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Warriors head North Second top Stenhousemuir come North to face the Caley Jags in this re-arranged fixture on Tuesday night, 11th of March. Kick off is 7:45pm and you can get to the Stadium on the Footie Bus at 17:45 or 19:00 from the bus station in the centre of the City. Bar94 will open from 17:30. We are now into phase 4 of the League season and the only team we play twice in the run-in is Stenhousemuir. The only team we don't meet again is Dumbarton. After beating Dumbarton on Saturday and Stenhousemuir beating Annan, we have now crawled out of the relegation play-off zone for the first time since we entered administration. Great achievement by Scott Kellacher and his mostly young side and this has not gone unnoticed by the fans. Kellacher has gone on record as stating that the home games will be crucial over the next few weeks with five out of the nine games remaining played at the Caledonian Stadium starting with this one on Tuesday night. Of these five sides only Arbroath play on grass. That will be his focus as the season reaches boiling point. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/Bus/Bar94/Info ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 4 3 1 0 11 3 +8 Away 6 4 1 1 11 5 +6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 10 7 2 1 22 8 +14 Only the ten competitive matches against Stenhousemuir and this is the third one this season. We first crossed swords with the Warriors in a Scottish Cup tie in 1996 when we recorded a narrow one goal win, going on to play Rangers in the next round. A tremendous victory for the Inverness side and a place in the last 8 of the cup. We 'scored' in 2 minutes through Thomson but Christie was offside. After that their defence had to withstand tremendous pressure. Mathieson was a real handful and he came close on 3 occasions - chances also fell to Brannigan, Sprott, Roseburgh, Aitken & Bannon. Caley Thistles only other first half chance was a shot from Thomson in 15 minutes but it went past. In the second half Caley Thistle took control and in 53 minutes Thomson was unlucky when his 25 yard shot was tipped over. In 60 minutes Stewart beat the offside trap but keeper McKenzie came off his line well. 2 minutes later a great shot from 18 yards by Christie was held by McKenzie. On 75 minutes Teasdale set off on a run down the right wing and sent a low cross to Brian Thomson just outside the penalty area - his shot into the corner was unstoppable. With a minute to go Stenhousemuir had the ball in the net but it was chalked off. Caley Thistle held out for a famous victory and the prospect of Rangers at home in the next round. ***We did of course play Rangers at Tannadice going down 3-0 in the Quarter Finals. Starting XI McKenzie Sprott Bannon Armstrong Brannigan Roseburgh Aitken Fisher Mathieson Hutchison Little Jim Calder Mike Noble Richard Hastings Iain MacArthur John Scott Graeme Bennett Charlie Christie Mike Teasdale Alan Hercher Iain Stewart 75mins Brian Thomson Subs Haddow Hunter Scott Dave McGinlay Davie Ross Colin Mitchell 2024 Dec 21st League (League 1) 1 - 0 A 719 Sep 28th League (League 1) 0 - 0 H 1,601 2012 Sep 25th League Cup (Rd 3) p 1 - 1 A 705 1999 Jul 31st League Cup (Round 1) 3 - 1 A 534 1998 Apr 11th League 2 - 1 H 1,414 Feb 28th League 3 - 0 A 463 1997 Nov 8th League 4 - 1 H 1,669 Aug 30th League 2 - 3 A 400 Aug 2nd League Cup (Rd 1) 5 - 1 H 1,735 1996 Feb 17th Scottish Cup (Rd 4) 1 - 0 A 2,300 INVERNESS CT The Season So Far D L D D W D D D L / W L(11)D W W W L W L W W L W W L W D W / ? Since Scott Kellacher was handed the reins in game 11, there has been a more positive approach to our matches which has resulted in improved performances and a more enjoyable matchday experience all round. Alas we were brought back to earth with a disappointing result in our last game of 2024, a crushing 1-4 defeat at home to Cove Rangers. We'll have to put that one down to a bad day at the office. However, we bounced back in our first game of the second half of the season in the six pointer against Dumbarton with a hard fought 2-0 win. That win over Dumbarton was a vital one and the introduction of Alfie Bavidge was a welcome one as he opened the scoring early in the first half. Charlie Gilmour slotted in the clincher in the second half to give us a cushion over the Sons and to narrow the gap on Annan to seven points. We took part in the only League1 game next weekend and came away from Annan