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  1. New Year New Hope We face another tough encounter on Tuesday 2nd January as we visit the Excelsior Stadium to take on fifth place Airdrieonians for the fourth time this season having also faced them in the group stages of the League Cup. This one kicks off at 3:00pm, but, don't worry if you can't make the game, Airdrie have got you covered and are offering PPV Live Stream for £15:00. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/ Bus Info PPV Live Stream Broomhill - Scottish Cup ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 9 5 0 4 14 12 +2 Away 7 2 2 3 9 15 -6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 16 7 2 7 23 27 -4 Honours are even over the years with Airdrie apart from that 6-0 humping we took off them in September 2001 Last 3 Competitive Meetings are the only significant ones as previous games were back before 2002 1 - 0 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 3 (H) Our first win over Airdrie in recent times was the last encounter at the Caledonian Stadium where we took all three points at the end of March. 1 - 0 Duncan ferguson was looking for his first home Championship success as the Diamond's visited the Caledonian Stadium. He would be without some key players. Unfortunately Welsh, Duffy, Doran, MacGregor, Nicolson, and Samuels were all out with Devine, Boyes, Ujdur, Harper and Carson all struggling to make this one. New signings David Wotherspoon and Cillian Sheridan were in the squad. As it was, Carson, Ujdur, Devine, Harper and Wotherspoon all started with Boyes and Sheridan on the bench. Airdrie had Gallagher and Todorov up front with Player Manager Rhys McCabe on from the start. It was a decent afternoon for a game of football and Airdrie took advantage of the good conditions to control the early possession although they never troubled Ridgers, one shot clearing the North Stand into the car park. The next one went five yards over the bar. The best Inverness could offer was a blocked shot on the edge of the box after our best move of the game. We came more into the mix and David Wotherspoon spooned a shot over the bar from five yards after Keeper Josh Rae had saved from Billy Mckay. He really should have scored but he made amends five minutes before the break with a tremendously calm finish. He showed real class unlike the open goal he missed earlier. The move began on the left with Longstaff then when it came to Wotherspoon in midfield he flicked it deftly to the right side where Gilmour fed Shaw. He drove down the wing before cutting the ball back to Spoony who turned in the box to roll the ball into the unguarded corner of the net from twelve yards after making the space for himself. Class! Half Time: 1-0 After the interval Airdrie retained the ball better but we threatened when Gilmour went down after a challenge in the box. Shaw picked up the loose ball but his shot was charged down as he tried to pick out the top corner from the edge of the box. A spate of substitutions disrupted the flow of the game and the visitors made a late push to salvage a point. However, we defended well despite half of our back four being substituted with Ujdur dominant. The big defender made a couple of crucial blocks, one in particular as Frizzell pulled the trigger, the ball deflecting over the bar. Despite the late pressure from Airdrie, Ridgers was not overly exerted although he made a couple of crucial catches and punches clear to hold on to the clean sheet and more importantly all three points. Full Time: 1-0 The fabulous execution of his goal was a great introduction for David Wotherspoon but for me the Man of the Match and new version of Bobby Mann was Nikola Ujdur. The Aussie defender is solid, strolled through the game unflustered and can pick a pass. Good graft in midfield but Sheridan and Big Harry need some work done. Shaw picked up a booking at the end when Big Dunc sent him back onto the pitch to get treatment All games are 3:00pm kick-off on Saturday. Airdrieonians v Inverness CT Arbroath v Dundee Utd Dunfermline v Raith Rovers Morton v Ayr Utd Partick Thistle v Queen's Park Last Time Out Inverness slumped to another disappointing result and performance as we failed to score at home to Morton and had to settle for a point on a turgid encounter last Saturday. Looks like the honeymoon is well and trully over for big Dunc with many fans likening the performance to that of Doddsball, and that didn't end well. Here's hoping the January sales brings in a couple of decent players as we are creaking at the seams and displaying a distinct lack of quality, especially beyond the first XI. With David Wotherspoon looking like he is either injured or offski to Tannadice then we are in desparate need of a playmaker and out and out striker. Last Five Games: W L L D D Airdrie were the only winners last Saturday as a late Todorov strike gave them all three points against a struggling Queens Park. A Dom Thomas penalty had Queens in front before half time but A bullet header from Mason Hancock squared the match before Toddy's 93rd minute winner. Airdrie stopped the rot with that one after a bit of a Championship slump since they beat Arbroath on November 11th. Last five Games: L L L D W Latest Team News Inverness might be without David Wotherspoon and he could well be finished here with Dundee United looking to get him on board. Doran, Samuels, Lodovica and Duffy are out. Carson got a few minutes against Morton but MacGregor is still being nursed back towards getting some game time. Here's Dunc speaking ahead of Airdrie game: We were rubbish, weren't we>>> No official team news available yet Callum Gallagher is the Diamond's top scorer on seven goals with Todorov and Lewis MacGregor both on four. Airdrie are the lowest scorers in the League with just sixteen goals.......and we thought we were poor on twenty. Airdrie team v Queens Park Rae Megwa Fordyce McCabe Hancock Frizzell McMaster Telfer McGregor (McGregor 75) Gallagher (Todorov (45) McStravick (Watson 95) Subs Not Used: Hutton; Cassidy, Gallagher, Rowley, Dunlop, O'Connor
  2. Stalemate in the Highlands Inverness were along familiar lines of late with Welsh, Carson and Macgregor on the bench. Morton were without the suspended George Oakley, with long throw specialist Lewis Strapp in there for a reason other than just defending. Steven Boyd started for Morton. Alas there was no goals to cheer in a dismal affair as the last game of the year ended a point apiece. Have a good & safe New Year ********************** A chilly afternoon up North saw Inverness look for an early breakthrough with Max Anderson and David Wotherspoon having early efforts blocked en route to goal. Wotherspoon had another one blocked from close range twenty minutes in, however clear opportunities were at a premium. Five minutes before the break Charlie Gilmour had a pop from distance but Mullen was able to save comfortably. Disaster for Inverness minutes later as chief playmaker Wotherspoon went off injured to be replaced by Luis Longstaff. A poor first forty-five ended goalless. HALF TIME: 0-0 No changes at the break and five minutes into the second half Nikola Ujdur put Billy Mckay through but his effort from a tight angle enabled Mullen to deny him. Gilmour shot over as the tempo increased and Robbie Muirhead shot just wide at the other end when he might have done better. Substitute Lewis McGrattan won a corner with a blocked shot but it came to nothing as both sides made more changes. Claims for a late penalty went unanswered as Danny Devine went down in the box. David Carson missed a late chance to win it and that was your lot for 2023. FULL TIME: 0-0 Stalemate in the Highlands in a poor game to end the year with David Wotherspoon possibly having made his last appearance for the Caley Jags coming off injured before the break. Meh! A selection of comments on CTO: Shocking performance. Could have played for weeks and not scored, Some players were awful, Shaw needs to be dropped and Gilmore needs shooting practice. The subs that came on showed how poor our squad is. As Ferguson says we're def.in a relegation battle. Dreadful, dreadful stuff. One of the worst football matches I've ever suffered. We are going to be worryingly looking over our shoulder if this is the level of output until May. Scrappy game in which we tried to walk ball into net.We need to take more chances and shoot for goal. I think we needed more balls in from the wings and great to see Carson come on. Good we kept the back door closed, just a pity we were no sharper up front. Neither side shone today and if we don't up the tempo and get sharper at passing the best we can hope for is to stay in this league. Hopefully we will see positive moves in January tansfer market. Just about the worst game I have ever had the misfortune to attend. Embarrassing lack of quality, no excitement whatsoever, freezing cold, no wonder attendances are falling away. We really are a grim watch these days. Mind-numbing stuff! Sideways passing, then backwards, followed by some more sideways passing. Zero entertainment! Was Derek Adams right? We drew didn't we>>> Date: 30/12/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2114 Referee: Colin Steven Inverness CT: 0 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Davidson (Carson 73), Ujdur, Devine, Boyes, Shaw, Gilmour, Anderson, Harper, Wotherspoon (Longstaff 40), B Mckay (Brooks 71) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Delaney, Macgregor, Thompson, Welsh, Sheridan Scorers: none Booked: none Sent Off: none Morton: 0 Manager: Dougie Imrie Lineup: Mullen; French (O'Connor 74), Broadfoot, Baird, Strapp, Blues (Bearne 84), Power (Gillespie 72), Crawford, Wilson, Boyd (McGrattan 61), Muirhead Subs (not used): MacDonald; O'Boy Scorers: none Booked: Muirhead (55) Sent Off: none a
  3. Last Game of 2023 Last game before the bells brings Morton North for the first time this season. We played them recently at Cappielow and went down to a disappointing 2-1 defeat in a game held over from 21st October. Since then Morton have clambered up to fifth in the table while we have slumped to 8th with back to back defeats and a welcome point at Firhill. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket Info Official Preview ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 12 5 4 48 20 +28 Away 20 11 3 6 38 26 +12 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 41 23 8 10 86 46 +40 Sloppy Stuff in Greenock: 1 - 2 Wallace Duffy missed out with a calf injury with Jake Davidson getting a rare start and the paternal David Carson was still on maternity leave. Good to see Roddy Macgregor was on the bench following another lengthy layoff through injury alongside Sean Welsh and Nathan Shaw. Morton had three players that were on our books recently. Defender Kirk Broadfoot, wide player Stephen Boyd and striker George Oakley. And it was that man Oakley that gave Morton the lead after errors in defence. Jack Baird smashed in a second ten minutes from time. Adam Brooks added a late consolation, but it was too little too late in Greenock as the revolution ground to a halt. Last 10 Competitive Meetings 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 2 (H) 0 - 4 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 6 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) Last Time Out We have struggled to make headway recently losing to two of the three sides below us in the league. We steadied the ship somewhat with a good point at Partick in a game Ferguson thought we deserved better from, but we would all have taken a point before hand. Max Anderson's deflected shot found it's way into the net after just 21 seconds, our fastest ever goal but Jack McMillan levelled ten minutes later and that's how it ended at Firhill. Last Five L W L L D Dougie Imrie's side have had a mini revival. Three wins and a draw in the last four since Morton stopped the rot, including the 2-1 win over us in October. and that has seen them jump up to where we were looking to be before we lost to Morton and Arbroath. Last Five L W W W D Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Dundee United v Partick on Friday night 1. Raith Rovers 17 12 4 1 33 22 40 2. Dundee Utd 16 10 5 1 34 7 35 3. Partick Thistle 17 8 5 4 34 27 29 4. Dunfermline 16 6 4 6 20 18 22 5. Morton 16 5 3 8 17 24 18 6. Ayr United 16 5 3 8 22 30 18 7. Airdrieonians 17 5 3 9 14 22 18 8. Inverness CT 17 4 5 8 20 21 17 9. Arbroath 16 5 1 10 21 31 16 10. Queens Park 16 3 5 8 19 32 14 The bottom half of the table is getting very congested and the value of a mini-run has been exemplified with Morton climbing up to fifth in the table, a position we were also looking at before disappointing results against Morton and Arbroath recently. Raith Rovers will head the table going into 2024 and a lot of that is down to their never say die attitude with late goals being a major factor in their climb to the top. The January sales are going to be crucial this season with any team capable of winning on the day. As they always say, there are no easy games in the Championship, and so it proves to be the way... Latest Team News Ferguson has Carson back training but big Harry can be added to the Doran, Samuels and MacGregor list of guys still out. Lewis Strapp is back at Morton, he of the long throw and it was a useful weapon against us last time out. George Oakley is thriving again. Last starting XI v Airdrie Mullen French Baird O'Connor Strapp Gillespie (Power 60) Wilson Blues (Boyd 60) Crawford McGrattan (Bearne 69) Muirhead Subs Not used: MacDonald; O'Boy
