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Partick Test Inverness resume their challenge for points in the Premiership after the break with an away game against Partick Thistle, a ground where we never seem to get the better of the home side often enough, and this will be a stern test for Yogi's walking wounded. The gap week has been beneficial for us this time as it has allowed another two or three players to get back on the park and test their fitness, notably Ross Draper, Andrea Mutombo and Tobi Sho-Silva, so that's a bonus. However, there is always a sting in the tail at Inverness and Dani Lopez will not be available after the club suspended him following an alleged gobbing incident in the development league match against St Johnstone when he earned himself a red card during the spat, no pun intended, but it fits the crime; (allegedly). Our last venture to the central belt stronghold produced a welcome return to winning ways with a 3-1 win at Motherwell. Iain Vigurs scoring a peach of a volley the pick of the goals. A retaken Greg Tansey penalty and a Miles Storey deflection were the other scorers and the home sides consolation was also a bit scrappy as a Moult knockdown deflected in off Horner on the goal line. Partick also got a welcome point after being pegged back by a late Kane Hemming goal at Dens Park; sounds familiar. Defender Liam Lindsay had opened the scoring earlier for second bottom Thistle who are being kept off the basement by much troubled Dundee United. The sick list at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium is shortening slightly after the last break. Gary Warren, Ross Draper and Andrea Mutombo all featured in the development game in midweek and Tobi Sho-Silva and Richie Foran have returned to training. David Raven is available after suspension but the aforementioned Dani Lopez has been suspended by the club pending an investigation into what went on. A huge miss will be Ryan Christie who might have played his last game for Inverness and is now longer term injured, along with Aaron Doran, Jordan Roberts and Dean Brill. Partick are in better shape with Robbie Muirhead and Gary Miller back from injury and keeper Ryan Scully returning after suspension. Stuart Brannigan is suspended and Christie Elliot and Tomas Cerny are out injured. tm4tj Prediction:- I predicted a hammering for us last time out at Motherwell and that went badly wrong..............or right. A tremendous away win against the odds brought us out of our mini slump. Partick have been a thorn in our side in recent years and we will do well to take points back up the A9 without the precocious talents of Ryan Christie. We will have to get used to life without him sooner or later and with players returning that eases the burden on others, but the headache is all Yogi's as he decides who to keep in and who needs a rest. I will settle for a point.

I wasn't expecting that Inverness defied the odds to surprise even their most ardent of fans with a tremendous 1-3 win at Fir Park. A re-taken Greg Tansey penalty opened the scoring and Miles Storey added a second just before the interval. Iain Vigurs crashed home a superb third ten minutes after the break before Motherwell's Louis Moult poked in a consolation for the Steelmen soon after. To complete Wells misery, Stephen McManus was red carded in stoppage time. Inverness were down to the bare bones and by the time the final whistle went the bones were even barer as Ryan Christie and Miles Storey had to leave the field suffering from injury. Miles Storey managed to make the starting eleven and Gary Warren was on the bench along with Dani Lopez and Nat Wedderburn, but there was no place for utility man Danny Williams anywhere as he was suffering from a groin injury. Lewis Horner filled in for the suspended David Raven at right back. Motherwell managed to get Stephen Pearson fit enough for duty and he started. Theo Robinson and Wes Fletcher began on the bench with Scott MacDonald expected to score the goals and the talented Lionel Ainsworth to be one of the main providers. Inverness were minus a teamful of players and John Hughes had to sit in the stand. It was looking bleak for the Caley Jags, so much so that even the supporters bus was not required as they joined in the general malaise. Johndo will take over from here and give us a full match report when he has recovered from the shock of seeing the team win................................ Well was it worth the 180+ mile car journey in the persisting rain, an even worse return leg added to by a gale force wind, staying in Hamilton overnight, trains cancelled, getting a bus to Motherwell, getting lost, the Himalayan trek to the South Stand, a taxi back home and winning the Stoke v Chelsea first scorer sweep and not being there to pick up the winnings - presumably drunk by my compadres - Ya bet yer feckin bottom dollar it was. I thought that was as good a performance as we have put in this season. I thought that we deserved to win. Not a bad feat away from home with half a feckin squad to pick from and the manager in the stands. The Well crowd were so painful. On looking at the highlights / replays I think that he got every decision spot on. Well may well have had the lions share of the possession and considerably more shots (not on target !!) but we were relatively comfortable - apart from a companion who said that he would settle for 3-3 with 20 minutes to go - (hope he feckin choked on my Arnutovic winnings !! Looked like we went 4-4-1-1 to begin with - four at the back - a diamond in the middle with Tansey at the rear and Vincent up top - Christie roving and Storey running the line. Oh and two Development players on the bench. I thought that we played some lovely stuff in the first 20 minutes. Christie let fly with a curling left footer that went just wide and we were looking in charge. In some ways the early penalty goal changed our outlook. As fer the penalty - it was soft but you simply do not raise yer hand in a crowded goalmouth. Again a yellow is harsh but those are the rules. Tansey made it a replay of last week and the keeper sussed it. And again Thompson got it "spot-on" with the retake decision and TANSEY fired this one down the middle. Both Law and Storey encroached. But poor Well felt hard done by. WELL what they should have done was to concentrate on getting a shot on target plus their final passes were shocking. But they cascaded derision on Craig Thompson instead. We always looked more like scoring in the first half apart from a cracker that hit our crossbar. We may have thought that it was all over when we lost Christie and our shape. Lopez went into the Christie role which is OK'ish when he has Storey beside him. And STOREY neatly got himself in to a scoring position and abetted by a wicked deflection the ball sailed in the net to put us 2-0 up at half time. I had to laff at our substitutes at half time. The sight of Wedderburn and Warren playing passball with MacRae and Sutherland was like watching the Hulk, Spiderman and two of Snowwhite's dwarves. So onto the second and preparing for an onslaught which did come but not before Goal of the Season, probably even more satisfying as it was clearly straight out of the training ground. Superb flighted corner from Tansey and as sweet a strike from VIGURS as you will ever see. After that it was Well, Well, Well but we defended stoutly and always looked a danger on the break. May be harsh but I though that Fon Williams was at fault with the goal. It came at the perfect time for Well but they did not cash in on it. Perhaps they were too intent on chastising and calling Mr. Thompson !! Plus we never looked like scoring after Storey departed - clutching his hamstring again. But we hung on in there and thoroughly deserved the three points. And the 111 Highlanders went home happy - and what a feckin noise at the end with the acoustics of an empty stand FON WILLIAMS Despite the pressure he really did not have that much to do. Thought he misjudged the cross for their goal. Also I hate seeing keepers punch instead of holding. HORNER For a left footer squad player to fit in at right back was no mean feat. Didn't offer much going forward but defended stoutly. MEEKINGS Both central defenders were heroic DEVINE Both central defenders were heroic TREMARCO More of his type of game with little thought of going forward but tackling tigerishly - apart from the cross that ended in their goal. TANSEY More feckin like it - he controlled the game from deep. POLWORTH Shaded (just) MOM fer me. Great shift with doses of skill to put. Did that stare at Lopez after the hospital pass not scare you ?!! VIGURS Too much of a luxury fer us at the moment but a good "shoe-in" and the best possible bench warmer. What a feckin goal !! VINCENT I thought that he put in a great shift and was always on hand to help the attackers. CHRISTIE Usual before the early injury - hopefully a twinge. STOREY I suppose that we had little option but he really looked as if he was struggling and "Draperish" carrying an injury in the second half. Could never fault his effort and movement though. LOPEZ Looked OK with Storey but he is NOT a lone striker and he makes Vigurs look like Mr Dynamic. WARREN Welcome back skipper. Glad we didn't start you and your entry and the way that play was developing excused changing to a 5-4-1 WEDDERBURN Is he losing weight ? Date: 03/10/15 Venue: Global Energy Stadium, Dingwall Attendance: 5473Referee: Willie Collum Motherwell: 1 Lineup: Ripley, Law, Kennedy, McManus, Chalmers, Ainsworth, Grimshaw, Pearson, Johnson (Robinson 79), McDonald (Fletcher 68), Moult Subs (not used): Samson, Laing, Clarkson, Leitch, Taylor Scorers: Moult (58) Booked: Pearson (12), Kennedy (55), McManus (64) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 3 Lineup: Fon Williams, Tremarco, Vincent, Meekings, Devine, Tansey, Horner, Polworth, Christie (Lopez 39), Vigurs (Wedderburn 79), Storey (Warren 71) Subs (not used): Esson, Sutherland, MacRae Scorers: Tansey (pen.11), Storey (45), Vigurs (53) Booked: Vigurs (17, Devine (51) Sent Off: none

