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  1. Hello Cove! We welcome new Championship club Cove Rangers to the Caledonian Stadium on Saturday afternoon for our final group G League Cup group stages encounter. It's a 3:00pm kick-off for this game and we should see some familiar faces in the Cove ranks. Former Inverness players Iain Vigurs, Rory McAllister and Ross Draper are still on the books at Balmoral Stadium. Ex Aberdeen players Shay Logan, Mark Reynolds and Fraser Fyvie are also well established opponents and Mitch Megginson is a danger to any team. Last Time Out Cove surprisingly lost out 3-2 at home to Kelty Hearts. McAllister and Vigurs featured in that game with Fraser Fyvie and Robbie Leitch scoring for them. Shay Logan also started but it was Kelty that took the points, and they even had the luxury of Nathan Austin missing a first half penalty. Leitch's late goal made the score closer, but Cove were well beaten. Other group G results: Cove 1-2 Livi, Albion Rovers 1-2 Cove. Inverness eventually cruised to a 4-0 win over Albion Rovers. An early goal for Billy Mckay and a stunning free kick from Cammy Harper gave us the cushion needed at the interval. Another quickie a minute after the restart from Wallace Duffy impersonating a striker and a steal from Harper with his head ended the scoring to put Inverness in a strong place to qualify from Group G. Three wins for the Caley Jags so far over Kelty, Livi and Albion Rovers. The last time we played Albion Rovers thirteen years ago we also ran out 4-0 winners. Even better, we went on to beat Dundee to the Championship title and got promotion to the Premier League for the second time. Sounds good, let's have another bash at that. Cove Catch-up by Eric A corresponding fixture last season saw Paul Hartley in charge, however after guiding Cove to promotions through the leagues to the Championship he has been lured south of the Border to manage Hartlepool United. Hartley and his assistant left this summer after a fee was negotiated. Incoming manager is Jim McIntyre whose coaching career has included Dunfermline, Bristol City (first team coach), Queen of the South then Ross County September 2014 to September 2017 when he was sacked alongside assistant Billy Dodds. Most recently managing Dundee season 2018/19 but was relieved of duties after only 4 wins in 31 games. Former Inverness players Iain Vigurs, Rory McAllister and Ross Draper are still on the books at Balmoral Stadium. Former Don's Shay Logan Mark Reynolds and Fraser Fyvie are also well established opponents and Mitch Megginson is a danger to any team. Incoming players so far are Evan Towler a 17 year old left back on loan from Aberdeen FC B, and Gerry McDonagh a centre forward once of Nottingham Forest Youth to U23 set up but after being with a number of English clubs has arrived at Cove on a free transfer. Latest Team News Sutherland and Walsh are long term casualties
  2. Rovers Return Deja Vu Albion Rovers last visit to the Caledonian Stadium thirteen years ago ended in a 4-0 League Cup defeat. It went the same way this time, another 4-0 thumping. An early header from Billy Mckay was added to before the interval by a super free kick from Cameron Harper. Rovers were not without their moments in the first half but Cammy Mackay was equal to the occasion. Wallace Duffy added a third just after the restart following a corner and Harper got his second minutes later. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It had been hot and sticky for a couple of days but an hour before kick-off the heavens opened to dampen the pitch. Ach well, the garden was needing it. Biilly Dodds went with a strong starting XI against League 2 Albion Rovers. Wallace Duffy returned to action at centre back and Daniel Mackay made his home debut for the season with Cammy Mackay getting his chance between the sticks as Mark Ridgers tested the bench. Before the bums were planted firmly on their seats, Billy Mckay opened the scoring after just two minutes when he followed up his first header from a Daniel Mackay cross to head home the rebound from the keeper after he made a brilliant save. It was just the start that Billy Dodds would have wanted, but Rovers came back at their hosts and Cammy Mackay had to look sharp to deny Kyle Fleming and Scott Roberts. Austin Samuels shot across the face of the goal after sixteen minutes in a lively opening to the game with the visitors looking dangerous going forward and just before the half hour Mackay saved an effort from Callum Wilson. Roddy MacGregor went close and Mckay shot over after a corner as Inverness pressure mounted before the break. That pressure paid off after Samuels was fouled outside the box. Up stepped Cammy Harper and he sent a beauty of a free kick into the top corner to double the advantage five minutes before the interval. Leighfield saved another shot from Billy Mckay before the ref blew for half time. HALF TIME 2-0 Similar to the first forty-five, Inverness came out of the blocks fast and Wallace Duffy scored inside a minute of the restart, firing low into the net following a corner. Harper did likewise seven minutes later with his head as he beat a stranded Leighfield to the ball and that was 4-0 and game over. That brought about a couple of substitutions and Duffy and Samuels were replaced by youngsters Zak Delaney and Nathan Shaw. Lewis Hyde then replaced Allardice ten minutes later as heavy rain fell once more. A bit of a let off for the hosts as Rovers hit the post and bar when Devon McCall shot off the post and Kieron Dolan followed up to hit the bar from close range. McCall then had a header saved as Rovers looked to get on the scoresheet. Substitute Lewis Hyde had a deflected shot from outside the box strike a post at the opposite end of the park and Nathan Shaw and Robbie Deas had efforts over the bar in the closing stages. Aaron Doran saw an effort blocked in the ninetieth minute and that endeth the action as Inverness reach nine points at the top of group G, three ahead of Livingston. FULL TIME 4-0 Date: 19/07/2022 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 871 Referee: Gavin Duncan Inverness CT: 4 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: C Mackay; Carson, Duffy (Delaney 54), Deas, Harper (Nicolson 70), Doran, Allardice (Hyde 63), MacGregor, D Mackay (Cairns 70), Samuels (Shaw 54), B Mckay Subs (not used): Ridgers; Boyd, Oakley Scorers: B Mckay (2), Harper (41, 53), Duffy (46), Booked: none Sent Off: none Albion Rovers: 0 Manager: Brian Reid Lineup: Leighfield; Fernie, Fagan, Sonkur, McGowan, Reilly (Testa 75), Leslie, Wilson (Duncan 71), Fleming, Roberts (McCall 71), Paton (Dolan 66) Subs (not used): Smith; Scorers: none Booked: none Sent Off: none a
  3. Rovers Return Albion Rovers, infrequent visitors to the Caledonian Stadium, head North on Tuesday for an evening kick off in Inverness. The third Group G game for the Caley Jags has a 7:45pm start against the League 2 side. Inverness top Group G after two wins on the road at Kelty and Livingston and have a game in hand over Livi who share top spot on six points. Rovers have one win from their three games played, an excellent 0-2 win at Kelty where late goals from Sonkur and Reilly were the difference. They also ran Livi close before going down 3-2 and a narrow 1-2 loss at home to Cove Rangers. They do like a late goal, and came back well against Livi. Maybe a word of warning not to take the foot off the pedal. Latest Team News Sutherland, Walsh, Devine, Welsh, Duffy and Ram were all missing at Livingston. Eric's Rovers Roundup As you would expect from a bottom tier club there are no big name additions to the Squad, all below added on free transfers. Jack Leighfield, goalkeeper from Edinburgh FC Ayrton Sonkur a centre back from Stranraer FC Lewis Kidd right back, previously spent a short spell with Albion in 2021, more recently with Edinburgh City which he left at the end of January 2022. Michael Paton midfield from Brechin FC Kyle Fleming another midfield player from Annan Athletic FC Amaury Testa a French born winger both left and right side, from Caledonian Braves. Blast from the past We have played Albion Rovers 14 times with 9 wins and 4 draws and a solitary defeat. The last time we met Rovers was in 2009 and that was also in the League Cup. Here's our line up from that game, a 4-0 win at the Caledonian Stadium. Esson Tokely - Bulvitus - Munro - Djebi Zadi Eagle - Cox - Stratford - Hayes Rooney - Foran Subs: Sutherland, Ross, Proctor Goals: (Eagle 8, Rooney 16 Bulvitus 41, Munro 57) Crowd: 681 That was the season we ended with a flourish. Fifteen games unbeaten to pip Dundee to the title. Feck you Dundee you'll never win the league. Same again this season would be much appreciated. Maybe a bit of Deja Vu.
  4. Rovers Return Albion Rovers, infrequent visitors to the Caledonian Stadium, head North on Tuesday for an evening kick off in Inverness. The third Group G game for the Caley Jags has a 7:45pm start against the League 2 side. Inverness top Group G after two wins on the road at Kelty and Livingston and have a game in hand over Livi who share top spot on six points. Rovers have one win from their three games played, an excellent 0-2 win at Kelty where late goals from Sonkur and Reilly were the difference. They also ran Livi close before going down 3-2 and a narrow 1-2 loss at home to Cove Rangers. They do like a late goal, and came back well against Livi. Maybe a word of warning not to take the foot off the pedal. Latest Team News Sutherland, Walsh, Devine, Welsh, Duffy and Ram were all missing at Livingston. Eric's Rovers Roundup As you would expect from a bottom tier club there are no big name additions to the Squad, all below added on free transfers. Jack Leighfield, goalkeeper from Edinburgh FC Ayrton Sonkur a centre back from Stranraer FC Lewis Kidd right back, previously spent a short spell with Albion in 2021, more recently with Edinburgh City which he left at the end of January 2022. Michael Paton midfield from Brechin FC Kyle Fleming another midfield player from Annan Athletic FC Amaury Testa a French born winger both left and right side, from Caledonian Braves. Blast from the past We have played Albion Rovers 14 times with 9 wins and 4 draws and a solitary defeat. The last time we met Rovers was in 2009 and that was also in the League Cup. Here's our line up from that game, a 4-0 win at the Caledonian Stadium. Esson Tokely - Bulvitus - Munro - Djebi Zadi Eagle - Cox - Stratford - Hayes Rooney - Foran Subs: Sutherland, Ross, Proctor Goals: (Eagle 8, Rooney 16 Bulvitus 41, Munro 57) Crowd: 681 That was the season we ended with a flourish. Fifteen games unbeaten to pip Dundee to the title. Feck you Dundee you'll never win the league. Same again this season would be much appreciated. Maybe a bit of Deja Vu. View full article
  5. What a turnaround An understrength Inverness struggled badly for an hour against a solid St Johnstone who took a two goal lead into the interval. Shaun Rooney and Melker Hallberg put the Saints in the driving seat. However, step forward Reece McAlear and take a massive bow. A thumping strike off the underside of the bar and an exquisite curling free kick levelled matters and gives us something to play for in the return leg at Perth, where we should have Danny Devine and Wallace Duffy back after suspension. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ After seeing off Partick Thistle and Arbroath, The Caley Jags faced St Johnstone in the first leg of the Premiership play-off final at the Caledonian Stadium. Unfortunately the final has already been influenced by other factors. Injuries to Tom Walsh, Shane Sutherland and Roddy MacGregor have been added to by the incompetence of referee Willie Collum at Gayfield where he wrongly sent off Danny Devine and Wallace Duffy. What that means is that Inverness will be short on players in an already wafer thin squad. Youngsters Mathew Strachan and Calum Mackay made up a six man bench. Tony Gallacher Chris Kane, David Wotherspoon and Craig Bryson are all long term injuries for St Johnstone who rested six players for their final league game, a 4-0 loss to Hibs. Rain an hour before kick off dampened the atmosphere at the Caledonian Stadium and made for great conditions on a good pitch with Inverness getting the game underway. A breathtaking save from Mark Ridgers denied Glen Middleton as he unleashed a ferocious shot after cutting across the outside of the box in the fifth minute. Ridgers diving high to his right to pull off a fantastic one handed save. As expected, the visitors playing in red and white striped shirts, were making most of the early play and Ridgers was brought into action again to save a low shot from Shaun Rooney after fifteen minutes with a more routine save. St Johnstone opened the scoring after eighteen minutes when Rooney powered in a header after an inviting cross into the box, probably from the area where Danny Devine would normally have been. After a scramble in the home box when Ridgers pushed away a shot from Callum Hendry the ball was eventually forced over the line by Hallberg to double Saints lead. Inverness were finding it difficult to make any headway against a robust looking premiership side and all the half chances were falling to the visitors. When one did come our way Sean Welsh snatched at it and volleyed high and wide. Ten minutes later makeshift central defender Welsh took a knock but continued after treatment with five minutes to go before the interval. Plenty to do for Inverness in the second half with St Johnstone cruising. HALF TIME: 0-2 Dodds replaced Doran and Hardy with Chalmers and Samuels. Early second half pressure saw another scramble in the home box however this time we managed to keep the ball out. St Johnstone were all over us like a rash. If that was not bad enough we made a number of basic errors that led to more opportunities for the Perth side. Scott Allardice replaced Lewis Hyde as we looked to get back into the game, but it was a long shot with the midfielder just back after serious injury. Just after the hour, Middleton went close with a low shot that Ridgers looked to get a fingertip to, however a goal kick was the result. Best effort for Inverness was a run down the left by Billy Mckay where his cross was cleared for a corner. From the corner Welsh volleyed high over again. Chalmers was showing some great touches and turns and he also knocked a dangerous ball into the box but there were no takers. Out of the blue Samuels went down the right and cut the ball back to the edge of the box where Reece McAlear smashed a superb shot into the roof of the net via the underside of the bar from fifteen yards. Game on! Ten minutes before the end McAlear won a free kick about twenty five yards out. He picked himself up and curled a beauty into the top right corner of Zander Clarks goal. What a strike from a man who doesn't do tap ins against a 6ft 5" keeper. Another great burst forward by Samuels almost resulted in a third for Inverness but Mckay was blocked out for a corner at the front post. FULL TIME: 2-2 What a turnaround from Inverness after a torrid first hour. The second half substitutions were crucial to the outcome of this one and has reignited the Premiership flames for the Caley Jags. MotM was Reece McAlear with two absolute belters. On to McDiarmid Park on Monday night and the tie is still very much alive. From BBC Sport Inverness Caledonian Thistle manager Billy Dodds: "I had to change it at half-time, I had to do something. Luckily it worked but it wasn't just the changes, it was because of the desire of my players. "We really played well second half, once we got our goal. The subs were good. Two great goals from Reece McAlear. "We just want to go to McDiarmid with a fighting chance and put some pressure on because pressure tells in football. We've still got a big ask, we have to play better from the start than tonight but I think they realise they're good enough now." St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson: "It's a poor refereeing decision for their first goal. It's two yards offside and it was a head knock. Two really poor decisions let them back in the game. They got a little bit of momentum. "For the first 60 minutes, we were outstanding. It's probably a little bit disappointing we didn't score more goals. It goes back to McDiarmid and it's up to us to win the game. "We need to go and perform like that on Monday. If we do, we'll be confident we can win the game. It's one game so let's go." More match reaction Date: 20/05/2022 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 4811 Referee: Bobby Madden Inverness CT: 2 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers, Carson, Broadfoot, Deas, Harper, Doran (Chalmers 45), Welsh, Hyde (Allardice 56), McAlear, Hardy (Samuels 45), B Mckay Subs (not used): C Mackay; Strachan, Calum Mackay Scorers: MacAlear (73, 80) Booked: none Sent Off: none St Johnstone: 2 Manager: Callum Davidson Lineup: Clark; Rooney, Cleary, Gordon, McCart, Brown, Hendry, Middleton (May 69), MacPherson, Davidson, Hallberg (Butterfield 69) Subs (not used): Parish; Mahon, Sang, Gilmour, Craig, Ciftci, O'Halloran Scorers: Rooney (18), Hallberg (24) Booked: Middleton (52) Sent Off: none a