  4. Merry Xmas Danny Devine was fit enough to start and Jake Davidson again replaced the injured Wallace Duffy at right back. Otherwise no surprises in the Inverness starting XI or bench. As per normal, Brian Graham will present our defence with a robust challenge with Fitzpatrick and McInroy able and willing elfs. 205 visiting fans were on hand to check out this one and at the end of the day Status Quo was maintaned as all five games ended level this weekend. Max Anderson and Jack McMillan were the scorers today. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ooooooft, having got the match underway, it was an early start for the visitors who caught Partick cold as Max Anderson's weak effort found the net after an assist from Billy Mckay, long before all the bums had landed in their seats. 22 seconds apparently! The fast start continued in the third minute as Cammy Harper shot over from the left side. Alas, Jack McMillan squared the game after quarter of an hour scoring from close range. Fitzpatrick shot wide after twenty minutes and Ridgers was then brought into action to stop a long range low effort from Ben Stanway. Ten minutes before the break Wotherspoon bounced a shot just wide from the edge of the box as we ventured forth. A free kick in a promising position for the hosts ended when Graham shot over from just outside the box. Charlie Gilmour had the final effort of the half in stoppage time but it was well wide of the target. Partick with the bulk of the play but it remained all square at the interval. A late goal for Arbroath on half time meant that Inverness had gone from 8th to 5th to 9th over the course of the first forty-five. Meh! HALF TIME: 1-1 The hosts set the ball in motion for the second half and they were quick to avoid a repeat of the first minutes of the match as they went straight onto the front foot winning a couple of early corners before Aderson went close to his second of the game as the visitors wenr up the park. Devine did well to deny McMillan his second as he cleared his effort away from goal and Ujdur was booked for fouling Milne moments later. Partick were first with the changes after the hour. Ujdur took a knock but was able to continue and almost got on the end of the ball during a melee following a corner with fifteen minutes remaining. More corners followed but nothing doing before Longstaff saw his shot blocked five minutes before the end. Harper went down in the box but big appeals for a penalty went unanswered. It ended with a point apiece at a difficult venue. FULL TIME: 1-1 A good point at a difficult venue and one which keeps us in eighth place after a late goal for Dunfermline scuppered the Smokies. After the last two defeats, this was a welcome performance and point for the 205 hardy souls who braved the weather to keep away from the Xmas shopping. Have a great Christmas. From BBC Sports Partick Thistle manager Kris Doolan: "Inverness are a good team and a point is probably fair. It was such a freak goal to give away but the way we react is key. We get on the front foot and Jack McMillan scores a fantastic goal." Inverness CT manager Duncan Ferguson: "We couldn't have started any better. We created chances and could've had a couple of goals. "Everyone could see our attacking play which is lovely to watch, and on another day we could've had a penalty - we're not getting any 50-50 decisions at all. But we're really happy." Mantis saw it like this: That turned out to be a valuable point thanks to the Pars late equaliser. Both sets of players deserve nothing but praise considering the awful conditions. We totally dominated the opening 15 minutes and had a couple of half chances to double the lead which appeared to deflect off a defender and trundle in. Partick scored with their first attack of the game and it was a case of tragic failure to clear the ball. Never would have happened with Robbie Deas in there. We’re playing with 3 centre backs and nobody seems to know what their job is. We went to pieces after that and Partick murdered us for the rest of the half. Going by previous visits to Firhill we feared the worst for the second half but it never materialised. We really dominated the last half hour and had very few clear cut chances but it was like the Alamo with Partick defending scrambles in their six yard box and we must have had about 8 corners. However we’re still trying to walk it into the net with nobody trying to take a risk. Graham was substituted having had very little influence for once. So was Billy, for Longstaff, and he must have been frustrated trying to pull down long balls from Ridgers all day with big Muirhead breathing down his neck. Two shockers from Grainger the ref. He booked Ujdur for a clash of heads where the Partick player came off worst, and he missed a stonewall penalty when Cammy was hauled down late on. A draw away at Partick is not to be sniffed at against a team that has 29 points and a decent squad with Milne, Graham, Lawless and Alston. Date: 23/12/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 3326 Referee: Graham Grainger Partick Thistle: 1 Manager: Kris Doolan Lineup: Sneddon; McMillan, Muirhead, Neilson, Milne, Stanway (Robinson 62), McInroy (MacKenzie 82), Lawless, Alston (Bannigan 62), Fitzpatrick, Graham (Adeloye 82) Subs (not used): Mitchell; Williams, Williamson, Lyon, Diack, Scorers: McMillan (15) Booked: none Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Davidson, Ujdur, Devine, Boyes, Shaw, Gilmour, Anderson, Harper, Wotherspoon (Sheridan 90), B Mckay (Longstaff 75) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Delaney, Bray, Thompson, Welsh, Brooks Scorers: Anderson (22 secs) Booked: Devine (43), Ujdur (57), Gilmour (88) Sent Off: none a
  5. Looking Down With both sides losing in midweek, this game took on more significance for Big Dunc's side and Jim McIntyre was also looking to get away from the bottom of the table after he replaced Dick Campbell. David Wotherspoon was fit enough to start and good to see Keith Bray return to the squad alongside Robbie Thompson. Arbroath came North with only four on the bench with Michael McKenna and Ricky Little still out injured and O'Brien suspended. As it turned out we are now looking down the table instead of up after back to back defeats to the two teams who were below us only four days ago as Arbroath won 2-1. That was new manager Jim McIntyre's first win and it moves Arbroath off the bottom of the table. one point behind Inverness. All the goals came in the first half from Jay Bird, Billy Mckay and two minutes later David Gold. Looks like a few will be going cheap in the January sales. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It was another miserable day in the Highlands as the teams took to the field with swirling wind and rain plentiful. Nathan Shaw had an early effort saved by Gaston after a give and take with David Wotherspoon and Arbroath came back with David Gold inside the box but he shot over from twelve yards. Leighton McIntosh missed the target following a corner as the visitors pushed forward in the early exchanges. Arbroath took the lead after half an hour when after a throw in, a deflected cross landed nicely for Jay Bird in the box and he rifled a shot behind Ridgers. Wotherspoon almost levelled a minute later but his shot was just wide, followed by Jake Davidson doing likewise. Five minutes before the break Billy Mckay squared the game from a Cammy Harper cross that evaded the defender before Billy volleyed home the bouncing ball from twelve yards. Having done the hard work to get level Arbroath took the lead again when Gold headed in from a corner. Slack defending again costing us at the back. Ridgers made a good stop just on the break as we continued to offer opportunites at the back, the keeper saving a shot from distance by Bird. Defensive lapses our downfall. I'm sure Big Dunc will be having a word in their ear over their half time cuppa. HALF TIME: 1-2 Defender Nikola Ujdur was replaced by Luis Longstaff at the interval as Dunc rang the changes. Ridgers saved a header from Gold on the line at the start of the second half as Arbroath continued to create and an Inverness burst forward was ended when Mckay fouled Gaston, or was it Gaston conning the refereee. Longstaff saw a header blocked after a corner. Spoony shot over from a free kick as we tried to get back on level terms with half an hour remaining. Davidson failed to get the ball under control and shot over as we increased the intensity. Some last ditch defending in the visitors box denied Inverness an equaliser from Davidsons cross. Charlie Gilmour missed a good opportunity when he headed wide and it all became a bit rushed without creating the clear cut opportunity required. Massively disappointing result that has dragged us right down into the mire. FULL TIME: 1-2 For cod's sake! Inverness slumped to an embarrassing defeat as Arbroath stunned Ferguson's flops at the Caledonian Stadium. Arbroath with big players out and only three outfield players on the bench proved too good for an overrated Inverness bunch of haddies who were easily beaten by the Smokies. More match reaction to follow>>> Dunc disappointed>>> But not as disappointed as Deek>>> Date: 16/12/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1842 Referee: Iain Sneddon Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Davidson (Brooks 90), Ujdur (Longstaff 45), Devine, Boyes, Shaw, Gilmour, Anderson, Harper, Wotherspoon (Sheridan 90), B Mckay (Lodovica 90), Subs (not used): C Mackay; Delaney, Thompson, Bray, Welsh Scorers: B Mckay (39) Booked: Ujdur (21) Sent Off: none Arbroath: 2 Manager: Jim McIntyre Lineup: Gaston; Steel, Stewart, Norey, Hamilton, Lyon (Jacobs 61), Gold (Stowe 71), Hylton, Slater, McKintosh, Bird (Dunnwald-Turan 75) Subs (not used): Adams; Scorers: Bird (29), Gold (42) Booked: Gold (17), Bird (35), Stowe (82) Sent Off: none a
  6. Smokies for Xmas After our midweek demise at Cappielow, this game takes on a more meaningful role as we languish just four points off the bottom but have played a game more than Arbroath. A rude awakening brought Big Dunc's revolution to a grinding halt against Morton as we struggled to gain a foothold in a towsy encounter on a midden of a pitch. Dunc acknowleged we underperformed and the fans will be looking for an upturn in fortunes at home to Jim McIntyre's Arbroath after Dick got the seven year itch. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket Info ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H v Arbroath Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 17 4 3 59 19 +40 Away 24 11 6 7 35 29 +6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 48 28 10 10 94 48 +46 First meeting this season was Duncs first game in charge: The fans were looking forward to this one with a mixture of fear, trepidation, apprehension, pessimism, optimism and excitement in equal proportions. Dunc has certainly got the fans talking again and there's a feelgood factor lurking just round the corner. Rome wasn't built in a day, however Ferguson was not the foreman. Time will tell if this will be a successful appointment, but he has the full backing of the fans at the moment. Arbroath were off the back of a four game winning run. We were on downward spiral since the start of the season, the reason why Dunc is here now. As it happened, we escaped with all three points... Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Arbroath 3 - 2 (A) 2 - 4 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 4 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 0 (H) 3 - 0 (H) 0 - 0 (A) Dunc's reign of apprehension got off to a promising start at Gayfield as Inverness opened the scoring in the tenth minute through Luis Longstaff who scrambled the ball into the net after a Nikola Ujdur header was not dealt with by keeper Gaston. Longstaff then turned provider as Aaron Doran turned his driven cross into the net after half an hour. Other chances came and went: Nathan Shaw not catching his shot plumb from the edge of the box making it comfortable for Gaston to flop on the ball and save and Billy Mckay not making the most of a great break forward, his low shot a bit of a dolly for the keeper to block. HALF TIME 0-2 Billy Mckay added a third just after the interval lobbing Gaston perfectly with an assist from his own keeper Mark Ridgers. At 3-0 Shaw again might have done better when one on one with Gaston but he chose the wrong option and took himself too wide and the chance was gone. Arbroath came back into it with strikes from Ross Stewart and Michael McKenna to set up a grandstand finish. Stewart's goal was as massive a fluke as you will see. Ujdur attempted to thunder the ball clear on the edge of his own box. Unfortunately Stewart anticipated this and turned his back on the defender expecting him and ball to go flying forward. Alas it looks like it cannoned off his arse and it floated over the despairing flail of Mark Ridgers and into the net. Unbelievable, you couldn't write it, however, I just did. McKenna's goal favoured the hosts as it bobbled off a couple of bodies before he despatched it behind Ridgers off his near post with a tidy finish. With much biting of fingernails, Dunc got off to a winning start after a lengthy period of time added on and that means that we are no longer bottom of the table (just). Phew! FULL TIME: 2-3 Last Time Out Big Duncs Revolution came unstuck at a sticky Cappielow in midweek as we dished out Xmas presents early. Defensive sloppiness gifted George Oakley an opportunity which he gleefully accepted as he lobbed Ridgers with aplomb after twenty minutes. We struggled to string many passes together which saw us struggle to create much. The second half we were non existant for long spells as Morton were in our faces most of the half. No surprise when Jack Baird hammered in from six yards as we made the schoolboy error of chasing the ball leaving him in acres of space at the far post to kill the game. We did get a minor consolation with a close range header through Adam Brooks, but overall we were not really up for the battle as much as Morton were. Last Five: W D L W L Late goal specialists Raith Rovers conjured a 95th-minute winner to move top of the Scottish Championship and leave Arbroath stuck at the bottom. Aiden Connolly had the visitors in front on 19 minutes, pouncing after Sam Stanton's header was blocked. However, Arbroath levelled soon after with a Jermaine Hylton penalty after Liam Dick fouled Leighton McIntosh. Just as the hosts looked set to rise off the bottom with their first point in seven games, Lewis Vaughan struck. The striker sent a stunning finish into the top corner with the last kick of the game to seal a fourth straight league win and put Raith two points above Dundee United having played a game more. (This report from BBC Sport) Last five: L L L L L Big game at Tannadice as Raith Rovers visit Dundee United on Saturday With Arbroath losing to Raith Rovers in midweek, they are still rooted to the foot of the table on 12 points but they have a game in hand over Inverness on 16 points. We blew the chance to open up a more comfortable gap on the teams below and defeat on Saturday would put us right back into the mix for relegation. The other two teams below Inverness also meet each other on Saturday and that's another one to keep an eye on. Any team that can put a three or four game winning streak together will do themselves a masive favour. Latest Team News Dunc should be back in the dugout this weekend after his misdemeanours. Roddy MacGregor made the squad at Cappielow but was an unused sub. Wallace Duffy missed that one with a calf injury. Long term absentees still missing are Nicolson, Samuels and Doran with David Carson still on maternity leave. David Wotherspoon has rolled his ankle and will be assessed nearer kick-off. Big Harry is also a doubt. Jim McIntyre is the new manager at Arbroath after Dick Campbells reign came to an end after seven years. Must have been itchy. Smokies line up v Rovers in midweek Gaston Stewart Steele O'Brien Hamilton McIntosh Gold Jacobs (Norey 68) Slater (Lyon 85) Hylton Bird (Dünnwald-Turan 78) Subs not used: Adams: Stowe.