with a resounding 3-0 win, Alfie Bavidge netting again with Keith Bray and then Billy Mckay from the spot. It was then on to Palmerston on the Tuesday night but in a five goal encounter we went down 3-2. Alfie Bavidge notched his third goal in three games and Keith Bray added a second but goals from Adam Brooks (2) and Jordan Allan kept the points in Dumfries. We bounced back with a resilient 1-2 win at Alloa in our third away game on the bounce, Dunfermline bound Keith Bray with his fourth of the season and Alfie Stewart. We got our revenge at home to QotS (1-0) with Alfie Bavidge scoring his fourth goal in five appearances. Alas it was a bridge too far at Arbroath last week and we went down losing three without reply. The Stenhousemuir fixture was postponed and is re-arranged for March 11th. We went to Kelty and came away with a narrow 1-0 win thanks to Alfie's 5th goal in 7 appearances. Montrose proved to be stubborn opponents and it took a superb diving header from Keith Bray to rescue a point in a rather turgid encounter after Sandilands had opened the scoring in the first half. A last gasp win at Dumbarton on Saturday with Alfie Bavidge scoring his 6th goal in 9 games and that takes us back home to face Stenhousemuir on Tuesday night in the first of our final nine fixtures with another two home games to follow. Scott Kellacher will be without Luis Longstaff who has a hamstring injury and missed the game at Dumbarton. Ben Brannan came into the starting XI and did well, helping set up the late winner with his ball into Charlie Gilmour. Brannan went to right back which allowed Keith Bray to take up Longstaff's role. Kellacher has said we have one or two other niggles. Hardly surprising given the state of the surface at Dumbarton after heavy rain during the Arbroath fixture and only a couple of days to get the body back to manageable levels. Tuesday night fixtures: Cove v Kelty & ICT v Stenny Pos Team Pld Gd Pts 1 Arbroath 28 17 52 2 Stenny 27 15 47 3 Cove 27 14 44 4 Alloa Ath 28 6 40 5 Kelty Hearts 27 4 35 6 Queen of Sth 28 -6 35 7 Montrose 28 -7 32 8 Inverness CT 27 2 29 9 Annan Ath 28 -24 27 10 Dumbarton 28 -21 08 Warriors Last Six: L W W W W W The best run in the League at the moment, winning their last five on the bounce. They started with a crushing 4-0 defeat at home to Cove Rangers. They bounced back winning the next five starting with a 3-0 win at Montrose. Next was a 2-1 home win over Queen of the South then a 2-0 home win in the top of the table clash against Arbroath. A 3-1 win at Dumbarton and a 2-0 win at Annan sets them up nicely for their third away fixture on the trot at the Caledonian Stadium. Corey O'Donnell is top scorer with nine League goals. Blair Alston has seven. It's been a good season so far for Stenhousemuir and in the first game at the Caledonian Stadium back in September it was a no scoring draw. We nicked the return fixture in December with a 1-0 win thanks to a late Charlie Gilmour strike when he nicked the goal off Paul Allan. Some unusual 'facts' on wikipedia: In 1890, the Warriors moved to Ochilview Park following spells at Tryst Park and Goschen Park. In the early 20th century the club had a brief spell of success, winning the Scottish Qualifying Cup twice in 1901 and 1902. In 1902–03, the club reached the Scottish Cup semi-final, losing 1–4 at home to Rangers. The 1921–22 season saw Stenhousemuir compete for the first time in senior Scottish League Football. In 1925–26, Stenhousemuir goalkeeper Joe Shortt was offered a £50 bribe to throw a match against Broxburn United, but he rejected the offer and the Warriors won the match 6–2. A bookmaker from the Bainsford district of Falkirk, was subsequently jailed for attempted match fixing. In 1928, the wooden grandstand at Ochilview Park burnt down in a fire , which led to a new stand being built in its place, although staircases reputedly had to be added later due to planning errors (was Scot Gardiner in charge). The 1936–37 season saw the club register a record victory – a 9–2 home win against Dundee United. More than a decade later in 1949–50, a Scottish Cup quarter-final tie against East Fife drew a record crowd of 12,525 – the highest ever at Ochilview Park. On 7 November 1951, the first floodlit game between two Scottish senior teams occurred at Ochilview Park, a friendly match between Stenhousemuir and Hibernian. The floodlights had been paid for three years earlier by Tommy Douglas, a butcher in King Street, Stenhousemuir.