Survival of the fittest It's Halloween weekend and guisers Dundee FC come to the Highlands dressed as footballers in the hope that they can find Inverness Caledonian Thistle ready to dish out more gifts. We will be kitted up like patients at Raigmore. It's been a rough fortnight for Inverness after the euphoria of back to back league wins over Aberdeen and Ross County. Since then, we have lost two home games in a row. We went down insipidly to 10 man St Johnstone and were easily knocked out of the League Cup by derby rivals Ross County. Defeats are hard enough to take on their own, but the manner of these defeats has alarm bells ringing at the Caledonian Stadium. Against the Perth Saints, we were clueless as to how to break them down and the visiting keeper could have stayed in Perth. The County game was similar although we started brightly and finished strong, but the middle section of the game belonged to County and that was when the match was won. Once more, the lack of a cutting edge was evident as we struggled badly to create clear opportunities. Visitors Dundee have not exactly been a pillar of consistency themselves. They suffered a 6-0 thrashing from Celtic and their only win since then was against fellow strugglers Motherwell. That's one win in the last five for Dundee, but its still enough to keep them ahead of Inverness. They sit three points and two places above us in seventh place. We can't really complain about our league position given our lack of goals and reluctance to have a go at teams. I suppose it's a reflection on our lack of depth due to a lengthy injury list, but there comes a point where those given the opportunity have to grab the chance and stake a claim for a regular starting berth, even when the sidelined players return. Liam Polworth has had a few starts now and should be asserting himself in the engine room and Carl Tremarco needs to make the Graeme Shinnie slot his own as our purse strings seem reluctant to open any further. We drew the earlier game at Dens Park, surrendering an early lead to come away with a disappointing draw. Kane Hemmings popped in a last minute equaliser after David Raven had opened the scoring for Inverness earlier in the second half. We were unable to build on that and suffered a not unexpected lapse, a trait that seems to replicate itself this season. There's plenty of speculation surrounding the future of John Hughes. The silence was deafening after the board refused United permission to speak to Yogi, but the speculation is still rife as we appear no closer to getting the gaffer signed up on a new contract, fuelling the fires of discontent amongst the fans. At the last count, Yogi was said to be considering his options of the new contract, but has plenty to think about. He has been quoted on BBC Sport as saying "[It's] right down to trying to recruit players and budgets," he explained. "That's all part and parcel of me staying at this club, 100%. "I'm quite sure there might be one or two players that are out of contract and want to see what the manager does before they commit. "But I'm honest enough to say this; I would never hold a gun to anyone's head at Inverness to say, 'I want to make sure that this is the budget next year'. "I knew when I came up here I was working with the budget I was working with. It's never changed. "It's just before you sign that contract just getting to know exactly what tools you're working with next year. I don't want to sign a contract and something gets taken away. "I have to speak to my wife and family. I've been away for a long, long time and that's a big part of it as well but I love it up here." We have made cuts elsewhere. The nice lady that always appeared to be in control when you entered the club shop has not had her contract renewed, instead the club look as though they are going down the part-time route. Quality or quantity? Just like on the park, you can't replace quality players like Billy 'small k' Mckay, Marley Watkins or Graeme and Andy Shinnie with inferior products and expect the consistency to continue. Well, it's the same in the club shop. We need leaders on and off the park and it's time this whole sorry mess is sorted before it's too late. Inverness have more misery piled on them this week with the news that Miles Storey might not make the squad. He could join the others on the temporary list like Ross Draper, Andrea Mutombo, Tobi Sho-Silva and Dani Lopez. Looking further away, Gary Warren, Aaron Doran, Richie Foran, Dean Brill and Jordan Roberts are long term shirkers. It really is a case of the survival of the fittest. I sometimes wonder if they are still on our books. Meh! Jake McPake has been injured in training and misses out. He is joined on Dundee's short list by Julen Etxabeguren and Kevin Thomson. tm4tj Prediction:- Surely we won't screw it up three home games in a row? Or will we. We are running out of players fast as injuries ravage our squad. Injuries on top of more injuries. It's like a broken record now but we will just have to get on with it. Who knows who will be fit enough to turn out for us, but let's hope they can at least make the opposition work hard for their point. I'll settle for a draw out of this to help us get back on track. The damage done so far will take a while to repair and we will just have to take small steps before we can think about running. 0-0 is my best guesstimate.

Ultimate Anti Football Inverness and St Johnstone served up an utter borefest of a game as anti-football took over the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium. The Perth side took all three points in a 0-1 win over a punchless Inverness who had not a clue how to break down the 10 men of St Johnstone. Both sides should be ashamed of themselves as misplaced passes, poor tackles and miscontrol was the order of the day. Both keepers could have stayed in the dressing room and the score would have remained the same as a 90th minute Liam Craig penalty won the match for the visitors. It turned out to be a decent day for a game of football after overnight rain, the pitch left moist but it great condition. It should have led to an entertaining afternoon's sport. How wrong can you be. Inverness were still unable to field a full strength squad and it showed. Carl Tremarco played at left back, but there is still no sign of Jordan Roberts, Tobi Sho-Silva, Gary Warren, Aron Doran, Richie Foran, and Andrea Mutombo was also out. Iain Vigurs made the bench and James Vincent got a start along with Liam Polworth. St Johnstone had Liam Craig on the bench, but he would be instrumental in our downfall late in the game. Fon-Williams was fortunate a couple of times as he replicated some of Dean Brills twitchy moment from clearances, having to dive full length to save the first one from rebounding in. That was as close as anyone came to breaking sweat in a dire first half. Our only half chance came when Tremarco was well blocked by O'Halloran as he broke into the left side of the box, just before he was able to offload. What a tedious first forty-five, surely the second half would be better? Half Time. 0-0 Well, we didn't know it at the time, but the second half was equally poor, in fact even worse if anything. Dave Mackay was sent off after catching Tremarco on the halfway line. That would maybe give us the upper hand. No. Despite the numerical advantage, and oceans of possession, we hadn't a clue how to get behind the Perth bus and were unable to make Mannus work for his bonus. Fon-Williams was equally idle as the Saints looked to hold on for a point. Little did they know how inept we were about to become and in Michael O'Halloran, they had the only player on the park worthy of his wages. The boredom was now reaching world championship level and it was about to turn into utter chaos as Devine was adjudged to have impeded substitute Liam Craig after ninety minutes had passed. Craig himself took the kick and our misery was complete. Full Time 0-1 Oh dear, what can you say about that. There was lots of head shaking as disgruntled fans left the stadium, muttering the words, shambles, disgraceful, punchless, wet paper bag, useless, no strikers, headless chickens etc. To be honest, that is probably doing a disservice to headless chickens who I'm sure would have shown more aptitude and attitude than those on the park. I would have liked to tell you more about our efforts during the game, but to be honest, there were none, absolutely zilch, zero, nothing. Worst game of football I have ever witnessed. In truth, St Johnstone were no better and we would maybe have done better if they had eleven players on the park. As soon as Mackay went off, they retreated further into their already defensive shell and the writing was on the wall. Yogi needs to turn this around pretty quick or this week will be a complete disaster for us. League Cup action on Tuesday night and the fans might be voting with their feet after this one. MotM. Well, there were none in blue worthy of a mention. They all underperformed. Best on the park was a lively Michael O'Halloran who led the line well. Take note Yogi, we need someone to do this for us. Full match report to follow..............

