Scotty

Daniel's a record breaker. Congratulations to Daniel Mackay who became the youngest player to play a competitive game for Inverness Caledonian Thistle. He came on as a late substitute for Riccardo Calder and made an immediate impact. Not only did he replace Liam Polworth as the youngest ever player, he scored a debut goal to round off the game as Inverness beat Peterhead 3-0 to advance into the hat for the next round draw on Tuesday. Well done Daniel, a fantastic achievement. Owain Fon Williams was in goal, Raven and Tremarco started in defence with Donaldson and Chalmers as Gary Warren was out with a sore thumb. Charlie Trafford was suspended after his red card in the previous round. Riccardo Calder was given another opportunity to show if he has anything to offer after a lethargic showing last week. Rory McAllister was spearheading the Blue Toon attack. A crowd below the 1,000 were on hand to witness this encounter and Inverness couldn't have asked for a better start as Liam Polworth fired us ahead after just 90 seconds, drilling a low shot behind the keeper from distance, possibly aided by a deflection. Peterhead responded well though and Rory McAllister tried a spectacular overhead but it went just over and Jamie Stevenson had an effort that was close, but no cigar. Baird saw a shot tipped over after Calder slipped him through on goal. A minute later Fon Williams had to punch a 30 yard volley clear from Williamson. Willie Gibson was getting some joy on the flank and has put in a few decent crosses, but no takers, and McLean deflects a shot from Gibson just over the bar. Although the hosts held the advantage, it was difficult to tell which team were in the higher division. Half Time 1-0 The second half was just five minutes old when a tidy one-two with Polworth saw Riccardo Calder clip home to double the lead. Neat play and a confidence boosting goal for Calder and indeed the whole team. That second goal sapped some of the energy from the visitors who looked resigned to losing the tie although we made heavy weather of ensuring there would be no banana skin ending. The highlight of the game came a couple of minutes after 16 year old Daniel Mackay came on as a late substitute. He is the youngest player to play for the club and took that accolade away from Liam Polworth. His first few touches saw him break forward but he chose the wrong option and the chance for his debut goal disappeared. A lay off to Baird might have been a better option, but that will come with more game time. However, moments later his debut was complete when he nodded home to end the scoring and rubber stamp his debut with the third goal for the Caley Jags. Full Time 3-0 There was a bit of cage fighting in the home dugout after Polworth had been substituted. It appears that what can best be described as an angry exchange took place between coach Scott Kellacher and Polly. I'm sure the club will be taking some action against the pair as tempers seemed to run a touch high. Interesting to find out what sparked this confrontation, but it's not in the best interest of either party to be seen having powder puffs at five paces in full view of the manager, the press and 1,000 fans. I don't think Conor McGregor has much to worry about to be honest. Expect another board statement soon. Coll Donaldson justified his selection and put in a good shift. One particular tackle on McAllister as he bore down on goal crucial to the outcome at the time and is our MotM. So, into the next round we go, the draw being made on Tuesday lunchtime I believe. Thanks to Ian Broadfoot for the Daniel statistics. Date: 07/10/17 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 930 Referee: Alan Muir Inverness CT: 3 Lineup: Fon Williams, Raven, B.Mckay, Chalmers, Donaldson, Tremarco, Vigurs, Polworth (Cooper 86), Calder (D.Mackay 89), Bell (Oakley 76), Baird Subs (not used): Ridgers, Elsdon, Brown Scorers: Polworth (2), Calder (51), D Mackay (92) Booked: Chalmers (55), B.Mackay (58), Raven (86) Sent Off: none Peterhead: 0 Lineup: Fleming, Stevenson, J Brown, McCracken, Macilduf, Gibson, Ferry, S Brown (Lawrence 86), Leitch, McLean, (Smith 55) McAllister 6 (Adams 76) Subs (not used): Hobday, Robertson, Dikobo, Gabriel Scorers: none Booked: McAllister (58) Sent Off: none a