  6. Play Off Final 1st Leg It's the second time we have faced St Johnstone in a crucial promotion encounter at the Caledonian Stadium. This game kicks off on Friday night on 20th May at 7:45pm. The last crucial one was back in 2004. It was Saturday 15th of May when Inverness beat St Johnstone 3-1 to top the League on the final day of the season. It took a bit more wrangling to finally clinch promotion after a legal battle, but we got there. We are an appealing side: Inverness have lodged an appeal to overturn the red card awarded to Danny Devine by the incompetent Willie Collum for not fouling Jack Hamilton. Danny was sent off after 66 minutes as he challenged for a high ball with Arbroath's Hamilton. TV evidence showed little happened but it was of course the Wilie Collum show. Red card for Devine. We will know on Wednesday if the appeal has been successful. He also gave Wallace Duffy a second yellow. Unfortunately, due to some archaic rule, that means we can't appeal against that one despite it looking like the second tackle appeared to be a clean one. Cheers Willie. ***Latest News*** Devine Intervention by Willie Collum: We will have to do it without Danny Devine as the equally incompetent SFA have upheld his decision to issue a red card. Absolutely total incompetency shown here by the self preservation society. Helicopter Saturday CTO Report from 15th May 2004 - 3-1: A triumphant end to a fantastic day, season and decade. The sun shone, the ground was packed, there was tension in the air and the First Division trophy was waiting in a helicopter at Braemar. It just remained for the team to make one last major effort and they did just that. Clyde were leading Brechin 1-0 before the Inverness match even started but this changed nothing as it had always been clear that a win was essential. David Bingham headed a Liam Keogh corner past in the second minute then Craig Nelson tipped over a Stuart Golabek shot from 18 yards. A Bobby Mann header from Keogh's corner scraped past the post. In 14 minutes Barry Wilson raced to stop the ball crossing the bye line but Paul Ritchie touched his cross past. The home pressure finally paid off on the half-hour mark in bizarre circumstances. Stuart McCaffrey's free kick reached David Bingham and his overhead kick fooled Nelson; the keeper backtracked but could only help the ball into the net. This was what most of the crowd wanted and they went wild. It was back to earth just before half-time when Keigan Parker raced through and hammered an equaliser past Mark Brown from long range. Seconds later Wilson scored with a low shot but the offside flag was up. Steve Hislop came on for Keogh in the second half. Saints began to play some good football, particularly through Parker and Simon Donnelly, but ICT always looked more like scoring. In 56 minutes Bingham's through ball set Wilson heading for goal and, as he waited for the moment to shoot, Nelson brought him down. The penalty was a certainty and the pressure was all on Barry Wilson. A trademark short run and it was 2-1. A male streaker joined in the celebrations and was promptly evicted. As the excitement reached fever pitch all that was needed was a third goal to calm the nerves. Roy McBain tried to provide it in 64 minutes with a neat lob over Nelson but it cleared the bar. Bingham headed a Wilson corner goalwards in 71 minutes but Mark Reilly hit it off the line then Stuart McCaffrey headed wide. A third goal came in 76 minutes and fittingly it was from Paul Ritchie who was playing his last game for the club. Wilson took a corner from the left and Ritchie stooped low to head home his 63rd goal in three years. The title was a certainty and the final period was all about waiting for the whistle. Wilson shot wide in 86 minutes then the ball spent vital minutes deep in the Saints half and around the corner flag. The final whistle went, the crowd invaded the pitch, the cup arrived by helicopter, Bobby Mann stepped up to receive the trophy from Lord Macfarlane and the whole of Inverness went ballistic. Now for the SPL........maybe. (Crowd: 6092) Venue H2H (all comps) Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 18 10 3 5 21 15 +6 Away 16 3 4 9 10 20 -10 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 34 13 7 14 31 35 -4 As the stats show, the home sides have had the better of these encounters over the years. However, it's over five years since we last played the Perth side and on that occasion we lost 3-0 at home as relegation loomed large. CTO SUMMARY APRIL 8TH 2017: On the brink: Inverness are on the brink of relegation after a shambolic, hapless and gutless performance against a mediocre St Johnstone, who themselves were without two of their stalwart players after an altercation last week. As it turned out, it mattered not a jot as we slumped to an embarrassing 0 - 3 defeat after Larnell Cole was sent off for dissent. We crumbled thereafter. Here's how we got here Latest Team News Shane Sutherland, Tom Walsh and Roddy MacGregor are all out through injury, although rumours of a face mask for Roddy are circulating. If he get's one, let's make it a Lionel Messi mask. Time will tell. Wallace Duffy misses this one after his two yellow cards. Danny Devine ????? Wait for the Wednesday reveal or There will be a lot of tired bodies both physically and mentally after that emotionally draining shoot-out win at Gayfield. Our bench was thin prior to that game, it will have less bums on it now. Duffy will miss this game but might return for the second leg at Perth if its only a one match suspension. Scott Allardice has been on the bench in the previous play-off games, however after his long lay off, i wonder if we are still protecting him, or best scenario, keeping him fresh for these final two games. What a bonus that would be. To be honest, should we be competitive after all this, it really would be a Roy of the Rovers finale to a rollercoaster of a season. St Johnstone limbered up for this game by resting more than half of their regulars in an abject 4-0 defeat at Easter Road. I wouldn't read too much into that result as they were obviously preparing themselves for the play-off finals which are infinitely more important than a dead end of season game against Hibs that would have gained them nothing. So, no fresh injury worries for Callum Davidson to worry about, and know doubt a full bench to fall back on. We will be able to renew acquaintances with a couple of former players in defenders Jamie McCart and Shaun Rooney who had cult status at the Caledonian Stadium with his marauding Ross Tokely style runs down the right flank. In Zander Clark they have an imposing presence and top quality keeper. Scoring goals has been their downfall this season, but let's not forget they have been playing in a League a notch or two above where we are at just now. They also have the experienced Nadir Ciftci in the squad who has a trick or two up his sleeve. Michael O'Halloran and Liam Craig will also add more experience and quality to the side, so plenty of options for the Super J's. Having watched our performances in the Play-Off semi's, I doubt Callum Davidson will have lost much sleep. However, we are at our best when the odds are stacked against us. View full article
  7. Play Off Final 1st Leg It's the second time we have faced St Johnstone in a crucial promotion encounter at the Caledonian Stadium. This game kicks off on Friday night on 20th May at 7:45pm. The last crucial one was back in 2004. It was Saturday 15th of May when Inverness beat St Johnstone 3-1 to top the League on the final day of the season. It took a bit more wrangling to finally clinch promotion after a legal battle, but we got there. Devine Intervention by Willie Collum: We will have to do it without Danny Devine as the equally incompetent SFA have upheld his decision to issue a red card. Absolutely total incompetency shown here by the self preservation society. Buses for play off final 23rd leave stadium at 4pm . Book through Facebook or on 07462218717 Buses are filling up fast MERRY XMAS DICK FROM THE WYNESS SHUFFLE We are an appealing side: Inverness have lodged an appeal to overturn the red card awarded to Danny Devine by the incompetent Willie Collum for not fouling Jack Hamilton. Danny was sent off after 66 minutes as he challenged for a high ball with Arbroath's Hamilton. TV evidence showed little happened but it was of course the Wilie Collum show. Red card for Devine. We will know on Wednesday if the appeal has been successful. He also gave Wallace Duffy a second yellow. Unfortunately, due to some archaic rule, that means we can't appeal against that one despite it looking like the second tackle appeared to be a clean one. Cheers Willie. Helicopter Saturday CTO Report from 15th May 2004 - 3-1: A triumphant end to a fantastic day, season and decade. The sun shone, the ground was packed, there was tension in the air and the First Division trophy was waiting in a helicopter at Braemar. It just remained for the team to make one last major effort and they did just that. Clyde were leading Brechin 1-0 before the Inverness match even started but this changed nothing as it had always been clear that a win was essential. David Bingham headed a Liam Keogh corner past in the second minute then Craig Nelson tipped over a Stuart Golabek shot from 18 yards. A Bobby Mann header from Keogh's corner scraped past the post. In 14 minutes Barry Wilson raced to stop the ball crossing the bye line but Paul Ritchie touched his cross past. The home pressure finally paid off on the half-hour mark in bizarre circumstances. Stuart McCaffrey's free kick reached David Bingham and his overhead kick fooled Nelson; the keeper backtracked but could only help the ball into the net. This was what most of the crowd wanted and they went wild. It was back to earth just before half-time when Keigan Parker raced through and hammered an equaliser past Mark Brown from long range. Seconds later Wilson scored with a low shot but the offside flag was up. Steve Hislop came on for Keogh in the second half. Saints began to play some good football, particularly through Parker and Simon Donnelly, but ICT always looked more like scoring. In 56 minutes Bingham's through ball set Wilson heading for goal and, as he waited for the moment to shoot, Nelson brought him down. The penalty was a certainty and the pressure was all on Barry Wilson. A trademark short run and it was 2-1. A male streaker joined in the celebrations and was promptly evicted. As the excitement reached fever pitch all that was needed was a third goal to calm the nerves. Roy McBain tried to provide it in 64 minutes with a neat lob over Nelson but it cleared the bar. Bingham headed a Wilson corner goalwards in 71 minutes but Mark Reilly hit it off the line then Stuart McCaffrey headed wide. A third goal came in 76 minutes and fittingly it was from Paul Ritchie who was playing his last game for the club. Wilson took a corner from the left and Ritchie stooped low to head home his 63rd goal in three years. The title was a certainty and the final period was all about waiting for the whistle. Wilson shot wide in 86 minutes then the ball spent vital minutes deep in the Saints half and around the corner flag. The final whistle went, the crowd invaded the pitch, the cup arrived by helicopter, Bobby Mann stepped up to receive the trophy from Lord Macfarlane and the whole of Inverness went ballistic. Now for the SPL........maybe. (Crowd: 6092) Venue H2H (all comps) Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 18 10 3 5 21 15 +6 Away 16 3 4 9 10 20 -10 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 34 13 7 14 31 35 -4 As the stats show, the home sides have had the better of these encounters over the years. However, it's over five years since we last played the Perth side and on that occasion we lost 3-0 at home as relegation loomed large. CTO SUMMARY APRIL 8TH 2017: On the brink: Inverness are on the brink of relegation after a shambolic, hapless and gutless performance against a mediocre St Johnstone, who themselves were without two of their stalwart players after an altercation last week. As it turned out, it mattered not a jot as we slumped to an embarrassing 0 - 3 defeat after Larnell Cole was sent off for dissent. We crumbled thereafter. Here's how we got here..... The Caley Jags way Latest Team News Shane Sutherland, Tom Walsh and Roddy MacGregor are all out through injury, Although rumours of a face mask for Roddy are circulating. If he gets a mask, let's make it a Lionel Messi one. Time will tell. Wallace Duffy misses this one after his two yellow cards. Danny Devine ????? Wait for the Wednesday reveal or ***Unfortunately, it's a complete whitewash*** There will be a lot of tired bodies both physically and mentally after that emotionally draining shoot-out win at Gayfield. Our bench was thin prior to that game, it will have less bums on it now. Duffy will miss this game but might return for the second leg at Perth if its only a one match suspension. Scott Allardice has been on the bench in the previous play-off games, however after his long lay off, i wonder if we are still protecting him, or best scenario, keeping him fresh for these final two games. What a bonus that would be. To be honest, should we be competitive after all this, it really would be a Roy of the Rovers finale to a rollercoaster of a season. St Johnstone limbered up for this game by resting more than half of their regulars in an abject 4-0 defeat at Easter Road having fielded four seventeen year old debutants. I wouldn't read too much into that result as they were obviously preparing themselves for the play-off finals which are infinitely more important than a dead end of season game against Hibs that would have gained them nothing. So, no fresh injury worries for Callum Davidson to worry about, and know doubt a full bench to fall back on when the push comes to the shove. We will be able to renew acquaintances with a couple of former players in defenders Jamie McCart and Shaun Rooney who had cult status at the Caledonian Stadium with his marauding Ross Tokely style runs down the right flank. In Zander Clark they have an imposing presence and top quality keeper. Scoring goals has been their downfall this season, but let's not forget they have been playing in a League a notch or two above where we are at just now. They also have the experienced Nadir Ciftci in the squad who has a trick or two up his sleeve. Michael O'Halloran and Liam Craig will also add more experience and quality to the side, so plenty of options for the Super J's. Having watched our performances in the Play-Off semi's, I doubt Callum Davidson will have lost much sleep. However, we are at our best when the odds are stacked against us. 3 days to go until our Premiership Play-Off Final 1st Leg v St Johnstone We strongly recommend getting your tickets in advance for this game as it will be a busy fixture. Tickets on sale now from ICT FC Club Shop open until 4pm today Tickets available over the phone on 01463 222880 AWAY TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE St Johnstone v ICT FC cinch Premiership Play-Off Final 2nd Leg Monday 23rd May 2022 19:45pm kick-off McDiarmid Park AWAY FANS TICKETS FULL INFO ON ICTFC