The Great Unpredictables Inverness host St Johnstone in a busy week for the Highland club, ahead of their League Cup quarter final against Ross County and the league visit of Dundee, with all three games being played at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium. A poor result last week for Inverness who went down 2-0 at Kilmarnock despite showing well in the first half hour, but fading badly as the game progressed. We had been on fine form prior to this game, unbeaten in six including the league cup win at Livingston. However, after passing up two or three great opportunities to take the lead, we fell behind on the stroke of half time and lost an unfortunate second with the aid of a deflection to put the game beyond us and halt our revival. Ross Draper took a knock and James Vincent never started, somewhat blunting our engine room supply despite the return of Ryan Christie. Hopefully, we can put this one down to a bad day at the office, but time will tell. St Johnstone have been unpredictable since the start of the season and they too suffered defeat at the hands of the Harry Wraggs, going down 2-1 in Perth. That was also a disappointing result as far as the Perth men were concerned coming off the back of their 5-1 thrashing of Aberdeen and victory in the Tayside derby against struggling Dundee United. They have also meted out punishment to Hamilton when they stuffed them 4-1. Their other win was against Motherwell. That Jekyll And Hyde performances sees them sit only one point above us in the league, but their surprising goal rushes this season has them outscoring us by two to one, although we are defensively more robust normally. The earlier game this season saw the clubs share the points after Inverness were pegged back in the last few moments of the game. Ryan Christie had drilled home in the ninth minute, but substitute Graham Cummins levelled with a header at the death. That was the first points of the season for both clubs. Back to the future, and we have amassed 13 points with 3 wins and four draws. We are eighth in the table, one place below our opponents. Inverness have doubts over the fitness of Ross Draper, David Raven and James Vincent. Andrea Mutombo is out as are the permanently injured Warren, Doran and Foran along with Jason Roberts and Tobi Sho-Silva. Tommy Wright will be able to call upon Michael O'Halloran who featured last week, but Chris Millar is out for a couple of weeks. tm4tj prediction:- Predictions are frightening this year with all the teams below Celtic capable of beating each other on the day. St Johnstone have surprised a few with a couple of uncharacteristic high scoring games and that is a worry. Although we dug ourselves out of a hole with the Dons win and derby win we put ourselves back in it with a shoddy display at Rugby Park. St Johnstone were no better losing to Partick therefore I will sit on the fence and settle for a draw, a scoring one though.

Killie Pie Time Inverness head to Kilmarnock on Saturday after the international break for a game that could shape the seasons of both clubs after their poor starts to the season. International breaks are usually quiet affairs, but not so for fans of Inverness Caledonian Thistle as the vacant post at Tannadice was played out in the full glare of the media. This break was fraught with tension as John Hughes became the bookies favourite to take over at Tannadice after Tommy Wright's St Johnstone told the Arabs where to go. The Inverness board did likewise with Hughes, but the silence was deafening after that fuelling speculation that Yogi was gone. However, in stepped Mixu to save the day at the eleventh hour, and, after the dust had settled, John Hughes remains at Inverness and Mixu Paatelainen starts the task of getting Dundee United off the foot of the table. We like our International breaks to be gentle, a time for getting injured players up to speed and players relaxing with their families. Not this one as our gaffer played hard ball. However, it's mentally not the best way to prepare for your next League encounter. So, with all the guesswork and wind ups put to bed, let's get on with the season, a season that started slowly but is now building a head of steam as we take the Leagues longest current unbeaten run (six games since last defeat) down to Ayrshire to face a resurgent Kilmarnock. Killie finished 10th last term and would have fancied their chances to better that this season. Let's find out who are the in's and out's at Rugby Park that Gary Locke believes will see them climb the table. Well, the main man given the task of scoring the goals is former Rugby Park idol Kris Boyd. He has returned from the Rangers a few stone heavier, but the same man knows how to find the back of the net given half a chance. Add in a trio of signings from Tynecastle in the shape of Kevin McHattie (defender), Scott Robinson (midfielder) and forward Dale Carrick. Another striker, Kallum Higginbotham has joined from Partick Thistle and the experienced Lee McCulloch came in from Championship side the Rangers. Cup final clanger Jamie MacDonald has signed from Falkirk along with another keeper, Oliver Davies on loan from Swansea City, Stevie Smith has also gone up in the world coming from Ibrox as well, and a loan signing from Celtic in defender Stuart Findlay. To make way for the new guys, out went former Scotland striker Lee Miller, the experienced Manuel Pascali, Paul Cairney to Stranraer and keeper Craig Samson. Midfielder Sammy Clingan has gone, so no more Star Trek jokes and the luxury that was Alexei Eremenko, a tremendous player on his day, but has probably gone out to seed now. A raft of lesser mortals have also left the building and Gary Locke will be looking for these guys to blend with what he already has, although it's been a less than pleasing start for the Killie fans. Last season we did hold the upper hand in the three games played between the clubs. A 3-3 draw at Inverness was followed by a 2-1 victory at Rugby Park. The final game saw Inverness take all three points in a 2-0 win. Rugby Park was also the ground where we recorded our best ever away win with a 6-3 trouncing of Kilmarnock on Guy Fawkes day 2011. There were certainly plenty of fireworks that day as Inverness sparkled on the pitch whilst Killie were like damp squibs and old bangers. We scored a few crackers as well and a rocket from Jonny Hayes. Gregory Tade even managed a couple and Andy Shinnie went one better as he fired a hat-trick. Ahhh, those were the days. Killie's highlights this season have been a 2-2 draw with Celtic and their two wins against Dundee United and St Johnstone. Unfortunately for them, they have also suffered too many low points, a 4-0 hammering from Dundee was repeated by Ross County, both games played at Rugby Park. Just when it looked as though they had turned the corner with consecutive wins, they lost to Hamilton although they drew with Hearts last time out. A bit similar to us from the beginning and the stats show that we have scored only one goal more than Killie but our defence is less porous. There's a gap of four points between the clubs and Killie sit where they finished last season in 10th place with Inverness in 8th. Sick list has the usual suspects for Inverness. Dean Brill, Gary Warren, Jordan Roberts, Aaron Doran, Richie Foran and Tobi Sho-Silva. Ryan Christie will be available after missing the derby through suspension. Iain Vigurs scored from a free kick in the development game in midweek and Dani Lopez notched a goal as did Andrew MacRae, so these guys will be looking to push into the starting eleven. All that happened in a 3-1 win at Clach Park over Hearts. Gary Locke could have the option of fielding captain Mark Connolly who is returning after medial ligament damage and Lee Ashcroft will return after suspension. However, Scott Robinson, Darryl Westlake and Dale Carrick are unlikely to feature after resuming training following injuries. tm4tj prediction:- Things are looking up for Inverness after a dismal opening sequence and to be fair, Kilmarnock have perked up a bit as well. Great news on the managerial front with John Hughes staying put, but it remains to be seen if that will encourage the board to lash out with a new contract for Yogi. That aside, it is a boost to keep the status quo and the emergence of Miles Storey as a goal threat and James Vincent as a box to box predator has lifted the gloom around Inverness and gives the fans renewed hope for the rest of the season. Owain Fon-Williams has been performing well since the Europa games and the defence is more settled with Josh Meekings back. Kris Boyd will always be a threat, no matter what size he is and Gary Locke will be looking to push on after an erratic start to their campaign. Another man who will be useful is the human battering ram that is Josh Magennis who is returning on a high from international duty with Northern Ireland. Our season has transformed quicker than Killie's and I can see us extending our unbeaten run. Johndo, our regular soothesayer, will be at Rugby Park and will have a full report for us after the game once he returns to his present form.

