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First Home Win Duncan ferguson was looking for his first home Championship success as the Diamond's visited the Caledonian Stadium. He would be without some key players. Unfortunately Welsh, Duffy, Doran, MacGregor, Nicolson, and Samuels were all out with Devine, Boyes, Ujdur, Harper and Carson all struggling to make this one. New signings David Wotherspoon and Cillian Sheridan were in the squad. As it was, Carson, Ujdur, Devine, Harper and Wotherspoon all started with Boyes and Sheridan on the bench. Airdrie had Gallagher and Todorov up front with Player Manager Rhys McCabe on from the start. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Decent afternoon for a game of football and Airdrie took advantage of the good conditions to control the early possession although they never troubled Ridgers, one shot clearing the North Stand into the car park. The next one went five yards over the bar. The best Inverness could offer was a blocked shot on the edge of the box after our best move of the game. We came more into the mix and David Wotherspoon spooned a shot over the bar from five yards after Keeper Josh Rae had saved from Billy Mckay. He really should have scored but he made amends five minutes before the break with a tremendously calm finish. He showed real class unlike the open goal he missed earlier. The move began on the left with Longstaff then when it came to Wotherspoon in midfield he flicked it deftly to the right side where Gilmour fed Shaw. He drove down the wing before cutting the ball back to Spoony who turned in the box to roll the ball into the unguarded corner of the net from twelve yards after making the space for himself. Class! HALF TIME: 1-0 After the interval Airdrie retained the ball better but we threatened when Gilmour went down after a challenge in the box. Shaw picked up the loose ball but his shot was charged down as he tried to pick out the top corner from the edge of the box. A spate of substitutions disrupted the flow of the game and the visitors made a late push to salvage a point. However, we defended well despite half of our back four being substituted with Ujdur dominant. The big defender made a couple of crucial blocks, one in particular as Frizzell pulled the trigger, the ball deflecting over the bar. Despite the late pressure from Airdrie, Ridgers was not overly exerted although he made a couple of crucial catches and punches clear to hold on to the clean sheet and more importantly all three points. FULL TIME: 1-0 The fabulous execution of his goal was a great introduction for David Wotherspoon but for me the Man of the Match and new version of Bobby Mann was Nikola Ujdur. The Aussie defender is solid, strolled through the game unflustered and can pick a pass. Good graft in midfield but Sheridan and Big Harry need some work done. Shaw picked up a booking at the end when Big Dunc sent him back onto the pitch to get treatment Robert on CTO: This is what Saturday evenings should feel like! The second half was a hard watch at times, but we got the job done. Ridgers dealt with everything and a few timely blocks and some poor finishing helped too. The first half was quite even and we scored at the right time as Airdrie seemed to be getting on top. It was a great, calm finish by Wotherspoon which more than made up for the one he skied earlier (in his defence I thought it came on to him very quickly). I also thought the referee did us a big favour early in the second half. On a different day Anderson would have been penalised and a penalty awarded. However I thought we should have got one shortly after too. It’s nice not to be gifting goals although we did have some squeaky bum moments in defence, with Airdrie’s right wing back causing a lot of problems. Mckay and Wotherspoon worked their socks off. Longstaff and Shaw tried to push forward but also helped the full backs well. Anderson and Gilmour are developing a good partnership. But the biggest credit must go to our walking wounded. Last night all of our starting defenders were on the injury list, and Carson and Devine cannot have been fully fit when they were subbed in the second half. Udjur was not quite as composed today but did what he had to, whilst Harper had a bit of a torrid time