  8. All to play for at Gayfield Arbroath were up for this one shutting Inverness down high up the pitch in a poor first half. Logan Chalmers was nearest to breaking the deadlock when he hit the bar with a rasping shot from close to thirty yards. Inverness upped the pace after the break but it was too little too late. Sleeves will need to be rolled up on Friday from the start if we are to get through. The whole of the first half passed Inverness by as Arbroath were in our faces. That needs to change on Friday and it might work in our favour if Arbroath decide to have a go which will give us more space to exploit. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Premiership Play-Off 1st leg paired Inverness with second place finishers Arbroath, everyone's favourite wee team. Could Inverness upset the apple cart and take a lead down to Gayfield for the return leg on Friday? All would be revealed at a breezy Caledonian Stadium. Tom Walsh and Roddy MacGregor were missing for Billy Dodds as he went with the same team that started against Partick Thistle with Wallace Duffy added to the bench along with just six others. Dick Campbell unsurprisingly made eight changes from his last game against Morton and managed a full bench of nine. Arbroath set the ball rolling in between the showers on a blustery evening and as the visitors pushed forward in the fifth minute, Mark Ridgers produced a vital tip away from a deep cross with Nicky Low about to head into the net. It was a typically cagey start from the hosts. Kirk Broadfoot gave away the ball and when Arbroath transferred it into the box a half chance presented itself but the ball was knocked high over. The Smokies were in our face and we were struggling to make any headway with fifteen minutes gone. Any football that was being played was coming from the visitors. Twenty minutes gone and the Caley Jags had not started yet in a scrappy affair. Maybe they thought it was a 7:45 kick off. A long free kick into the box almost found Ricky Little on the lunge but it just evaded him and out for a goal kick. On a rare jaunt forward, Austin Samuels almost set up Billy Mckay, but his awkward flick went out for a goal kick. Moments later Logan Chalmers struck the bar with a superb near thirty yard shot. A booking for Broadfoot gave Arbroath a free kick twenty five yards out, but Ridgers was equal to Low's strike as he made a decent but routine save, and at the other end Logan Chalmers drilled a left footer just wide from outside the box as the interval loomed. That half took forever to get going, but opportunities did manifest themselves just before the break, but there's no scoring so far. HALF TIME: 0-0 Just after the start of the second half a well timed sliding tackle by Devine stopped Arbroath bursting into the box to thwart a run forward. A swift break upfield started with David Carson bursting forward at pace and ended with Chalmers winning a corner from his blocked shot. It was a brighter start to the second period from the hosts. A super run forward by Robbie Deas on the other wing offered Chalmers another opportunity but the final ball wasn't ideal and Chalmers eventual shot missed the target. Arbroath responded and Hamilton drilled a low ball into the box which was put behind for a corner. The action raged to the other end and Derek Gaston denied Samuels with a tremendous save. That would be the closest to a goal all night and moments later Aaron Doran volleyed just over. Chris Hamilton smuggled the ball away from under the feet of Samuels in the box and from the corner Broadfoot headed over when he should have hit the target. A Michael McKenna snapshot saw Ridgers parry to safety and the defence cleared. Chalmers volleyed over after a clearance fell to him on the edge of the box, just after Dick and Dodds had a wee spat on the touchline An untidy spell ensued with play broken by fouls and substitutions. The chances stopped coming for both sides as time slipped away and a late free kick was wasted and that was it. Not a great night for Inverness to be honest, but still all to play for at Gayfield. Best performers were in defence with maybe Sean Welsh the only midfielder to put his foot on the ball. More match reaction to follow... From BBCSport Inverness Caledonian Thistle manager Billy Dodds: "I'm happy we're in there pitching because it's going to be so tight on Friday. There's going to be nerves and tension because both teams have left themselves in a decent position."I didn't think we played our best but we had the best chances. We hit the bar first half but we weren't doing the things we're good at. Second-half was a bit better; thought we created the better chances but we just couldn't take one." Arbroath manager Dick Campbell: "If you'd asked me before the game if I'd be happy with that, I would be. The game is still alive and that's all I wanted to happen. The strongest survives on Friday."We will have a go and have our trumpets out. What does it mean to us? You'll see on Friday. They're part-time players. Two games this week, two games next week. It definitely sways towards the full-time clubs. Even if they lose, they'll still be immortal in my eyes." Dick, you forgot to add that you never played for ten days before this game whilst we played twice against Partick Thistle Why do they call him Clean Sheet Ridgers........ Because there's no Mark Date: 10/05/2022 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2201 Referee: Euan Anderson Inverness CT: 0 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Broadfoot, Devine, Deas, Samuels, Welsh, McAlear, Chalmers (Hardy 79), Sutherland (Harper 71), B Mckay (Doran 63) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Duffy, Hyde, Allardice Scorers: none Booked: Broadfoot (39), McAlear (65) Sent Off: none Arbroath: 0 Manager: Dick Campbell Lineup: Gaston; Thomson, Little, O'Brien Hamilton, Stewart, Low (Henderson 84), McKenna, C Hamilton, Craigen, J Hamilton (Donnelly 84) Subs (not used): Antell; Swankie, Ford, Linn, Bakare, Gold, Wighton Scorers: none Booked: O'Brien (58), Henderson (90+3) Sent Off: none a
  9. First Leg v Smokies After an edgy quarter final play off win over Partick Thistle, we face Championship team of the season Arbroath on Tuesday night at 7:05pm. Dick Campbell takes his team North as favourites to progress to the final, with St Johnstone being the likely candidates for the opposition. The game will also be screened live on the BBC Scotland channel. Arbroath have had a fantastic season falling just two points short of automatic promotion and finishing second in the Championship, six points ahead of third placed Inverness, and with a superior goal difference of seven, and losing only five Championship games all season. The one thing in our favour is that we beat them twice, the most recent a slightly flattering 3-0 win a couple of months ago. TICKET INFO OFFICIAL PREVIEW Venue H2H all comps Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 16 2 3 56 18 +38 Away 19 9 4 6 26 22 +4 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 40 25 6 9 82 40 +42 This seasons meetings with the Smokies 3 - 0 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (A) Interestingly, over the final six games of the Championship, Inverness were the team on form, finishing with a flourish ahead of the Play-Offs Overall Home Away Pos Team Pld W D L F A W D L F A W D L F A +/- Pts 1. Inverness CT 6 4 1 1 12 5 3 0 0 8 1 1 1 1 4 4 +7 13 2. Arbroath 6 3 2 1 13 6 2 1 0 11 4 1 1 1 2 2 +7 11 3. Kilmarnock 6 3 2 1 9 6 3 0 0 6 2 0 2 1 3 4 +3 11 Last time we faced Arbroath we were on an eleven game run of no wins since we thumped Morton 6-1 at Cappielow on December 11th CTO Report March 12th: 3-0: The spell is broken: A blistering start by Inverness put them on their way to a first win in 12 starts. Goals from Shane Sutherland and Reece McAlear set them on their way inside eleven minutes. Billy Mckay sclaffed in a third with twenty minutes to go and there was no way back for Arbroath who lost ground at the top of the table with Dick Campbell sent to the stands. As Partick Thistle lost to Morton, we closed the gap to two points behind them with Raith still one point behind us. Away to Rovers next week. That's a massive game now as both sides chase a play-off spot. I said to my grandkid's at the game "that was an emphatic win" At only seven years old, Ava said "granda, what does win mean?" Yes, it's been a long time coming... Well done Mark, great stuff. 68 clean sheets, that's some size of linen cupboard pal! TEAM NEWS Roddy MacGregor has cracked a bone in his jaw and could be out for the next few games. Tom Walsh is likewise after being injured inside twenty minutes at Firhill. Wallace Duffy missed the last couple after being injured against Accies on matchday 36. Scott Allardice made it onto the pitch as an injury time sub for the first time in months, so that's a positive and here's another one, Aaron Doran came on as a sub for the last half hour after taking a knock at Cappielow on matchday 35. A well deserved April's Player of the Month award for Logan Chalmers who has chipped in with some massively important stunning goals recently in our drive for promotion. He scored five goals in a five game purple patch starting with a match winning fiercely struck brace over Raith Rovers. He followed that up with a belter against Ayr United, a sweet winner against Killie and a wonderful solo thumper against Queen of the South. After a somewhat slow start, Logan has benefitted from more game time and you can see why he is highly rated by parent club Dundee United That's some left peg lad. View full article
  10. First Leg v Smokies After an edgy quarter final play off win over Partick Thistle, we face Championship team of the season Arbroath on Tuesday night at 7:05pm. Dick Campbell takes his team North as favourites to progress to the final, with St Johnstone being the likely candidates for the opposition. The game will also be screened live on the BBC Scotland channel. Arbroath have had a fantastic season falling just two points short of automatic promotion and finishing second in the Championship, six points ahead of third placed Inverness, and with a superior goal difference of seven, and losing only five Championship games all season. The one thing in our favour is that we beat them twice, the most recent a slightly flattering 3-0 win a couple of months ago. TICKET INFO OFFICIAL PREVIEW Venue H2H all comps Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 16 2 3 56 18 +38 Away 19 9 4 6 26 22 +4 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 40 25 6 9 82 40 +42 This seasons meetings with the Smokies 3 - 0 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (A) Interestingly, over the final six games of the Championship, Inverness were the team on form, finishing with a flourish ahead of the Play-Offs Overall Home Away Pos Team Pld W D L F A W D L F A W D L F A +/- Pts 1. Inverness CT 6 4 1 1 12 5 3 0 0 8 1 1 1 1 4 4 +7 13 2. Arbroath 6 3 2 1 13 6 2 1 0 11 4 1 1 1 2 2 +7 11 3. Kilmarnock 6 3 2 1 9 6 3 0 0 6 2 0 2 1 3 4 +3 11 Last time we faced Arbroath we were on an eleven game run of no wins since we thumped Morton 6-1 at Cappielow on December 11th CTO Report March 12th: 3-0: The spell is broken: A blistering start by Inverness put them on their way to a first win in 12 starts. Goals from Shane Sutherland and Reece McAlear set them on their way inside eleven minutes. Billy Mckay sclaffed in a third with twenty minutes to go and there was no way back for Arbroath who lost ground at the top of the table with Dick Campbell sent to the stands. As Partick Thistle lost to Morton, we closed the gap to two points behind them with Raith still one point behind us. Away to Rovers next week. That's a massive game now as both sides chase a play-off spot. I said to my grandkid's at the game "that was an emphatic win" At only seven years old, Ava said "granda, what does win mean?" Yes, it's been a long time coming... Well done Mark, great stuff. 68 clean sheets, that's some size of linen cupboard pal! TEAM NEWS Roddy MacGregor has cracked a bone in his jaw and could be out for the next few games. Tom Walsh is likewise after being injured inside twenty minutes at Firhill. Wallace Duffy missed the last couple after being injured against Accies on matchday 36. Scott Allardice made it onto the pitch as an injury time sub for the first time in months, so that's a positive and here's another one, Aaron Doran came on as a sub for the last half hour after taking a knock at Cappielow on matchday 35. Well deserved April's Player of the Month award for Logan Chalmers who has chipped in with some massively important stunning goals recently in our drive for promotion. He scored five goals in a five game purple patch starting with a match winning fiercely struck brace over Raith Rovers. He followed that up with a belter against Ayr United, a sweet winner against Killie a a wonderful solo thumper against Queen of the South. That's some left peg lad.