Still in our Shadows Inverness kept Ross County in their shadows with a hard fought 2-1 win at the Global Energy Stadium. The damage was done just before half time in two brilliant counter attacking moves. The first came at the end of a multi player move and culminated with Miles Storey burying the ball behind Scott Fox. He was beaten again a couple of minutes later following a swift break by Storey. We won a corner and James Vincent neatly nodded home the ball home after a bit of head tennis in the box. County responded well in the second half but Fon-Williams and his defence held firm until Liam Boyce scored in the ninetieth minute to give the hosts some hope of getting a leveller in the six minutes that followed. It was not going to happen though and Inverness took all three points back over the bridge and the bragging rights remain with us until the League Cup encounter at least, on 27th October. It's official, we now get to keep Ross County after our fourth win in a row at the Global Energy Stadium. It was a great day for a game of football, dry and no wind and a large crowd for the first Highland derby of the season. The away end looked pretty full as the teams came out. Inverness had won the previous three meetings in Dingwall, but County had started the season the better of the two sides. John Hughes went with the same squad that started against Aberdeen, minus the suspended Ryan Christie. That meant that Liam Polworth kept his place in the starting X1 and Andrea Mutombo was the new face. Carl Tremarco started on the bench along with Iain Vigurs, but Tobi Sho-Silva was still not available. County had Andrew Davies suspended, and De Vita and Dingwall were on the bench. The early exchanges were a bit tentative as both sides probed for an opening. County looked to be trying to take the initiative with Inverness looking to contain and counter attack at pace. Both keepers were called into action, but were untroubled making comfortable saves from Stewart Murdoch and James Vincent respectively. The first big chance fell to Michael Gardyne after David Raven made a hash of cutting out a cross from the County right. The ball deflected off his boot and looped onto the boot of Gardyne in a menacing position eight yards from goal, but he skied his effort just over the bar much to the amusement of the away fans. County were beginning to see more of the ball as we sat deep and another couple of long range attempts went off target from Richard Foster and Liam Boyce as the first half hour of the game passed. Inverness got to grips with the game and started pushing forward, winning a couple of corners and that got the fans approval as half time approached. After 41 minutes, we made the breakthrough, and a fantastic team goal it was too. We collected the ball on the halfway line and worked it across the back line and up the other flank. Eight players were involved in this one with Liam Polworth contributing twice as he burst into the box to cross for Miles Storey who slotted home, sending Scott Fox the wrong way. A goal fit to win any game. County were stunned and they were caught out two minutes later, Miles Storey the creator this time. He turned and sprinted away from Boyd before smashing a shot from the left side which Fox blocked. The ball bounced out of the box where Vincent met it and his effort was also blocked, but at the expense of a corner. From the resultant corner, a hesitant County defence allowed Devine to head on to Vincent, who popped up in the right place to plant his header into the net to further stun the Jail End and send Inverness in at the break two up. Half Time 0-2 Jim McIntyre would have been reading the riot act after their first half collapse and County looked eager to impress after the break. Liam Boyce tested Fon-Williams in the first minute and the Welsh keeper saved down low to his left. Brian Graham shot wide as County surged forward and Williams again saved from Jackson Irvine down to his left once more. Boyce headed over as the home pressure continued with Inverness content to soak it up and Murdoch went close as well. On the hour, County had to replace Scott Fox in goal as the keeper landed awkwardly on his ankle after clearing a looping cross. He was applauded off the park by both sets of fans as he left the field on a stretcher with possible ligament damage. Ouch! Boyce was thwarted once more by a diving Fon-Williams as he handsomely clutched a header out of the air in spectacular fashion, and Irvine's header met with the same fate. County had bossed the second half in terms of possession, but the Inverness defence were standing tall and it looked as though the home side were running out of ideas with the clock heading towards the ninety. But, similar to the second Inverness goal, Boyce headed home as the defenders watched him get the second header unchallenged to give them a glimmer of hope. Five minutes of time were added on and the visiting fans were once more twitching their keeky winkers as County flooded forward, but they could not breach our defence for a second time and the Highland Derby was won by the boys from Inverness. Full Time 1-2 A pulsating game at times and this was a hard fought game between two decent sides. Miles Storey was the difference and his electric pace gave Boyd and Co plenty to think about. Our first goal was Storey's fourth goal in five appearances. Great return from the loan striker. And James Vincent is popping up with vital goals as well, making tremendous box to box runs and getting the rewards for his efforts. Fon-Williams was superb in goal and big Ross Draper put in some shift, booking included. Liam Polworth played a huge part in the first goal and his confidence must be getting a boost. To be honest, we had no failures and it was a standard away day counter attacking performance, and worthy of the three points. For his superb goal and loan striker performance, the lively Miles Storey is my MotM. International break next week, then off to Kilmarnock. Good times. Date: 03/10/15 Venue: Global Energy Stadium, Dingwall Attendance: 5473Referee: Willie Collum Ross County: 1 Lineup: Fox (Woods 60), Boyd, Boyce, Gardyne, Foster, Graham (Dingwall 72), Irvine, Franks (De Vita 74), Murdoch, Fraser, Robertson Subs (not used): McShane, Holden, Reckord Scorers: Boyce (90) Booked: Murdoch (90) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 2 Lineup: Fon Williams, Raven, Vincent, Meekings, Draper, Devine, Tansey, Williams (Vigurs 90), Polworth, Mbuyi-Mutombo (Tremarco 74), Storey Subs (not used): Esson, Lopez, Wedderburn, Horner, Sutherland Scorers: Storey (42), Vincent (45) Booked: Raven (56), Draper (64), Mbuyi-Mutombo (72) Sent Off: none

Derby Day. After last weeks heroics against unbeaten Aberdeen, Inverness go over the bridge to face another high flying team. This week it's the turn of Ross County to face the Scottish Cup Champions in a league encounter. This will be the first of two games between the clubs in October as we have been drawn against them in the League Cup at the end of the month. Well, what can you say about Ross County this season? They have made a brilliant start to their campaign gleaning 15 points from their opening 9 games. They started the season by losing to Champions Celtic on the opening day. Their only other defeat came at the hands of newly promoted Hearts in Dingwall. County's highlight so far was a thumping 4-0 win at Rugby Park, but their last outing saw them throw away a 3-1 lead over Dundee as the dark blues came back to force a controversial draw in a game that saw defender Andrew Davies sent off soon after half time. In Liam Boyce they have one of the most potent strikers in the division. Boyce has scored almost a goal a game. Ten goals in eleven starts for the Northern Irishman and that includes a hat-trick in the 7-0 humiliation of Falkirk in the League Cup. But County are not a one man team this season and they have drafted in a few new faces to help Jim McIntyre build his squad the way he wants it. Goalkeeper Scott Fox arrived from Partick Thistle with Gary Woods coming in on loan from Leyton Orient. The defence was bolstered with Andrew Davies arriving from Bradford City, Richard