  7. Sloppy Stuff in Greenock Wallace Duffy missed out with a calf injury with Jake Davidson getting a rare start and the paternal David Carson was still on maternity leave. Good to see Roddy Macgregor was on the bench following another lengthy layoff through injury alongside Sean Welsh and Nathan Shaw. Morton had three players that were on our books recently. Defender Kirk Broadfoot, wide player Stephen Boyd and striker George Oakley. And it was that man Oakley that gave Morton the lead after errors in defence. Jack Baird smashed in a second ten minutes from time. Adam Brooks added a late consolation, but it was too little too late in Greenock as the revolution ground to a halt. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ An indifferent and untidy start on what looked like a difficult surface saw David Wotherspoon cut in from the left but his parting shot was high and wide. Ridgers was forced into a save direct from a Robbie Muirhead free kick on fifteen minutes. Twenty minutes in and sloppy defending offered George Oakley an opportunity to lob Ridgers and that's exactly what he did. Wotherspoon shot wide after a free kick was half cleared to the edge of the box and he missed the target again as Inverness probed for an opening. A good move forward on the left saw Wotherspoon graze the outside of the post ten minutes before the break. Ridgers produced a great save just before the break to deny Kirk Broadfoot from eight yards at the expense of a corner. At the other end keeper Ryan Mullen made an equally acrobatic save to deny Billy Mckay from the edge of the box just on the stroke of half time. HALF TIME:1-0 Early Inverness pressure after the break ended when Ridgers had to push a low shot from Cameron Blues away and gather it at the second attempt. A curling free kick from out wide from Wothewrspoon was tipped behind for a corner. Morton were up for this and substitute Allan Power volleyed just wide then Muirhead hit the post with fifteen minutes left. Inverness were on the ropes now and a triple substitution followed. Worse followed ten minutes from the end when Jack Baird lashed in a loose ball on the six yard box after a long throw in from Lewis Strapp. Sloppy stuff again with nobody picking up players at the far post. Adam Brooks scored a very late consolation for the visitors but it was too little too late for a dis-spirited Inverness. FULL TIME: 2-1 More match detail to follow>>> We lost didn't we>>> Date: 12/12/2023 Venue: Cappielow Park Attendance: 1315 Referee: Lloyd Wilson Morton: 2 Manager: Dougie Imrie Lineup: Mullen; Strapp (O'Connor 83), Baird, Broadfoot, Wilson, Gillespie (Power 57), Blues (McGrattan 57),Crawford (Bearne 83), Muirhead, French, Oakley (Boyd ) Subs (not used): Murdoch; O'Boy Scorers: Oakley (20), Baird (80) Booked: Muirhead (26), Blues (29), Mullen (90+2), O'Connor (90+3), (McGrattan 90+7) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Davidson, Ujdur (Lodovica ), Devine, Boyes, Longstaff (Shaw 76), Gilmour (Welsh 76), Anderson, Harper, Wotherspoon (Brooks ), B Mckay (Sheridan 76) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Delaney, Thompson, MacGregor Scorers: none Booked: Wotherspoon (22), Shaw (83) Sent Off: none a
  8.   Chance to go fifth   This fixture was rearranged since the game on 21st October was postponed due to incoming weather conditions. At the time it was regarded as a blessing in disguise as it would give Big Dunc more time to settle into his role. Well than panned out well as he has just been named Novembers Manager of the Month and David Wotherspoon the Player of the Month. What a coup that has been, get Spoony signed up now before the big money clubs come sniffing in the January sales. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/ Supporters bus Info ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   Venue H2H v Morton Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 12 5 4 48 20 +28 Away 19 11 3 5 37 24 +13 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 40 23 8 9 85 44 +41 History shows that we have the beating of Morton both home and away. However games are not won based on history and the Championship is as tight as ever below the top four teams with anyone capable of winning on the day. Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Morton 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 2 (H) 0 - 4 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 6 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 2 - 0 (H) Last time at Cappielow we escaped with all three points: 2 - 1 Vital three points at Morton:  Danny Devine was missing again along with Roddy MacGregor and Walllace Duffy for this vital clash at Cappielow which could define our season. That left us with a sparse bench. For Morton, Brian Schwake was given the gloves despite his blunder against Arbroath and condemnation from his gaffer. Scott Allardice opened the scoring with a tremendous half-volley, drilling a precision shot low into the bottom corner from outside the box. David Carson popped up with the winner in the 88th minute to take a valuable three points North. Nathan Shaw did well to win the ball in his own half before sending a long diagonal ball forward that was helped onto Carson by Boyd for the wee man to finish well from inside the box after a great run forward. That win moves us to within a point of fifth placed Morton. George Oakley started up front against his old club. From an injury point of view it all sounds a bit familiar although since the original scheduled fixture we appear to be in a better place now Last Time Out Big Dunc ended up in the stands as his side recorded there biggest win of the season, and not before time. Our previously shot shy side came from behind to dismantle Queens Park, a side we had failed to beat on the park last season. Turner put Queens ahead after ten minutes but thereafter we were mostly in control and ended up cruising to a 4-1 win at Hampden Park. Max Anderson and Nikola Ujdur scored their first goals for the club either side of the interval before we turned on the after burners to cruise to a comfortable win with goals from our new deadly partnership of Spoony & Bill who netted from the spot. Only the one defeat in the last five for the Caley Jags as the revolution gathers pace. D W D L W  Here's Spoonyyyyyyy>>>   Dougie Imrie's struggling side beat Arbroath in the big basement battle on Saturday but they still remain in bottom place, but only one point adrift of Arbroath. McGrattan put the 'Ton ahead near the break only for the Smokies to level on the hour through David Gold. However former Caley Jag George Oakley scored the winner late in the game for Morton's first win in five. W L L L W  Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Fixtures in midweek: Morton v ICTFC (Tues) Arbroath v Raith Rovers (Wed) 1. Dundee Utd 14 10 4 0 34 6 34 2. Raith Rovers 14 10 3 1 26 17 33 3. Partick Thistle 15 7 4 4 31 25 25 4. Dunfermline 14 6 3 5 18 15 21 5. Airdrieonians 15 5 2 8 14 21 17 6. Inverness CT 14 4 4 6 17 16 16 7. Ayr United 14 4 2 8 17 26 14 8. Queens Park 14 3 4 7 19 31 13 9. Arbroath 13 4 0 9 17 27 12 10. Morton 13 3 2 8 14 23 11 Latest Team News Big Dunc himself might have to keep away from the touchline after his red card at the weekend. No improvements on the injury front with Nicolson, Doran, MacGregor and Samuels all out and Carson on paternity leave. Wallace Duffy limped off at the weekend and misses out and Harper, Ujdur and Boyes still playing within themselves regarding injuries. Dunc ahead of Morton clash>>>   Morton now have three former Inverness players in their ranks. Striker George Oakley, wide player Steven Boyd and ageing defender Kirk Broadfoot. Defender Lewis Strapp has re-joined the Greenock club on a short term deal until the end of January. Morton had these players missing at the weekend: Goalkeepers Jamie MacDonald and Jack Harkness, defender Calum Waters, midfielder Alan Power and striker Jai Quitongo. Morton team in 2-1 win over Arbroath   Mullen   Blues   Baird   Broadfoot  (O'Connor 76)  Wilson   Gillespie (Strapp 65)   Crawford   McGrattan (Boyd 75)   Muirhead   Bearne (French 65)   Oakley   Subs Not Used: O'Boy, Murdoch    
  9. Hampden Success Danny Devine had recovered from the knock that saw him limp off against Raith Rovers on the hour last week. Sean Welsh and Luis Longstaff were on the bench. Grant Savoury, Charlie Fox and Craig Napier missed out for the Spiders. Jack Turner put Queens Park ahead early in the first half before Max Anderson levelled the match ten minutes later. Jack Thomson hit the bar, Mckay deemed offside when putting a loose ball into the net after Wotherspoon's header was saved and that prompted some words of comfort for the referee for which Big Dunc eventually ended up in the stands at the break. After the interval Inverness eased themselves up into sixth place in the league with goals from Nikola Ujdur, his first for the club, David Wotherspoon and a Billy Mckay penalty. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In the eerie atmosphere of a sparse Hampden crowd, Billy Mckay had an early effort deflected behind for a corner which came to nothing. However it didn't take long for the Spiders to get their noses in front when Dom Thomas' delivery into the box was turned in by Jack the Turner. The visitors hit back on twenty-one minutes when Max Anderson met Nathan Shaw's cross to fire the ball behind Calum Ferrie. On the half hour another ball in from Shaw saw Ferrie save from Mckay. A minute later Mckay turned provider but defender Nikola Ujdur's effort was also stopped by Ferrie in the home goal. Ujdur and Mckay almost linked up again but Mckay was just short of getting on the end of his shot. Touch wood, but it was Inverness that looked most likely to get the next goal with Mckay adjudged offside after Wotherspoon's header was saved then Shaw and Anderson made Ferrie work for his money. Touch wood was appropriate as Jack Thomson struck the bar before Ridgers then saved from Stuart McKinstry as the Spiders came back to life just before the break. Duncan Ferguson also spaked into life just on the interval and was sent to the stand by referee Craig Napier for a second yellow. Settle down Dunc! HALF TIME 1-1 Tit for tat opening to the second half with Paton blocked at one end and Ferrie saving from Wotherspoon at the other end after a counter attack with Cammie Harper. Anderson saw an effort put behind for a corner, and from that corner Nikola Ujdur headed Harpers ball into the box behind Ferrie to put Inverness ahead. Better was to come after seventy-five minutes when November's Player of the Month David Wotherspoon scored his fifth goal for Inverness to put us 3-1 ahead on the day. Spoony then earned us a spot kick when he was taken down by substitute Cameron Bruce, and who else but Billy Mckay scored from the spot with a low shot into the bottom corner. The play was broken up after this by a spate of substitutions and that was our first win over Queens Park in six games. FULL TIME: 1-4 Happy Days! Our biggest win of the season, first goals for Anderson and Ujdur, with Spoony and Mckay also hitting the back of the net. All this with Ferguson sent to the stands at half time. Plenty room for him there in an empty National Stadium. Inverness move up to sixth in the table and we play Morton at Cappielow on Tuesday night where a win would see us jump another place to fifth. More match reaction to follow>>> Highlights from QP>>> The Goals >>> Here's Naughty Boy Dunc>>> Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Morton v Inverness on Tuesday night - Arbroath v Raith Rovers Wednesday night 1. Dundee Utd 14 10 4 0 34 6 34 2. Raith Rovers 14 10 3 1 26 17 33 3. Partick Thistle 15 7 4 4 31 25 25 4. Dunfermline 14 6 3 5 18 15 21 5. Airdrieonians 15 5 2 8 14 21 17 6. Inverness CT 14 4 4 6 17 16 16 7. Ayr United 14 4 2 8 17 26 14 8. Queens Park 14 3 4 7 19 31 13 9. Arbroath 13 4 0 9 17 27 12 10. Morton 13 3 2 8 14 23 11 Date: 09/12/2023 Venue: Hampden Park Attendance: 1203 Referee: Craig Napier Queens Park: 1 Manager: Robin Veldman Lineup: Ferrie; McPherson, Bannon, Reid, Robson (Bruce 70), Thomson (Longridge 60), Spong (Tizzard 70), Turner, McKinstry (Hepburn 61), Thomas, Paton Subs (not used): Kane; Healy, Jarrett, Mauchin, McCormick Scorers: Turner (10) Booked: Turner (17), Bannon (66) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 4 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Duffy (Davidson 84), Ujdur , Devine, Boyes, Shaw (Longstaff 81), Gilmour (Welsh 90+1), Anderson, Harper, Wotherspoon (Lodovica 83), B Mackay (Brooks 83) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Delaney, Sheridan, Thompson Scorers: Anderson (21), Ujdur (59), Wotherspoon (75), B Mckay (80 pen) Booked: none Sent Off: none a