Sons on the Rocks The Admin Derby saw plenty of changes from both clubs previous starting XI. Scott Kellacher was without Luis Longstaff with Ben Brannan taking his place. James Nolan came back into the starting XI with Alfie Stewart dropping to the bench. Michael Ruth who fired in a thunderba***rd of a free kick in midweek was on the home bench after taking a knock against Arbroath. Orsi, Wallace, Niang and Young all joined him on the bench. After a battling performance from the hosts including McGuffie rattling the crossbar, Inverness clambered out of the relegation zone with a last gasp goal from our saviour, Alfie Bavidge who scored his sixth goal since coming here in January nine games ago. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Inverness forced a corner in the opening minute after which there followed a scramble in the box when Sliwinski had blocked the ball before Adam MacKinnon shot over. With the visitors on the front foot James Nolan had an effort saved as we dominated the early exchanges. Carlo Pignatiello had a shot blocked as Dumbarton made their way forward. He then clipped a ball in but Finlay Gray glanced his header wide. Sliwinski then kept out a low shot from MacKinnon with his feet. Dumbarton were slowly clawing their way back into this game and Craig McGuffie shot over from a free kick. Ten minutes before the break Alfie Bavidge shot from a tight angle, winning a corner and Ben Brannan had an effort blocked as the corner count mounted, but still nothing to show for it. In the final minute of the first half, another corner as we ended the half as we started it but the opening goal has eluded both sides. HALF TIME: 0-0 McGuffie bounced a twenty-five yard shot just wide as the Sons came out of the blocks fast on the restart. Minutes later he bounced a shot off the crossbar and over for a goal kick. Deserved better and a big warning for the visitors. Billy Mckay was denied by Sliwinski from inside the box and minutes later saw another effort blocked. Dibaga saved from Mark Durnan as the hosts reminded us they are still in this game, and as we entered the final ten minutes Dibaga saved a close range volley from substitute Michael Ruth and Aron Lynas headed over. Billy Mckay fired a volley just wide as time was running out to find a winner. However, up popped Alfie Bavidge to seal the deal with a 93rd minute winner. It started deep on the right with Danny Devine and Ben Brannan playing a neat one-two before a great ball into the box from Brannan found Charlie Gilmour who did well to control it and lay it back to Alfie some twelve yards out and he drilled it low into the bottom corner. Sensational ending to the game in the dying embers to leave Dumbarton floundering on the Rock. FULL TIME: 0-1 What a finish to the game with Alfie scoring his sixth goal since coming in on loan. With Annan losing to Stenhousemuir we are no longer in the bottom two and the chance to go even higher should we beat the Warriors on Tues night. It might be a dream just now, but it could be reality. Big shout out to Musa Dibaga for another solid display between the sticks. Mantis on CTO: We murdered them in the first half but a very open second half with probably the better chances falling to them and Musa saving us a few times. That winner was the highlight of the season for me but then I missed the Montrose game… LisleRightPeg: It’s great to win games when the team hasn’t played well. Yet again Big Musa came up with crucial saves to keep us in it. Pos Team Pld Gd Pts 1 Arbroath 28 17 52 2 Stenny 27 15 47 3 Cove 27 14 44 4 Alloa Ath 28 6 40 5 Kelty Hearts 27 4 35 6 Queen of Sth 28 -6 35 7 Montrose 28 -7 32 8 Inverness CT 27 2 29 9 Annan Ath 28 -24 27 10 Dumbarton 28 -21 08 Date: 08/03/2025 Venue: Dumbarton Football Stadium Attendance: 0757 Referee: Steven Kirkland Dumbarton FC: 0 Manager: Stephen Farrell Lineup: Sliwinski; Lynas, Durnan, Miller, Pignatiello, Webster, Shiels, Blair (Niang 75), Gray, Mumbongo (Ruth 71), McGuffie (Hilton 81) Subs (not used): Kelly; Young, Orsi, Wilson, Wallace, Clark Scorers: none Booked: Shiels (19), Lynas (51), Miller (89) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Scott Kellacher Lineup: Dibaga; Bray, Devine, Savage, Nolan (Stewart 70), Brannan, Gilmour, Allan (MacLeod 88), MacKinnon, B Mckay (R Thompson 92), Bavidge Subs (not used): Rebilas; Walker, Ewan, Strachan, Keogh, Cairns Scorers: Bavidge (90+3) Booked: Brannan (25), Bavidge (90+3 for celebrating) Sent Off: none a