Embarrassing Inverness turned in another lifeless performance that makes a joke of the £20 ticket price to enter the ground. Despite gaining a point, we have actually dropped down a position in the table to second bottom after Falkirk beat Morton. Only Brechin City have fewer points than us and that statistic does not look likely to change in the near future. Attendance patterns remain low as another crowd around the 2K mark witnessed one of the poorest games ever with statistics showing that we had no shots on target over the entirety of the game. Coll Donaldson was at the heart of the defence with Gary Warren suspended and David Raven made a return to right back with Carl Tremarco starting on the left. Chalmers and Elsdon were omitted and all three strikers started, Oakley, Baird and Bell. Queens had James McFadden on the bench alongside Derek Lyle. The much maligned Alan Martin did keep his place in goal, but to be honest he could have been replaced by a fluffy toy, such was our lack of effort and creativity. It didn't take long for Queens to work out that we were totally useless and incapable of threatening their goal. We did however have the first attempt, a Brad Mckay header that flew a couple of feet over. Owain Fon Williams was called into action to tip over a dipping shot from Shaun Rooney as the visitors ventured forth, but for the main part of the half, the game was littered with niggly fouls and misplaced passes. We were our own worst enemies in this department which meant that we struggled to make any headway. Jason Kerr headed just wide as the half wore on with little or no activity around the visitors box. Shortly before the interval Stephen Dobbie had a couple of attempts, but his rangefinder was switched off as he fired a free kick high and wide and drilled a shot across the box and wide of target. Half Time 0-0 The second period showed absolutely no improvement from the home side, in fact we were worse and Queens took control of the game driving forward at will. Oakley was hooked ten minutes in, the hapless striker (using the term loosely) being swapped for Riccardo Calder. He should have stayed in the dressing room as his general lack of interest in the game was getting on the fans nerves. We don't need players like this wearing the jersey. Just before the hour, OFW saved well from Dobbie as Queens turned the screw. There looked to be only one winner as we failed to muster an attempt on the fragile but untroubled Alan Martin in goal. Dobbie by now realised that he could just waltz through our defence and he could have scored a barrowload but thanks to wayward finishing, last ditch defending and Owain Fon Williams we managed to keep him out, more by good luck than good play. Callum Tapping was next for the shoot-in but Williams denied him as well and Dobbie, Tapping, Kerr and Rooney all had opportunities to win the game. We ended the game on the back foot and managed to hold out for a draw despite a couple of penalty claims being denied our visitors with Dobbie looking less than impressed. Full Time 0-0 Oh dear, what a shambles. It's a word that's being used a lot these days as our demise continues. Robertson was less than impressed after last week, this week will just make matters worse I fear. An entire game without an attempt on goal means one thing. We are not going to win this game and we can count ourselves fortunate to take a point. Top marks can only go to Owain Fon Williams who kept us interested. The rest can hang their heads in shame after an utterly gutless performance. One unbelievable moment during the game and it came for the visitors. A free kick from a seemingly dangerous position came to no harm as the ball cleared the top of the visitors stand from around twenty yards out. A miss of biblical proportion and one that will be remembered long after this game has been forgotten. What now for Inverness? Some tough games coming up in the league and a tricky Irn Bru cup game against Peterhead to come. It's getting worse I'm afraid. Let the relegation battle commence. Robbo was interviewed after the match. Gary Naysmith was happy enough Finally, something to cheer about. Our youth side beat Forfar 1-3 after extra time to move into the next round of the cup. Goals from Ryan McRitchie, Andrew Macrae and Kieran Chalmers sealed the win. Well done lads, great stuff. Date: 30/09/17 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2082 Referee: Euan Anderson Inverness CT: 0 Lineup: Fon Williams, Raven, Tremarco, Polworth, Baird (Mulraney 81), Vigurs, Oakley (Calder 52), Bell, Mckay, Donaldson, Trafford Subs (not used): Ridgers, Chalmers, Elsdon, Cooper, Brown Scorers: none Booked: Tremarco (17), Raven (52), Trafford (75) Sent Off: none Queen of the South: 0 Lineup: Martin, Rooney (Rooney 86), Marshall, Fordyce, Tapping, Stirling (Lyle 68), Rankin, Kane (McFadden 84), Dobbie, Jacobs, Kerr Subs (not used): Leighfield, Murray, Mercer, Dykes. Scorers: none Booked: Tapping (92) Sent Off: none a