  10. Nemesis Time On Saturday at 3:00pm it's nemesis time as we face Queens Park at Hampden Park. The Spiders have had the beating of us since getting back into the Championship in season 2022/2023. We did, ahem, put them out of the Scottish Cup last season by default on our way to the final, however we have always struggled against teams who are willing to hit fast on the break and Queens have been guilty of that. We, on the other hand, are somewhat ponderous and shot-shy, and that's something that needs addressed. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket info Supporters bus Buses for rest of 2023: 9th Dec Queens Park leaving stadium 10.30 - 12th Dec Morton leaving stadium 2pm - 23rd Dec Partick leaving stadium at 10.00 - picking up Aviemore and Pitlochry. £20 a seat. Buses filling up fast so book early through Facebook or on 07462218717 to avoid disappointment. BACK THE TEAM ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 13 4 5 4 16 16 0 Away 8 5 0 3 15 12 +3 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 21 9 5 7 31 28 +3 Queens have our card marked since they popped back up into the championship in 2022 to draw 1-1 at the Caledonian Stadium. That was as good as it got against the Spiders since then as we failed to record a win on the park in all six meetings since then. However, off the park we seem to be a bit smarter than the average Spider. Last 6 Competitive Meetings - Previous meetings were up until 2010 1 - 2 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 0 - 2 (H) 0 - 0 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) It was an opening day defeat at the Caledonian Stadium this season: 1 - 2 Here's the CTO report:- In a brisk opening to the game Wallace Duffy headed over from a corner in the second minute and at the other end Mark Ridgers was brought into action to deny Jack Thomson. Nathan Shaw also had an effort saved by Callan McKenna in the top corner. A good move forward ended with Charlie Fox blocking Charlie Gilmour after seventeen minutes and Billy Mckay went close but he dragged his effort wide of the mark. Queens were enjoying the majority of the possession and on the half hour they opened the scoring when Barry Hepburn fed Dom Thomas who scored into the top of the net. Inverness responded and Shaw saw McKenna save his free kick. Ridgers then saved from Jack Spong as Queens dominance continued. However we were still able to carve out chances and McKenna did well to deny Mckay just on the interval from a Jake Davidson cross. HALF TIME: 0-1 Austin Samuels shot high and wide at the start of the second half but it was Queens who added a second three minutes into the half through Tommy Robson, shooting into the bottom corner to leave us chasing the game. Thomas had an effort saved minutes later as Queens dominated play. Ridgers then saved from Louis Longridge at the expense of a corner kick as Queens Park threatened to run away with the game. Robson was then denied by the overworked Ridgers as QP looked to kill the game off. Substitute Keith Bray was denied by McKenna as we probed for a way back into the game. Samuels blazed another shot high and wide and that brought about the introduction of Harry Lodovica. With time slipping away Davidson scored with a close range header from a Cammy Harper cross. Alas it was too little too late for Inverness who went down to an opening day defeat. FULL TIME: 1-2 Last Time Out Ferguson tasted defeat at the eighth time of asking after we let a one goal lead slip away in time added on as Jamie Gullan smashed home a penalty for Raith Rovers. Billy Mckay had given Inverness the lead after the break when he stole in between two defenders to nod an inviting Wotherspoon cross down into the net, but Lewis Vaughan netted five minutes before the end to kick start the late surge. Disappointing to throw away this lead and Big Dunc must shoulder some of the blame for this as we sat back and invited Rovers to come at us. Learning curve for everyone. Last Five in the Championship: W D W D L Queens Park's last Championship game was on 11th of November. They too went down to a late show from Raith Rovers, they too lost a late lead, in the 89th minute, and they too went down to a time added on penalty scored by Ross Milllen, with only ten men. Extraordinary stuff from Rovers to be honest. They should buy a lottery ticket right away. Turner and Paton were the goalscorers for the Spiders in this one. No wins in their last nine games going back to a 1-0 win over Arbroath back on the19th of August. Incidentally that was the second win over Arbroath in a week, a 2-1 win the previous weekend. However, their last game was a 3-0 away defeat in the Scottish Cup to high flying Partick Thistle on 25th November. Last Five in the Championship: D D D D L Big game at the top end of the table on Friday night as Raith Rovers take on Partick Thistle. ***It ended 4-3 to Rovers to put them on top of the table for now. Congratulations to Novembers Championship Manager and Player of the Month. Big Dunc & Spoony Latest Team News Usual suspects missing in the longer term but the news that Roddy MacGregor is back training on the park is a bonus. Danny Devine limped off last week against Raith Rovers and David Carson is still out on parental leave. Shaw, Ujdur and Boyes are all nursing their own fitness and aches and strains. Ajax have appointed Queen's Park director of football Marijn Beuker to the same role at the Eredivisie club. The Dutchman joined Queen's Park in 2021, having previously been head of football development and strategy with AZ Alkmaar for eight years. Top scorer this season is Ruari Paton who is way out on his own with 11 goals. Nearest to him is Jack Turner with four. Team in 3-0 cup defeat to Partick Thistle. Ferrie McPherson Bannon Fox Robson (Bruce 69) Thomson Spong (Hepburn 68) Turner Thomas Paton McKinstry (Longridge 55) Subs Not Used: Kane; Healy, Tizzard, Reid, Jarrett, Mauchin
  11. Just Like Buses None for 23 years then two in a row as Raith came from behind to win with a time added on penalty converted by Jamie Gullan. Billy Mckay had opened the scoring with a header on the hour but a late surge by Rovers won it. Lewis Vaughan four minutes from the end then the penalty to take the win at the death scored by Jamie Gullan. We should have had a penalty of our own after that, but Mr Williams chose to ignore it. We snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, and that one hurt. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Second top with only one defeat, Raith had been flying high before this one. Big Dunc has turned the fortunes around of a once jaded looking Caley Jags, unbeaten in seven. Something was going to give and it did, Dunc's streak came to an end. Ferguson was without the usual long term injured and David Carson was expecting . Harper and Boyes were struggling through the week but made the starting XI. Raith Rovers defender Ross Millen missed this one through suspension and Liam Dick had been missing lately through injury but was fit enough to start this one. The games at Ayr, Dunfermline and Morton were all frozen off. Only Inverness and Maryhill escaped the big freeze ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Temperatures were hovering around freezing as the game kicked off in bright sunshine. The visitors were first to settle and enjoyed the early pressure with Inverness comfortably mopping up most attacks. However we failed to find an outlet with a lot of misplaced passes from defence and the midfield were struggling to get to grips with the game. Closest to a goal in the first half was when the ball bounced off a surprised Ridgers' shins onto the post and he cleared it at the second fumble. In truth we were equally as poor as we were the week before against Cowdenbeath. Slow out of the blocks, sluggish all over the park and misplacing passes like nobody's business. Little surprise it was goalless at the break. HALF TIME: 0-0 The second half was played at a better pace and we were more in Raith's face. Raith managed a shot and couple of headers from Hamilton as they still looked the most likely to score, but neither keeper was overly troubled. On the hour we broke well down the left before we found ourselves outside the box on the right side. Wotherspoon lifted a cross into the box and Billy Mckay did well to make it his ball and headed low into the bottom corner of the net. With twenty minutes left Longstaff should have done better after a sweeping move down the left saw Shaw find him at the far side of the box. It all happened in slow motion thereafter and Longstaff's weak shot was easily saved by Dobrowski. Longstaff then turned provider but Anderson's effort from the cut back cannoned back off the crossbar. That would have given us a decent cushion. Alas it all went pear shaped in the final ten minutes. We began to look nervy in defence and sat deeper and deeper. Ujdur and Wotherspoon missed the target when we did go forward but we paid the penalty with five minutes left when Vaughan turned in the box to drill home through a ruck of players. Worse was to come deep into stoppage time when Longstaff brought down Sam Stanton. Game over as Gullan smashed the ball high into the net to win the game. Longstaff again was involved in the final effort of the game after Sheridan was getting the shirt pulled off his back, but the ball fell just behind him and a decent opportunity just became another clearance and that was it. FULL TIME: 1-2 That was a sore one after putting in a much better second half performance. Maybe Dunc will sort out why we are so ponderous at times compared to other sides, even Cowdenbeath broke quicker than we did. Poor first half again followed by a great header from Billy and one off the bar from Anderson. Then we regressed. Danny Devine going off injured didn't help and taking Mckay and Wotherspoon off doesn't seem like such a good idea now. Hey ho! We could have broken up play in time added on by using our last two substitutes. Instead we gifted a penalty and lost the game. Meh! Best for Inverness were Mckay, Wotherspoon and Ujdur and maybe Longstaff if he had a bit more belief in himself. The rest need to go back to basic passing. Our throw ins are as bad as ever and whilst I'm at it, we have no outlet when defending a corner. Stick someone on the halfway line Dunc. Closest to a goal in the first half was when the ball bounced off a surprised Ridgers' shins onto the post and he cleared it at the second fumble. Plenty of talk after the game about this scramled effort early in the game. I thought at the time it was fortunate but the whole ball did not cross the line. What is it with us and the woodwork just now? Video shows the ball never crossed the line. Close though! How about this tug on Sheridan after Raith's penalty. Shouldn't have been too difficult for Mr Williams to see from only twenty yards away. Consistently poor refereeing throughout this game. Where do we find these guys? Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts 1. Dundee Utd 13 9 4 0 33 6 31 2. Raith Rovers 13 9 3 1 22 14 30 3. Partick Thistle 14 7 4 3 28 21 25 4. Dunfermline 13 5 3 5 16 14 18 5. Airdrieonians 14 5 2 7 13 19 17 6. Ayr United 13 4 2 7 17 25 14 7. Inverness CT 13 3 4 6 13 15 13 8. Queens Park 13 3 4 6 18 27 13 9. Arbroath 12 4 0 8 16 25 12 10. Morton 12 2 2 8 12 22 8 Robert was philosophical on CTO: That’s a sore one to take but in reality we were outplayed until we took the lead against the run of play. If Raith had had their shooting boots on, they’d have been out of sight by half time. We were much better in the second half, but the goal was a surprise when it came. We then had our best spell and created several chances, coming very close when Anderson (by then playing in a more advanced role) cannoned one off the post. Then the late equaliser meant we looked like getting a point (which we’d all have taken at half time) but the stoppage time penalty was a sickener. Losing Devine meant a change of shape to 4 at the back, but I felt we played better with two wide players than we had with Duffy and Harper being wing backs. I’m not blaming the changes as Mckay and Wotherspoon had worked their socks off, and it seems to be the norm that they give us 100% for 70 minutes before being taken off. It is maybe the reality check we need, as our results have been better than our performances. If we had to lose our unbeaten run, I’d rather it was today than in any of the next three against the teams below us, Queens Park, Morton and Arbroath. Date: 02/12/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2143 Referee: Duncan Williams Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers, Duffy, Ujdur, Devine (Longstaff 63), Boyes, Gilmour, Anderson, Wotherspoon (Welsh 80), Harper, Shaw, B Mckay (Sheridan 79) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Davidson, Delaney, Thompson, Lodovica, Brooks, Scorers: Vaughan (86), Gullan (90+4 pen) Booked: Devine (34), Gilmour (83) Sent Off: none Raith Rovers: 2 Manager: Ian Murray Lineup: Dabrowski; Dick, Corr (McGill 84), O'Reilly, Connolly (Smith 73), Mullin, Easton, Stanton, Byrne, Vaughan (Hannah 90+2), Hamilton (Gullan 73) Subs (not used): Thomson; Masson Scorers: B Mckay (61) Booked: Corr (75), Gullan (90+4) Sent Off: none a
  12. Rovers Return Ian Murray brings the new improved version of Raith Rovers North on Saturday; only one defeat in the Championship this season. They take on Big Dunc's marauders, unbeaten in seven games since he took over from Billy Dodds' plodders. The transformation has been stark in just two months. (apart from all conquering Nairn County in the NoS Cup). Rovers got the monkey off their back on 16th September when they ended an almost twenty-three year wait to taste victory against the Caley Jags over 90 minutes. Meh! Anyway, big Dunc has previous against Raith Rovers, let's hope it's a more amicable outcome this time. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket Info Scottish Cup v Broomhill ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H v Raith Rovers Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 14 5 2 40 15 +25 Away 18 9 5 4 34 22 +12 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 39 23 10 6 74 37 +37 Only six defeats against Raith after they had dominated the opening few fixtures against us. Only two defeats in the Highlands. For +40, against -15. What could possibly go wrong? Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Raith Rovers 0 - 1 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 2 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 2 - 0 (A) 3 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 0 - 0 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 0 (H) That great run had to come to an end some time. 0 - 1 Record Breakers: Never had there been a better time for Raith Rovers to break the Caley Jags hoodoo! Inverness, without a win in their last eight games, and Billy Dodds and the management team under fire. A 23 year run of games without a win for Raith Rovers was brought to an end today when Jamie Gullan smashed home from 15 yards with five minutes left. It was harsh on Inverness who dominated for long spells earlier in the game, but it leaves the management with some tough decisions to make. There will be dancing on the streets of Raith tonight! Pars beat Arbroath 3-0 since this table - Ayr United v Arbroath OFF Frozen pitch That means the Pars are 4th on 18 pts. - Morton v Dundee Utd OFF Frozen Pitch Last Time Out We struggled to perform to a high standard in our cup tie with Cowdenbeath using a 50/50 squad. After eighty minutes, the earlier introduction of Wotherspoon and Mckay proved crucial as they scored two excellent strikes to see us into the next round where we will face Broomhill at home in January. Raith did win the first meeting between the clubs this season, but it was closer than many thought it might have been, even with a side down on their luck. Jamie Gullan it was that rammed in the only goal of the game. Last five Championship results D W D W D Raith Rovers had a tremendous result in the cup at East End Park as they brushed aside the Pars 3-0. Jack Hamilton opened the scoring early in the first half and Sam Stanton and Lewis Vaughan ensured there would be no comeback from Dunfermline this time, not even thewoodwork could help them. Last five Championship results D W W D W Latest Team News Longer term players still missing and we can add David Carson who is pregnant , Cammy Harper and Morgan Boyes who have injuries to shake off. Roddy MacGregor is back in training, so that's a bonus. Samuels and Doran nowhere near fitness. Jake Davidson got a few minutes last week. Ian Murray is building a good squad at Stark's Park. Lewis Vaughan is top scorer with six goals followed by Callum Smith and Dylan Easton on five apiece. Ross Millen will miss this one through suspension and Liam Dick has been missing through injury. Team v Dunfermline in Scottish Cup win Dabrowski Millen Brown O'Reilly Connolly Mullin Easton Stanton Smith (McGill 86) Vaughan Hamilton (Gullan 78) Subs not used: Thomson; Hannah, Corr.
