tm4tj

Oh no, another game this weekend, can I go shopping please. Having watched the demise of our club over the last few weeks it is painstakingly obvious that many of the squad that are playing this season will not be plying their trade at Inverness next year. With the players rotating quicker than a windmill on top of Craggie Brae it's little surprise than the continuity of the team has been severely disrupted this campaign, mostly due to serious injuries to key players. But wait, maybe there is hope. On Saturday we entertain Kilmarnock, one of only two sides we have beaten twice this season, and this weekend we are going for the full house against them. In fact we hammered them at Kilmarnock with much the same bunch of players thrown into combat and given little chance of pulling it off. So what has gone wrong? Our confidence appears to be shattered and our defence is leaking like a sieve. The management seem to have tried every possible permutation in their quest to gain points but still we struggle to get results. Is it the players or have Terry and Mo ran out of ideas? Every week we have a different back line on the park whether that's through injury, red cards or Butcher calling the shots, and every week we see the lack of understanding costing us goals and points. At the moment, we are not a team, unlike our neighbours across the bridge who are oozing confidence, a confidence gained by playing a settled side and that in itself is like having an extra couple of players on the park. Let's hope we can turn it round before the end of the season or it will be squeaky bum time after the split if Dunfermline win a couple of games and we continue to choke. Killie have been more than generous to us over the last few seasons. We can normally rely on them for a few goals and a few points for they are a Jekyll & Hyde team similar to us. They have only two wins in their last dozen SPL games, including being hammered 3-0 by Dunfermline and 3-1 by Hibs, both these defeats coming at Rugby Park. Killies last win was four games ago, beating impoverished Rangers 1-0 at Ibrox. Inverness have four wins out of the last twelve SPL matches, but it is six games since we beat Hearts 1-0 on the 21st of January, seven if you include the cup defeat at the hands of Celtic. In head to heads at Inverness we lead five games to four in the SPL with only two draws. These games have produced 43 goals, thats almost four goals per game, and with defences like these two then it's not difficult to see why. Remember remember the 5th of November, gunpowder, treason and the hammering of Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. I know I know, it doesn't rhyme, but it sounds great. So, let's go back to Guy Fawkes day at Kilmarnock. We had our finest display of attacking football in our SPL years, yet we still managed to concede three goals. Andrew Shinnie scored a hat-trick that day and Gregory Tade looked as though he would fill Adam Rooney's boots with a powerful display of aggressive pacey and skillful striking. At the moment, he looks like he would struggle to lace his boots and the unfortunate Andrew Shinnie is sidelined with a broken foot. Jonny Hayes also chipped in with a sparkling strike and even he has struggled to make an impact recently. All this after going one goal down early in the game. When that happens now we look like a beaten side, and the confidence visibly ebbs from the team, we put ourselves under pressure and the expected happens. It's as though we enter the arena a beaten side, waiting for defeat. Where has the fight gone, where has the passion for the battle gone and where has our mojo gone? I hope we can get it back soon and this is hopefully the right game at the right time for us, as Kilmarnock are not exactly setting the heather on fire either. We are without the talented Andrew Shinnie and the energetic David Davis from the team that ran riot at Rugby Park, it's up to the rest to step up to the plate. There has been a lot of Inverness bashing going on in the last few weeks, myself included, and it is getting more difficult to syphon out the positives from some woeful displays. However, with Dunfermline doing there best to keep us in the SPL then maybe we can get the opportunity to regroup in the summer, recharge the batteries and come back bigger and better for next season where it looks most likely that we will be joined by the market town team from Dingwall for the first all Highland SPL derby. Now that should be enough to put some bite back into our performances, something sadly lacking for most of this season. Maybe we have become too comfortable with the Pars seemingly heading for self destruction, Rangers hogging the limelight with their mismanagement and top-six out of reach, (damn, I wasn't going to mention top-six ever again, damn, I did it again). ***Latest Team News*** Inverness crocks have been like the cast list for casualty this season, but it has been lessening. Chris Hogg, Andy Shinnie and Aaron Doran are still out but Roman Golobart found himself back on the park last Monday against United and apart from some ring rustiness, looked