Foster from Championship side the Rangers, Darren Holden (Hartlepool United) and Chris Robertson from Port Vale. Midfielders Ian McShane comes in from Queen of the South, Jackson Irvine (Celtic), Stewart Murdoch from (Fleetwood Town), Jonathan Franks (Hartlepool) and Martin Woods from Shrewsbury Town. Up front they have Michael Gardyne back and Brian Graham has left Dundee United to sign on at Dingwall. All of these new faces meant the end of the road for some familiar ones, and out went keepers Antonio Reguero and Mark Brown. Paul Quinn finds himself at Pittodrie and Ruben Palazuelos and Darren Barr are gone. No room either for Jake Jervis, Graham Carey, Joe Cardle, Steven Ross and former captain Richie Brittain, who chose Brora Rangers instead of Dingwall. A raft of other squad players departed along with loan players like Filip Kiss returning to their host clubs. So, Jim McIntyre in his second season is calling all the shots now and it looks as though he is making his own mark on the team. He firmly believes that County are capable of staying in the top-six, and few would argue against that given the positive start his side have made, although he offered a word of caution. "We've started the season really well and got ourselves into the top six at the moment. The hardest part is going to be staying there." Inverness boosted their confidence last week by beating title challengers Aberdeen in a rousing contest at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium. All the damage was done in a first half dominated by the Caley Jags, and Miles Storey netted his third goal since coming on loan. Ryan Christie was the architect of all things involving Inverness, including a sending off, and he scored a superb second goal from over thirty yards to shock Aberdeen into action. We helped them out a bit with sloppy defending and marking when Ash Taylor scored the Dons goal but defensively we were very determined thereafter and deservedly held on for a dramatic win. Yogi was a content man after that game and he rebuffed reports that he might be linked with the vacant managerial posts elsewhere by saying "It's flattering to be linked with other jobs but I'm really focused on Inverness and trying to pick up three points on Saturday (in the Highland derby)." Inverness will be without the suspended Ryan Christie who will serve a one match ban after his double yellow last week . Also missing out are long term casualties Dean Brill, Gary Warren, Aaron Doran, Jordan Roberts and Richie Foran. However, Hughes can call on Tobi Sho-Silva, Dani Lopez, Carl Tremarco and Iain Vigurs to add more depth to his squad following recent injuries. Jim MacIntyre will also be without a suspended player as Andrew Davies will have to sit this one out. Similar to Christie, he has been given a one match ban. Scott Boyd is favourite to replace him. Martin Woods and Craig Curran are sidelined, and Rocco Quinn is reported to be injured as well. tm4tj prediction:- If you asked me to predict a winner a month ago then I would have had no hesitation in telling you that County would thump our makeshift side. However, a month is a long time in this game and with the arrival of Miles Storey and the return of Josh Meekings we now have a side able to compete once more. Liam Boyce will take a bit of watching and we will miss Ryan Christie more than they will miss Andrew Davies. County sit five points above us in the table, but a lot of that was due to our poor start to the season. We are slowly getting more back to fitness and our energy levels against Aberdeen were tremendous, especially in the first half. I don't think that a draw will do either side any harm and at this point of the season that may be our best chance of taking something from Dingwall, but I wouldn't say no to all three points. The Highlands are still ours, let's see if we can keep it that way.

Reds Rocked. Inverness ended Aberdeen's winning start to the league campaign with a 2-1 victory in the Highlands. This was no more that John Hughes' side deserved after a scintillating first half where the scoreline flattered the undefeated Dons. A large crowd were expected with Aberdeen getting 500 extra tickets hoping to see their side get back to winning ways after their shock defeat at the hands of Hibernian in the League Cup in midweek. It was an excellent day for a game of soccer and the large crowd were about to witness a devastating start for Inverness. A couple of surprises before kick off with Carl Tremarco out and Danny Williams dropping back to defence to cover that. In came Liam Polworth to midfield. Still no Tobi Sho-Silva, but the rapid Miles Storey started up top again. Derek McInnes sprung the bigger surprise after telling everybody that Graeme Shinnie would not make this game. But make it he did. His other surprises were having David Goodwillie and Adam Rooney starting on the bench. Jonny Hayes returned after suspension and Kenny McLean and Josh Parker accompanied him up front. Owain Fon-Williams was the first keeper called into action as he dived low to his left to turn a 30 yard effort from McLean round the post. That was the last we would see of Aberdeen as a goal threat until the second half. Inverness took the lead in the seventh minute and a fantastic goal it was too. James Vincent won the ball wide left on the half way line. He fed it inside to Greg Tansey who moved it on to Liam Polworth and he dropped it back to Ross Draper just inside his own half. The big man surged forward before feeding the ball to Ryan Christie. He spun and left his marker Graeme Shinnie for dead before sliding a precision pass to the feet of Miles Storey. He in turn sped forward five paces before rifling a shot across Ward and into the net from fifteen yards to stun the big away support behind the goal. Christie was causing havoc every time he got the ball, and he delivered another inch perfect pass for the runner who was Draper this time. Unfortunately, instead of putting his laces through the ball, he tried to dink it in and his effort was blocked by Paul Quinn eight yards from goal and a grateful Ward gathered the loose ball. Danny Williams injured himself making a thunderous tackle that also took out Meekings. As play raced to the other end, Storey teed up Liam Polworth, but Ward pulled off a tremendous one handed save diving high to his right to deny us a deserved second goal. After treatment, Williams was able to continue. However, our delightful attacking display paid off when Ryan Christie smashed a thirty five yard strike high beyond Ward and into the roof of the net. Draper involved in this again after breaking up play, but what a strike from Christie and no more then we deserved. Aberdeen were down and out at this point but we handed them a lifeline when Devine failed to deal with a cross into the box, his header going for a corner instead of the expected throw in. From the corner, Ash Taylor lost his marker and headed down and up into the net unchallenged. Sloppy from us and a gift for Aberdeen to kick start their game. Christie tried to replicate Taylors header at the other end but again Ward kept the dons in touch with another superb save. The half time whistle saved the visitors from further punishment and we went in with a scoreline that flattered Aberdeen. Half Time 2-1 Could we sustain the attacking threat we showed in the first forty-five? Well, the answer was no and that was obvious as we handed the midfield over to the Dons, inviting them forward to try to level the game. Aberdeen players were now falling to ground at every opportunity as they camped around our box, winning a number of free kicks in dangerous positions, but without troubling Fon-Williams. From one such opportunity, Peter Pawlett rattled a post, although Fon-Williams might have helped it onto the woodwork. Either way he had it covered and the danger was cleared. They did beat the keeper soon after, but Danny Devine popped up from nowhere right under the bar to head the ball away from the net. Now that was a close call. Not the first time Devine has done this either. Aberdeen made it an uncomfortable last fifteen minutes for Inverness with Rooney and Goodwillie on the park but we