  11. Smokies next A draw would have been sufficient for Inverness to progress in the Premiership Play-Offs after winning the first leg 2-1 at Firhill. After a cagey opening Austin Samuels scored a superb opening goal when Sutherland fed him into the box. Graham rattled the bar and Ridgers denied the big striker from a goalbound header as Partick came back at their hosts but at the break it was advantage Inverness. Inverness weathered the expected storm after the interval and restricted Partick to half chances and but for Sneddon Inverness could have added another couple of goals, but it's job done and Arbroath up next. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ At home to Arbroath was the prize for getting through this game. Inverness carried a slender advantage from the first leg at Firhill into this tie at the Caledonian Stadium. Tom Walsh, Wallace Duffy and Roddy MacGregor were all out for the hosts leaving just six on the bench including the returning from long term injury, Scott Allardice. Cammy Smith and Ricky Foster were in the Partick starting XI with Brian Graham and Scott Tiffoney still the ones to watch. The game kicked off in bright sunshine and in the third minute Logan Chalmers got the break of the ball off Ricky Foster but he shot over as he approached the corner of the box. Robbie Deas lashed one over from the same area three minutes later as a loose ball came back to him outside the box. Partick almost got the opener when Scott Tiffoney whipped a great ball into the area where Robbie Crawford met it on the run but it just cleared the bar. Very close but no cigar this time. Inverness responded and Billy Mckay shot just wide but he won a corner as his effort was deflected. From the corner Sean Welsh had a shot blocked on the edge of the box The game was littered with loose passing with so much at stake, neither side wanting to make the first error. Brian Graham turned Kirk Broadfoot well twenty five yards out but his shot curled three yards wide of Ridgers left hand post. A wayward back header from Ross Docherty gave Inverness a corner but it was curled just behind, possibly off the corner of the bar. Tiffoney was causing all sorts of problems down the Partick left and he drifted inside but his shot was weak and dragged wide with almost half an hour gone. Almost against the run of play Inverness opened the scoring when Shane Sutherland sent Samuels into the left side of the box where he lashed a powerful shot high into the net behind Sneddon. Great strike, two important goals in two games for the striker. What a time to start scoring. AUSTIN POWER Partick struck the bar moments later through Graham when he got the break of the ball off the chest of Welsh after a corner, his shot from ten yards smacking the bar and bouncing clear. Six minutes before the break an absolutely fantastic save from Ridgers denied Graham as he dived low to his left to save what looked like a certain goal for the big striker. Back up the other end and Samuels almost snatched a second for Inverness but the ball just evaded him. Partick may be aggrieved to be one down, but Inverness hold a two goal aggregate advantage at the interval. Inverness would be well advised to cut out the loose passing to avoid a nervy ending to the tie. HALF TIME: 1-0 Immediately after the break Graham gave substitute Jakubiak an opportunity that won them a corner and almost another chance came from that. It was a sluggish start to the half for the hosts. What a save from Sneddon to deny a Broadfoot header after Carson had won a corner. Great agility from the keeper. Samuels then hit the bar from close range but Mckay was adjudged offside when he clipped the ball across goal. Ridgers gathered a speculative effort from Tiffoney just before the hour. Deas returned the speculative efforts and his one went wide. A bit of a lull since the substitutions after sixty five minutes as the game entered the final twelve minutes with Joe Hardy replacing Billy Mckay. Cammy Harper almost got on the end of a great Sean Welsh ball into the box, Sneddon just beating Harper to the ball to snatch it away from the Inverness player as we broke forward at pace. Sneddon made another tremendous save as Sutherland shot goalwards after a corner, that would have been game over but for the keepers reflexes. We appeared to have weathered the mini storm from Partick and their opportunities seemed to have dried up with eighty seven minutes gone. Decent performance in a tough game where we stood up to Partick and eventually nullified them. Great goal again from Austin Samuels and some tremendous defending with Carson MotM and Devine a close second. Onwards to face Arbroath next Tuesday and Friday, another tough tie. On BBC Sport Inverness CT manager Billy Dodds told BBC Scotland: “It’s a brilliant result I'm so happy for the boys! “I can't say I enjoyed the game, we weren’t at our best, but I don't want to be downbeat because we're through. It's a tremendous result to get through and have a crack at Arbroath. "We worked our socks off, we always do. I'd have liked another one to go in because you've always got that feeling in case they got one back. "We deserved to go through over the piece." Inverness' goalscorer Austin Samuels told BBC Scotland: "I thought I took it too wide but the power on the shot took it past the goalkeeper. "Shane is a really reliable player, as long as I've been here he’s always done a job for the team. "We had a tough period but the gaffer always told us to keep positive and that our time was coming, and it looks like our time is now. On facing Arbroath in the semi-finals, he added: "It’s going to be tough, they’re in the play-offs for a reason, we’ve got to focus on ourselves and hopefully we’ll be in the final after it. Goal can be seen HERE on BBC Sport BOOM!!! Date: 06/05/2022 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2470 Referee: Kevin Clancy Inverness CT: 1 (agg 3) Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Broadfoot, Devine, Deas, Samuels (Doran 66), Welsh, McAlear (Hyde 90+2), Chalmers (Harper 66), Sutherland (Allardice 90+2), B Mckay (Hardy 79) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Scorers: Samuels (29) Booked: Carson (61), McAlear (85), Devine (89) Sent Off: none Partick Thistle: 0 (agg 1) Manager: Ian McCall Lineup: Sneddon; Foster, Akinola, Holt ( Bell 66), Hendrie, Crawford (Murray 82), Bannigan (Turner 45), Docherty, Smith (Jakubiak 45), Tiffoney, Graham ( Alegria 66) Subs (not used): Firth; Stanway, McKenna Scorers: Booked: none Sent Off: none a
  12. Time to Complete Job With only one goal between the sides, these two teams come to the Caledonian Stadium on Friday night (7:45pm) for the return leg of the Premiership play-off quarter final. The first game at Firhill on Tuesday night saw Inverness come from behind to take a slight advantage back up the A9. With away goals not counting double the tie is still in the balance. At Firhill Neither side were able to dominate on the tattie field and they went in goalless at the break although Logan Chalmers looked to be impeded in the box as he tried to get a shot away midway through the half. Robbie Crawford opened the scoring when he got onto a reverse ball from Brian Graham to shoot high into the net from inside the box to put Partick in the driving seat. Inverness turned it round in the second half with goals from Shane Sutherland and Austin Samuels. So here we are back to the Highlands on Friday night to conclude this tie. The downside of playing on that pitch in such a fiercely competitive match saw Tom Walsh injured inside twenty minutes which is a great pity as he was starting to get back to his former self. We were without Aaron Doran, Wallace Duffy and Roddy MacGregor in the first leg, hopefully precautionary in Doran and Duffy's case. Roddy MacGregor might be out for the season. Scott Allardice managed a place on the bench but was rightly not risked on that pitch. Arbroath await the victor. Ahead of Partick game Highlights from 1st Leg The better surface at the Caledonian Stadium will benefit both sides. Scott Tiffoney is a tricky customer although David Carson stuck to the task well at Firhill, but he can be a handful. Brian Graham is always a threat in the air with his physical style and Danny Devine and Kirk Broadfoot need to watch him closely as he will try anything to gain an advantage, including diving in the box. We have our own players to look out for and Logan Chalmers has come on leaps and bounds since joining on loan, and he also has a lethal left foot. Players Player of the Year Shane Sutherland was MotM on Tuesday and is looking good value for his award. Austin Samuels has the pace to trouble defenders and our defence is normally solid. OFFICIAL PREVIEW & TICKET INFO Billy talking after win at Firhill
  13. End of season rout Inverness rounded off the regular season with big win over hapless Hamilton. Tom Walsh gave Inverness an early lead and Shane Sutherland added a tremendous second after fifteen minutes. Walsh notched his second when Sutherland slipped him into the box and Joe Hardy got in on the act with his first goal. Four up at the break and the foot was off the pedal in the second half as Inverness cruised to victory in the final home game with no further scoring. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The last game of the season ahead of the play-offs saw Hamilton Accies come North looking to secure sixth place in the Championship. For Inverness it was about game management and preparation for the play-offs to come, therefore I wasn't expecting too much from the team as this result counts for nothing other than pride. Dodds rested Broadfoot and Devine with McAlear, Samuels and Chalmers on the bench. Hamilton were claiming a reduced squad due to injuries and covid. After a bright opening, Tom Walsh opened the scoring with a low shot across the keeper in the fourth minute. Popescu headed just wide from a great position after a corner was swung into the box, the defender should really have done better than to place his header wide. Shane Sutherland doubled the lead when Walsh turned provider and played him into the right side of the box. Sutherland stepped onto it and first timed the ball into the roof of the net from around seventeen yards. Mark Ridgers did well to beat away a dangerous shot that bounced just in front of him as Accies responded through Lewis Smith, but their joy was short lived when Sutherland slipped Walsh into the box for him to place the ball behind the keeper with aplomb. Billy Mckay nearly got on the scoresheet after Walsh threaded him into the box, Fulton saving at the expense of a corner. Moments later Joe Hardy almost got his first goal for the club, Fulton saving once more. However, Hardy would not be denied and he rolled in a fourth goal with Walsh involved again. It was all too easy for the hosts and Stuart Taylor hooked Ellis Brown and replaced him with the reliable and experienced Brian Easton in an attempt to shore up at the back against a rampant Caley Jags. Half Time: 4-0 First notable action of a quieter second half saw sub keeper Cammy Mackay deny Popescu who had drilled a low dipping shot near his left hand post, the keeper doing well to keep the ball out. A tremendous sweeping move down the right almost found an acrobatic finish from Austin Samuels but the defence just managed to deny him the opportunity. Samuels went close again soon after as he shot across the face of the goal. MacGregor and Chalmers combined well to win a corner on the left but it came to nothing. Accies looked to have scored a consolation goal when substitute Andrew Winter lashed a through ball into the roof of the net but it was adjudged to be offside, marginal decision if at all. Samuels had a late effort saved by the keeper as he shot from a narrow angle on the right side. Full Time: 4-0 Inverness warmed up for the play-offs with a superb first half which blew Accies away. That's our first win over them this season. Great performance all round with some slick play on show and that afforded us the luxury of coasting through the second half. Man of the Match for me was Roddy MacGregor who strolled through this one and Tom Walsh looked more like his old self with a couple of slick goals. Hot off the press Goal of the season: Reece McAlear (v Dunfermline) Fans' and players' young player of the season: Reece McAlear Players' player of the year: Shane Sutherland Fans' player of the year: David Carson Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts FINAL LEAGUE TABLE AHEAD OF PLAY-OFFS 1. Kilmarnock 36 20 7 9 50 27 67 2. Arbroath 36 17 14 5 54 28 65 3. Inverness CT 36 16 11 9 53 34 59 4. Partick Thistle 36 14 10 12 46 40 52 5. Raith Rovers 36 12 14 10 44 44 50 6. Hamilton Ac. 36 10 12 14 38 53 42 7. Morton 36 9 13 14 36 47 40 8. Ayr United 36 9 12 15 39 52 39 9. Dunfermline 36 7 14 15 36 53 35 10. Q.O.S. 36 8 9 19 36 54 33 Tonights results Caley Jags 4-0 Hamilton Arbroath 3-0 Morton Ayr Utd 3-1 Partick Dunfermline 1-2 Queen of South Rovers 1-1 Killie ***Dates for your diary*** CINCH PREMIERSHIP PLAY-OFFS Tuesday May 3 Quarter-final, 1st leg Partick Thistle v Inverness CT Live on BBC Scotland, kick-off 7.05pm Friday May 6 Quarter-final, 2nd leg Inverness CT v Partick Thistle Live on BBC Scotland, kick-off 7.45pm Date: 29/04/2022 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2131 Referee: Graham Grainger Inverness CT: 4 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; (C Mackay 45) Carson, Duffy (Welsh 25), Deas (McAlear 58), Harper, Hardy, MacGregor, Hyde, Walsh, Sutherland (Chalmers 65), Mckay (Samuels 45) Subs (not used): Scorers: Walsh (4, 22), Sutherland (15), Hardy (28) Booked: none Sent Off: none Hamilton: 0 Manager: Stuart Taylor (head coach) Lineup: Fulton; Mullin, Popescu, O'Reilly, Shiels, Mimnaugh (Hughes 47), L Smith, Spence (Winter 73), Lawson, Brown (Easton 29), Moyo (McGowan 90) Subs (not used): J Smith; McGinn, Newbury Scorers: none Booked: Popescu (35), Easton (57) Sent Off: none a