  13. Wood you believe it? Big Dunc was looking to remain unbeaten in six, but Inverness were without half a dozen long term injured players including more recent casualties, Jake Davidson, Austin Samuels and Aaron Doran. Captain Sean Welsh was on the bench after a recent back injury. Dunfermline have their own long term absentees but had Deniz Mehmet back between the sticks after his head knock last week and Machael O'Halloran was fit enough to make the bench, with Alex Jakubiak and Craig Wighton as strong back-ups. Best early moments saw Dunfermline hit the post four times inside a couple of minutes but fortune favoured the visitors. Make that six hits on the Inverness woodwork, but Danny Devine showed them all how to hit the net two minutes before the break as tempers flared at the end of the half. More woodwork in the second half and Dunfermline salvaged a point with three minutes left through McCann...... in off the post! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Floodlights on from the start as the visitors set the ball rolling at 15:00 on a rather grey day. First corner of the game to the Pars but it came to nothing as did the Caley Jags' first corner minutes later. Lewis McCann had the first serious attempt but his header was poor and it bounced into the ground without troubling Ridgers. Nathan Shaw was blocked at one and immediately Danny Devine thwarted Matty Todd at the other end as he tried to break through on goal. Owen Moffat dipped a shot over after twenty minutes with Ridgers watching closely. The Pars hit both posts when McCann turned and shot and the ball bounced perilously close to the line before being cleared after hitting the other post. Moments later Hosler slid in and hit the post once more and the rebound came off Devine to hit the post again. After an Inverness corner, Billy Mckay had a low effort blocked in a crowded box. Ridgers saved from Ritchie-Hosler, then on the half hour Cammy Harper missed what is generally described as an open goal at the back post after a Mckay sclaff found it's way to him but he sliced wide. Wood you believe it! Incredibly the Pars hit the woodwork another twice after Morgan Boyes played a loose pass back. McCann hit the inside of the post then Moffat's effort came off the bar from the rebound. From another home corner a Boyes header went agonisingly close to opening the scoring. Danny Devine showed his strikers how to do it a couple of minutes before half time as he drilled into the net. Amazingly, the visitors made it to the interval without conceding, the posts, however, were battered and bruised as were Gilmour, Harper, Chalmers and Hamilton after a clash with yellow cards dished out in a frantic ending to the half. HALF TIME: 0-1 If anything the rain was heavier as the second half kicked off with no alterations to either side and Inverness making some early headway to no avail. Harper fired a cross into the box which David Wotherspoon almost connected properly with but it went wide. Touch wood, but it was a much more positive start to the second half for the visitors. Harper did well to clear away a dangerous McCann cross with substitute Jakubiak lurking with intent. Inverness survived another cafuffle in the box involving Jakubiak again and minutes later he was looking for a penalty under a Devine intervention. A seventh strike off the woodwork saved the visitors again from a thunderous Otoo effort from distance. Lewis McCann levelled the game with three minutes left. Unfortunately the post helped the Pars this time as McCann's effort went in via the post. FULL TIME: 1-1 An incredible game with Woodwork named as MotM with seven tremendous saves and one assist at the end as the Pars got the reward their endeavour deserved. Great finish from Danny Devine for the opening goal, scoring like a Pro. Nobody could grudge Dunfermline their leveller although it came at a time when we looked most comfortable and likely to see out the game for all three points. It's a funny olde game as they used to say. Date: 18/11/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 5034 Referee: Euan Anderson Dunfermline: 1 Manager: James McPake Lineup: Mehmet; Fisher, Hamilton, Otoo, Ritchie-Hosler (O'Halloran 70), Allan, Todd (Jakubiak 60), Chalmers, Edwards, McCann, Moffat (Wighton 70) Subs (not used): Sharp; Little; Fenton, Comrie Scorers: McCann (88) Booked: Chalmers (45), Hamilton (45+3) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Ujdur (Duffy 65), Devine, Boyes, Harper, Gilmour, Anderson, Wotherspoon (Welsh 84), Shaw, B Mckay (Longstaff 65) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Delaney, Lodovica, Thompson, Brooks, Sheridan Scorers: Devine (43) Booked: Gilmour (45+2), Harper (45+3), Duffy (74) Sent Off: none a
  14. Talkin bout a revolution A trip to Dunfermline beckons this Saturday as Dunc's revolution picks up pace. Unbeaten since his arrival, the Caley Jags take on 5th place Dunfermline Athletic in another tough encounter. A win for Inverness would see Dunc's men climb above the Pars but it's big ask. This will be your only Championship fix this weekend, so the opportunity is there for one of these sides to make up some ground on those above them. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/Info Supporters Bus Full Cowdenbeath Cup Tie Battery Farm ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 10 9 5 31 22 +9 Away 24 9 10 5 29 26 +3 Neutral 2 0 1 1 3 4 -1 Total 50 19 20 11 63 52 +11 Our home and away encounters with the Pars show similar statistics with only five defeats at East End Park. Last season Dunfermline were heading back into the Championship after a season in League 1 where they bounced back up as Champions. Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Dunfermline 1 - 1 (H) 2 - 0 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 3 (A) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 0 (H) More points thrown away: Full report (Jan 2022) 1 - 1 Inverness wasted an opportunity to put pressure on the top of the table after squandering a first half lead through Shane Sutherland. Steven Lawless levelled from the spot in the second half with ten minutes remaining after David Carson was adjudged to have blocked a cross with a flailing arm. Another drab performance after a first half full of promise. No surprise really given recent performances, but frustrating nonetheless. A very disappointing second half from Inverness after a first half that was full of promise. Maybe Danny Devine going off injured just before the interval decided our tactic for the second half, or maybe Dunfermline just realised they could get something from the game. That point lifts them off the foot of the table for now, our point puts us in second position when we really should have been knocking on Arbroaths door at the top. Whatever the reason, the fans are getting somewhat disgruntled as we are without a win in five games now. It does seem like a long time ago that we absolutely thrashed Morton 6-1 on 11th December. Only four points from our last five games, or four points from a possible fifteen. That's not the form of a team going for promotion. Sort it! Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Dunfermline v Inverness CT is the only Championship fixture tomorrow 1. Dundee Utd 13 9 4 0 33 6 31 2. Raith Rovers 12 8 3 1 20 13 27 3. Partick Thistle 13 6 4 3 26 20 22 4. Airdrieonians 13 5 2 6 12 17 17 5. Dunfermline 11 4 2 5 12 13 14 6. Ayr United 13 4 2 7 17 25 14 7. Queens Park 13 3 4 6 18 27 13 8. Inverness CT 11 3 3 5 11 12 12 9. Arbroath 11 4 0 7 16 22 12 10. Morton 12 2 2 8 12 22 8 Last Time Out Inverness romped home agsinst Ayr United after scoring three first half goals in a ten minute spell before the break. David Wotherspoon scored twice and Billy Mckay crashed in a penalty in a dominant first half. The second half was an anti-climax with Ayr scoring a penalty of their own through Jamie Murphy. The points were more important than the performance and it pulled Inverness clear of the bottom team Morton. Last Five Games: W D W D W In the first meeting between the clubs this season it ended all square in the Highlands in September. Nathan Shaw's early goal cancelled out ten minutes before the end by a Chris Hamilton header. FULL TIME: 1-1 The two new loan payers aquitted themselves well without setting the pulses racing. The defence did appear to be more rigid although we were found wanting at the equaliser. Nathan Shaw was the most likely to cause problems and so it proved. Poor decision by Ridgers to decide to flap at thin air for the goal but made amends to earn our point with a tremendous save later. Pars were much more direct than us and you couldn't grudge them their point. However that point still leaves us floundering at the foot of the table with one point from a possible twelve. Dunfermline's last game saw them go down narrowly to a late goal from Chris Mochrie as Dundee United continued unbeaten at the top of the table. United lead in the first half through Fotheringham before Owen Moffat levelled the game ten minutes after the interval. Mochrie hit the winner with just five minutes left on the clock. Last Five Games: L L L W L Latest Team News Half a dozen still missing with Boyes picking up an injury but Dunc is hopeful he will make the squad. So not much change from last week in terms of squad numbers and big Dunc still grappling with the players names Dunfermline manager James McPake had keeper Mehmet and striker Michael O'Halloran taken off injured last Friday against United. Alex Jakubiak replaced Craig Wighton after the hour and he looked threatening. Joe Chalmers is still at East End Park. Pars team in 1-2 loss to the Arabs Mehmet (Sharp 45) Fisher Hamilton Otoo Comrie (Hosler 75) Allan Chalmers Edwards O'Halloran (McCann 22) Moffat (Todd 55) Wighton (Jakubiak 60) Subs Not Used: Fenton, Little And finally the tables are starting to turn Talkin' 'bout a revolution Yes, finally the tables are starting to turn Talkin' 'bout a revolution, oh, no
  15. Dunc on the Up Inverness added Sean Welsh to the ever expanding longer term injury list suffering from a recurring back injury, but Luis Longstaff was fit enough to make the bench. Ayr United had Logan Chalmers, Jamie Murphy and Anton Dowds as a triple threat up front. Despite this, Inverness cruised home without having to get out of second gear. Three goals inside the last ten minutes of the first half ended the game as a contest. Two from David Wotherspoon and a penalty from Billy Mckay. Ayr got a consolation penalty in a poor second half, but it was an important three points for the Caley Jags and Big Dunc ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A bright and calm afternoon saw the teams take to the pitch with a growing army of disciples watching from the stands. As kick-off approached, a shrill whistle from the referee saw the crowd fall impeccably silent to commemorate those that made the ultimate sacrifice during the conflicts...... lest we forget. An early injury to birthday boy Cammy Harper was a worry for Duncan Ferguson but that wasn't enough to keep Cammy from his own party. In truth we gave a mediocre Ayr United too much respect. That was until David Wotherspoon tapped in from one yard after we opened the Ayr defence inside their own box. He added a second with the aid of a deflection as we looked to kill the game and the icing was on the cake when Billy Mckay buried a penalty after Reading tripped Charlie Gilmour in the box in the final act of the first half. HALF TIME: 3-0 The second half was the epitome of an anti-climax. After the opening ten minutes of the second period when we toyed with Ayr and looked likely to run up a Rugby score, neither keeper was over exerted and the game deteriorated as a spectacle. With Ayr looking unlikely to breach our defence they were awarded a stonewall penalty when Rose was brought down by Ridgers as he raced onto a ball into the box. Murphy drilled home the resultant spot kick. In fairness to both sides, the damage was done in the last few minutes of the first half which took any urgency out of the game, especially for Inverness. FULL TIME: 3-1 As comfortable as it was it was still a poor second half where we should have gone on to put Ayr to the sword. As it was, the result was huge in the context of our season and we can overlook the turgid performance in the light of three excellent points and a step up the table to eighth place with games in hand over some teams. More Match Reaction to Follow>>> Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Big Dunc is on the march 1. Dundee Utd 13 9 4 0 33 6 31 2. Raith Rovers 12 8 3 1 20 13 27 3. Partick Thistle 13 6 4 3 26 20 22 4. Airdrieonians 13 5 2 6 12 17 17 5. Dunfermline 11 4 2 5 12 13 14 6. Ayr United 13 4 2 7 17 25 14 7. Queens Park 13 3 4 6 18 27 13 8. Inverness CT 11 3 3 5 11 12 12 9. Arbroath 11 4 0 7 16 22 12 10. Morton 12 2 2 8 12 22 8 Robert on CTO: The first half hour was pretty even but we had an explosive 15 minutes before half time which settled the game. Wotherspoon is proving a real asset and I hope we extend his contract beyond January. Mckay did brilliantly to start the build up to the first goal. Wotherspoon squeezed his second in from a very tight angle and Mckay buried the penalty. None of us saw that all coming after 30 minutes. We were pinned back for most of the second half and Ayr’s penalty made it slightly nervy but we saw it out. My only complaint is that we invited Ayr on to us too much in the second half. However, Ridgers did not have much to do. We lost Anderson at half time, presumably to injury, but hopefully a precautionary change. The picks for me were Wotherspoon, Mckay and Boyes. Credit also to Harper who nullified Chalmers to the point we didn’t see Chalmers after the break. 11 points out of 15 and up to 8th. If we can win at Dunfermline in our first game in hand next week we will be 5th. Well done guys! Date: 11/11/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2259 Referee: Iain Snedden Inverness CT: 3 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Ujdur, Boyes, Devine, Harper Carson (Duffy 57), Gilmour, Anderson (Longstaff 45), Wotherspoon (Brooks 89), Shaw, Mckay (Sheridan 78) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Thompson, Delaney, Lodovica Scorers: Wotherspoon (32, 43), B Mckay (45+2 pen) Booked: Anderson (27), Brooks(90+2) Sent Off: none Ayr United: 1 Manager: Lee Bullen Lineup: Mutch; McAllister, Stanger (F Ecremont 12), McGinty, Reading, Chalmers (Rose 45), Syla, Senga (Amartey 69), Murphy, McKenzie (McGeady 79), Dowds (Young 69) Subs (not used): O Ecremont; Smith, Bryden, Scorers: Murphy (61 pen) Booked: none Sent Off: none a
  16. Ayr Do for Dunc Ayr United are next up for big Dunc as his salvage operation gathers pace after a great away point at Tannadice last week. We're not quite at the Big Dunc's revolution stage, more of an evolution but we are heading in the right direction after a poor start to the season. Ayr come up North on Saturday for a 3:00pm start sitting in fifth place on goal difference with 14 points looking to get back into the top four. We could strike a crucial blow to their aspirations should we come out on top as we are five points behind them with two games in hand. It's a six pointer this early in the season! Big talking point this week in the Highlands is the departure of Sporting Director John Robertson as he leaves to "pursue other opportunities". All the best to Robbo in his new venture and one can't help but imagine that might free up some wages for a player or two. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match Ticket Info & Lest we Forget John Robertson Leaving ICTFC Cowdenbeath Cup Date Confirmed ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue for H2H v Ayr Utd Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 10 11 3 39 26 +13 Away 26 12 6 8 47 32 +15 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 50 22 17 11 86 58 +28 Only eleven defeats overall versus Ayr United but they held the upper hand over the last two encounters both home and away. We have had some tremendous games against the Honest Men over the years with five, six and even seven goal games an occasional feature of these clashes in bygone days. Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Ayr Utd 0 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 2 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 2 - 2 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 2 - 2 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 2 - 2 (H) Ayr took the points in the first encounter this season at Somerset Park 0 - 1>>> Pointless: Notable absentees for Ayr were last seasons Championship top scorer Dipo Akinyemi who has gone to York City and long time servant Michael Moffat who spent eleven years over two spells at Somerset Park scoring 77 goals in 263 appearances. Dodds was without Roddy MacGregor and Lewis Nicolson with knee injuries. Sean Welsh has a groin injury and also missed out again as did Austin Samuels and Max Ram. Adam Brooks returned to the bench and Danny Devine replaced the missing Wallace Duffy. New sensation Keith Bray started with Inverness down to only six on the bench. Injuries starting early this season already it would seem with six missing.. Ayr got off to the perfect start after just eight minutes when Francis Amartey, Dempsey and Sam Ashford combined for Amartey to slot home the opening goal. Mark Ridgers saved on his line from Nick McAllister as Ayr looked to double their lead. Keith Bray was blocked going into the box and from the follow up Albinson saved from David Carson at the expense of a corner. Plenty of half chances for both sides to score in the first half with Devine going close for the visitors but Albinson tipped over. Longstaff also went close on the break but his shot bounced just wide. Billy Dodds fell foul of the referee on the interval and had to watch the remainder of the game from the stands. (See how he likes it!) HALF TIME: 1-0 Longstaff saw his header saved ten minutes after the interval as Inverness looked to get back into the game. A spate of substitutions on the hour for Ayr and Harry Lodovica replaced Bray for the visitors before a Jake Davidson cross found Nathan Shaw, but his effort came back off the post. With twenty minutes remaining Shaw was blocked in the box as we chased for a leveller. Substitute Aiden McGeady shot wide approaching the final ten minutes and Cammy Harper failed to hit the target at the other end. Aaron Doran fired a free kick wide from a tight angle and McGeady missed again as time was running away from us. Ridgers tipped over from Pendelbury in the 90th minute and the as so often, the game slipped away from us to leave us bottom of the table with Arbroath. FULL TIME: 1-0 Another defeat leaves Inverness pointless at the foot of the table with Arbroath as Ayr got their first win of the campaign thanks to an early goal from Francis Amartey. Not for the want of trying, but Inverness could not find an equaliser and that will pile more misery on under fire boss Billy Dodds. Our injury situation seems never-ending and we could only muster six on the bench. Dodds watched from the stand in the second half and will now know why we are concerned... The natives are no happy on CTO with many asking for a total clearout from top to bottom, questioning the length of contract offered to Billy Dodds. The buck stops at the very top and that is a massive concern for all. Top scorer Billy Mckay was a forlorn figure and was not best pleased at being subbed. Something is wrong that's not right. Sort it now before we leave this league at the wrong end of the table. Thankfully things have changed somewhat. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Last Time Out Big Dunc fashioned us into a squad prepared to dig deep at Tannadice and it paid off as we came away with a credible draw against the League Leaders. A wonderful team goal manufactured from inside our own box all the way down the left wing before Harper crossed for Shaw to drill home from fifteen yards. Total football, great goal! The Arabs levelled five minutes later when Holt thundered in a bullet header to share the spoils. Some outstanding performers on the day with Ridgers making crucial saves, defenders putting their bodies on the line, midfielders helping out at the front and the back whilst remaining creative, and strikers.... erm still missing plenty, but also tracking back to help out. Last Five Results: L W D W D Ayr United are without a win in their last three games and were pegged back by Queens Park last Saturday in a 2-2 draw. Two first half strikes from Anton Dowds had Ayr cruising, but Bannon scored after the break and five minutes into time added on Paton claimed a point for the Spiders in a dramatic finale with his sixth cincher goal of the season. Last Five Results: W W L D D <<< There's your top scorers in the Championship ahead of Friday nights encounter between Dunfermline Athletic and Dundee United. Brian Graham has almost scored as many goals as the Caley Jags have in the Championship (8). That's something that Ferguson needs to address if we are to climb the table into a challenging position (at the top end). Nathan Shaw is our top scorer this season with three Championship goals to his name. Despite netting his 102nd goal with a penalty in the 3-2 loss to Airdrie in the League Cup group stages, Billy has only netted once in the Championship since then at Arbroath some five games ago. He has three goals in total, two in the League Cup group stages. That's not a great return from your top striker. Latest Team News We are still without any of our half dozen longer term injured players. Sean Welsh missed out again last week and will join the long term club. Luis Longstaff and Jake Davidson were also injured at Tannadice. Wallace Duffy returned from the bench to replace an injured David Carson who is a doubt this week. Danny Devine and Morgan Boyes started at Tannadice after being out for a couple of games. According to our stats, Mark Ridgers should make his 250th appearance for his home town team. Another clean sheet would be fitting and most welcome. Ayr did settled down after an inconsistent start and still have Logan Chalmers. We know what he is capable of. Anton Dowds netted twice last week and he is their top scorer with 5 strikes. Former Motherwell player Jamie Murphy and ex-ICT loanee Chalmers have four goals apiece. Ayr team v Queens Pk: Dowds Mutch Ahui McGinty Stanger Reading Chalmers (Senga 75) Young Syla (Smith 45) Murphy (McGeady 79) Rose (Bryden 64) Dowds (Amartey 75) Subs not used: O & F Ecremont, McKenzie, McAllister Apparently their bench was full of Ecremont. Well, that's what I thought he said Lest We Forget: With this game being played on Remembrance Day, the club will be offering Free Entry to UK Forces personnel, past and present. One Adult & One Child per application. (home or away support) FORCES GO FREE
  17. All conquering Arab's await It's a massive test for Big Dunc's battlers as we head to Tannadice this Saturday for a game against runaway League leaders and promotion favourites Dundee United. I'm sure he will be remembered fondly by the Arab's faithful. Dunc made 88 appearances for United and a £4million pound transfer profit when he joined Rangers before a 'clash' of heads saw him spend some time at her Majesty's pleasure in 1994. 3:00pm is the scheduled kick-off time for this one and it will be a foolish man who will put money on an away win. We are, however, often better without the favourites tag although this one might be a bridge too far as Jim Goodwins unbeaten team are sweeping all aside mercilessly. They won the first fixture at the Caledonian Stadium 1-0 back in September, just after the end of Doddsball when we were managerless. We are more solid at the back now with Ujdur, Devine and Boyes to choose from but still a bit toothless up front although David Wotherspoon showed on his debut what a bit of class will do for you. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/ticket/travel info Forces go Free ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue: H2H v Dundee Utd Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 34 10 10 14 35 44 -9 Away 28 7 10 11 36 42 -6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 62 17 20 25 71 86 -15 As expected, United have the edge in these fixtures, especially over the last 10 fixtures. Last 10 Competitive Meetings: 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 0 - 3 (H) 1 - 4 (A) 0 - 3 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 0 - 2 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 0 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) The last time we won at Tannadice was in March 2019 in a Scottish Cup Quarter Final tie. KARMA BIG STYLE: Full report 2 - 1. Inverness opened the scoring when Joe Chalmers cut onto his left foot and curled the ball into the roof of the net from sixteen yards for a sublime goal. Chalmers almost added a second but he volleyed onto the bar from six yards when the ball found him unmarked. The first half ended at 1-0 with Ridgers a virtual spectator. Substitute Paul McMullan blatantly cheated to earn a penalty and Nicky Clark slotted his second in two games. In a dramatic finish, Nathan Austin had a marginal offside decision go against him as he superbly headed home a Polworth free kick, however, Aaron Doran nodded home after a fantastic knock on from Jordan White to win the tie in the second minute of time added on. Aaron Doran was MotM, and not just for his goal, his all round game showed he was a menace to United from the start. To be honest you couldn't fault anyone in a total team performance. Jordan White has become a fans favourite after a stuttering start at Inverness and he showed yesterday how important he is to our game plan. Chalmers was incredible as well and Liam Polworth showed his value with some great through balls. Unsung heroes all over the park and none moreso that Charlie Trafford who was immense in the engine room. Hampden here we come! In the first encounter this season: 0 - 1 Late Strike Ruins the Day: Another very late goal ruined what had been a reasonably resolute performance by managerless Inverness. However, the end result remains the same and we went down to an avoidable sclaff in time added on when substitute Chris Mochrie poked the ball home after Ridgers had cleared a bouncing effort away from the top corner only for the United players to react quickest to prod the ball into the bottom corner with the aid of a deflection. Meh! It doesn't rain but it pours... Last Time Out Inverness recorded their first home win of the Championship Season after Big Dunc led the team to a narrow 1-0 victory over Airdrieonians. The winner came when David Wotherspoon showed quick feet and composure on his debut to stroke home eight minutes before the break. Not a vintage performance but we restricted Airdrie to very little as we kept the visitors out to record a clean sheet and three points in the bag, albeit withstanding a late push from the visitors as they tried to salvage a point. Last Five: L L W D W Dundee United beat Airdrie at the Shyberry Excelsior Stadium on Tuesday night having hammered Arbroath 6-0 last Friday night. Kai Fotheringham scored twice against the Diamonds to put the Arabs on 27 points at the top of the table. Louis Moult scored a brace against Arbroath as United flexed their muscle. Docherty Fotheringham, Watt and Cudjoe were also on the mark. That's eight goals for Moult, the former Motherwell striker. Kevin Holt has 7 with Kai Fotheringham on 6. Cudjoe has 4 goals attributed to him and thats a pretty potent strike force, four scorers in the top ten Championship goalscorers. Moult was an unused sub against Airdrie. Last five: W D W W W Dunfermline beat Morton 2-1 last night to keep Morton below us in the table ahead of today's games. Latest Team News Inverness will be without the usual long term casualties (MacGregor, Nicolson, Doran, Welsh, Duffy, Samuels). Wotherspoon debuted last week as did Cillian Sheridan who looks like he will need to get up to speed before we see any benefits from him. Luis Longstaff, one of our most promising player of late, was subbed off injured last week and is a doubt. Aye eye, Morgan Boyes might feature......... I'll take that as a yes. Dundee loan player Max Anderson will relish this task and I'm sure he will be a target for the 'Shed' boo boys. Ear plugs at the ready Max! Here's Dunc, learning quickly from the ICT managers handbook: Tell them nothing>>> Jim Goodwin has a wealth of funds and a Premiership squad to play around with>>> He will be without Ross Docherty for this one though as the midfielder faces a couple of weeks out with a groin strain. United team in 0-2 win at Airdrie on Tuesday night, Walton Grimshaw Gallagher Holt McMann Sibbald Docherty (Tillson 20) Fotheringham (Cudjoe 83) Glass (Mochrie 76) Middleton Watt Subs not used: Newman (gk); Denham, Graham, Moult, Freeman, Stirton Here's a date for your diary..... almost We enter the Scottish Cup with a third round home draw against Cowdenbeath. The game will be played on the weekend of the 25th of November but the date and time have still to be confirmed.
  18. First Home Win Duncan ferguson was looking for his first home Championship success as the Diamond's visited the Caledonian Stadium. He would be without some key players. Unfortunately Welsh, Duffy, Doran, MacGregor, Nicolson, and Samuels were all out with Devine, Boyes, Ujdur, Harper and Carson all struggling to make this one. New signings David Wotherspoon and Cillian Sheridan were in the squad. As it was, Carson, Ujdur, Devine, Harper and Wotherspoon all started with Boyes and Sheridan on the bench. Airdrie had Gallagher and Todorov up front with Player Manager Rhys McCabe on from the start. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Decent afternoon for a game of football and Airdrie took advantage of the good conditions to control the early possession although they never troubled Ridgers, one shot clearing the North Stand into the car park. The next one went five yards over the bar. The best Inverness could offer was a blocked shot on the edge of the box after our best move of the game. We came more into the mix and David Wotherspoon spooned a shot over the bar from five yards after Keeper Josh Rae had saved from Billy Mckay. He really should have scored but he made amends five minutes before the break with a tremendously calm finish. He showed real class unlike the open goal he missed earlier. The move began on the left with Longstaff then when it came to Wotherspoon in midfield he flicked it deftly to the right side where Gilmour fed Shaw. He drove down the wing before cutting the ball back to Spoony who turned in the box to roll the ball into the unguarded corner of the net from twelve yards after making the space for himself. Class! HALF TIME: 1-0 After the interval Airdrie retained the ball better but we threatened when Gilmour went down after a challenge in the box. Shaw picked up the loose ball but his shot was charged down as he tried to pick out the top corner from the edge of the box. A spate of substitutions disrupted the flow of the game and the visitors made a late push to salvage a point. However, we defended well despite half of our back four being substituted with Ujdur dominant. The big defender made a couple of crucial blocks, one in particular as Frizzell pulled the trigger, the ball deflecting over the bar. Despite the late pressure from Airdrie, Ridgers was not overly exerted although he made a couple of crucial catches and punches clear to hold on to the clean sheet and more importantly all three points. FULL TIME: 1-0 The fabulous execution of his goal was a great introduction for David Wotherspoon but for me the Man of the Match and new version of Bobby Mann was Nikola Ujdur. The Aussie defender is solid, strolled through the game unflustered and can pick a pass. Good graft in midfield but Sheridan and Big Harry need some work done. Shaw picked up a booking at the end when Big Dunc sent him back onto the pitch to get treatment Robert on CTO: This is what Saturday evenings should feel like! The second half was a hard watch at times, but we got the job done. Ridgers dealt with everything and a few timely blocks and some poor finishing helped too. The first half was quite even and we scored at the right time as Airdrie seemed to be getting on top. It was a great, calm finish by Wotherspoon which more than made up for the one he skied earlier (in his defence I thought it came on to him very quickly). I also thought the referee did us a big favour early in the second half. On a different day Anderson would have been penalised and a penalty awarded. However I thought we should have got one shortly after too. It’s nice not to be gifting goals although we did have some squeaky bum moments in defence, with Airdrie’s right wing back causing a lot of problems. Mckay and Wotherspoon worked their socks off. Longstaff and Shaw tried to push forward but also helped the full backs well. Anderson and Gilmour are developing a good partnership. But the biggest credit must go to our walking wounded. Last night all of our starting defenders were on the injury list, and Carson and Devine cannot have been fully fit when they were subbed in the second half. Udjur was not quite as composed today but did what he had to, whilst Harper had a bit of a torrid time defensively at times but credit them both for getting through the game. Sheridan could prove an asset when he is fully match sharp, with one defensive tackle standing out for me today. Lodovica and Brooks still do not convince me though. We may lose ground on Tuesday when some of our opponents play and Saturday will be a big test at Tannadice. But let’s enjoy the moment. It’s long time since we’ve had a home win to kick start a Saturday evening. OCG: Eye bleeding at times but we were able to grind out a win! We need points at moment and pretty football can wait. Good to see us becoming a bit more streetwise under Ferguson eg keeping ball in corner as long as we could in last couple of minutes. Full Highlights from ICTFC Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts 1. Dundee Utd 10 7 3 0 28 4 24 2. Raith Rovers 9 6 2 1 14 9 20 3. Partick Thistle 10 4 3 3 19 16 15 4. Airdrieonians 10 4 1 5 9 14 13 5. Arbroath 9 4 0 5 15 17 12 6. Ayr United 10 4 0 6 12 18 12 7. Queens Park 11 3 3 5 14 22 12 8. Dunfermline 9 3 2 4 9 10 11 9. Inverness CT 9 2 2 5 7 10 8 10. Morton 9 2 2 5 9 16 8 Date: 28/10/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2218 Referee: Calum Scott Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson (Davidson 78), Ujdur, Devine (Delaney 78), Harper, Longstaff (Brooks 62), Gilmour, Anderson, Wotherspoon (Sheridan 68), Shaw, B Mckay (Lodovica 67) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Boyes, Thompson, Scorers: Wotherspoon (37) Booked: Lodovica (90+1), Shaw (90+3) Sent Off: none Airdrieonians: 0 Manager: Rhys McCabe Lineup: Rae; Megwa, McCabe (Aiken 67), Watson, Fordyce, Hancock, Frizzell, McStravick (McGregor 69), Telfer, Todorov, Gallagher (McGill 77) Subs (not used): Hutton; Taylor-Sinclair, O'Connor, McMaster, Dunlop Scorers: none Booked: Frizzell (53) Hancock (90+1) Sent Off: none a