weathered the late storm and held firm. Our own sub Mutombo took the ball forward a couple of times late on to ease the pressure, but it certainly made a few keeky winkers twitch every time the ball entered our box, but the home side managed to stop Aberdeen's winning start and get a welcome three points for themselves. Only black mark was the sending off for Ryan Christie after his second yellow card for upending the same player. Yes, you've guessed it, that player was none other than our old Captain Graeme Shinnie. Welcome back Graeme. Full Time 2-1 Tremendous first half for Inverness merited this win as they took the game to there more fancied opponents. Ross Draper was involved in lots of the action and Christie's turn that saw him leave Shinnie awol for the first was also exquisite and his threaded passes were game winners. Despite that sending off, Christie was superb in every way and his goal is one to treasure. For all of that, he is my MotM. He was ably assisted by the rest of the side, and Devine, Meekings, Draper, Fon-Williams and Storey were easy on the eye as well. Sorry Hamish, but someone had to do it, and it might as well have been us. Onwards and upwards, exciting times ahead, with the local derby next week in Dingwall. Video from Caley Jags TV............... _____________________________________________________________________________________________ Date: 26/09/15 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 6410 Referee: John Beaton Inverness CT: 2 Lineup: Fon Williams, Raven, Meekings, Devine, Williams, Draper, Tansey, Vincent, Polworth (Mutombo 74), Christie, Storey (Wedderburn 83) Subs (not used): Esson, Sutherland, Horner Scorers: Storey (8), Christie (29) Booked: Christie (64, 90), Williams (72), Raven (80), Fon-Williams (92) Sent Off: Christie Aberdeen: 1 Lineup: Ward, Logan, Taylor, Quinn (Pawlett 45), Shinnie, Considine, Jack, McGinn (Rooney 43), McLean, Hayes, Parker (Goodwillie 65) Subs (not used): Brown, Smith, Robson, McLaughlin Scorers: Taylor (35) Booked: Jack (57) Taylor (76), Sent Off: None ______________________________________________________________________________________________

Shinnie's Back....... Unfortunately just for the day as his new club Aberdeen visit the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium in Inverness. However, he will only be watching from the stands after injury in midweek. It's the famous for once versus the once famous as Aberdeen look to reach nine in a row against the Scottish Cup holders. Yes, the one we have been dreading is fast approaching as table topping Dandy Dons come to the Highlands. Not only with Graeme Shinnie, but Adam Rooney, Jonny Hayes and Barry Robson as well. We warmed up for this clash by removing Livingston from the League Cup in midweek, goals from Miles Storey and Danny Devine enough to see us safely through to round four. Not the greatest of displays it has to be said, but that's cup football for you. The important factor is that we did progress, which is more than can be said for some clubs. Our last League game saw us take a point from Tannadice after coming from behind to merit the draw. It was another robotic performance, but it's also another game under the belt for our new look squad and more game time for our returning crocks. Josh Meekings thundered home a header to earn the point after that chap Billy Mckay had opened the scoring in a first half dominated by United. Aberdeen limbered up by beating Hearts 3-1 in Edinburgh to make it eight wins on the bounce in the Premiership. David Goodwillie bagged a brace and Niall McGinn scored the other. That is a fantastic start to the season for Aberdeen who are starting to look as good as their fans believe they are. In the League Cup on Wednesday night they took on Championship side Hibernian. Hibs had not read the script though and took the wind out of Aberdeen's sails with a stunning 2-0 win. Not the result the Dons were expecting, but the loss of Flood and Shinnie early on would not have helped their cause. So, who are the players that have put the Dandy back in front of the Dons. Well, the addition of Graeme Shinnie has proven to be a terrific signing for attack minded Aberdeen, able to get at defences on both sides of the park. Aberdeen have been building towards this for a couple of seasons now and Shinnie is one of the final pieces in the Dons jigsaw. The key pieces have been new keeper Danny Ward who joined on loan from Liverpool and has jumped in ahead of Scott Brown. Midfielder Paul Quinn has come in from Ross County and added some bite to the midfield. Ryan McGlaughlan is a defender signed on loan from Liverpool as well and is a useful squad player. They have also added a pair of strikers to the squad in Joe Nuttal from Manchester City and Josh Parker from Red Star Belgrade. Our own Graeme Shinnie is a difficult one for us to swallow, but he is a vital part of the red machine now. Derek McInnes had to reduce his budget to help subsidise these new arrivals and out went a host of recognised players. Russell Anderson retired, and keeper Jamie Langfield saw the writing on the wall and went to Paisley. Joe Shaughnessy and Nicky Low went to Tayside, Clark Robertson is at Blackpool and Declan McManus nearby at Fleetwood. Former Hearts player Andrew Driver has left the building and promising youngster Lawrence Shankland is on loan at St Mirren. A host of fringe players have also left the building. That's a lot of players out at Pittodrie, but he has brought in more quality and less quantity to continue the Aberdeen resurgence. It seems to be working so far. Recent form will show that Aberdeen are unbeaten since the start of the season in the League. They are not the highest scoring team in the League (15), but have still scored more than twice as many as us (7). Their defence has been rather miserly though conceding only three goals in eight games. We are the draw specialists with four and that could work in our favour given our reluctance to score goals. On the down side, Aberdeen won all four of our meetings last season. Meh! Crocks corner. Inverness are slowly getting players back, but it's three in and two out. Meekings, Vincent and Foran have returned the last couple of games, but Iain Vigurs and Tobi Sho-Silva missed out at Livingston. Longer term absentees Gary Warren, Aaron Doran, Dean Brill and Jordan Roberts are still out. Aberdeen took a couple of knocks in midweek against Hibs. Willo Flood and Graeme Shinnie were removed from the park in the first half with injuries, and Derek McInnes has confirmed that both will be out of this clash. Flood could be out for over a month. Mark Reynolds has a shoulder injury and sits this one out. Jonny Hayes is eligible after his red card ban and will return to the squad. tm4tj prediction:- Oh my, this really is a tough one. Aberdeen on the form of their life and Inverness struggling to get any momentum going. The statistics don't lie and it's difficult to see past a win for The Dons. Graeme Shinnie has settled in brilliantly and Adam Rooney was the top scorer in the land last term. If he's not scoring, then David Goodwillie is eager to step forward and Niall McGinn is not shy either. We are still struggling to come to terms with the loss of Shinnie, Mckay and Watkins, coupled with a crippling injury list which has denied us of our regular back line. Yes, it has been a struggle, but there is light at the end of the tunnel with Meekings and Vincent back. New striker Miles Storey has done well and has pace to burn. Mutombo can add a spark as well and Fon-Williams is looking solid between the sticks. Hibs showed the way to do it in the midweek League Cup encounter and that might unsettle the Dons. Ach well, somebody had to do it. I'll stick my neck out here and go for a dramatic draw to ruin the Dons perfect start in the League. I met a very nice couple called Hamish and Morag Rosie, whilst on holiday in Venice. We had a great time in the few days we spent together. Hamish is a very talented man, author and artist. He is originally from Orkney, but unfortunately he is an Aberdeen fan and has been rubbing it in since we met. I'm sorry Hamish, but it's our turn. Enjoy the preview.