2025 AD Inverness have a big cushion over the automatic relegation spot at the moment as we approach the final Admin Derby of the Season from Hell. At the moment we have an eighteen point advantage over bottom club Dumbarton. However, let's not lose site of the fact that the Sons have a superior goals for total than us. We are the third poorest goals for side in League1. On the plus side, we have the third best defensive record in the league. Dumbarton gave Arbroath a hard time in their re-arranged fixture in midweek before going down 2-1. If you haven't seen the opening goal from the Sons' Michael Ruth yet, take a look at his free kick. Boom! What a stunning strike, and in off the bar! Beware the angry Son. The downside of their battling performance in midweek was that the game was played in a monsoon on a ploughed field. I hope the pitch recovers in time for this weekend. We had our own stunning goal last week when a Savage diagonal > Devine volley > and Bray diving header bulleted into the net to earn us a valuable point in a lack lustre display against Montrose. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/Travel Info Update from the Supporters Trust Meeting ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2025 Mar 8th League (League 1) ? A ? Jan 4th League (League 1) 2 - 0 H 1,894 2024 Oct 26th League (League 1) 1 - 3 A 872 Aug 3rd League (League 1) 1 - 1 H 1,439 2023 Jul 18th League Cup 1 - 2 A 594 2018 Apr 18th League 1 - 0 A 392 Apr 14th League 5 - 1 H 2,355 Mar 24th Challenge Cup (Final) 1 - 0 N 4,602 2017 Dec 16th League 1 - 0 H 2,103 Sep 23rd League 1 - 2 A 594 Prior to 2017 we only met twice, in 2002 and 2007 with Inverness winning both League Cup encounters. 2002 was our first meeting and who else but Dennis Wyness and Paul Ritchie were the scorers in a 2-0 win at the Caledonian Stadium. The first ever meeting of these clubs and it was a one sided affair in front of 667 fans. Despite Dumbarton's lofty position at the top of Division 2 they were outclassed by Caley Thistle. In 12 minutes Stephen Grindlay blocked a Charlie Christie shot with his legs after the born-again striker took full advantage of a half chance in the box. Six minutes later Grindlay palmed away a 20 yard shot from Barry Robson. Christie limped off in 21 minutes and was replaced by Paul Ritchie. Two minutes later Dennis Wyness played a one-two with Russell Duncan then pulled his shot wide. The opener came just a minute after that when Robson found Wyness in the box and he scored from 10 yards after a neat 'Wyness Shuffle'. Four minutes into the second half Ross Tokely fired wide then Robson curled a shot over the bar. In 52 minutes Grindlay saved his side once more when he tipped over a Richie Hart drive. In a rare Dumbarton foray upfield a minute later Craig McEwan hit the side netting from 12 yards. Ritchie headed over then saw a shot cleared off the line by David Stewart before he scored with a blistering 16 yard drive in 71 minutes. Robson and Duncan came close towards the final whistle but the Dumbarton defence held out. 2-0 flattered Dumbarton and they had Grindlay to thank for keeping the score down. INVERNESS CT The Season So Far D L D D W D D D L / W L(11)D W W W L W L W W L W W L W D ? / Since Scott Kellacher was handed the reins in game 11, there has been a more positive approach to our matches which has resulted in improved performances and a more enjoyable matchday experience all round. Alas we were brought back to earth with a disappointing result in our last game of 2024, a crushing 1-4 defeat at home to Cove Rangers. We'll have to put that one down to a bad day at the office. However, we