted that, with the first quarter of the season almost gone, they would be tied for fourth place in the table. Rangers, too, faced plenty of scepticism at the start of the season: their parlous financial situation, the fact that their biggest rivals spent a portion of last season imploding under Tony Mowbray, the loss of Kris Boyd and Kevin Thomson in the summer, and the money spent by Neil Lennon to rebuild Celtic, had plenty believing that the Ibrox side would play second fiddle to their Glasgow rivals this season. So far this hasn’t proved to be the case: possibly people had underestimated the role relative continuity in personnel plays in allowing a side to become stronger. After their start to the season and their win in the first old firm derby last Saturday, Rangers’ players can feel justified in going into this week’s game brimming with confidence. Yet somewhere in the back of their minds must lie the uneasy knowledge that the last side to win a league game at Ibrox was a certain team from the Highlands.

So, Rangers have a demon to lay to rest. And for Inverness supporters, what better place is there to visit on Halloween weekend than the venue popularly known among Scottish football fans as Castle Greyskull? Not only do Rangers have one of the living dead, David Weir, playing at centre back; they also have a full back, Stephen Whittaker, who is possessed of a face that you could imagine leering out of the gloom in a ghost train, and another, Kirk Broadfoot, who appears to be carved from a root vegetable and who, in his last appearance, tricked the referee and treated the Rangers supporters to a match-deciding penalty. Grimly fiendish indeed.

A Very Brief History of the Fixture

There is a certain irony in the fact that ICT are probably still best known for a certain victory over Celtic, when in fact the Inverness team’s record against Celtic’s arch-rivals is far better. Indeed, in the past twenty years, very few Scottish clubs can have taken more of the available league points in matches against Rangers than Caley Thistle. In fifteen league meetings, Rangers have won eight times, ICT three times and four matches have been drawn. Even more surprisingly, two of those Inverness wins and three of the draws occurred at Ibrox, meaning that Rangers have only managed to beat Caley Thistle three times in eight attempts at Ibrox. Before we get too carried away, it should be noted that most of ICT’s good results against Rangers came during the club’s first three seasons in the SPL: between August 2007 and January 2009, Rangers won five consecutive fixtures against ICT, scoring fourteen times without reply. Yet, as mentioned above, the last time the clubs met, Terry Butcher’s team shocked title-chasing Rangers by going to Ibrox on a wet Wednesday night and winning 1-0. This game, and the previous win at Ibrox in October 2006, were masterclasses in patient defensive football and opportunity-grabbing; and the euphoria of watching Graeme Bayne’s and Ian Black’s goals go in, and watching the collective sag around 95% of Ibrox, are memories that will stay for me forever. Yet undoubtedly the jewel in the crown was that 2-1 win at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium on 27th December 2006, where ICT outclassed Rangers for long spells, gave Allan McGregor one of his most difficult games of the season, and then in the last minute, when it seemed Caley Thistle’s efforts would go unrewarded, John Rankin cut through the Rangers defence and hit an unstoppable 30-yard shot into the top corner. Bliss. A wee reprise of that would go down very nicely this weekend

Prediction

Realistically, can Caley Thistle expect to take anything from this game? The answer is: probably not. Rangers now are arguably a stronger side than any of the previous sides beaten by ICT; they have two strikers in superb form and a defence that has matched some of the best in Europe this season; and Walter Smith is unlikely to let his players underestimate the threat that Caley Thistle present again. Yet we can be sure that Terry Butcher will have the team full of self-belief, the counter-attacking game will suit ICT’s formation, and in the shape of Hayes, Odhiambo, Rooney and Foran, Caley Thistle have players that can cause the likes of Whittaker and Broadfoot problems. So maybe... just maybe...

AM has dooked for Rangers 3 – Inverness Caledonian Thistle 1

***Latest Team News***

Inverness are still a bit thin on the ground for back up players with Proctor, Cox, Innes, Gillet and Blumenshtein all still short of fitness and the liklihood is that the same squad that went to Kilmarnock will also turn up at Ibrox.  Youngsters Nick Ross and Graeme Shinnie have been deputising very effectively and their reward may well see both of them line up in Govan.  Richie Foran is still gaining match sharpness and his Irish partners Rooney and Hayes will be looking to perform well on the big stage.  Stuart Duff may well get the nod ahead of Kevin McCann at right back and Russell Duncan has earned the right to start in midfield.

Rangers came through their CIS Cup game relatively unscathed and have no fresh injury worries for the visit of the Highlanders.  Sporting some personnel changes for the cup game, the Gers eventually disposed of  Kilmarnock with goals from Andrew Little and Steven Naismith either side of the interval to earn themselves a semi-final spot. Alexander started the cup game in goals but I would expect form keeper Alan Macgregor to be restored between the sticks, and with Walter Smith determined to keep the unblemished record intact, that should ensure that the Gers start with their strongest line up.  It appears that James Beattie has aggravated an old hip injury and will miss out.  Sasa Papac has recovered from an ankle injury and Kyle Lafferty has got over his bout of sickness.