Point Taken Inverness and Dundee United shared the points in a hard fought 1-1 draw at Tannadice. It was inevitable that Billy Mckay would score against his old club, but Josh Meekings powered home a header just after the break to level the score. It was a glorious day in Tayside as Inverness visited struggling Dundee United at Tannadice. The shirt sleeve weather made it a tremendous day for a game of football and the pitch looked in magnificent condition as the sides took to the park. A decent away support saw Inverness start with a similar side that took to the field against Hearts. News that Tobi Sho-Silva was out injured was a bit of a downer but we were looking to build on our excellent win against the Jambos. Iain Vigurs also missed out but James Vincent and Josh Meekings continued their comeback. United had Billy Mckay in the main strikers role and Darko Bodul and Scott Fraser were the men providing the ammunition. The opening exchanges were fairly even but Ross Draper picked up a booking inside a minute for hand ball. Ryan McGowan fired one just wide after five minutes as United looked for an early opening, and they got the breakthrough after seven minutes. Inverness will feel they could have averted the goal which had a bit of fortune about it and who else but Billy Mckay scored from less than a couple of yards. Familiar territory for Billy who got the break of the ball after a John Rankin close range effort was blocked on the line. Unfortunately for Inverness Billy did what Billy does best and he knocked the loose ball into the net. It looked bleak for Inverness five minutes later when Rankin met a Morris cross about ten yards out bang in the centre of goal. This time we got the break as Owain Fon-Williams spread himself and blocked the ball with his legs. A let off for the visitors and it really should have been two nil for United. Mckay was looking lively early on as we afforded him the freedom of the park, allowing him to link and run directly at the heart of our box. A couple of frantic tackles kept him at bay and he turned and volleyed one just wide. A good effort that could have caught the keeper out, but Fon-Williams soon had to dive smartly to divert a vicious shot from the edge of the box as United and Mckay threatened to run away with the game. We needed half time to arrive sooner rather than later and we reached the break without further damage. Half Time 1-0 Harsh words must have been said over the half time cuppa as straight from the kick off, Ryan Christie drifted goalwards before sliding in Williams who was upended on the edge of the box. Nothing given though and that stung Inverness into determined mode. Following a couple of corners, Josh Meekings rose majestically at the far side of the six-yard box and powered a Christie corner into the roof of the net. Game on! Carl Tremarco was linking well going forward and had a shot savedthe angle before Danny Williams and Greg Tansey lashed shots close to the goals, but just wide. The tide had turned and Inverness looked the most likely to go on and win the game with United reduced to chasing shadows for long spells. Miles Storey was running the lone strikers roll and it was taking it's toll on the lad who gave his all before being substituted near the end, but he looked knackered long before that. Richie Foran replaced Williams with ten minutes left. Scare for Inverness with four minutes of normal time left as United broke out of defence, but despite a swift break the 'goal' was chalked off for offside. Sit down shut up! The game fizzled out thereafter and a point apiece it was in the Autumn sunshine. Full Time 1-1 Maybe not the best of games, but always something happening to keep you interested. At the end of the day, a point each was probably fair enough. United were on top in the first forty five but failed to extend their lead and were rightly hauled level by Inverness who upped their game after the break, no doubt having been ear bashed by Yogi. Billy Mckay was prominent in the first half but faded as we came out stronger in the second period. Spoke to a couple of United fans after the game and we all agreed it was the right result. We were also unanimous in our praise of Scott Fraser who showed quick feet on numerous occasions when in a tight spot. Ryan Christie once more shone for Inverness and Carl Tremarco looked good going forward in the second half. Tremendous header from Meekings to level the game, but Owain Fon-Williams kept us in touch in the first half and he gets my vote as our MotM. Date: 19/09/15 Venue: Tannadice Stadium, Dundee Attendance: 6235Referee: Kevin Clancy Dundee Utd: 1 Lineup: Zwick, McGowan, Morris, Durnan, Dillon, Dow (Spittal 65), Kuhl, Fraser, Rankin, McKay, Bodul (Murray 82) Subs (not used): McCallum, Telfer, Connolly, Taggart, Donaldson Scorers: Mckay (7) Booked: Rankin (28), Bodul (68) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Lineup: Fon Williams, Raven, Meekings, Devine, Tremarco, Draper, Tansey, Vincent, Christie, Williams (Foran 83), Storey (Polworth 90) Subs (not used): Esson, Lopez, Wedderburn, Horner Scorers: Meekings (56) Booked: Draper (1), Tremarco (10) Sent Off: none

News Storey... After our first win of the campaign last weekend, it's off to see fall guys Dundee United at Tannadice this Saturday, Billy Mckay and all. It does leave a nasty taste in the mouth seeing Billy in an orange shirt, a bit like seeing Graeme Shinnie in a red one, but we have to move on. Miles Sorey could be the man to start a new chapter in the history of Inverness Caledonian Thistle. The curse is strong and anyone leaving will regret it sooner or later. We broke our duck against Hearts in a game that was always interesting and entertaining but never really took off until we scored in the second half. Tidy goals from newly repaired James Vincent and debut striker Miles Storey sent the Edinburgh club home with nothing other than a red card for Oshinawa who thought he could get away with knocking people on the head without repercussion. The plus for us was the return from injury of Vincent and defender Josh Meekings. This allowed Carl Tremarco to play in a more familiar position at left back and Ross Draper was released from his withdrawn role at Centre Back. With new boy Storey showing his pace up front, suddenly the league has become more interesting for Caley Jags fans, and our other new force is Tobi Sho-Silva who could be quite a character to have around. He certainly wanted to get involved in everything on his debut from the bench and is an exciting prospect. Dundee United have taken on the Kilmarnock FC role as one of the frontrunners in the race for relegation. They have gone into free fall since the Dundee derby, losing all four games since then. Their only win was against Motherwell 2-0 at Fir Park and those results have them sitting second bottom on four points, one more than Partick Thistle. Last week they were shocked at home by Killie going down 2-1, Mckay notching his first goal for the Arabs with a spot kick. Who are the men responsible for the demise of Dundee United this season. Jackie Macnamara apart, they have put their faith in Darko Bodul, Coll Donaldson, Mark Durnan, Justin Johnson, Adam Taggart and Aaron Kuhl. Who, I hear you say. Well, here is one name more familiar to us. It's Billy (small k) Mckay. The former Inverness favourite failed to get into relegated Wigans elite squad and is at Tannadice on loan for the season. Darko Bodul has plenty of experience at top European clubs in Portugal, Denmark and Austria and is expected to be the ideal candidate to replace the extrovert Nadir Ciftci. United have more departures than arrivals and Ciftci left for Celtic, surprise surprise. Keeper Radoslaw Ciernziak and Jaroslaw Fojut are back in Poland, Calum Butcher at Burton Albion, Brian Graham and Michael Gardyne at County. Keith Watson, Darren Petrie and Jamie Montgomery dropped divisions in Scotland and Robbie Muirhead has been loaned to Partick Thistle while Henri Anier finds himself at Hibernian. That's a lot of bodies to replace, especially on top of Stuart Armstrong and Gary Mackay-Stevens who joined Celtic last season. It's not worked out for United yet and their season got off on the wrong foot, going down to Aberdeen on matchday one. They defeated Motherwell the week after, who we all thought would be a decent benchmark after they thrashed us on opening day. But being pegged back by city rivals Dundee in the derby sparked a run of four defeats on the bounce. We could have the impetus with us, coming off