  14. Time to Prepare The last game of the season ahead of the play-offs has Hamilton Accies coming North looking to secure sixth place in the Championship. For Inverness it's all about game management and preparation for the play-offs to come, starting with an away tie at Partick on Tuesday 3rd May. Don't expect too much from the team as this result counts for nothing other than pride. MATCH/TICKET/STREAMING INFO OFFICIAL PREVIEW It's a bit of a dead rubber as far as we are concerned with bigger fish to fry as the promotion play-offs begin on 3rd May at Firhill with the return leg at the Caledonian Stadium on Friday 6th May. However, we will have to go through the motions and hopefully get through this game unscathed. Venue Head 2 Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 14 4 4 6 21 19 +2 Away 11 6 2 3 17 13 +4 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 25 10 6 9 38 32 +6 Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Accies 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 1 (H) 0 - 3 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 4 - 3 (A) CTO Oct2nd - Academicals teach us a lesson: Accies did inflict the first reverse for Inverness, as the Caley Jags drowned at the fountain of youth, and they did it with ten men for over an hour after Reegan Mimnaugh was sent off for a second bookable offence. They opened the scoring when Lewis Smith thumped the ball into the net after only five minutes. Andy Ryan added a second as Inverness crumbled and failed to trouble the home keeper. 2-0 at the break and Inverness bossed possession after the interval but never made Fulton work for his money. Harper hit the bar as the pressure mounted and Michael Gardyne scored a late consolation in injury time, but it was too little too late. With Raith beating Killie and Arbroath drawing, no major damage was done with Raith and Partick the big winners this weekend. CTO Dec18th - Hyde: After an uneventful first half, Inverness slumped to their second defeat of the season to a rank rotten Accies when they surrendered a second half lead after Cammy Harper netted. However two goals in the space of three minutes from David Moyo and Andrew Winter ruined our day and knocked us off our perch at the top. I suppose it was only a Winter's tale, but it doesn't make good reading. That's our Jekyll and Hyde season in all its sorry glory... CTO Feb25th - Entertaining draw: Accies took an early lead through Josh Mullin after a defensive blunder by Reece McAlear. Great finish from the Accies player though as he arrowed the ball high into the net from twenty yards. We levelled when Sam Pearson scored his first goal for the club on the half hour and that's how it stayed at the break, although David Moyo almost got a touch on a low ball fizzed into the box just on the whistle. No further scoring after the break despite plenty of opportunities at both ends and Joe Hardy almost snatched it at the end with the last kick of the ball. Good point, but ten games without a win now. The season has been littered with some tremendous goals and here are the ones which made the shortlist for Goal of the Season. The voting closes at 10:00am on Friday morning, the winners of all awards will be announced at Accies game on Friday night. It's been a season of 'what could have been' after a miserable run of eleven games with no wins starting in December and picking up only six points from a possible thirty-three. However, we are where we are and it's the play-offs for us. Good luck to the Caley Jags when they come along! Who knew that a 6-1 thrashing of Morton would start it all off. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts 1. Kilmarnock 35 20 6 9 49 26 66 2. Arbroath 35 16 14 5 51 28 62 3. Inverness CT 35 15 11 9 49 34 56 4. Partick Thistle 35 14 10 11 45 37 52 5. Raith Rovers 35 12 13 10 43 43 49 6. Hamilton Ac. 35 10 12 13 38 49 42 7. Morton 35 9 13 13 36 44 40 8. Ayr United 35 8 12 15 36 51 36 9. Dunfermline 35 7 14 14 35 51 35 10. Q.O.S. 35 7 9 19 34 53 30 Last time Out Inverness secured third place in the Championship after a relatively comfortable win over Morton despite the narrow scoreline. We had an objective prior to the game and that was achieved when comeback kid Roddy MacGregor scored the only goal of the game with a tidy low strike from outside of the box as the defenders backed off. Accies failed to wrap up sixth place after a slow start to the campaign which will leave them with something to aim for in this match as they strive to keep Morton below them in the table. They lost 0-2 to Raith Rovers who are still chasing fourth although goal difference is heavily stacked in favour of Partick Thistle Latest Team News Please, no more injuries before play-offs View full article
  15. Time to Prepare The last game of the season ahead of the play-offs has Hamilton Accies coming North looking to secure sixth place in the Championship. For Inverness it's all about game management and preparation for the play-offs to come, starting with an away tie at Partick on Tuesday 3rd May. Don't expect too much from the team as this result counts for nothing other than pride. MATCH/TICKET/STREAMING INFO OFFICIAL PREVIEW It's a bit of a dead rubber as far as we are concerned with bigger fish to fry as the promotion play-offs begin on 3rd May at Firhill with the return leg at the Caledonian Stadium on Friday 6th May. However, we will have to go through the motions and hopefully get through this game unscathed. Venue Head 2 Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 14 4 4 6 21 19 +2 Away 11 6 2 3 17 13 +4 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 25 10 6 9 38 32 +6 Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Accies 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 1 (H) 0 - 3 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 4 - 3 (A) CTO Oct2nd - Academicals teach us a lesson: Accies did inflict the first reverse for Inverness, as the Caley Jags drowned at the fountain of youth, and they did it with ten men for over an hour after Reegan Mimnaugh was sent off for a second bookable offence. They opened the scoring when Lewis Smith thumped the ball into the net after only five minutes. Andy Ryan added a second as Inverness crumbled and failed to trouble the home keeper. 2-0 at the break and Inverness bossed possession after the interval but never made Fulton work for his money. Harper hit the bar as the pressure mounted and Michael Gardyne scored a late consolation in injury time, but it was too little too late. With Raith beating Killie and Arbroath drawing, no major damage was done with Raith and Partick the big winners this weekend. CTO Dec18th - Hyde: After an uneventful first half, Inverness slumped to their second defeat of the season to a rank rotten Accies when they surrendered a second half lead after Cammy Harper netted. However two goals in the space of three minutes from David Moyo and Andrew Winter ruined our day and knocked us off our perch at the top. I suppose it was only a Winter's tale, but it doesn't make good reading. That's our Jekyll and Hyde season in all its sorry glory... CTO Feb25th - Entertaining draw: Accies took an early lead through Josh Mullin after a defensive blunder by Reece McAlear. Great finish from the Accies player though as he arrowed the ball high into the net from twenty yards. We levelled when Sam Pearson scored his first goal for the club on the half hour and that's how it stayed at the break, although David Moyo almost got a touch on a low ball fizzed into the box just on the whistle. No further scoring after the break despite plenty of opportunities at both ends and Joe Hardy almost snatched it at the end with the last kick of the ball. Good point, but ten games without a win now. The season has been littered with some tremendous goals and here are the ones which made the shortlist for Goal of the Season. The voting closes at 10:00am on Friday morning, the winners of all awards will be announced at Accies game on Friday night. It's been a season of 'what could have been' after a miserable run of eleven games with no wins starting in December and picking up only six points from a possible thirty-three. However, we are where we are and it's the play-offs for us. Good luck to the Caley Jags when they come along! Who knew that a 6-1 thrashing of Morton would start it all off. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts 1. Kilmarnock 35 20 6 9 49 26 66 2. Arbroath 35 16 14 5 51 28 62 3. Inverness CT 35 15 11 9 49 34 56 4. Partick Thistle 35 14 10 11 45 37 52 5. Raith Rovers 35 12 13 10 43 43 49 6. Hamilton Ac. 35 10 12 13 38 49 42 7. Morton 35 9 13 13 36 44 40 8. Ayr United 35 8 12 15 36 51 36 9. Dunfermline 35 7 14 14 35 51 35 10. Q.O.S. 35 7 9 19 34 53 30 Last time Out Inverness secured third place in the Championship after a relatively comfortable win over Morton despite the narrow scoreline. We had an objective prior to the game and that was achieved when comeback kid Roddy MacGregor scored the only goal of the game with a tidy low strike from outside of the box as the defenders backed off. Accies failed to wrap up sixth place after a slow start to the campaign which will leave them with something to aim for in this match as they strive to keep Morton below them in the table. They lost 0-2 to Raith Rovers who are still chasing fourth although goal difference is heavily stacked in favour of Partick Thistle Latest Team News Please, no more injuries before play-offs Here's what the club are saying in the OFFICIAL PREVIEW
  16. Title on hold as ICT win. Killie came North with a big following looking to get one hand on the title whilst Inverness were hoping to strengthen their grip on a play-off spot. A win for Killie tonight and defeat for Arbroath tomorrow afternoon and they will have both hands on the title and on their way back to the Premiership. An even first forty-five with Campbell and Shaw coming closest for the visitors and Chalmers and Samuels having the best efforts for the hosts, but it remained scoreless at the interval. The pace warmed up after the break and it was Ash Taylor that opened the scoring after a misplaced header from Kirk Broadfoot landed at his feet. Dodds took the bull by the horns with a double substitution and that seemed to give us the impetus to have a go at Killie. Billy Mckay hustled a poachers goal with fifteen minutes left, and once more Logan Chalmers came up trumps with a well executed goal to round off the scoring. What this means is that Inverness are guaranteed a play-off place and Killie have a bit more work to do. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ No fresh injury worries for Inverness but Aaron Doran was on the bench with Austin Samuels starting and Wallace Duffy started at right back with David Carson benched. Roddy MacGregor returned to the bench after showing no reactions to his appearance last weekend. Kilmarnock were unchanged which meant that Daniel Mackay was on the bench for the visitors. A beautiful calm night for a game of football, also shown on council TV, saw the Caley Jags set the ball rolling and it was a cagey opening ten minutes that followed as both sides probed for an opening. Danger man Kyle Lafferty had the ball in the net in the tenth minute but was adjudged offside as Killie just shaded the opening stages. Inverness were giving away numerous petty free kicks and from one of those Mark Ridgers made a diving interception from a dangerous ball whipped into the box. Oli Shaw had a twelve yard shot blocked by Danny Devine as Killie opened up their hosts down their left wing with Ridgers sprawling across his line. At the other end Zach Hemming made a great interception as Billy Mckay tried to latch onto a ball forward. Ridgers stood tall to make a good save as Campbell burst forward at pace, the keeper using strong hands to beat the ball over the bar for a corner but again Ridgers dealt well with the cross. Half way through the first period and Killie were having the better of the game so far as Inverness struggled to hold onto the ball. However, a tremendous diagonal ball forward from Kirk Broadfoot picked out Logan Chalmers and he shot early from distance on the left, but his effort caught the side net and Austin Samuels had a close range shot blocked six yards out as Inverness opened up. Danny Devine conceded a corner with a well timed interception as Shaw tried to get onto a ball flicked into the box. From the corner, Shaw's header clipped the top of the crossbar on the way behind for a goal kick. Mckay was very close to connecting with the ball as a Sean Welsh delivery curled into the box, but once again Hemming did well to put Billy off his stride and the keeper was able to tidy up. Reece McAlear volleyed over after a free kick as the hosts got to grip with the game, the ball going for a fruitless corner five minutes before the break. HALF TIME: 0-0 Killie came out of the blocks quickest at the start of the second half and Fraser Murray had a shot blocked on the angle of the six yard box by Robbie Deas. Hemming did well to push away a powerful shot from Samuels after he turned well twenty yards out and a minute later Broadfoot was denied by a diving Hemming at the expense of a corner. Blair Alston won a corner as he lashed an effort just wide and seconds later Killie took the lead after Broadfoot inadvertently knocked a header towards Ash Taylor who deftly tucked the ball over Ridgers and into the net. Double sub for Inverness with Samuels and McAlear being replaced by Aaron Doran and David Carson and that triggered an impressive spell for Inverness culminating in a pulsating finale. Some good pressure from the hosts paid off when Billy Mckay scrambled the ball in from close range to restore parity. Even better would follow six minutes later. Once again it was Logan Chalmers to the rescue as he drove a low shot into the net from ten yards at the back post. Get in ya dancer. FULL TIME: 2-1 Inverness saw out the game well in control and thoroughly deserved the three points and a play-off slot. Killie have more work to do to clinch the cinch. Good performances all round with Devine a rock at the back. Ridgers did well with some great interceptions early on, punching dangerous cross balls clear of danger. Deas, Duffy did well to shackle the early advances of Killie. The midfield worked tirelessly and what else can you say about Billy Mckay. He scores when he wants and Logan the loan did it again. Four goals in four games. Good work lad and much appreciated. Match reaction and videos to follow Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Updated table after Inverness CT 2-1 Kilmarnock 1. Kilmarnock 34 19 6 9 47 25 63 2. Arbroath 33 15 14 4 45 25 59 3. Inverness CT 33 14 11 8 47 32 53 4. Partick Thistle 33 13 10 10 44 36 49 5. Raith Rovers 33 10 13 10 40 43 43 6. Morton 33 9 13 11 36 42 40 7. Hamilton Ac. 33 9 12 12 37 47 39 8. Ayr United 33 8 11 14 34 48 35 9. Dunfermline 33 6 14 13 33 49 32 10. Q.O.S. 32 6 8 18 30 46 26 Winner Winner Chicken Dinner Date: 15/04/2022 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 3829 Referee: Don Robertson Inverness CT: 2 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Duffy, Broadfoot, Devine, Deas, Samuels (Doran 70), Welsh, McAlear (Carson 70), Sutherland, Chalmers (Harper 84), B Mckay (Hardy 88) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, MacGregor, Walsh Scorers: Mckay (76), Chalmers (82) Booked: Deas (72) Sent Off: none Kilmarnock: 1 Manager: Derek McInnes Lineup: Hemming; Hodson, Taylor, Stokes, McGinn (Glass 83), Campbell, Alston, F Murray (Mackay 90+1), Lyons, Shaw, Lafferty, Subs (not used): Walker; E Murray, Naismith, McGowan, Sanders, Burke, Armstrong Scorers: Taylor (60) Booked: none Sent Off: none a
  17. Champions in waiting     Kilmarnock head North looking to wrap up their return to the Premiership as they visit the Caledonian Stadium on Friday night. The game is a 7:45pm kick off and can be seen on council TV. The crossing of the T's and dotting of the I's is all that prevents the trophy being handed over, but the real battle goes on for second, third and fourth. Killie will be taking a big crowd North looking to close out the title. MATCH/TICKET/STREAMING INFO SPORTS BAR OPEN AT STADIUM The stats lean towards Inverness in this fixture but it's usually a tight affair. Home advantage could be crucial but Killie are hitting fine form at the right moment. We sometimes appear clueless, let's see what hat we wear on Friday night. Venue Head2Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 11 9 4 44 32 +12 Away 26 8 6 12 36 45 -9 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 50 19 15 16 80 77 +3 Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Killie 0 - 1 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 3 - 1 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 1 (H) This Season It's advantage Inverness so far in the three meetings. Never more than one goal between the sides this season but Killie look to be rounding their season off in emphatic style whilst we are still trying to ensure we make the play-offs with some erratic performances, self belief not high on our agenda. CTO Report August 28th -Table Toppers: Both sides had won their opening three fixtures with Killie having the better goal difference. Both sides had yet to concede a goal; something was going to give, and it did after five minutes. This game had the potential to be the toughest test so far in the Billy Dodds era and it was a tight affair but Inverness scored the only goal of the game when Michael Gardyne lashed the ball into the net via the keepers palms. That proved to be the winner. Blair Alston nicked one off the outside of the post before the interval and Mark Ridgers kept Killie out with his 4th clean sheet in a row in the Championship after denying Innes Cameron from point blank range to put the Caley Jags at the top of the table on their own. CTO Report December 3rd - Table Toppers again: League leaders Kilmarnock looked determined to spoil the game as a spectacle and it was a first half of few chances. Mckay having a shot blocked for a corner by Hemming and Ridgers denying McKenzie. However, chances were at a premium and the half ended goalless. The goal that settled the game was a stunning strike from captain Sean Welsh and no more than Inverness deserved with Killie void of attacking intent. This result put Inverness back on top of the table for now. CTO Report January 29th - Rugby Park Loss: Inverness made the long journey home with no points after Kyle Lafferty scored an early goal after good work by Daniel Mackay down the right wing. What a kick in the teeth that was. Very little to choose between the sides as neither side dominated and clear chances were at a premium with Killie probably having the better of them. Without five regulars, this was always going to be a difficult ask, and so it turned out, but our recent signings look like they could offer something once they are up to speed. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Inverness v Killie (Friday night) 1. Kilmarnock 33 19 6 8 46 23 63 2. Arbroath 33 15 14 4 45 25 59 3. Inverness CT 32 13 11 8 45 31 50 4. Partick Thistle 33 13 10 10 44 36 49 5. Raith Rovers 33 10 13 10 40 43 43 6. Morton 33 9 13 11 36 42 40 7. Hamilton Ac. 33 9 12 12 37 47 39 8. Ayr United 33 8 11 14 34 48 35 9. Dunfermline 33 6 14 13 33 49 32 10. Q.O.S. 32 6 8 18 30 46 26 SATURDAY 16TH APRIL Arbroath v Queens Dunfermline v Ayr United  Morton v Accies   Partick v Rovers Last Time Out Killie saw off Dunfermline with a goal in each half from Kyle Lafferty and Oli Shaw in a one sided affair. It might have been a cricket score had it not been for Pars keeper Jakub Stolarczyk pulling off a string of super saves. The Caley Jags threw away a two goal lead against Ayr United last week with a less than impressive second half performance. Shane Sutherland opened the scoring with his tenth goal this season and Logan Chalmers curled in a beauty from twenty two yards. Alas once Ayr changed their personnel at the interval we were second to every ball and got what we deserved. In fact we were left hanging on somewhat and were lucky to claim a point after goals from Fraser Bryden and Markus Fjortoft. A better point for Ayr than it was for us. Logan's super strike... Latest Team News Killie have the luxury of a strength of depth squad and should have no fresh worries ahead of this game. They will also have the luxury of a big away support for this one and that 12th man could prove decisive. Billy Dodds welcomed Roddy MacGregor back last weekend with a substitutes appearance for the talented midfielder. Scott Allardice was the only missing player last week but Aaron Doran was replaced at half-time, presumably injured. Here's Roddy talking about his time out     View full article