  19. Injuries R Us With last weeks game falling foul to the weather, it might have been a blessing in disguise with one or two struggling to have made the postponed game against Morton. An extra weeks recovery might mean that we will be better equipped to face a sprightly Airdrie side who have consolidated themselves in the top half of the Championship. Game kicks off at 3:00pm at the Caledonian Stadium this Saturday and we might get a glimpse of new signings David Wotherspoon and Cillian Sheridan. Unfortunately Welsh, Doran, Boyes, MacGregor, Nicolson and Samuels are all out with Devine, Ujdur, Harper, Duffy and Carson all struggling. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match Info/Tickets David Wotherspoon Cillian Sheridan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 8 4 0 4 13 12 +1 Away 7 2 2 3 9 15 -6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 15 6 2 7 22 27 -5 Only the last couple of fixtures have any relevance. The 1-0 home win was in March 2002 when Ross Tokely played and Martin Bavidge scored the winner........ Wait a minute: Ross Tokely is still playing and scoring winners 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 3 (H) 1 - 0 (H) 0 - 3 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 0 - 6 (A) 1 - 1 (A) 4 - 0 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 0 - 2 (H) March 2002: Steve Paterson's 300th game in charge produced a very welcome 1 - 0 victory which stopped a slide down the league. Ian Broadfoot reports: Caley Thistle lay fourth last Saturday but slipped to seventh in midweek without kicking a ball. This win resulted in a climb to fifth. The first half was a nervous period with Caley Thistle trying hard but achieving little. Airdrie's best chance came in the first minute when they were awarded a free kick 20 yards out. Mark Roberts drove the ball goalwards and Nicky Walker dived to make a good save. In 13 minutes a high David Bagan cross proved troublesome to Airdrie keeper Allan Ferguson but he tipped it over. Five minutes later a Barry Robson corner from the right reached Grant Munro beyond the back post but he could only bundle the ball over for a goal kick. Stuart Taylor created a chance for himself at the other end in 29 minutes but he wasted it with a scuff past the post. In 33 minutes the home sides best first half chance fell to Dennis Wyness after good interplay with Charlie Christie but the striker hit it over from 10 yards. A minute later Owen Coyle reached a corner at the back post but left it to Taylor but he mishit to concede a goal kick. The tempo of the match changed in 50 minutes when Robson sent over a cross from the left and Martin Bavidge scored at the back post despite Ferguson getting a touch. This lifted Caley Thistle and calmed a few nerves. They kept on top after that but could not score a second goal. Robson strode through the Airdrie defence just after the goal but his shot deflected off Alan McManus. On the hour mark Ferguson raced out of goal to the touchline to just beat Bavidge to the ball. Ferguson saved Airdrie again in 76 minutes when he dived at the feet of Wyness as he stretched to reach a Bavidge curling ball but it went harmlessly for a goal kick. The nerves returned in the last few minutes as Caley Thistle worked hard to preserve their lead. With three minutes left Airdrie nearly stole an equaliser when a seemingly harmless Taylor header beat Walker but came back off the post into the relieved keepers arms. Despite a seemingly endless three minutes of added time Caley Thistle held on to win. Championship Fixtures FRIDAY 27th OCTOBER Dundee Utd v Arbroath Fc Queens Pk v Partick Th SATURDAY 28th OCTOBER Ayr Utd v Morton Inverness CT v Airdrieonians Raith Rovers v Dunfermline Last Time Out Inverness were held to a no scoring draw at home to Partick Thistle. A game of few clear chances with Partick squandering the best a few minutes from the end. Still, the clean sheet was welcome. We have already played Airdrie twice this season during our defensive blunder sessions. Airdrie took full advantage winning both games. 3-2 in the Highlands on League Cup duty and 2-1 at the Shyberry Excelsior Stadium in our 3rd Championship game of the season. Nathan Shaw's second half goal was too little too late after a Cammy Harper og inside the first minute and top scorer Gallagher on the half hour did the early damage in that one. Last Five: D L L W D Airdrie also played out a draw in their last game which went ahead on Friday night in a downpour. It ended 1-1 with Queens Park after Airdrie had taken a first half lead when an error in midfield by Queens Park allowed Callum Gallagher to run through to finish with aplomb. Queens got their point when keeper Josh Rae presented Jack Turner with his opportunity which he gladly took. Last Five: L W W L D Latest Team News This was prepared for the Morton game that was postponed. Having played in the North of Scotland Cup semi-final at Nairn, Duncan Ferguson will now be without at least two of those that were beaten by Nairn. It was mainly a second string squad with some returning from injury. However, Danny Devine came off with a swollen knee and Sean Welsh now has a back injury. Add Boyes with an eye infection, Aaron Doran with a hamstring, Wallace Duffy with who knows what and longer term Roddy MacGregor and Lewis Nicolson then Ferguson does not have his troubles to seek. The good news is David Wotherspoon could be ready after playing 45 minutes on Wednesday night. Jay Emmanuel Stewart (JET) has been on trial this week. So, hopefully the extra week will see one or two be in a better place injury wise and Wotherspoon has had another week in his legs to get back up to speed. Cillian Sheridan has become the latest player to sign on until January. He's been around a bit but could still do a job for us surely. Big misses for us will be Sean Welsh, Morgan Boyes and if Ujdur, Harper and Carson fail to make it then we will be scraping the bottom of the barrel again. Aaron Doran (hamstring) and Austin Samuels (knee) have joined the long term casualy list with Roddy and Lewis. So injuries are us once more. Dunc is hopeful one or two might be fit enough but it's a waiting game after three weeks of inactivity. Airdrie v Queens Pk team lines:- Rae Megwa Watson Fordyce Hancock Frizzell McMaster Aiken (Telfer 62) McStravick Gallagher (Todorov 62) McGregor (O'Connor 78) Subs not used: Hutton; McCabe, Dunlop, McGill, Cassidy, Spalding. Airdrie have been playing some slick stuff of late and this will be a tough one, even with a full squad. Callum Gallagher is top scorer with six goals. Former Caley Jag striker Nikolay Todorov has scored a couple this season but does not always start.
  20. MATCH POSTPONED Ton of Trouble Inverness face a basement battle with fellow strugglers Morton at Cappielow on Saturday. It's scheduled for a 3:00pm kick-off if storm Babet allows. It's also a coming together of our new manager and the one who thought he was top of the list for the vacant job, Dougie Imrie, the bookies favourite and who was in the running until Duncan Ferguson was announced. Could make for an interesting afternoon with the prospect of new signing David Wotherspoon getting a start. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MATCH POSTPONED Match Info/Tickets Supporters Bus David Wotherspoon ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 12 5 4 48 20 +28 Away 19 11 3 5 37 24 +13 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 40 23 8 9 85 44 +41 Last time at Cappielow we escaped with all three points: 2 - 1 Vital three points at Morton: Danny Devine was missing again along with Roddy MacGregor and Walllace Duffy for this vital clash at Cappielow which could define our season. That left us with a sparse bench. For Morton, Brian Schwake was given the gloves despite his blunder against Arbroath and condemnation from his gaffer. Scott Allardice opened the scoring with a tremendous half-volley, drilling a precision shot low into the bottom corner from outside the box. David Carson popped up with the winner in the 88th minute to take a valuable three points North. Nathan Shaw did well to win the ball in his own half before sending a long diagonal ball forward that was helped onto Carson by Boyd for the wee man to finish well from inside the box after a great run forward. That win moves us to within a point of fifth placed Morton. George Oakley started up front against his old club. From an injury point of view it all sounds a bit familiar. Last 10 Competitive Meetings 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 2 (H) 0 - 4 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 6 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 2 - 0 (H) Last Time Out: Inverness were held to a no scoring draw at home to Partick Thistle. A game of few clear chances with Partick squandering the best a few minutes from the end. Still, the clean sheet was welcome. Morton drew a blank with Queens Park on the same day as we drew with Partick Thistle despite a depleted squad due to flooding around Greenock An Inverness XI went out of the NoS Cup against Nairn County on Wednesday night. 2-2 after 90 minutes it went straight to a penalty shoot-out where Nairn's perfect 7 proved too good for Inverness when Zac Delaney saw his spot kick saved by MotM Nairn keeper Dylan MacLean. The other star on the night was the legend that is Ross Tokely who opened the scoring on half time. He assisted Steven Mackay to double Nairn's advantage then scored one of Nairn's penalties to round off a great night for the 44 year old veteran. Harry Lodovica was the man responsible for taking the game to a shoot-out with two well taken strikes. Alas, it was Nairn that stroked in all seven of their penalties to progress to the final where they will take on Ross County who beat Brora Rangers 3-0 in the other semi. Good luck to the Wee County! Latest Team News Having played in the North of Scotland Cup semi-final at Nairn, Duncan Ferguson will now be without at least two of those that were beaten by Nairn. It was mainly a second string squad with some returning from injury. However, Danny Devine came off with a swollen knee and Sean Welsh now has a back injury. Add Boyes with an eye infection, Aaron Doran with a hamstring, Wallace Duffy with who knows what and longer term Roddy MacGregor and Lewis Nicolson then Ferguson does not have his troubles to seek. The good news is David Wotherspoon could be ready after playing 45 minutes on Wednesday night. Jay Emmanuel Stewart (JET) has been on trial this week. Dougie Imrie's last line-up in the Championship, albeit a depleted one with only three subs>>> Morton XI v Queens Park: MacDonald Blues French Baird Waters Gillespie (McGrattan 72) Power Muirhead (Boyd 71) Crawford Wilson Oakley Subs not used: Ryan Mullen (gk)
  21. Thistle be the day This will be the day that Duncan Ferguson made his bow to the Caley Jags fans. The weather might have dampened the atmosherics, but inside the stadium it was a warm welcome for Big Dunc. He was without the long term absentees (MacGregor & Nicolson) plus more recent victims in Sean Welsh, Danny Devine and Wallace Duffy. After the first win last week, it was an unchanged starting XI that took to the sodden turf. Partick had our olde foe Brian Graham up front. Enough said ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷ Heavy overnight rain made for wet conditions on the park and around the Highlands. Both sides made heavy weather (no pun intended) of a tedious first half where neither keeper had to earn their corn. Partick started liveliest without threatening before we got to grips with the game. Ujdur headed tamely wide from a Harper corner as he couldn't get any purchase on the ball. Shaw made a clumsy touch from a Gilmour cross from the left side and the chance was gone as Sneddon snapped up the loose ball. A loose ball forward allowed Partick a shooting opportunity but Ridgers gathered comfortably. After the break the visitors cut along the byeline and it ended with Fitzpatrick rolling the ball onto the post before being cleared. Doran was looking for a penalty after being upended in the box but nothing given. From an Inverness corner, Partick broke forward at pace and it ended with Ridgers saving a low twenty-five yard drive from Graham. Shaw made a tremendous tackle to win back the ball before Gilmour was eventually set up for a shot but he dragged his low effort a yard wide. Billy Mckay turned on the edge of the box but his curled effort drifted over the bar with Gilmour looking for a return pass as he ran into the box. Milne rode a couple of challenges before slicing his parting shot wide from eighteen yards. Best chance of the game fell to the visitors three minutes before the end after Ridgers parried a swerving shot from McInroy. It fell to Adeloye but he blazed his hooked effort well over the bar from five yards. Inverness mainly looked comfortable without overly troubling keeper Sneddon and it ended all square in a very wet Highlands. FULL TIME: 0-0 Neither side can complain about a point apiece but Partick will now know that they can not expect to pick up easy points against us. In fact had Gilmour placed his shot within the bounds of the posts then we could have taken all three points. Meh! Another step in the right direction for Inverness who matched high scoring Partick Thistle all over the park. Best for Inverness were the tricky Longstaff, the unflustered Ujdur and the driving force of Gilmour, with Ridgers doing his bit at the end Date: 07/10/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2374 Referee: Dan McFarlane Inverness CT: 0 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Ujdur, Boyes, Harper, Longstaff, Gilmour, Anderson, Shaw (Brooks 86), Doran (Samuels 65) B Mckay (Lodovica 86) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Davidson, Delaney, Hyde, Bray, Thompson Scorers: none Booked: none Sent Off: none Partick Thistle: 0 Manager: Kris Doolan Lineup: Sneddon; Ngwenya, Muirhead, Neilson, Milne, McInroy, Robinson, Bannigan, Lawless, Graham (Macdonald 74), Fitzpatrick (Adeloye 73) Subs (not used): McGinley, Alston, Williamson, Stanway, Mitchell, Williams Scorers: none Booked: Bannigan (72) Sent Off: none a
  22. Dunc's Homecoming It's Duncan Ferguson's first home game on Saturday against a team expected to be challenging at the top end of the table come the end of the season. Partick Thistle will be a stern test for Dunc's revitalised troops who have been re-energised by the new Gaffer's unexpected arrival at the Caledonian Stadium. He got off to a flier last weekend but the adrenaline started to wear off before the end of the game and Arbroath staged a comeback from 3-0 down before we held out for a 3-2 win on the road, our first success in this years Championship. It's a big ask to expect miracles against well established Championship challengers, but that's the task on Saturday. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket Info North of Scotland Cup v Nairn Community development Summer report ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Last Time Out Inverness earned their first three points of the season last week against Arbroath in a five goal nailbiter. Dunc's reign got off to a great start with an early goal from Luis Longstaff. It was added to before the break when Longstaff turned provider for Aaron Doran to thump home his low driven cross after half an hour. Billy Mckay lobbed keeper Gaston just after the break from a Mark Ridgers kick out. Route one is alive and kicking. Arbroath got a lifeline with a freak goal when a clearance rebounded off Ross Stewart and deftly chipped over the flailing keepers hands and into the net from eighteen yards. Meh! Michael McKenna reduced the leeway to one when he arrowed home aftrer a bit of pinball on the edge of the box. We dug deep though and withstood a late barrage to secure the win for a jubilant away support and an equally enthusiastic new manager. Current Form last five games: L D L L W That leaves Inverness bottom equal with Morton on four points. Our scoring record is poor with only 6 goals scored but despite the mistakes, we haveonly conceded 10. Here's the goals from last week>>> Partick Thistle recovered from a 3-0 defeat to Arbroath the previous week to thump Dunfermline 3-0. Scott Robinson scored in the first half before our old friend Brian Graham scored five minutes after the break. Kerr McInroy added a third. This game had a raft of opportunities for both sides but it was the Firhill side that had the cutting edge in front of goal. Current Form last five games: W W W L W Good start by Partick has them tucked in behind Dundee United & Raith Rovers in 3rd place with 13 points. Partick are top scorers in the league with 17 goals having conceded 9. Latest Team News Ferguson will be without the long term absentees (MacGregor & Nicolson) plus more recent victims in Sean Welsh, Danny Devine and possibly Wallace Duffy. Partick Thistle Kris Doolan XI v Dunfermline Sneddon Ngwenya Muirhead Neilson Milne McInroy Robinson (Alston 79) Bannigan (Williamson 79) Lawless Graham (Adeloye 67) Fitzpatrick (McDonald 73) Subs not used: Diack, McGinley, Alston, Stanway, McKenzie, One for the Diary>>> ***Game Changer*** Due to a weather warning this game versus East Fife will now be played at Millburn Academy, with a 12.30pm kick-off.