the back of that win over Hearts, but it's a tight league with anyone outside the top two capable of beating each other. Our injury crisis eased slightly over the international break and James Vincent and Josh Meekings returned to the starting eleven. Richie Foran was also in the squad but remained on the bench for the visit of Hearts. We do however, still have an extensive list of first team crocks. Dean Brill, Gary Warren, Aaron Doran, Jordan Roberts are out longer term. Andrea Mutombo sits out his second game for the sending off at Dens Park. United have no fresh concerns, but Jackie is keeping it all close to his chest as we have no further information at time of going to press. tm4tj Prediction:- Things are looking more positive for Inverness after new signings Miles Storey and Tobi Sho-Silva gave us a pacey injection that was sadly lacking since the start of the season. Dani Lopez could find himself on the bench for some time having witnessed the immediate impact this pair provided. With Meekings and Vincent returning to bolster the defence and give us more drive box to box then life's not so bad after all. United badly need a win before the long knives come out for Jackie McNamarra and loan signing and former Caley Jags favourite Billy Mckay is the man they have put their trust in. Confidence is low at the moment though, and I will predict that our away form will benefit from the pace of Miles Storey and that will see us take our second win of the season and leave the United board with a decision to make. Away win by two goals. It's been a tough week off the park for the Tannadice club and indeed all concerned with football. The passing of Ralph Milne has left the footballing world all the poorer. Milne was one of the legendary players for United in the early eighties and our thoughts go out to his family, friends and the Dundee United community. He will always be remembered for that magnificent chipped goal in the Dundee derby that ensured United would win the SPL in 1983. He was a very pacey wide player and was a joy to watch in his prime. Milne played 28 times for United, scoring 75 goals and had been inducted into the Tannadice hall of fame. He played for Charlton Athletic, Bristol City and Manchester United after leaving Dundee United. RIP Ralph Milne 1961 - 2015.

Friday Footie Newly promoted Hearts will be our next problem as we take them on this Friday evening at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium in a televised match that kicks off at 19:45. Another tough task ahead as one of the front runners make their second journey to the Highlands this season, having already edged out Ross County 2-1 in Dingwall. Inverness have been in potential relegation form since the start of the season and are without a win since the Scottish Cup Final against Falkirk. That does seem like a long time ago now. We can't buy a win just now and our chances of that happening have been compounded by the sending off of the wreckless Andrea Mbuyi-Mutombo in our last game away to Dundee. How dare he try that on the humble Nick Ross. The Jambos have continued their Championship winning ways into the Premiership and have earned their third position with five wins on the bounce before they were overturned by Hamilton Accies last time out as they ended the game with ten men. That red card has been rescinded though and Callum Paterson will be available for selection against Inverness. Who are the players entrusted with putting Heart of Midlothian back on the footballing map. In came defenders Blazej Augustyn and Nigerian international Juwon Oshaniwa. Three forward players also joined the maroon platoon in the shape of Igor Rossi Branco, Juanma Manuel Delgado Lloria and Gavin Reilly who was plucked from Queen of the South. Out went Kevin McHattie, Scott Robinson and Dale Carrick to Kilmarnock. Brad McKay is off to Perth, Gary Oliver went South to Queens. Jason Holt and Danny Wilson are at Ibrox. Those are the main arrivals and departures and Robbie Neilson will feel that his squad will be good enough to compete at the top end of the table this year. Hearts have also added Danny Swanson to their impressive squad. The former Dundee United midfielder joins them until the end of the season as Neilson assembles a squad capable of pushing on from last years dominating performances. Inverness were involved in transfer activity at the end of the last window. We had some good news, and some bad news. I'll start with the bad news. The inevitable happened as Ryan Christie has signed a four year deal at Parkhead to play for his boyhood heroes. The good news is that he will be staying with us until January before Celtic will probably recall him. I'm sure every fan will wish him well in his career after Inverness. That doesn't mean we are all happy about it, but unfortunately this was going to happen sooner or later. We also acquired the services of two forward players in Miles Storey and Tobi Sho-Silva. Storey has arrived from Swindon and has been capped by England at u19 level. He had not made the hoped for breakthrough at Swindon where he came through the ranks and had been farmed out to Portsmouth and Newport County. He also had talks with St Mirren but nothing came of that. Sho-Silva joins from Charlton and both players appear to be stop gap loan signings until January brought about by our lack of quality in front of goal. Before the international break, we squandered a one goal advantage at Dens park to end up with a draw. David Raven had given Inverness the lead on the hour but Kane Hemmings prodded home a very late leveller for a share of the points. We would have taken a point before the game, but it was disappointing to concede so late in the game for what would have been our first win of the season. However, the performance was still not encouraging and we are not creating nearly enough opportunities to set us up for our first three pointer. Hearts fared little better by going down at Hamilton, having fought back from being a goal down to go ahead, only for Accies to snatch all three points after Hearts were wrongly reduced to ten men. King and Paterson were the Jambos scorers in a see-saw game. That was their first defeat this term, and the Accies have now beaten Inverness and Hearts in successive games. Nonetheless, it has been an excellent start to life at the top table for the capital club. The treatment table has been kinder to Inverness this last fortnight with news that Josh Meekings, Ricjie Foran and James Vincent could be fit enough to be included in the squad for this encounter. However, Jordan Roberts could be out for a further six weeks with an aggravated groin problem. So he can be added to the long term list of Brill, Warren and Doran. It's been a tough start to the season for Inverness injury wise, let's hope that eases a bit in the near future. Not helping is Mutombo as he will be sitting this one out after his ridiculous red card against Dundee. Hearts will have Callum Paterson available after his sending off was overturned. Neilson has a nearly full set of players to choose from and the added bonus of latest signing Danny Swanson. Soufian El Hassnaoui is the only injury worry. tm4tj prediction:- Our troubles are well documented this season and I don't know where or when our first win will come. We can hopefully shore up the defence a bit once Meekings gets back to full fitness, but that won't happen overnight. Our new strikers will need time to get to know how we roll up here so I won't be looking for miracles this Friday. Unlike Juanma, our Spanish striker has not exactly set the heather on fire. It may be time to try something different as it's not happening for Dani at the moment. Maybe the competition will spur him on to greater things. Juanma has netted four times this season and Osman Sow is a big threat as well. Reilly is scoring too and Hearts attacking flair could prove too much for our bedraggled troops. We have only lost one more goal than Hearts, but they have scored 15 times to our 4, and therein lies the problem. Given that horrendous stat, I can't see us picking up anything against Hearts, other than a thrashing. Comfortable win for the visitors by a couple of goals and little in the way of goalmouth action for Inverness. I'll still go along though and keep my fingers and toes crossed for a much healthier outcome. Yogi believes otherwise and thinks we are a match for Hearts. He will probably be tempted to throw in one of his new attacking options at the deep end in the hope that we can end our dismal run.