bounced back in our first game of the second half of the season in the six pointer against Dumbarton with a hard fought 2-0 win. That win over Dumbarton was a vital one and the introduction of Alfie Bavidge was a welcome one as he opened the scoring early in the first half. Charlie Gilmour slotted in the clincher in the second half to give us a cushion over the Sons and to narrow the gap on Annan to seven points. We took part in the only League1 game next weekend and came away from Annan with a resounding 3-0 win, Alfie Bavidge netting again with Keith Bray and then Billy Mckay from the spot. It was then on to Palmerston on the Tuesday night but in a five goal encounter we went down 3-2. Alfie Bavidge notched his third goal in three games and Keith Bray added a second but goals from Adam Brooks (2) and Jordan Allan kept the points in Dumfries. We bounced back with a resilient 1-2 win at Alloa in our third away game on the bounce, Dunfermline bound Keith Bray with his fourth of the season and Alfie Stewart. We got our revenge at home to QotS (1-0) with Alfie Bavidge scoring his fourth goal in five appearances. Alas it was a bridge too far at Arbroath last week and we went down losing three without reply. The Stenhousemuir fixture was postponed and is re-arranged for March 11th. We went to Kelty and came away with a narrow 1-0 win thanks to Alfie's 5th goal in 7 appearances. Montrose proved to be stubborn opponents and it took a superb diving header from Keith Bray to rescue a point in a rather turgid encounter after Sandilands had opened the scoring in the first half. Off to Dumbarton on Saturday and at home to Stenhousemuir on Tuesday night... Latest Team News from within: Luis Longstaff was helped off the park last weekend against Montrose with a hamstring injury and will be going for a scan to assess the damage. It looks likely that he will miss out. Scott Kellacher is also wary of the pitch at Dumbarton and that might affect his selection and style. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Table ahead of the final Admin Derby of the season 1. Arbroath 27 15 4 8 45 29 49 2. Stenhousemuir 26 13 5 8 39 26 44 3. Cove Rangers 26 12 5 9 43 31 41 4. Alloa Athletic 27 10 10 7 39 32 40 5. Q.O.S. 27 10 5 12 28 32 35 6. Kelty Hearts 26 9 7 10 31 27 34 7. Montrose 27 7 10 10 28 35 31 8. Annan Athletic 27 7 6 14 29 51 27 9. Inverness CT 26 11 8 7 29 28 26 10. Dumbarton 27 5 8 14 34 54 8 Michael Ruth's sublime free kick. Pick that one out... Last Six: D L L L L L <<<This was their Starting XI v Arbroath. Not great results for Dumbarton over the last half dozen games. February was a poor Month for the Son's. It all started innocuously with a home draw v Alloa (1-1). It was all downhill thereafer. Losses at Annan (2-1), a tough one to take at home to Montrose (2-3) and defeat at Cove (2-1) March has seen two home defeats by Stenhousemuir (1-3) and Tuesday night against League Leaders Arbroath (1-2). It's been a tough run for the Son's but don't be fooled, they won't go down without a fight and trounced us 3-1 the last time we were here in Scott Kellacher's first game in charge. Top scorer is jointly held by Carlo Pignatiello and Michael Ruth with six goals each. Like us, the January sales were not really for Dumbarton: Loan in: Owen Hayward, goalkeeper (Falkirk); Milosz Sliwinski, goalkeeper (Queen's Park). Looks like they will be putting two in goals against us. Son's fans can be seen watching a previous encounter perched precariously on the 'Rock' basking in the sunshine as the eagles kept their distance circling overhead. The Sons moved away from Boghead in 2000 and Dumbarton Football Stadium, locally known as 'The Rock' was officially opened on 2nd December 2000, and they kicked off in style with a 3-0 win over Elgin City. It's an imposing landscape with the Rock and Dumbarton Castle next to the ground. It has a capacity of 2020 and it's had many names since it opened as the Strathclyde Homes Stadium and kept that title for eleven years. It's now tagged as the Marbill Coaches Stadium since last July.