defensively at times but credit them both for getting through the game. Sheridan could prove an asset when he is fully match sharp, with one defensive tackle standing out for me today. Lodovica and Brooks still do not convince me though. We may lose ground on Tuesday when some of our opponents play and Saturday will be a big test at Tannadice. But let’s enjoy the moment. It’s long time since we’ve had a home win to kick start a Saturday evening. OCG: Eye bleeding at times but we were able to grind out a win! We need points at moment and pretty football can wait. Good to see us becoming a bit more streetwise under Ferguson eg keeping ball in corner as long as we could in last couple of minutes. Full Highlights from ICTFC Pos Team Pld W D L F A Pts 1. Dundee Utd 10 7 3 0 28 4 24 2. Raith Rovers 9 6 2 1 14 9 20 3. Partick Thistle 10 4 3 3 19 16 15 4. Airdrieonians 10 4 1 5 9 14 13 5. Arbroath 9 4 0 5 15 17 12 6. Ayr United 10 4 0 6 12 18 12 7. Queens Park 11 3 3 5 14 22 12 8. Dunfermline 9 3 2 4 9 10 11 9. Inverness CT 9 2 2 5 7 10 8 10. Morton 9 2 2 5 9 16 8 Date: 28/10/2023 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 2218 Referee: Calum Scott Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Duncan Ferguson Lineup: Ridgers; Carson (Davidson 78), Ujdur, Devine (Delaney 78), Harper, Longstaff (Brooks 62), Gilmour, Anderson, Wotherspoon (Sheridan 68), Shaw, B Mckay (Lodovica 67) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde, Boyes, Thompson, Scorers: Wotherspoon (37) Booked: Lodovica (90+1), Shaw (90+3) Sent Off: none Airdrieonians: 0 Manager: Rhys McCabe Lineup: Rae; Megwa, McCabe (Aiken 67), Watson, Fordyce, Hancock, Frizzell, McStravick (McGregor 69), Telfer, Todorov, Gallagher (McGill 77) Subs (not used): Hutton; Taylor-Sinclair, O'Connor, McMaster, Dunlop Scorers: none Booked: Frizzell (53) Hancock (90+1) Sent Off: none a

Injuries R Us With last weeks game falling foul to the weather, it might have been a blessing in disguise with one or two struggling to have made the postponed game against Morton. An extra weeks recovery might mean that we will be better equipped to face a sprightly Airdrie side who have consolidated themselves in the top half of the Championship. Game kicks off at 3:00pm at the Caledonian Stadium this Saturday and we might get a glimpse of new signings David Wotherspoon and Cillian Sheridan. Unfortunately Welsh, Doran, Boyes, MacGregor, Nicolson and Samuels are all out with Devine, Ujdur, Harper, Duffy and Carson all struggling. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match Info/Tickets David Wotherspoon Cillian Sheridan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 8 4 0 4 13 12 +1 Away 7 2 2 3 9 15 -6 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 15 6 2 7 22 27 -5 Only the last couple of fixtures have any relevance. The 1-0 home win was in March 2002 when Ross Tokely played and Martin Bavidge scored the winner........ Wait a minute: Ross Tokely is still playing and scoring winners 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 3 (H) 1 - 0 (H) 0 - 3 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 0 - 6 (A) 1 - 1 (A) 4 - 0 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 0 - 2 (H) March 2002: Steve Paterson's 300th game in charge produced a very welcome 1 - 0 victory which stopped a slide down the league. Ian Broadfoot reports: Caley Thistle lay fourth last Saturday but slipped to seventh in midweek without kicking a ball. This win resulted in a climb to fifth. The first half was a nervous period with Caley Thistle trying hard but achieving little. Airdrie's best chance came in the first minute when they were awarded a free kick 20 yards out. Mark Roberts drove the ball goalwards and Nicky Walker dived to make a good save. In 13 minutes a high David Bagan cross proved troublesome to Airdrie keeper Allan Ferguson but he tipped it over. Five minutes later a Barry Robson corner from the right reached Grant Munro beyond the back post but he could only bundle the ball over for a goal kick. Stuart Taylor created a chance for himself at the other end in 29 minutes but he wasted it with a scuff past the post. In 33 minutes the home sides best first half chance fell to Dennis Wyness after good interplay with Charlie Christie but the striker hit