WINNER TAKES ALL WEEKEND
We have had Helicopter Weekend, it's now time for Winner Takes All Weekend. It all boils down to the last game of the regular Championship season at both ends of the table, unless of course you are Raith Rovers, the only club with nothing left to play for. Promotion will be confirmed on Friday night when Queens Park host Dundee. Jostling for a play off place will end and someone will be relegated. But who will it be, that is the $64,000 dollar question? After the excitement of last weekend at Hampden Park, it would be extremely disappointing should we miss out on the play-offs after a tremendous late run from the Caley Jags has put us within touching distance of a few extra games for promotion. It's a massive ask after the schedule the team has faced in April, but we are the form side at the moment with most of our key players back in the squad. Only victory over Ayr United will be good enough. A draw keeps Ayr above us on goal difference. Huge game, let's get behind the boys and roar them into the play-offs.
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It really is a must win game on Friday night at 7:45pm. Anything but a win and we are out of the play-offs. It's as simple as that. Get behind the guys for this game, it's massive. Ayr will have a sizeable travelling support, let's give some noise to the Caley Thistle Boys
This Season v Ayr
Two wins and a draw. First game at Somerset Park was 1 - 0 for the Caley Jags. Despite Ayr dominating possession, Cammy Harper glanced in the only goal of the game a couple of minutes after the interval. Return fixture in the Highlands ended all square at 2 - 2. Inverness came from behind twice to earn a draw. Mark McKenzie opened the scoring early before Nathan Shaw levelled. Akinyemi looked to have given Ayr all three points with a late strike but Shaw did it again with an even later strike to save the day. The last one at the beginning of March saw Inverness take all three points with a 2 - 1 win after Akinyemi had put Ayr ahead only for Sean Welsh and Jay Henderson to win the game for the visitors. Not a lot between the sides, but so far we have found a way to win two of the three encounters.
Venue - H2H v Ayr United | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Agst | + / - |
Home | 23 | 10 | 11 | 2 | 38 | 24 | +14 |
Away | 25 | 12 | 6 | 7 | 47 | 31 | +16 |
Neutral | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 48 | 22 | 17 | 9 | 85 | 55 | +30 |
Historically we hold a big advantage in H2H's with Ayr United since we first met back in 1999 at Somerset Park. That one ended 0 - 1 to Ayr with Glynn Hurst the scorer in the 90th minute: Caley Thistle came within a minute of gaining their first league point of the season but a Glynn Hurst goal denied them. They spent virtually the whole game defending against a spirited Ayr attack, Micky Reynolds and Glynn Hurst in particular caused many problems. Just when it looked as if Caley Thistle were going to hold out Hurst struck. Danny Lennon sent over a lob from left to right, Hurst chested it down then shot home from a difficult angle. Fridge got a touch but it was not enough. Ayr achieved the victory they deserved and Caley Thistle remain pointless.
Report by Ian Broadfoot
Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Ayr United |
2 - 1 (A) |
2 - 2 (H) |
1 - 0 (A) |
2 - 2 (A) |
1 - 2 (H) |
2 - 2 (A) |
1 - 0 (H) |
2 - 2 (H) |
2 - 0 (A) |
1 - 1 (H) |
Some memorable games have been had between the sides. Who can forget the incredible Scottish Cup Tie in 2001, 4 - 3 at the Caledonian Stadium, or the Dennis Wyness hat-trick inspired 7 - 3 win in December 2000, also in the Highlands. My pick was the Championship winning side demolishing Ayr 7 - 0 in April 2010 at Somerset Park. Best day out ever: Caley Thistle went out and had fun today... 7 goals from 7 different scorers meant ICT recorded the biggest victory in the SFL for the season as the large travelling support partied in style. Apparently, there was a match yesterday that briefly interrupted a day long travelling party. A thousand or so highlanders settled(!) down at 3pm. to be treated to as fluent a display of celebration football as you are ever likely to see, and it was important that they did get there at 3pm, because the game was effectively over by quarter past. Ayr United played their part by providing one of the best playing surfaces that I've seen at this end of a season and leaving their defence somewhere else in Ayrshire. They also gave our fans a huge terracing playground that was utilised to the full.
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |||||||||||
Table ahead of Friday nights title decider and relegation crunch. | |||||||||||||||||||
1. | Dundee | 35 | 16 | 12 | 7 | 61 | 37 | 60 | |||||||||||
2. | Queens Park | 35 | 17 | 7 | 11 | 60 | 47 | 58 | |||||||||||
3. | Partick Thistle | 35 | 16 | 8 | 11 | 63 | 43 | 56 | |||||||||||
4. | Ayr United | 35 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 59 | 42 | 55 | |||||||||||
5. | Inverness CT | 35 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 51 | 45 | 55 | |||||||||||
6. | Morton | 35 | 14 | 12 | 9 | 51 | 42 | 54 | |||||||||||
7. | Raith Rovers | 35 | 11 | 9 | 15 | 44 | 47 | 42 | |||||||||||
8. | Arbroath | 35 | 6 | 15 | 14 | 29 | 47 | 33 | |||||||||||
9. | Cove Rangers | 35 | 7 | 10 | 18 | 37 | 73 | 31 | |||||||||||
10. | Hamilton Ac. | 35 | 7 | 9 | 19 | 31 | 63 | 30 |
Friday night 7:45pm
Arbroath v Accies
Cove Ran v Morton
Inverness CT v Ayr United
Queen's v Dundee
Rovers v Partick
Last Time Out
Forget the Cup, that's different gravy. Our last Championship game was a hard fought draw against Dundee. Lyall Cameron had given the visitors the lead on the hour before substitute Austin Samuels salvaged a point for us fifteen minutes later. It's been an electrifying month for Billy Dodds and the players. Six wins and a draw which includes the semi-final win over Falkirk. Championship wins starting at Cappielow, then beating Raith Rovers, Arbroath, away to Cove and Hamilton before the draw with Dundee in the Highlands. April results in Championship. W W W
Ayr have also clawed their way back into contention after an April crisis with a series of draws that saw them drop below Inverness before they beat Raith Rovers 1-0 whilst we were at Hampden thanks to a Frankie Musonda header. Last six results for Ayr starting with a win at Cove and ending with that win against Raith Rovers. Sandwiched in between were a loss to Arbroath followed by draws with Morton, Partick and Queens Park. DD
Latest Team News
We had pretty much a full squad at Hampden although we were without the suspended David Carson and cup-tied Lewis Nicolson. Shane Sutherland and Tom Walsh will miss the rest of the season. Good luck to Billy Mckay who is on 100 Caley Jags goals, just one short of Sir Dennis Wyness the all time record scorer on 101. What better time to do it Billy...
Ayr United had this starting XI against Raith Rovers:
Dipo Akinyemi is the major goal threat with 20 goals and 8 assists and he is not afraid to offload with 94 shots. Josh Mullin and Ben Dempsey are both on 7 goals. Frankie Musonda will be a threat at set pieces with his power in the air. Sam Ashford is a willing runner and provider and is also not afraid to shoot on site.
This season has seen Lee Bullen's Ayr United achieve their highest points total in over 20 years.
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Have you voted in the official Player of the Year/Goal of the Year Poll???
Here's the choice of Goals>>> Vote HERE
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