Still in the Zone An Inverness win could lift them out of the relegation zone for the first time since administration hit providing we did our bit. Scott Kellacher had emphasised how important our home form was going to be ahead of this vital clash and he went with an unchanged side. Michael Gardyne & Matheus Machado were not listed for the visitors and defender Aulay Martin was recalled from his loan at Junior side Montrose Roselea and went straight into the starting XI. We almost achieved our goal but our own performance left us chasing the game after a poor first half. Callum Sandilands opened the scoring for the visitors in an uninspiring opening forty-five but Keith Bray saved the day with a superb diving header ten minutes from the end. All square and a point closer to Annan who lost 3-0 at Arbroath. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ An overcast but frost free morning gave way to glimpses of sunshine as kick-off approached. By 3:00 it was an almost pleasant afternoon with a breeze as the game got underway. First attempt of the afternoon saw a Billy Mckay shot blocked and then Charlie Gilmour fired over after a free kick. Not much to talk about ten minutes in but hot prospect Owen Stirton had a shot blocked after twenty minutes with neither side able to make much progress in the final third. With half an hour gone both keepers could have gone for a coffee such was the dearth of activity around the penalty boxes. Graig Wighton and Billy Mckay exchanged misses and with that comment came the kiss of death as young Callum Sandilands, on loan from Hearts, opened the scoring for the visitors, chipping home from inside the box. Not the scoreline Scott Kellacher was hoping for and it went from bad to worse when Luis Longstaff went off injured to be replaced by James Nolan. This fired Inverness into action and Mckay had another effort blocked, this time by Gill before Alfie Bavidge hit the bar from outside the box. Just before the break Musa Dibaga saved from Sandilands at the expense of a corner and at the other end Keith Bray fired wide. HALF TIME: 0-1 With our most creative player subbed off, this was now going to be a massive test of the character of Kellacher's side. Montrose had Graham Webster on from the start of the second half. Gilmour headed on a corner but Mckay knocked it wide five minutes into the second half and Danny Devine lofted a shot over as the hosts looked to get back on level terms. A Paul Allan header off James Nolan's cross was held by Cammy Gill and the pressure was mounting on the visitors defence with Adam MacKinnon having an attempt blocked and Gilmour heading wide. Mckay was denied again by Gill. Charlie Gilmour must have a head like a threepenny bit as he headed wide again and Ben Brannan made his debut replacing MacKinnon. With ten minutes of normal time left up popped Keith Bray with a diving header ably assisted by Remi Savage's ball and Danny Devine's first time cross. No more than we deserved for our second half dominance but a lack of efforts on target meant it ended all square in the Highlands. FULL TIME: 1-1 Dunfermline bound Keith Bray with his fifth goal of the season earned us a point after we came out of our shell in the second half to keep the pressure on those above us. Fair play to Kellacher for turning it around again in the second half, just need to sort out our first half listlessness. More match reaction to follow... Pos Team Pld Gd Pts 1 Arbroath 26 15 46 2 Stenhousemuir 26 13 44 3 Cove Rangers 26 12 41 4 Alloa Athletic 27 7 40 5 Queen of Sth 27 -4 35 6 Kelty Hearts 26 4 34 7 Montrose 27 -7 31 8 Annan Athletic 27 -22 27 9 Inverness CT 26 1 26 10 Dumbarton 26 -19 08 Date: 01/03/2025 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1653 Referee: Peter Stuart Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Scott Kellacher Lineup: Dibaga; Bray, Devine, Savage, Stewart (Cairns 86), Longstaff (Nolan 39), Gilmour, Allan, MacKinnon (Brannan 70), B Mckay, Bavidge Subs (not used): Rebilas; Ewan, Keogh, Strachan, MacLeod, R Thompson Scorers: Bray (80) Booked: Gilmour (41) Sent Off: none Montrose FC: 1 Manager: Stewart Petrie Lineup: Gill; Freeman, Quinn, Waddell (Dillon 66), Steeves, Martin (Webster 46), Masson, Sandilands, Wighton (Brown 66), Stirton, Lyons (Watson 77) Subs (not used): Mathews; Bertie, McKenzie, Redwood Scorers: Sandilands (34) Booked: Steeves (89) Sent Off: none a