  18. Champions in waiting Kilmarnock head North looking to wrap up their return to the Premiership as they visit the Caledonian Stadium on Friday night. The game is a 7:45pm kick off and can be seen on council TV. The crossing of the T's and dotting of the I's is all that prevents the trophy being handed over, but the real battle goes on for second, third and fourth. Killie will be taking a big crowd North looking to close out the title. MATCH/TICKET/STREAMING INFO SPORTS BAR OPEN AT STADIUM The stats lean towards Inverness in this fixture but it's usually a tight affair. Home advantage could be crucial but Killie are hitting fine form at the right moment. We sometimes appear clueless, let's see what hat we wear on Friday night. Venue Head2Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 24 11 9 4 44 32 +12 Away 26 8 6 12 36 45 -9 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 50 19 15 16 80 77 +3 Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Killie 0 - 1 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 3 - 1 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 1 (H) This Season It's advantage Inverness so far in the three meetings. Never more than one goal between the sides this season but Killie look to be rounding their season off in emphatic style whilst we are still trying to ensure we make the play-offs with some erratic performances, self belief not high on our agenda. CTO Report August 28th -Table Toppers: Both sides had won their opening three fixtures with Killie having the better goal difference. Both sides had yet to concede a goal; something was going to give, and it did after five minutes. This game had the potential to be the toughest test so far in the Billy Dodds era and it was a tight affair but Inverness scored the only goal of the game when Michael Gardyne lashed the ball into the net via the keepers palms. That proved to be the winner. Blair Alston nicked one off the outside of the post before the interval and Mark Ridgers kept Killie out with his 4th clean sheet in a row in the Championship after denying Innes Cameron from point blank range to put the Caley Jags at the top of the table on their own. CTO Report December 3rd - Table Toppers again: League leaders Kilmarnock looked determined to spoil the game as a spectacle and it was a first half of few chances. Mckay having a shot blocked for a corner by Hemming and Ridgers denying McKenzie. However, chances were at a premium and the half ended goalless. The goal that settled the game was a stunning strike from captain Sean Welsh and no more than Inverness deserved with Killie void of attacking intent. This result put Inverness back on top of the table for now. CTO Report January 29th - Rugby Park Loss: Inverness made the long journey home with no points after Kyle Lafferty scored an early goal after good work by Daniel Mackay down the right wing. What a kick in the teeth that was. Very little to choose between the sides as neither side dominated and clear chances were at a premium with Killie probably having the better of them. Without five regulars, this was always going to be a difficult ask, and so it turned out, but our recent signings look like they could offer something once they are up to speed. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Inverness v Killie (Friday night) 1. Kilmarnock 33 19 6 8 46 23 63 2. Arbroath 33 15 14 4 45 25 59 3. Inverness CT 32 13 11 8 45 31 50 4. Partick Thistle 33 13 10 10 44 36 49 5. Raith Rovers 33 10 13 10 40 43 43 6. Morton 33 9 13 11 36 42 40 7. Hamilton Ac. 33 9 12 12 37 47 39 8. Ayr United 33 8 11 14 34 48 35 9. Dunfermline 33 6 14 13 33 49 32 10. Q.O.S. 32 6 8 18 30 46 26 SATURDAY 16TH APRIL Arbroath v Queens Dunfermline v Ayr United Morton v Accies Partick v Rovers Last Time Out Killie saw off Dunfermline with a goal in each half from Kyle Lafferty and Oli Shaw in a one sided affair. It might have been a cricket score had it not been for Pars keeper Jakub Stolarczyk pulling off a string of super saves. Killie last five WWWDW The Caley Jags threw away a two goal lead against Ayr United last week with a less than impressive second half performance. Shane Sutherland opened the scoring with his tenth goal this season and Logan Chalmers curled in a beauty from twenty two yards. Alas once Ayr changed their personnel at the interval we were second to every ball and got what we deserved. In fact we were left hanging on somewhat and were lucky to claim a point after goals from Fraser Bryden and Markus Fjortoft. A better point for Ayr than it was for us. Inverness last five LWWWD Logan's super strike... Latest Team News Killie have the luxury of a strength of depth squad and should have no fresh worries ahead of this game. They will also have the luxury of a big away support for this one and that 12th man could prove decisive. Billy Dodds welcomed Roddy MacGregor back last weekend with a substitutes appearance for the talented midfielder. Scott Allardice was the only missing player last week but Aaron Doran was replaced at half-time, presumably injured. Dodds looking forward to the clash Here's Roddy talking about his time out
  19. Looking promising Inverness took a massive step towards a play off place by defeating Dunfermline Athletic for the first time this season. An encouraging but goalless first half where Reece McAlear had hit the post was replaced by a two goal second half with chances at both ends. The deadlock was broken by a man who only scores screamers. Reece McAlear lashed the ball across the keeper and into the top right corner of the goal from a difficult position wide on the inside right area. What a strike that was but it only woke the Pars up from their lethargy and they had three or four great opportunities before substitute Austin Samuels sealed the points after he sprinted on to a through ball from Aaron Doran to slot neatly behind Mehmet in goal. Comfortable thereafter for the remainder of the game and an excellent three points to strengthen our hold on third place with Raith, Arbroath and Partick all dropping points. Inverness were thin on the bench with Scott Allardice and Roddy Macgregor out longer term and Danny Devine, Joe Harper and Sam Pearson all missing. Dunfermline had Liam Polworth, Joe Chalmers and Col Donaldson starting with Nikolay Todorov on the bench. An enterprising start to the game in bright sunshine saw plenty of crisp passing in the opening gambit with only the telling pass missing. Denzil Mehmet was the first keeper called into serious action as he dived full length to keep out a low strike from Logan Chalmers on the left side of the box with the loose ball missing the strikers before being mopped up by the defence. You can see Denzil using anything to keep the ball out. Pic courtesy of CaleyJags.com. Inverness were buzzing around the visitors box with plenty of movement up front, creating a few half chances. Aaron Doran scooping one just wide on the volley and Chalmers flashing a thumping drive just over the bar from the edge of the box. Robbie Deas might have done better than lift a shot over the bar from ten yards as the hosts pressed for the opening goal and Doran again shot wide after good battling down the right touchline by Carson and Sutherland. Reece McAlear almost scored with a spectacular curling free kick from the left of centre, his right foot shot coming back off the top of the post with Mehmet beaten; the ball bouncing back into the keepers arms after cannoning off a defender. He would do better in the second half, and what a strike it was. HALF TIME: 0-0 Just before the hour, Inverness scored a contender for goal of the season. Sean Welsh's free kick came back off the wall some 28 yards from goal. Without breaking stride, McAlear turned onto the ball and fired an absolute rocket across the stunned keeper into the opposite side of the net. Mehmet rooted to the spot like a subbuteo keeper waiting for the strike. Boom! What a goal from Reece, his third or fourth contender of the season. That sparked Dunfermline into life and Cammy Mackay did brilliantly to deny Dow and Todorov with point blank saves to keep Inverness ahead. It was bodies on the line time as the defenders guarded their keeper well and the Pars would rue those missed opportunities. Substitute Austin Samuels scored his first goal for the club just after coming on. His first kick of the ball saw him slot home after he had played a one-two with Doran who threaded the ball through for Samuels to run on and steer the ball behind the outrushing Mehmet. That goal took the sting out of the Pars and their discipline disintegrated, Donaldson in particular not enjoying his return to the Caledonian Stadium. How does it feel Austin?................ It feels good! Tom Walsh almost benefited from a defensive lapse as he struck a sweet shot from twenty yards in injury time, but it just curled the wrong side of the post with Mehmet beaten. FULL TIME: 2-0 Great three points for the Caley Jags who have now won their last three in a row and are in prime spot for a shot at the play-offs. Reece McAlear was MotM, even if it was just for his superb goal, but his overall performance was solid and he was unlucky with his free kick that crashed back off the post. Great contribution from Cammy Mackay who stayed alert to deny the Pars after we opened the scoring and well done to Wallace Duffy at centre back who never looked out of place and strolled through the game nullifying some dangerous forwards. No failures today and a decent performance to boot. Reece the Thunderblaster... Date: 26/03/2022 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2172 Referee: Graham Beaton Inverness CT: 2 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: C Mackay; Carson, Duffy, Broadfoot, Deas, Doran (Walsh 81), Welsh, McAlear, Sutherland, Chalmers (Harper 67), B Mckay (Samuels 76) Subs (not used): Ridgers; Hyde Scorers: McAlear (58), Samuels (77) Booked: Samuels (83) Sent Off: none Dunfermline: 0 Manager: John Hughes Lineup: Mehmet; Todd (Comrie 79), Donaldson, Ambrose (Cole 79), Edwards, Polworth (Todorov 63), Pybus, Chalmers, Lawless (Kamwa 59), Thomas (Dow 63), O'Hara Subs (not used): Archibald; Allan, Breen, Martin Scorers: none Booked: Donaldson (83), Pybus (90+1) Sent Off: none a
  20. Crucial Times Ahead   The big games keep coming as we reach the business end of the season, the intensity of this one heightened in midweek after the Pars thrashed Partick Thistle 4-1 on Tuesday night ahead of their visit to the Caledonian Stadium on Saturday. The game kicks off at 3:00pm with points vital for both sides for different reasons. John Hughes is the man tasked with saving Dunfermline's season and it's not all gone to plan so far, but the midweek rout of Partick is an untimely reminder that they can cause problems to the best sides in this division. How many people, like me, had the Pars down as one of the favourites to get promotion given the depth and quality of their squad. I certainly did not expect them to be exiting the Championship at the bottom end. Crazy season heading for a tense finish at both ends of the table. MATCH/TICKETS/STREAMING INFO OFFICIAL PREVIEW Venue Head 2 Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 22 9 8 5 28 21 +7 Away 24 9 10 5 29 26 +3 Neutral 2 0 1 1 3 4 -1 Total 48 18 19 11 60 51 +9 Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Pars 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 3 (A) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (H) The honours tilt towards us over the years, a far cry from our first taste of the big time when Dunfermline pumped us 4-0 at East End Park in our first game in Division one or the Championship as we know it now. August 7th 1999 with nearly 5,000 in attendance, steak bridies and all. At last we had made the big time....Alas, we had a lot to learn.  Click on the link below to see Ian Broadfoot's brief report as we ended the game with 10 men against an accomplished Dunfermline Athletic.  Aug 7th League 0 - 4  (A)    4,865   Fast Forward to May 12th 2007 when Dunfermline were officially relegated after we beat them at the Caledonian Stadium; full report from Ian Broadfoot. Look at that crowd back in 2007, no doubt swelled by the Fifers as they tried to stave off relegation.  May 12th League 2 - 1  (H)    6,464     All games Saturday 3:00pm     Arbroath v Raith Rvrs Hamilton v Queens        Killie v Partick     Morton v Ayr Utd  Inverness CT v Dunfermline Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts   1. Kilmarnock 30 17 5 8 41 21 56 2. Arbroath 30 14 12 4 41 22 54 3. Inverness CT 30 12 10 8 41 29 46 4. Partick Thistle 30 12 9 9 42 34 45 5. Raith Rovers 30 10 12 8 37 37 42 6. Morton 30 8 11 11 33 40 35 7. Hamilton Ac. 30 8 11 11 35 45 35 8. Ayr United 30 8 8 14 30 44 32 9. Dunfermline 30 5 14 11 31 45 29 10. Q.O.S. 30 6 8 16 30 44 26 As a result of Dunfermline swatting away the Jags in midweek, all teams have now played 30 games with Inverness remaining in 3rd position whilst Partick and Raith capitulate. No room to crow about it though as we have only just returned to winning ways after a horrendous run of eleven games with no wins, taking only six points from a possible thirty three. This season we have yet to beat the Pars. We were fortunate to draw 0-0 at East End Park in September as Dunfermline looked for their first win of the season after five games. We were top on 15 points, Dunfermline bottom with just two points after this one. We went down 2-1 at the Caledonian Stadium in November after having led through a Billy Mckay goal. A Danny Devine og restored parity before a superb Dom Thomas solo goal clinched the points. Under Par: Inverness opened the scoring after probing well for over twenty minutes. Michael Gardyne drifted inside and the Pars defence opened up allowing him to get a shot away. It came back off the woodwork and Billy Mckay reacted first to knock the ball into the net. However, Dunfermline got their first win of the season as Inverness fired blanks thereafter, and goals from Kevin O'Hara assisted by a massive Danny Devine deflection and a great solo effort from Dom Thomas won the points for the Pars. Another bad day at the office continued with Inverness slipping to third following wins for Killie Raith and Partick. The third encounter was a 1-1 draw at EEP: More points thrown away in our wasteful period in January. 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. So, time to redress the balance for this season as Dunfermline begin to realise the severity of their plight.  Last Time Out We came away with an unlikely three points after Logan Chalmers scored two spectacular goals in the dying embers of a game we looked like losing, even against ten men. Raith took an early lead through Aidan Connolly before Shane Sutherland stabbed in the equaliser. That was short lived as Poplatnik restored Raith's advantage before the break. A couple of enforced changes weakened Raith but we still struggled and even after Kyle Benedictus was red carded with twenty minutes to go we looked spent on ideas. Up popped Chalmers with two sweet left foot strikes to take the points North. That result came on the back of us ending our drought with a 3-0 win over Arbroath the week before to revive our flagging play-off hopes. On yersel Logan As said before, Dunfermline helped us out in midweek by thumping Partick thistle 4-1. More importantly they helped themselves massively and climbed off the foot of the table in doing so. Partick had opened the scoring with a strike from distance through Ross Docherty. They fought back and deservedly levelled with an og from Lewis Mayo. Mathew Todd scored a second for a rampant Pars in the first half followed by Josh Edwards. Man of the Match Dom Thomas scored a spectacular fourth in the second half to put the icing on the cake. Great result for the Pars led of course by none other that John Hughes, our former Scottish Cup winning manager. Latest Team News Scott Allardice is out long term with Roddy MacGregor rumoured to be returned to full training. More team news to follow... View full article