classy and should retain his starting berth. Owain Tudur-Jones is gaining more match time every week and maybe he will start. Jonny Hayes looks likely to miss out with the hamstring injury that kept him out at Tannadice. Other than that, there are no fresh injuries to report so far, although rumours that Kenny Gillet may be struggling for fitness. Keeper Ryan Esson is one man who can hold his head high this season and the stopper will be out to convince Terry Butcher that he deserves another season at Inverness beyond this summer. Kilmarnock have red carded Dean Shiels suspended to add to the injury list which has Manuel Pascali out for the season with a broken leg and Ryan O'Leary on long term leave with his cruciate injury. Mathew Kennedy has a knock and looks set to miss out. Belgian Dieter van Tornhout is also a doubt with a hamstring injury. Paul Heffernan and Lewis Toshney are both expected to be in the squad for the trip to Inverness. Kenny Shiels will decide on the morning of the game if it will be wiser to rest some players in view of the cup final coming up next week. tm4tj Prediction:- Despite the castigation, I do believe we are more than capable of beating Kilmarnock and more importantly restoring some sense of pride in our play. We have been as weak in attack as we have in defence, and the midfield dynamics seem to have deserted us, but the players should be good enough to turn this around and complete a hat-trick of wins over what has been a poor Killie side of late. The Ayrshire outfit may just have one eye on next weekends league cup final against Celtic, and that may take their eye off the ball on Saturday, (see what I did there). Narrow home win for me, 2-1 in a repeat of the first game of the season and three welcome points please. On a side note, didn't Barcelona look like Inverness Caledonian Thistle the other night. Well, they both play in red and blue stripes sometimes, unfortunately there endeth the similarities. Aye, the Messi show was simply fantastic. Promotion Watch:- Ross County have virtually assured themselves of SPL football next seaon with another win to take their unbeaten run to a confidence boosting 23rd SFL game undefeated. Their last reverse was a 5-1 hammering at the hands of Hamilton Accies way back on the 13th of August. That is certainly the form of Champions and with Dundee and Falkirk unable to make any headway into the champions elect lead, then I doubt you will get big odds from the bookies for County to be crowned First Division Champions at this stage of the season.

On form Arabs host Inverness Nomads Our wandering squad visit Tannadice on Monday night (19:45) to take on a revitalised Dundee United in front of the TV cameras. United are on a fine run at the moment, winning four and drawing two of their last six games, scoring 14 goals in the process and conceding only 2. We, on the other hand, have one win, two draws and three defeats and have shipped 8 goals and scored a paltry 3, that's only half a goal a game! Our hopes were raised a little before last weeks game that the demise of Glasgow Rangers may have been seen as a bonus for Inverness, unfortunately they were swiftly dashed as Rangers overran us with a clinical display in front of goals and put us firmly in our place. We have to get that game out of our system quickly though and move on as we enter the last half dozen games before the split, which we can still achieve, but personally, I believe we would be better off ensuring that we keep at least one team below us until the end of the season, then we can write this one off and build for next year. Injuries, and suspensions have disrupted the continuity of the side this season and it is one we will be glad to see the back of. Ginger Jaggy is chomping at the bit to tell us how this game is going to unfold............... The season now moves into March and the start of the run in to the Split. After last week’s demolition at the hands of a financially stricken Rangers we travel to Dundee on a Monday night to play United at Tannadice. This is a huge game for any slim top six hopes that lingers for this season. But 3 points in this match will be no walk in the park as Dundee United are the form team in the league at the moment. With two games in hand following the weekend fixtures the top six still remains a distinct possibility, but we must now show the form that we produced after Christmas to ease us away from the bottom and back into the congested mid table pack. Just a little bit on the timing of this game. Every little penny is always welcome to our club but this game is another instance of the Television companies dictating the game as a whole. There will not likely to be a huge traveling contingent because of the timing and day of this match and just a little note that some may have made plans for the original date which was due to be a Sunday at Midday. This date was a little better but not a huge amount and I feel sorry for people who support any club that gets affected by the TV moguls who show no consideration towards the fans of the game; and they wonder why the turnstiles are clicking less. Rant