Gable Endies at Home Montrose are the visitors this weekend and if you can make it along early there's a Supporters Trust Meeting at 12:30 ahead of the game in Bar94 where they will endeavour to give you an update on the Administration process. The prospect of an entertaining game this Saturday with Inverness on the up and Montrose struggling of late and starting to tread water with one relegation play-off place still up for grabs. At present we hold the trumps for that with eleven games left to Alan Salvage our season.We drew the first encounter 1-1 but a stirring away performance in the second game saw us leave Montrose with a 3-2 victory at the beginning of December. They have their own Alfie Bavidge in Owen Stirton on loan from Dundee United and he has banged in six goals in just a handful of games. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FANS MEETING 12:30 Full details are in the flyer below, but the meeting gives fans an opportunity to put questions to Charlie Christie, Scott Young or the Supporters Trust Board. Charlie and Scott will be giving updates on the club's situation and Charlie will be sharing some memories of the club's first 30 years. The meeting is open to all fans and we hope to see many of you there, and remember there is an extra bus being provided by Stagecoach at 12.00 noon from the Bus Station, allowing time to grab a pie or drink before the meeting starts. Concession passes are valid, with the single fare being £2.40. - - - - ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/Bar94/Info Supporters Trust Meeting Early Bus to Stadium ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 7 3 2 2 8 11 -3 Away 6 3 2 1 9 7 +2 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 13 6 4 3 17 18 -1 Thirteen meetings in total with just the three defeats so far spanning 30 years starting with a 3-1 defeat at Links Park in October 94 in a division Three encounter with Sergei Baltacha the manager. Montrose nearly scored very early in the game but Mark McRitchie saved well from Colin McGlashan. In the 22nd minute a Charlie Christie cross was only inches from Norman MacMillan's head. In the 32nd minute McRitchie again saved at full length from a McGlashan shot. One minute later MacMillan put the visitors in front when he latched on to a Mitchell through ball and shot home. Things went badly wrong in the second half for Caley Thistle when in 58 minutes Paul MacKenzie was sent off for a second bookable offence. It was an uphill struggle after that and it was no surprise when Montrose equalised through Grant in 68 minutes. As the visitors tired McGlashan put Montrose in front with a tremendous shot in 74 minutes and one minute from time McRonald made it three with an overhead kick. Our next meeting in February was even worse. We were hammered 4-0 at home when a Stuart Beedie brace, with Milne and Mark Haro all scoring second half goals without reply. We won the third game 1-0 through a last minute goal from Wilson Robertson but ended as we began with a 3-0 doing at home in April thanks to strikes from Neil McAvoy, Colin McGlashan and Shaun Smith. Montrose went on to gain promotion this season with a late run for the finishing line pipping Ross County for the second place finish. Caledonian Thistle ended the season in mid-table and Forfar Athletic were the Champions. Those were the days... Last 10 Competitive Meetings 3 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 3 - 2 (H) 2 - 0 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 