  21. Crucial Times Ahead The big games keep coming as we reach the business end of the season, the intensity of this one heightened in midweek after the Pars thrashed Partick Thistle 4-1 on Tuesday night ahead of their visit to the Caledonian Stadium on Saturday. The game kicks off at 3:00pm with points vital for both sides for different reasons. John Hughes is the man tasked with saving Dunfermline's season and it's not all gone to plan so far, but the midweek rout of Partick is an untimely reminder that they can cause problems to the best sides in this division. How many people, like me, had the Pars down as one of the favourites to get promotion given the depth and quality of their squad. I certainly did not expect them to be exiting the Championship at the bottom end. Crazy season heading for a tense finish at both ends of the table. MATCH/TICKETS/STREAMING INFO OFFICIAL PREVIEW NEW STRIP SPORTS BAR Venue Head 2 Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 22 9 8 5 28 21 +7 Away 24 9 10 5 29 26 +3 Neutral 2 0 1 1 3 4 -1 Total 48 18 19 11 60 51 +9 Last 10 Competitive Meetings v Pars 1 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 3 (A) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (H) The honours tilt towards us over the years, a far cry from our first taste of the big time when Dunfermline pumped us 4-0 at East End Park in our first game in Division one or the Championship as we know it now. August 7th 1999 with nearly 5,000 in attendance, steak bridies and all. At last we had made the big time....Alas, we had a lot to learn. Click on the link below to see Ian Broadfoot's brief report as we ended the game with 10 men against an accomplished Dunfermline Athletic. Aug 7th League 0 - 4 (A) 4,865 Fast Forward to May 12th 2007 when Dunfermline were officially relegated after we beat them at the Caledonian Stadium; full report from Ian Broadfoot. Look at that crowd back in 2007, no doubt swelled by the Fifers as they tried to stave off relegation. May 12th League 2 - 1 (H) 6,464 All games Saturday 3:00pm Arbroath v Raith Rvrs Hamilton v Queens Killie v Partick Morton v Ayr Utd Inverness CT v Dunfermline Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts 1. Kilmarnock 30 17 5 8 41 21 56 2. Arbroath 30 14 12 4 41 22 54 3. Inverness CT 30 12 10 8 41 29 46 4. Partick Thistle 30 12 9 9 42 34 45 5. Raith Rovers 30 10 12 8 37 37 42 6. Morton 30 8 11 11 33 40 35 7. Hamilton Ac. 30 8 11 11 35 45 35 8. Ayr United 30 8 8 14 30 44 32 9. Dunfermline 30 5 14 11 31 45 29 10. Q.O.S. 30 6 8 16 30 44 26 As a result of Dunfermline swatting away the Jags in midweek, all teams have now played 30 games with Inverness remaining in 3rd position whilst Partick and Raith capitulate. No room to crow about it though as we have only just returned to winning ways after a horrendous run of eleven games with no wins, taking only six points from a possible thirty three. This season we have yet to beat the Pars. We were fortunate to draw 0-0 at East End Park in September as Dunfermline looked for their first win of the season after five games. We were top on 15 points, Dunfermline bottom with just two points after this one. We went down 2-1 at the Caledonian Stadium in November after having led through a Billy Mckay goal. A Danny Devine og restored parity before a superb Dom Thomas solo goal clinched the points. Under Par: Inverness opened the scoring after probing well for over twenty minutes. Michael Gardyne drifted inside and the Pars defence opened up allowing him to get a shot away. It came back off the woodwork and Billy Mckay reacted first to knock the ball into the net. However, Dunfermline got their first win of the season as Inverness fired blanks thereafter, and goals from Kevin O'Hara assisted by a massive Danny Devine deflection and a great solo effort from Dom Thomas won the points for the Pars. Another bad day at the office continued with Inverness slipping to third following wins for Killie Raith and Partick. The third encounter was a 1-1 draw at EEP: More points thrown away in our wasteful period in January. 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. So, time to redress the balance for this season as Dunfermline begin to realise the severity of their plight. Last Time Out We came away with an unlikely three points after Logan Chalmers scored two spectacular goals in the dying embers of a game we looked like losing, even against ten men. Raith took an early lead through Aidan Connolly before Shane Sutherland stabbed in the equaliser. That was short lived as Poplatnik restored Raith's advantage before the break. A couple of enforced changes weakened Raith but we still struggled and even after Kyle Benedictus was red carded with twenty minutes to go we looked spent on ideas. Up popped Chalmers with two sweet left foot strikes to take the points North. That result came on the back of us ending our drought with a 3-0 win over Arbroath the week before to revive our flagging play-off hopes. On yersel Logan As said before, Dunfermline helped us out in midweek by thumping Partick thistle 4-1. More importantly they helped themselves massively and climbed off the foot of the table in doing so. Partick had opened the scoring with a strike from distance through Ross Docherty. They fought back and deservedly levelled with an og from Lewis Mayo. Mathew Todd scored a second for a rampant Pars in the first half followed by Josh Edwards. Man of the Match Dom Thomas scored a spectacular fourth in the second half to put the icing on the cake. Great result for the Pars led of course by none other that John Hughes, our former Scottish Cup winning manager. Dom Thomas' name has cropped up a lot recently and he will be worth watching as he has bagged a few special goals this season and is also well up on assists. Latest Team News Scott Allardice is out long term with Roddy MacGregor rumoured to be returned to full training. Possibly as you were if no fresh injuries are thrown into the mix, however some late fitness tests required according to Dodds. Sam Pearson is on international duty with Wales u21. Billy Dodds ahead of Pars fixture Steven Lawless had stitches inserted in a head wound picked up against Partick Thistle. Lewis McCann should come back into contention after being injured against Morton but the injury is not as serious as first feared (dislocation). Keeper Jakub Stolarczyc was on international duty with Poland's u21's in midweek and they have another game on Tuesday night although stand-in Deniz Mehmet did little wrong when called in to replace him against Partick. Dunfermline last starting XI: Mehmet, Todd, Ambrose, Donaldson, Edwards, Pybus, Chalmers, Lawless, Polworth, Thomas, O’Hara Some familiar names in there, with Toddy coming off the bench against Partick. Eric the Stats Pars roundup Changes to Dunfermline squad since we last met at East End Park Departures Owain Fon Williams - the one time ICT and Welsh international painter goalkeeper has left the East End Park club. In press release from DAFC on 28th February. " Dunfermline Athletic wish to announce that we have agreed to cancel Owain Fon Williams contract with effect from today. Owain wishes to leave for family reasons." Vytas Gaspuitis - The defender left the club on the 18th March on a free transfer to play in his home country Lithuania with FA Siauliai Kyle Macdonald - a right back who is now on loan at Airdrieonians. Iain Wilson - Midfielder left on a free to join Greenock Morton. Players in Jakub Stolarczyk - Goalkeeping cover on loan from Leicester City U23. Efe Ambrose - the centre back is on loan from St Johnstone Liam Polworth - Well known Invernessian is on loan from Kilmarnock. Joe Chalmers - Another familiar name to ICT fans, central midfield player joined DAFC from Ayr United for an undisclosed fee. Bobby Kamwa - The 22 year old forward is on loan from Leeds United U23 for the remainder of the season NEW STRIP INCOMING Soft feel new texture finish – made from 100% Recycled Polyester mesh. Wicking finish, keeps you cooler and drier for longer. Recycled rib contrast cuff detail. Raglan sleeve construction to back of shirt. Contrast elasticated tape hem detail to co-ordinate with shorts PUMA Cat Logo at right chest and on both sleeves. The words of the song on the strip. Oh well, it's the thought that counts I suppose Pic: Trevor Martin
  22. Battle Lines are Drawn Dick Campbell's table toppers come North on Saturday with the Battle Lines now clearly defined as Partick Thistle ease into third place in the table. Saturday's game is a 3:00pm start at the Caledonian Stadium and we are now anxiously looking over our shoulder at fellow bottlers Raith Rovers who remain one point behind in the battle for fourth. MATCH/TICKET/STREAMING INFO OFFICIAL PREVIEW Venue Head2Head v Arbroath Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 20 15 2 3 53 18 +35 Away 19 9 4 6 26 22 +4 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 39 24 6 9 79 40 +39 Last 10 Competitive Meetings 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 3 - 1 (H) 0 - 1 (H) 0 - 3 (A) 2 - 1 (H) 0 - 3 (H) Honours even over the last ten meetings but it's clear to see that the pendulum is swinging more towards the Smokies or does it just feel like that given our demise of late. Gone are the days of 7-0 thrashings and giving teams a three goal start. Mind you, gone are the days of Bon Accord... Last updated: 09.03.2022 at 05:52 Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Midweek game saw Partick beat Queens 1-0 1. Arbroath 28 13 12 3 40 19 51 2. Kilmarnock 28 15 5 8 36 19 50 3. Partick Thistle 27 12 9 6 40 24 45 4. Inverness CT 28 10 10 8 35 27 40 5. Raith Rovers 28 9 12 7 34 34 39 6. Ayr United 28 8 8 12 29 40 32 7. Morton 28 7 10 11 30 38 31 8. Hamilton Ac. 28 7 10 11 29 43 31 9. Q.O.S. 28 6 8 14 29 41 26 10. Dunfermline 27 4 12 11 24 41 24 FRIDAY 11TH MARCH 19:45 Ayr United v Kilmarnock SATURDAY 12TH MARCH 15:00 Hamilton v Dunfermline Inverness v Arbroath Morton v Partick Queens v Rovers With Partick Thistle beating Queen of the South 1-0 on Tuesday night, they are also making a late run for promotion and they still have a game in hand against Dunfermline. Unfortunately that also means that they are clear in third and we appear to be left with a battle on our hands against fellow flops Raith Rovers in the last chance saloon. Bid Ayrshire derby on Friday night as a resurgent Ayr United will fancy their chances against a Killie side they beat recently. For us, we will be looking for others to help out, as we have done for the last three months. There are still twenty four points up for grabs over the final eight games. However, our last eight games have yielded just four points. Yes, only 4 points. That is an abysmal stat during a run of eleven games without a win. One win apiece and a 0-0 draw in a stiff breeze at Gayfield last time we met. Benn tight affairs this season and it would be no surprise if this one is the same. My bet is that confidence will play a big part, and we certainly lack that at present. Last time out We performed poorly at Partick going down to a late Kevin Holt strike after a corner. The game was played out on a midden with plenty of chances going abegging and thanks to a lack of quality only one shot on target allegedly. Poor return from nineteen strikes of the ball. Arbroath edged out Dunfermline 1-0 thanks to an early strike from David Gold. That win kept Arbroath at the top and as a result Dunfermline are bottom with a game in hand. Latest Team News Allardice out for season, Roddy MacGregor just a distant memory, Welsh recovering on our bench last couple of games; other than that a full squad allegedly. Arbroath last line up and subs played: Gaston; Stewart, Little, O’Brien, Colin Hamilton, Chris Hamilton, Gold (Craigen 69), McKenna, Linn (Thomson 47), Henderson (Hilson 75), Jack Hamilton (Donnelly 85) Eric the Stat has this latest info on the Smokies since January. Departures Dylan Paterson - midfield on loan to Stirling Albion FC for the rest of the season Harrison Clark - end of loan period from Livingstone for the midfielder Joel Nouble - Influential in the 2nd January away fixture the Centre Forward has returned to Livingstone after his loan spell at Gayfield Anton Dowds - The centre forward was on loan from Falkirk FC, ended in the January window. Additions Arbroath have added to their front line options with three Centre Forward players joining in the transfer period. Craig Wighton - On loan from Dunfermline Athletic for the rest of this season Sam Ford - arrived from Felixstowe FC on a free transfer Michael Bakare - left the "Non League Premier" side Leatherhead FC in January and joined Arbroath in February View full article