  23. Dunc get's off to a flier Dunc's reign of apprehension got off to a promising start at Gayfield as Inverness opened the scoring in the tenth minute through Luis Longstaff who scrambled the ball into the net after a Nikola Ujdur header was not dealt with by keeper Gaston. Longstaff then turned provider as Aaron Doran turned his driven cross into the net after half an hour. Other chances came and went: Nathan Shaw not catching his shot plumb from the edge of the box making it comfortable for Gaston to flop on the ball and save and Billy Mckay not making the most of a great break forward, his low shot a bit of a dolly for the keeper to block. HALF TIME 0-2 Billy Mckay added a third just after the interval lobbing Gaston perfectly with an assist from his own keeper Mark Ridgers. At 3-0 Shaw again might have done better when one on one with Gaston but he chose the wrong option and took himself too wide and the chance was gone. Arbroath came back into it with strikes from Ross Stewart and Michael McKenna to set up a grandstand finish. Stewart's goal was as massive a fluke as you will see. Ujdur attempted to thunder the ball clear on the edge of his own box. Unfortunately Stewart anticipated this and turned his back on the defender expecting him and ball to go flying forward. Alas it looks like it cannoned off his arse and it floated over the despairing flail of Mark Ridgers and into the net. Unbelievable, you couldn't write it, however, I just did. McKenna's goal favoured the hosts as it bobbled off a couple of bodies before he despatched it behind Ridgers off his near post with a tidy finish. With much biting of fingernails, Dunc got off to a winning start after a lengthy period of time added on and that means that we are no longer bottom of the table (just). Phew! FULL TIME: 2-3 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ferguson was without the services of Roddy MacGregor, Lewis Nicolson, Sean Welsh, Wallace Duffy and Danny Devine. Nikola Ujdur made his debut last week and looks like a solid unit and both he and Aaron Doran started. Ricky Little returned after suspension for Arbroath with Jay Bird relegating Dünnwald-Turan to the bench. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ More match reaction to follow>>> The fans were looking forward to this one with a mixture of fear, trepidation, apprehension, pessimism, optimism and excitement in equal proportions. Dunc has certainly got the fans talking again and there's a feelgood factor lurking just round the corner. Rome wasn't built in a day, however Ferguson was not the foreman. Time will tell if this will be a successful appointment, but he has the full backing of the fans at the moment. Arbroath were off the back of a four game winning run. We were on downward spiral since the start of the season, the reason why Dunc is here now. As it happened, we escaped with all three points... Speaking to BBC Sport, Inverness CT manager Duncan Ferguson: "I thought my players were magnificent, we really should have had a lot more goals on the counter attack. "To a man, the players put their bodies on their line for the club. They gave 100% effort and showed a lot of resilience, we just need to be a bit braver on the ball. "To deliver a win for the fans, it was a great moment for myself and the team." From CTO: Great to get the win but that was hard work to watch in the second half. From cruising at 3-0 to hanging on for dear life and looking like we might easily lose in the space of a few minutes, we still look fragile. Well done to the boys for steadying a bit towards the end and hanging on. And top marks to big Dunc for coming over to the fans and showing his delight at the end Full Highlights Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Off the bottom at last 1. Dundee Utd 7 5 2 0 16 3 17 2. Raith Rovers 7 5 1 1 12 8 16 3. Partick Thistle 7 4 1 2 17 9 13 4. Arbroath 8 4 0 4 15 11 12 5. Airdrieonians 7 4 0 3 7 10 12 6. Dunfermline 7 3 2 2 9 8 11 7. Queens Park 8 3 0 5 11 19 9 8. Ayr United 7 2 0 5 9 16 6 9. Inverness CT 7 1 1 5 6 10 4 10. Morton 7 1 1 5 8 16 4 Date: 30/09/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1723 Referee: Don Robertson Arbroath: 2 Manager: Dick Campbell Lineup: Gaston; Steele, Little, O'Brien, Stewart, Dow (Stowe 63), Slater (Balde 70), McKenna, Gold, Hylton (Dünnwald-Turan 85), Bird (Mcintosh 63) Subs (not used): Adams; Lyon, Norey, Jacobs Scorers: Stewart (69), McKenna (79) Booked: Slater (47) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 3 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Ujdur, Boyes, Harper, Longstaff (Davidson 75), Gilmour, Anderson, Doran (Samuels 55), Shaw, B Mckay (Delaney 64) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Thompson, Bray, Brooks, Lodovica Scorers: Longstaff (10), Doran (31), B Mckay (48) Booked: Gilmour (88) Sent Off: none
  24. Dawn of a New Era Big Dunc takes charge of his first game at Inverness with a visit to Gayfield to take on Dick Campbell's Arbroath. Kick-off is at 3:00 on Saturday with Inverness looking for a change in fortunes after a disasterous run of games saw Billy Dodds sacked after the defeat to Dundee United, with just one point from six League games and out of the League Cup and Challenge Cup. Success won't happen overnight and the Caley Jags fans might have to wait a bit for a turnaround in results, but it won't be for a lack of passion or enthusiasm for the game. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Duncan Ferguson Match/Ticket Info Supporters Bus £20 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 17 4 3 59 19 +40 Away 23 10 6 7 32 27 +5 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 47 27 10 10 91 46 +45 We hold a big advantage over Arbroath in the H2H's but it's tighter in the away fixture. Last 10 Competitive Meetings 2 - 4 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 4 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 0 (H) 3 - 0 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) In our last Championship game at Arbroath - Smokies Smoked 4 - 1: Both clubs had big wins in the first games of 2023 and it was Inverness that continued in style with a 4-1 win at Gayfield. Billy Mckay, who scored a hat-trick last week, opened the scoring at the back post in the ninth minute but Ben El-Mhanni levelled fifteen minutes later when he slotted into the bottom corner. Jay Henderson put us ahead just before the break as he lifted a shot high into the net from inside the box. Twenty minutes into the second half Dan Mackay shot into the bottom corner to double our advantage. Substitute Lewis Nicolson concluded the scoring in the 86th minute with a header from sub Steven Boyd's cross. Great win on the road for the Caley Jags that moves us into sixth place in the table, eleven points behind table toppers Queens Park. Great start to 2023 for the Caley Jags with two big wins on the bounce. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts 1. Dundee Utd 6 4 2 0 12 2 14 2. Raith Rovers 6 4 1 1 10 7 13 3. Arbroath 7 4 0 3 13 8 12 4. Dunfermline 6 3 2 1 9 5 11 5. Partick Thistle 6 3 1 2 14 9 10 6. Airdrieonians 6 3 0 3 6 10 9 7. Queens Park 7 3 0 4 10 15 9 8. Ayr United 6 2 0 4 8 14 6 9. Morton 6 1 1 4 8 15 4 10. Inverness CT 6 0 1 5 3 8 1 Saturday 30th September Arbroath v Inverness CT Ayr United v Raith Rovers Dundee Utd v Queen's Park Morton v Airdrie Partick Thistle v Dunfermline Current Form Inverness start a new era tomorrow after a winless start to their Championshp campaign. However, it's a clean slate with Big Dunc at the helm although he will still have the same tools to work with. Roddy MacGregor, Lewis Nicolson, and Sean Welsh have missed out over the last month and Danny Devine and Wallace Duffy were added to the injury list last time out. We did field a Caley Jags XI in the North of Scotland cup win over Rothes with Keith Bray getting the only goal of the game.`That side was a mix of youth and fringe players with three or four first team choices making up the side. Difficult to know what players Ferguson will be looking to, but I doubt it will be a massive shift from the Dodds era this early in his role. Caley Jags so far: L L L D L L Arbroath have got their act together after a poor start to their Championship. Three straight losses have been replaced by three straight wins. Their last game was an emphatic 3-0 win at Firhill. Jermaine Hylton scored either side of a strike from Thomas O'Brien to pull them up to third in the table. Smokies so far: L L L W W W W Latest Team News: Dick Campbell had this team out against Partick Thistle: Gaston Norey Steele O'Brien (Stowe 90) Stewart Slater (Jacobs 88) Gold Dow (Candé Baldé 84) McKenna Hylton (McIntosh 84) Dünnwald-Turan (Bird 45) Adams; Lyon
  25. The Post Dodds Era Kicks-Off Life without Billy Dodds starts on Saturday, and it couldn't be tougher with Champions elect Dundee United visiting the Caledonian Stadium for a 3:00pm Cinch Championship encounter to round off a week of turmoil down the Longman. It was a no brainer really. The Board terminated the contract of Billy Dodds, and by association, Barry Wilson was struck off as well. No wins in our opening five games and only one point from fifteen had Inverness languishing at the foot of the table on our own. DoddsBall was in full swing. It was a sacking in the making after Dodds got a stay of execution with a Cup Final against Celtic at the end of last season. The big mystery was why was Dodds given a two year extension and who rubber-stamped his contract? The other mystery is where does John Robertson's loyalties lie and who pays his wages as he is more often than not seen at the Global Energy Stadium in Dingwall? Two down and more to go is the current theme coming from the support, so who is next? John Robertson and Charlie Christie will oversee this fixture on Saturday and until a new managemnt team is appointed. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Billy Dodds & Barry Wilson Match/Ticket Info ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue: H2H v Dundee Utd Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 33 10 10 13 35 43 -8 Away 28 7 10 11 36 42 -6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 61 17 20 24 71 85 -14 United do have the edge over us but we have had our moments. A 4 - 0 thrashing of United at Tannadice in 2010 will live long in the memory banks. Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Dundee Utd going back to Oct 20th 2018: Only one win over the last ten games!!! 1 - 2 (A) 0 - 3 (H) 1 - 4 (A) 0 - 3 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 0 - 2 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 0 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 1 (A) The last meeting between the sides at the Caledonian Stadium was in November 2019 and the home fans were left scunnered in a 0 - 3 defeat. SCUNNERED: Dundee United cruised to victory in the Highlands as disparity on the park mirrored that off the park. United were worthy winners as Inverness struggled to find any momentum and it was left to desperation and Mark Ridgers to keep the score down. Shaun Rooney deflected a forced Paul McMullan cross/shot into the net. A reaction save from Siegrist blocked a James Keatings effort before the break but that was as good as it got for the hosts. Nicky Clark stroked in the second as we unravelled and a cheap penalty saw Lawrence Shankland complete the scoring, but not the agony as we failed to trouble the United keeper with a series of fluffed attempts whilst United looked more likely to increase their lead. A poor day at the office that had the home fans shaking heads long before the end as we lose ground on the three teams above us. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Table ahead of Ayr thrashing Queens Park 5-2 tonight 1. Raith Rovers 5 4 1 0 10 6 13 2. Dundee Utd 5 3 2 0 11 2 11 3. Partick Thistle 5 3 1 1 14 6 10 4. Arbroath 6 3 0 3 10 8 9 5. Queens Park 6 3 0 3 8 10 9 6. Dunfermline 5 2 2 1 6 4 8 7. Airdrieonians 5 2 0 3 5 10 6 8. Morton 5 1 1 3 7 12 4 9. Ayr United 5 1 0 4 3 12 3 10. Inverness CT 5 0 1 4 3 7 1 Friday 22nd September Queen's Pk 2-5 Ayr United Saturday 23rd September Airdrie v Raith Rvrs Dunfermline v Morton Inverness v Dundee Utd Partick v Arbroath Last Time Out We didn't know it at the time, but It turned out to be Billy Dodds last game in charge. Ironically, it happened to be our best performance of the season. However, the result remained the same, and we lost a 23 year unbeaten record to Raith Rovers who find themselves top of the league ahead of this weekends fixtures. An aesthetically pleasing first half gave way to a less impressive second forty-five before we succumbed to a late sucker punch when Jamie Gullan hammered home after a defensive lapse. Hard one to take but that's what happens when you're down. Championship form so far: L L L D L One Point from fifteen The Arabs are everyones favourites for the title, but they dropped two points last week when Morton came back to earn a point shortly after Mathew Cudjoe had been sent off. Robbie Muirhead capitalised on a defensive error on the hour after Louis Moult had given United a first half lead with his fifth strike of the season. Championship form so far: W D W W D Eleven Points from fifteen Latest Team News The Robertson/Christie combo will be without MacGregor, Nicolson and Welsh who have been out for a few weeks and nothing has changed there. However, we are in limbo, therefore who knows if Robbo and Charlie will rock the boat too much. It's a difficult enough task to pick up a team low on confidence, even moreso when the title favourites come calling. Harry Lodovica will be available for selection after his red card at Arbroath. Here's Ryan's Dad>>> Dundee United (Manager Jim Goodwin) In: Declan Gallagher, defender (St Mirren); Louis Moult, forward (Burton Albion); Ross Docherty, midfielder (Partick Thistle); Kevin Holt, defender (Partick Thistle); Liam Grimshaw, midfielder (Morton). Loan in: Jordan Tillson, midfielder (Ross County); Jack Walton, goalkeeper (Luton); Oliver Denham, defender (Cardiff City). Out: A number of players were deemed surplus to requirements at Tannadice as United up their game in their bid to bounce back into the Premiership. Charlie Mulgrew retired and the exprienced Steven Fletcher and Peter Pawlett are away amongst others. Louis Moult is a proven goascorer and will need close attention. Glen Middleton is a handful as well and an able provider. To be fair, as expected, United appear to have the strongest squad on paper. Dundee United Team v Morton last week 1-1: Walton Grimshaw (Meekison 84) Gallagher Holt McMann Tillson Glass (Sibbald 69) Middleton Watt (Fotheringham 68) Anim Cudjoe (58) Moult Subs not used: Newman; Freeman, Stirton, Graham, Mochrie, Denholm ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Don't forget, there's still an open meeting at the Innes Bar to discuss our current plight amongst other things. Dodds no more. But there's still Gardiner, Robertson and more to discuss. Come along and have your say. Innes Bar (Beer Garden) 61 Innes Street Inverness IV1 1NR TIME: 12:00-2:15
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