2 - 2 (A) 0 - 3 (H) INVERNESS CT The Season So Far D L D D W D D D L / W L(11)D W W W L W L W W L W W L W Since Scott Kellacher was handed the reins in game 11, there has been a more positive approach to our matches which has resulted in improved performances and a more enjoyable matchday experience all round. Alas we were brought back to earth with a disappointing result in our last game of 2024, a crushing 1-4 defeat at home to Cove Rangers. We'll have to put that one down to a bad day at the office. However, we bounced back in our first game of the second half of the season in the six pointer against Dumbarton with a hard fought 2-0 win. That win over Dumbarton was a vital one and the introduction of Alfie Bavidge was a welcome one as he opened the scoring early in the first half. Charlie Gilmour slotted in the clincher in the second half to give us a cushion over the Sons and to narrow the gap on Annan to seven points. We took part in the only League1 game last weekend and came away from Annan with a resounding 3-0 win, Alfie Bavidge netting again with Keith Bray and then Billy Mckay from the spot. *It was then on to Palmerston on the Tuesday night but in a five goal encounter we went down 3-2. Alfie Bavidge notched his third goal in three games and Keith Bray added a second but goals from Adam Brooks (2) and Jordan Allan kept the points in Dumfries. We bounced back with a resilient 1-2 win at Alloa in our third away game on the bounce, Dunfermline bound Keith Bray with his fourth of the season and Alfie Stewart. We got our revenge at home to QotS (1-0) with Alfie Bavidge scoring his fourth goal in five appearances. Alas it was a bridge too far at Arbroath last week and we went down losing three without reply. The Stenhousemuir fixture was postponed and is re-arranged for March 11th. We went to Kelty and came away with a narrow 1-0 win thanks to Alfie's 5th goal in 7 appearances. Montrose up next and a win would be helpful and much appreciated with only 11 games left in our fixture list. Latest Team News from within: Scott Kellacher has not mentioned any fresh injury worries but is focussed on four of the next five games being at home for the run in with a total of six of our final games at the Caledonian Stadium against five teams who play on artificial surfaces. Good news if we can use that to our advantage. So, the big emphasis is on our home form. Pos Team Pld Gd Pts 1 Arbroath 25 12 43 2 Cove Rangers 25 13 41 3 Stenny 25 11 41 4 Alloa Ath 26 6 37 5 Queen of Sth 26 -3 35 6 Kelty Hearts 25 3 31 7 Montrose 26 -7 30 8 Annan Ath 26 -19 27 9 Inverness CT 25 1 25 10 Dumbarton 25 -17 8 Last Six: D L D D W L At the end of January Montrose picked up an away point with a 2-2 draw at Annan, Stirton and Lyons scoring early goals. A home defeat to Stenhousemuir followed (0-3) with two draws on the bounce against Alloa (2-2) and Cove (1-1). The highlight of the last six was a rousing 2-3 win at Dumbarton with (Stirton x2 & Quinn scoring). Last week saw them well beaten at Home by QotS. <<<That was Stewart Petrie's squad for the win over Dumbarton. However, last week Machado started with Masson coming off the bench. Not a great run by Montrose and that has seen them sink perilously close to the relegation scrap. Owen Stirton is top scorer with six goals on loan from Dundee United. He seems to be the Gable Endies equivalent of our own Alfie Bavidge. Experienced arrival in the shape of Craig Wightman to back him up. Callum Sandilands is a promising young forward player in from Hearts. Matheus Machado is still at Montrose as is the imbecilic Michael Gardyne. Good footballer, bit of a tool though. January Sales: Loan in: Owen Stirton, forward (Dundee United); Callum Sandilands, forward (Heart of Midlothian); Craig Wighton, forward (Dunfermline Athletic); Kieran Freeman, defender (Raith Rovers). Kane Hester has signed on again at Elgin City and Defender Callum Hannah has gone back to Raith Rovers.