it over from 10 yards. A minute later Owen Coyle reached a corner at the back post but left it to Taylor but he mishit to concede a goal kick. The tempo of the match changed in 50 minutes when Robson sent over a cross from the left and Martin Bavidge scored at the back post despite Ferguson getting a touch. This lifted Caley Thistle and calmed a few nerves. They kept on top after that but could not score a second goal. Robson strode through the Airdrie defence just after the goal but his shot deflected off Alan McManus. On the hour mark Ferguson raced out of goal to the touchline to just beat Bavidge to the ball. Ferguson saved Airdrie again in 76 minutes when he dived at the feet of Wyness as he stretched to reach a Bavidge curling ball but it went harmlessly for a goal kick. The nerves returned in the last few minutes as Caley Thistle worked hard to preserve their lead. With three minutes left Airdrie nearly stole an equaliser when a seemingly harmless Taylor header beat Walker but came back off the post into the relieved keepers arms. Despite a seemingly endless three minutes of added time Caley Thistle held on to win. Championship Fixtures FRIDAY 27th OCTOBER Dundee Utd v Arbroath Fc Queens Pk v Partick Th SATURDAY 28th OCTOBER Ayr Utd v Morton Inverness CT v Airdrieonians Raith Rovers v Dunfermline Last Time Out Inverness were held to a no scoring draw at home to Partick Thistle. A game of few clear chances with Partick squandering the best a few minutes from the end. Still, the clean sheet was welcome. We have already played Airdrie twice this season during our defensive blunder sessions. Airdrie took full advantage winning both games. 3-2 in the Highlands on League Cup duty and 2-1 at the Shyberry Excelsior Stadium in our 3rd Championship game of the season. Nathan Shaw's second half goal was too little too late after a Cammy Harper og inside the first minute and top scorer Gallagher on the half hour did the early damage in that one. Last Five: D L L W D Airdrie also played out a draw in their last game which went ahead on Friday night in a downpour. It ended 1-1 with Queens Park after Airdrie had taken a first half lead when an error in midfield by Queens Park allowed Callum Gallagher to run through to finish with aplomb. Queens got their point when keeper Josh Rae presented Jack Turner with his opportunity which he gladly took. Last Five: L W W L D Latest Team News This was prepared for the Morton game that was postponed. Having played in the North of Scotland Cup semi-final at Nairn, Duncan Ferguson will now be without at least two of those that were beaten by Nairn. It was mainly a second string squad with some returning from injury. However, Danny Devine came off with a swollen knee and Sean Welsh now has a back injury. Add Boyes with an eye infection, Aaron Doran with a hamstring, Wallace Duffy with who knows what and longer term Roddy MacGregor and Lewis Nicolson then Ferguson does not have his troubles to seek. The good news is David Wotherspoon could be ready after playing 45 minutes on Wednesday night. Jay Emmanuel Stewart (JET) has been on trial this week. So, hopefully the extra week will see one or two be in a better place injury wise and Wotherspoon has had another week in his legs to get back up to speed. Cillian Sheridan has become the latest player to sign on until January. He's been around a bit but could still do a job for us surely. Big misses for us will be Sean Welsh, Morgan Boyes and if Ujdur, Harper and Carson fail to make it then we will be scraping the bottom of the barrel again. Aaron Doran (hamstring) and Austin Samuels (knee) have joined the long term casualy list with Roddy and Lewis. So injuries are us once more. Dunc is hopeful one or two might be fit enough but it's a waiting game after three weeks of inactivity. Airdrie v Queens Pk team lines:- Rae Megwa Watson Fordyce Hancock Frizzell McMaster Aiken (Telfer 62) McStravick Gallagher (Todorov 62) McGregor (O'Connor 78) Subs not used: Hutton; McCabe, Dunlop, McGill, Cassidy, Spalding. Airdrie have been playing some slick stuff of late and this will be a tough one, even with a full squad. Callum Gallagher is top scorer with six goals. Former Caley Jag striker Nikolay Todorov has scored a couple this season but does not always start.