over, now a little bit on our opponents Dundee United for this rescheduled evening match. Dundee United are the form side at the moment and they are an exciting team of pace and skill that give the Old Firm a tough time. In fact United knocked Rangers out of the cup with one of the most comfortable wins seen at Ibrox against the Blue half in a long time. The Arabs looked to have been crippled by the departure of David Goodwillie to Blackburn in the summer in what was a brilliant piece of business. An inconsistent start to the season saw calls for Peter Houston to be relieved of his duties but since then they have been electric and have moved themselves into contention for a Europa League spot. They are currently sitting fifth in the table and lie only 2 points behind St Johnstone in fourth. The Arabs are unbeaten in their last five SPL matches with two draws against St Mirren and Motherwell blighting the perfect record. But the wins that they have accumulated have been very impressive with big victories over in form St Johnstone and Kilmarnock as well as beating Hearts at Tynecastle. One of the reasons for this is the pace and creativity of their two best attacking options. Gary MacKay-Steven and Johnny Russell have been teasing defences all season and they will be a threat again on Monday night. Johnny Russell has scored 11 goals this season with two of them coming in their 3-2 comeback in Inverness back in December. Gary MacKay-Steven is Highland born from Thurso and has played over the bridge before getting a lucrative move to Liverpool. But he has been injury prone and he returned to Scotland where he almost joined us last season (Hayes and MacKay-Steven either side now that is an awesome thought) but yet again the injury curse struck and he went to the lower leagues before United snapped him up. He has chipped in with 4 goals but his assists has been his forte and he if he stays fit could be a really exciting prospect for the future. The head to head this season has been all United with 2 wins and six goals scored. The 3-1 defeat at Tannadice showed our Jekyll and Hyde form with a decent performance in the first half turning into a shambles in the second. We lost that game 3-1 when we didn’t deserve to be behind at half time, to deservedly losing the game effortlesslly. The second game we should have won when we were 2-0 ahead just after half time but it swung when United pulled a quick goal back and the panic button was pressed. We went on to lose a game we were strolling through. Overall the Arabs seem to enjoy playing us with 10 wins to our 5 from 23 games played between the two clubs. They have not lost to us in 4 matches with our last win coming at Tannadice at the start of last season when we went goal crazy and won 4-0 on the second weekend of the season. This game is now a must win if top six is to become reality against a rival with the same aim. David Proctor has said in the Press and Journal that we need to win all our remaining games to get there, and he isn’t wrong. It is a long shot but with all our games against teams in the same mid table scrap for top six then we have to get behind the team and believe we can do it. We have a game in hand which will bring us into play but only if we win this one. Results were kind again on Saturday so it is time to grab this position by the scruff of its neck and make a charge. ***LATEST TEAM NEWS*** Inverness' young Spanish defender Roman Golobart has made fantastic progress from his ankle injury and has declared himself fit, although boss Butcher will resist the temptation to bolster his flagging defence for at least another week to enable the talented centre back to regain match sharpness. Chris Hogg has also pleased his surgeon but will not feature this season and Andy Shinnie has had his protective boot removed and is also healing nicely. Aaron Doran was reported to be close to a return, but a tear in his hamstring has set him back another month. No fresh injury worries after the Rangers game, apart from confidence injuries. Inverness (from): Provisional squad: Esson, Piermayr, Tokely, Gillet, Proctor, Meekings, Hayes,Tansey, Foran, G Shinnie, Ross, Morrison, Sutherland, Winnall, Gnakpa, McKay,Tudur Jones, Tuffey, Williams, Tade. United are still without Felipe Mentel and Scott Severin, but Paul Dixon returns after serving a ban, and Danny Swanson could force himself into contention having added another weeks training to his comeback. Dundee United (from): Pernis, Dillon, Gunning, Neilson, Kenneth, Watson, Dixon, Douglas, Swanson, Armstrong, S Robertson, Ryan, Flood, Mackay-Steven, Rankin, Russell, Lacny, Daly, Dow, Banks. Saturday's results have left the door ajar for the elite six, and Dunfermline remain eight points adrift of us at the bottom thanks to a 2-0 home defeat to Motherwell. Hibs move one point closer after their draw with St Mirren and Aberdeen forced a draw with Celtic at Pittodrie. Killie and St Johnstone both ended the game with ten men and a point apiece and troubled Rangers lost another home game to Hearts as former Inverness hard man Ian Black scored in a 1-2 reverse at Ibrox.