  23. Battle Lines are Drawn Dick Campbell's table toppers come North on Saturday with the Battle Lines now clearly defined as Partick Thistle ease into third place in the table. Saturday's game is a 3:00pm start at the Caledonian Stadium and we are now anxiously looking over our shoulder at fellow bottlers Raith Rovers who remain one point behind in the battle for fourth. MATCH/TICKET/STREAMING INFO OFFICIAL PREVIEW Venue Head2Head v Arbroath Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 20 15 2 3 53 18 +35 Away 19 9 4 6 26 22 +4 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 39 24 6 9 79 40 +39 Last 10 Competitive Meetings 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 3 - 1 (H) 0 - 1 (H) 0 - 3 (A) 2 - 1 (H) 0 - 3 (H) Honours even over the last ten meetings but it's clear to see that the pendulum is swinging more towards the Smokies or does it just feel like that given our demise of late. Gone are the days of 7-0 thrashings and giving teams a three goal start. Mind you, gone are the days of Bon Accord... Last updated: 09.03.2022 at 05:52 Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Midweek game saw Partick beat Queens 1-0 1. Arbroath 28 13 12 3 40 19 51 2. Kilmarnock 28 15 5 8 36 19 50 3. Partick Thistle 27 12 9 6 40 24 45 4. Inverness CT 28 10 10 8 35 27 40 5. Raith Rovers 28 9 12 7 34 34 39 6. Ayr United 28 8 8 12 29 40 32 7. Morton 28 7 10 11 30 38 31 8. Hamilton Ac. 28 7 10 11 29 43 31 9. Q.O.S. 28 6 8 14 29 41 26 10. Dunfermline 27 4 12 11 24 41 24 FRIDAY 11TH MARCH 19:45 Ayr United v Kilmarnock SATURDAY 12TH MARCH 15:00 Hamilton v Dunfermline Inverness v Arbroath Morton v Partick Queens v Rovers With Partick Thistle beating Queen of the South 1-0 on Tuesday night, they are also making a late run for promotion and they still have a game in hand against Dunfermline. Unfortunately that also means that they are clear in third and we appear to be left with a battle on our hands against fellow flops Raith Rovers in the last chance saloon. Bid Ayrshire derby on Friday night as a resurgent Ayr United will fancy their chances against a Killie side they beat recently. For us, we will be looking for others to help out, as we have done for the last three months. There are still twenty four points up for grabs over the final eight games. However, our last eight games have yielded just four points. Yes, only 4 points. That is an abysmal stat during a run of eleven games without a win. One win apiece and a 0-0 draw in a stiff breeze at Gayfield last time we met. Benn tight affairs this season and it would be no surprise if this one is the same. My bet is that confidence will play a big part, and we certainly lack that at present. Last time out We performed poorly at Partick going down to a late Kevin Holt strike after a corner. The game was played out on a midden with plenty of chances going abegging and thanks to a lack of quality only one shot on target allegedly. Poor return from nineteen strikes of the ball. Arbroath edged out Dunfermline 1-0 thanks to an early strike from David Gold. That win kept Arbroath at the top and as a result Dunfermline are bottom with a game in hand. Latest Team News Allardice out for season, Roddy MacGregor just a distant memory, Welsh recovering on our bench last couple of games; other than that a full squad allegedly. Arbroath last line up and subs played: Gaston; Stewart, Little, O’Brien, Colin Hamilton, Chris Hamilton, Gold (Craigen 69), McKenna, Linn (Thomson 47), Henderson (Hilson 75), Jack Hamilton (Donnelly 85) Eric the Stat has this latest info on the Smokies since January. Departures Dylan Paterson - midfield on loan to Stirling Albion FC for the rest of the season Harrison Clark - end of loan period from Livingstone for the midfielder Joel Nouble - Influential in the 2nd January away fixture the Centre Forward has returned to Livingstone after his loan spell at Gayfield Anton Dowds - The centre forward was on loan from Falkirk FC, ended in the January window. Additions Arbroath have added to their front line options with three Centre Forward players joining in the transfer period. Craig Wighton - On loan from Dunfermline Athletic for the rest of this season Sam Ford - arrived from Felixstowe FC on a free transfer Michael Bakare - left the "Non League Premier" side Leatherhead FC in January and joined Arbroath in February
  24. Defensive blunders assist Ayr. Ayr United took advantage of a midfield error and conceded corner from whence Sean McGinty headed the opening goal in a poor first half. McAdams saved Ayr before the interval with a great double save within ten seconds of each other as Inverness searched for an opening. Adeloye doubled the lead just after the hour seconds after coming on with Inverness in disarray. Lewis Nicolson struck with a first time cross that ended up in the top corner to throw Inverness a lifeline, but we remained winless in two months. Any hopes of promotion up in the Ayr. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Inverness were still missing Scott Allardice, Danny Devine, Roddy MacGregor and Tom Walsh. Add to that surprise omissions of Mark Ridgers and captain Sean Welsh then you can see that our squad is down to the bare bones. Ryan Esson found himself on the bench with Aaron Doran. Michael Hewitt missed out for Ayr in their much altered squad since the January sales, but they were unchanged from the side that beat Kilmarnock. The visitors got the game underway kicking towards the North Stand with the sun making an appearance after the storms earlier in the week. Logan Chalmers had the first opportunity of the game after doing well down the left, but he opted to shoot and his angled effort was put behind for a corner which he took himself and made an arse of it. Ashford responded for Ayr on the break as he burst forward, but his shot from the left side of the box was easily stopped by Cammy Mackay deputising for the unwell Mark Ridgers. Broadfoot will need to use his experience against Ashford who easily outpaced the veteran defender. The only thing of note in the first twenty minutes was a needless booking for David Carson for a rash tackle in midfield, and that would determine his day later in the game. Ayr opened the scoring out of nothing. Harper fresh from a booking lost the ball in midfield and Ayr broke forward to win a corner. When it came in Sean McGinty scored a simple header to open the scoring, the consequence of an error on the halfway line. Basic play gone wrong. McAdams made a tremendous double save firstly from Logan Chalmers then seconds later from Shane Sutherland to keep Ayr ahead five minutes before the interval. We tried to respond before the interval but Carson didn't have the legs to get away from the defender as he approached the box, and at the break it was Ayr that held the lead. HALF TIME: 0-1 No changes at the interval and Inverness with it all to do as they play towards the North Stand, however the final ball would need to improve if the hosts were to get anything from this game. Sam Pearson made a darting run down the right and cut along the bye-line, but McAdams put his shot come cross behind for a fruitless corner. Harper almost cost a second goal with a replica error of the first, but this time there were no takers for the dangerous low cross that fizzed across the box. Kirk Broadfoot was next to make the error and Cammy Mackay got him out of jail with a superb block. Reece McAlear fired a sharp thirty yard left foot effort wide of McAdams left hand post, but it was a tad ambitious to say the least. Ayr substitute Tomi Adeloye scored with his first touch seconds after coming on, whether he knew much about it or not, but the ball ended up in the net after a great cross from McKenzie. No surprise that the red card waiting to happen arrived when Carson made another ridiculous challenge and the promotion push looked to have ended right there. Sub Lewis Nicolson fired a deep cross into the box and it ended up in the far corner of the net with five minutes left to throw the hosts a lifeline. But it was simply too little too late once more. How often have we said that this year. FULL TIME: 1-2 We were simply clutching at straws as Ayr recorded their first win at the Caledonian Stadium in over nineteen years. Yes, gone are the days when we could give Ayr a three goal start and go on to thrash them. We better get used to this as the future looks bleak given our current circumstances and apparent demise. Well, what can you say! The best ever chance of promotion and those at the helm seem hell bent on keeping jobs for boys rather than trying to get promoted. A complete lack of ambition has led to a complete lack of confidence. One has to question what the hell is going on at the club. Why have we no defenders. Are we preparing for obscurity. A once proud club that was always prepared to roll their sleeves up and get stuck in seem incapable of doing the basics at the moment. What was our marque signing. A striker that can't score, a disruptive winger that unsettled the whole squad, an ageing defender that is two yards off the pace, a proven penalty box striker that is starved of service, any amount of sub standard forwards and to top it all no defensive cover and a manager that can't manage. Like the team, I've pretty much thrown the towel in for this season. If it weren't for the distant hope that we cling on for dear life and remain in a play-off place at the end of the season then, I'm done. Is it possible come the end of the season that we get a full squad back and triumph in the knock outs at the death? I for one won't be holding my breath, and there's plenty more like me who are just going through the motions, and that includes the players. Management beware: The Long Knives are out and the fans are revolting! Many claim there's better in the commentary box. Apparently they call them highlights... <<Spin Doctor Alert>> Date: 19/02/2022 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1850 Referee: Kevin Clancy Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: C Mackay; Duffy (Hardy 71) Broadfoot, Deas, Harper (Nicolson 86), Pearson (Doran 78), Carson, McAlear, Sutherland (Samuels 69),Chalmers (Hyde 78), B Mckay Subs (not used): Esson; Scorers: L Nicolson (86) Booked: Carson (19, 68), Harper (33), Sent Off: Carson (68) Ayr United: 2 Manager: Lee Bullen Lineup: McAdams; Houston (Rowe 62), Muirhead, McGinty, Reading, Murdoch, Mcinroy, Maxwell (O'Connor 89), Dempsey (Smith 89), Ashford (Adeloye 62), McKenzie (Gondoh 89) Subs (not used): Albinson; Fjortoft, Baird, Bryden Scorers: McGinty (35), Adeloye (64) Booked: Mackenzie (31) Sent Off: none a
  25. Ayr Pressure With our Premiership aspirations hanging by a thread, we entertain Ayr United on Saturday with our winless run having been extended to eight games after the 3-3 draw with Partick Thistle, albeit an improved performance, but the end result all too familiar recently. The game is scheduled for 3:00pm on Saturday, weather permitting, with storms due in midweek. Dudley seems to have bypassed Inverness, but Eunice is coming, so fingers crossed it misses us as well, however, snow is forecast so beware. Storm Ayr are coming North fresh from retaining the bragging rights after their excellent derby win over Killie; no pressure then. MATCH/TICKET/STREAMING INFO Venue - Head2Head Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 21 10 10 1 35 20 +15 Away 22 10 5 7 42 28 +14 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 43 20 15 8 77 48 +29 Last 10 Competitive Meetings 2 - 2 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 2 - 2 (H) 2 - 0 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 0 - 1 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 2 - 0 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 3 - 1 (A) Loaded heavily in our favour, the stats don't lie, or do they? Only one defeat to Ayr at home on all competitions would seem to make Inverness odds on favourites to win this one. Unfortunately, we, the fans, know better. Our recent form has been poor and we are winless in eight. The previous encounters this season show a 1-0 win towards the end of August during our opening gambit of the season. CTO summary: Walsh nicks it: A slightly damp morning opening out into a muggy but calm afternoon in the Highlands made for near perfect conditions for this game. However, the football did not match the weather in a dour first half and it was goalless at the interval. Ayr rattled the top of the stand at the start of the second half as the game came to life. Tom Walsh looked to have opened the scoring when he bundled an inviting cross from Manny Duku behind the keeper after 54 minutes with Sean McGinty in close proximity trying to clear the ball. Joe Chalmers put a shot across the face of the Inverness goal that went narrowly wide. Walsh missed a glorious chance to double the lead moments later but pulled his shot across the face of the goal as well. Robbie Deas also missed an opportunity for a second goal, firing the ball over the bar from a great position inside the box. The game was more open but Inverness held on for their third 1-0 win of the season and top the league jointly with Killie. In the return fixture at Somerset Park we threw away an early advantage to draw 2-2, the slump was well and trully on. Another opportunity missed! At a windy Somerset Park, Inverness took the lead early on when Sean Welsh met a Tom Walsh cross at the back post unchallenged to head into the net. The lead only lasted a couple of minutes as Joe Chalmers scored after a corner with a couple of defenders being grappled to the ground as Chalmers slotted home. Gardyne was causing all sorts of problems and his next angled cross into the box was missed by Mckay but it bounced through and into the goal to give the visitors the advantage at the break. Reading levelled with a low shot eight minutes into the second half, Ridgers not covering his near post sufficiently. No more scoring partly due to Aidan McAdams in the home goal and another great opportunity to get back on top went abegging with Partick winning 1-0 at Rugby Park. Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts Dunfermline v Partick Thistle postponed 1. Arbroath 24 12 9 3 38 18 45 2. Kilmarnock 25 13 4 8 31 19 43 3. Inverness CT 25 10 9 6 33 23 39 4. Raith Rovers 25 9 11 5 34 27 38 5. Partick Thistle 22 10 7 5 37 22 37 6. Morton 24 6 9 9 29 34 27 7. Hamilton Ac. 25 6 9 10 27 40 27 8. Ayr United 25 6 8 11 23 38 26 9. Dunfermline 25 4 11 10 24 40 23 10. Q.O.S. 24 4 7 13 25 40 19 FRIDAY 18th FEBRUARY Dunfermline P v P Partick Thistle SATURDAY 19TH FEBRUARY Hamilton v Morton Caley Jags v Ayr United Kilmarnock v Raith Rovers Queen Sth v Arbroath Last time out Inverness came from behind three times to secure a point against an impressive Partick Thistle. Brian Graham was a thorn in our side again, claiming a hat-trick although the first one appeared to come off the shins of Wallace Duffy. We hit back through Billy Mckay, Shane Sutherland and a last gasp header from the enterprising Kirk. Ayr United won the Ayrshire derby as they came from behind to beat Kilmarnock 2-1 at Rugby Park to stun title favourites Killie. Fraser Murray had opened the scoring early in the first half but Ayr levelled soon after through Sean McGinty and he scored the winner with ten minutes left to stun their hosts. Latest Team News Billy Dodds will definitely be without Scott Allardice and Danny Devine. Somehow, Roddy MacGregor has disappeared from earth, possibly been abducted by a Chinese tennis player. If anyone spots him, can they call MacGregors Bar to let us know that he's safe and well. Thanks in advance. Aaron Doran has missed the last month but is back in training and Tom Walsh has thrown his hat into the injured squad over the last couple of weeks. Thankfully we are covered up front with Sam Pearson looking good last week, but for some unknown reason we never looked at bringing in defensive cover from the start of the season, we'll soon be going with one at the back. New Ayr manager Lee Bullen will be looking for more of the same attitude displayed in the derby win over Killie. Here's his starting XI from the Killie game played in front of 7,560 fans. Adeloye and Rowe came on as second half subs, with Ayr playing a 4-4-1-1 formation. 1McAdams 2Houston4Muirhead5McGinty3Reading 22McKenzie6Murdoch8McInroy14Maxwell 18Dempsey 19Ashford There's been a lot of changes at Somerset Park since we last played Ayr. Our own Eric has been busy checking out their latest coming and goings. So, basically, a new look Ayr United will be here looking to improve their poor record at Inverness. Departures Cameron Salkeld - forward -has left the club due to long term injury Nick McAllister - back - on loan to Clyde FC until end of season Michael Miller - midfield - on loan to Stenhousemuir FC until end of season Joe Chalmers - midfield - Transferred to Dunfermline FC. Jonathon Afolabi - forward - was on loan from Celtic recalled and now at Airdrieonians Fc Steven Bradley - forward - was on loan from Hibs recalled and now at Dundalk FC Arrivals Blaine Rowe - right back - on loan from Coventry FC U23 until end of season. Kerr McInroy - defensive midfield - on loan from Celtic FC until end of season Ben Dempsey - attacking midfield - on loan from Charlton FC U23 until end of season Ryan Gondoh - left wing - the Ghanaian has signed from Wealdstone FC until May 2023 Paul Smith - centre forward - has returned after loan spell at Cumnock Juniors FC ( that should have toughened him up a bit ) Sam Ashworth - centre forward - signed from Crawley Town FC until May 2023 Fraser Brydon - centre forward - has been promoted to first team from Ayr U18s Manager Lee Bullen has had several spells as Caretaker manager of Sheffield Wednesday FC and was recently manager or their U23 side Age: 50 Years Appointed: Jan 7, 2022 Contract expires: May 31, 2024 View full article
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