  HELLO AIRDRIE   Tuesday nights fixture is now of the crucial kind if we want to progress in the ViaPlay League Cup, or like the sponsors, we will not be participating for much longer. Given results over the weekend we find ourselves in big trouble with the prospect of getting out of the group stages diminishing rapidly unless we can find our feet and turn over the Diamonds. Not an easy task given their performance on Saturday as they beat Dundee 1-0 with a late penalty to follow up their 2-0 defeat of Dumbarton in their opening fixture. With Dumbarton beating us and a bonus win over the Rose, they are tucked in behind Airdrie in second place with Dundee and ourselves struggling in 3rd & 4th place. Dundee are at home to Dumbarton the following night and will fancy taking three points from that one, so it's win at all costs for us on Tuesday night.  Kick off 7:45pm Tuesday 25th July GAME INFO ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Team             P   W    D   L   GF    GA     GD  Pts   1 Air  2   2  0   0   3 0 3    6     2 Dum  3   1  1 1 2 3 -1   5    3 ICT  2   1  0 1 3 3 0   3    4 Dun   2    1   0   1 1 1 0   3    5 Bon   3    0   1   2 1 3 -2  1    Team News Inverness have signed wide player Luis Longstaff on a two year deal from Cove Rangers. Most of our squad have had a run out over these games with the exception of Max Ram who is not match fit yet. If this is still pre-season then it has been somewhat of a failure. The only bonus has been Billy Mckay notching his record equalling 101st goal for the club. That's a fantastic achievement and hopefully it won't be too long before he secures the outright leadership in the goal scoring charts.     Airdrieonians stunned Dundee at the weekend taking all three points to put them top of the table on six points having also beaten Dumbarton in their opening tie. Plenty of useful players at Airdrie. We know all about Nikolay Todorov but let's not forget that this side hammered Falkirk 6-2 in the Championship play-offs at the end of last season.    Starting XI v Dundee Rae Watson   Fordyce   Taylor-Sinclair   Ballantyne Frizzell   McCabe   Aiken McGregor   Gallagher   McGill Subs: O'Connor (53 McGill), Todorov (78 Gallagher), Telfer (81 Frizzell)   It's a long time since we last played Airdrie, in any shape or form. 20 years ago we won the Challenge Cup in Perth 2-0 with goals from Bingham and Hislop against the then Airdrie United. Our last game against an Airdrie XI was a 4-0 win over Airdrie United at the Caledonian Stadium in 2010.   Ian Broadfoot reports from the Caledonian Stadium in 2002, probably the final game v the original Airdrieonians. Steve Paterson's 300th game in charge produced a very welcome victory which stopped a slide down the league. Caley Thistle lay fourth last Saturday but slipped to seventh in midweek without kicking a ball. This win resulted in a climb to fifth. The first half was a nervous period with Caley Thistle trying hard but achieving little. Airdrie's best chance came in the first minute when they were awarded a free kick 20 yards out. Mark Roberts drove the ball goalwards and Nicky Walker dived to make a good save. In 13 minutes a high David Bagan cross proved troublesome to Airdrie keeper Allan Ferguson but he tipped it over. Five minutes later a Barry Robson corner from the right reached Grant Munro beyond the back post but he could only bundle the ball over for a goal kick. Stuart Taylor created a chance for himself at the other end in 29 minutes but he wasted it with a scuff past the post. In 33 minutes the home sides best first half chance fell to Dennis Wyness after good interplay with Charlie Christie but the striker hit it over from 10 yards. A minute later Owen Coyle reached a corner at the back post but left it to Taylor but he mishit to concede a goal kick. The tempo of the match changed in 50 minutes when Robson sent over a cross from the left and Martin Bavidge scored at the back post despite Ferguson getting a touch. This lifted Caley Thistle and calmed a few nerves. They kept on top after that but could not score a second goal. Robson strode through the Airdrie defence just after the goal but his shot deflected off Alan McManus. On the hour mark Ferguson raced out of goal to the touchline to just beat Bavidge to the ball. Ferguson saved Airdrie again in 76 minutes when he dived at the feet of Wyness as he stretched to reach a Bavidge curling ball but it went harmlessly for a goal kick. The nerves returned in the last few minutes as Caley Thistle worked hard to preserve their lead. With three minutes left Airdrie nearly stole an equaliser when a seemingly harmless Taylor header beat Walker but came back off the post into the relieved keepers arms. Despite a seemingly endless three minutes of added time Caley Thistle held on to win. Saturday, March 30th, 2002, 3:00pm Caledonian Stadium, Inverness Attendance: 1,709 Referee: C Hardie   Airdrie Info: They were formed in 2002 as Airdrie United Football Club following the liquidation of the original Airdrieonians club, formed in 1878. The club's official name was changed in 2013 with the approval of the Scottish Football Association to the traditional name of Airdrieonians.