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Mckayless Jags at Dens After two defeats in a row from the then bottom club Hamilton Accies we now have a run of away championship games starting at Dens Park on Saturday. Its a 3:00pm start at the Kilmac Stadium as we look to get back in amongst the play-off places at the top end of the table. Its a big ask given our last couple of results and we will be without the suspended Billy Mckay who is the only man keeping us above the relegation play-offs. Dundee have faltered recently as well and we did win at Dens Park earlier in the season which was an unexpected bonus. So all is not lost yet, but the mindset at the moment for most fans is do we have the right management team in charge? Not according to those that were at Hamilton. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/Supporters Bus Info Mathew Strachan ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Venue H2H v Dundee Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 17 7 8 2 27 16 +11 Away 20 7 8 5 28 25 +3 Neutral 2 0 0 2 2 4 -2 Total 39 14 16 9 57 45 +12 We still hold the overall edge over Dundee but draws are the most common results. Dundee sit second in the table on 42 points with a game in hand over leaders Queens Park who are on 44 points. Inverness are lurking in seventh place and well off the pace with 32 points. Last 10 Competitive Meetings 0 - 1 (H) 3 - 2 (A) 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 2 (A) 2 - 2 (H) 2 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 0 - 0 (A) 0 - 1 (A) 0 - 1 (H) Here's the recent form table..... not good reading to be honest. Had we beaten Accies twice we would be top and they would be in our position. Overall Home Away Pos Team Pld W D L F A W D L F A W D L F A +/- Pts Peer through your fingers if easily offended 1. Hamilton Ac. 6 4 1 1 8 3 2 1 0 4 2 2 0 1 4 1 +5 13 2. Raith Rovers 6 2 4 0 9 7 0 2 0 3 3 2 2 0 6 4 +2 10 3. Partick Thistle 6 3 0 3 8 6 2 0 2 7 4 1 0 1 1 2 +2 9 4. Queens Park 6 2 2 2 11 7 1 1 0 3 1 1 1 2 8 6 +4 8 5. Dundee 6 2 2 2 10 7 2 0 1 8 4 0 2 1 2 3 +3 8 6. Arbroath 6 2 2 2 11 12 0 0 2 2 6 2 2 0 9 6 -1 8 7. Ayr United 6 2 1 3 8 7 1 1 2 3 5 1 0 1 5 2 +1 7 8. Morton 6 2 1 3 8 9 2 0 1 5 4 0 1 2 3 5 -1 7 9. Inverness CT 6 1 3 2 9 10 0 2 1 2 5 1 1 1 7 5 -1 6 10. Cove Rangers 6 1 2 3 4 17 0 2 2 3 14 1 0 1 1 3 -13 5 Friday 24th Feb19:45 Raith Rovers 0-0 Ayr United Saturday 25th Feb Arbroath v Partick Thistle Dundee FC v Inverness CT Hamilton v Queen's Pk Morton v Cove Ran The last meeting at Dens Park saw us take a surprise 3 - 2 win: From CTO - Harper stuns Dundee: The first meeting of the sides this season ended in victory for the visitors. Dundee took an early lead through Sweeney but Cammy Harper levelled almost immediately with a curling shot from outside the box. Austin Samuels day was over five minutes before the interval. Just on the break Billy Mckay scored from the spot to put the visitors ahead after Harper had been fouled. Paul McMullan made it all square ten minutes after the interval although that goal has now been attributed to Joe Grayson. However, man of the match Harper restored the visitors advantage from twenty-five yards with seven minutes left. That ended the scoring and sealed the points before Sweeney was sent off for a second bookable offence as the game slipped away from Dundee. Last time out Inverness flopped at Hamilton, the second reverse against the same side in three days. A 3-0 drubbing at Inverness was followed by a 2-1 defeat at Hamilton, although had we taken our chances at New Douglas Park things might have worked out differently. They didn't and to rub salt in the wound Billy Mckay was sent off. Meh! Dundee lost 1-0 to Morton last Friday as points become hard to get at both ends of the table. That was after a 3-0 beating of Cove Rangers the previous Sunday. Latest Team news Billy Mckay is suspended after being sent off at Hamilton. Mathew Strachan, our promising young defender has been loaned out to Nairn County for the remainder of the season, no doubt the return of Harper, Deas and Delaney drove that option. The Duracell Bunny that is David Carson took a thigh knock against Accies and is a doubt, but he's a tough cookie so we'll see how that turns out. Austin Samuels will probably replace Mckay and he will be glad to get the chance to play again at Dens Park as that was the start of his injury problems back in September 2022. He has had a couple of cameo slots on his return and may not be 100% yet. Still waiting for five to return from injury: Sutherland, Walsh, Macgregor (close to a return), Ram and Ben Woods. Since we last played Dundee: Loan in: Lorent Tolaj, forward (Brighton & Hove Albion); Barry Maguire, midfielder (Motherwell); Luke Hannant, midfielder (Colchester United); Kwame Thomas, forward (Sutton United). Zach Robinson has returned on loan from Wimbledon. (never knew he played tennis) Out: Niall McGinn, forward (Glentoran); Derick Osei, forward. Loan ended: Joe Grayson, defender (Barrow). Loan out: Zack Rudden, forward (St Johnstone); Luke Strachan, defender (Alloa Athletic), Paul McGowan is on Loan at Dunfermline for the rest of the season. Euan Mutale is at Albion Rovers.

Double dose of Jags Another top of the table clash this weekend as promoted Partick Thistle head North on Saturday to take on the Caley Jags. It's a 3:00pm kick off at the Caledonian Stadium and with free scoring Partick going well, expect a big crowd and a tough game. We put four past Buckie Thistle last weekend with a side that had 10 changes from the one that beat Killie 1-0 in our last Championship encounter. Robbie Deas was the only survivor from Rugby Park and there were some excellent performances and firsts for Lewis Jamieson, Cameron Harper and a brace for Billy Mckay. Partick had a tougher task but they advanced after beating Stranraer 2-0 with a fierce Tunji Akinola strike and a late Kevin Holt header seeing off their hosts. OFFICIAL PREVIEW Stat Attack First Competitive Meeting Aug 4th, 1998 League (H) 1 - 0 Most Recent Competitive Meeting Dec 14th, 2019 League (A) 1 - 3 Last 10 Competitive Meetings 1 - 3 (A) 1 - 3 (H) 2 - 1 (A) 1 - 2 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 3 - 2 (H) 1 - 1 (A) 0 - 0 (H) 0 - 2 (A) 4 - 1 (A) Biggest Victories Apr 30th, 2016 League (A) 4 - 1 Jan 10th, 2009 Scottish Cup (Rd 4) (H) 3 - 0 Apr 27th, 2002 League (H) 3 - 0 Heaviest Defeats Dec 13th, 2014 League (H) 0 - 4 Highest Attendance Feb 23rd, 2002 Scottish Cup (Quarter Final) (A) 8,700 Highest Home Attendance Mar 5th, 2002 Scottish Cup (Quarter Final Replay) (H) 5,037 Venue Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 20 8 5 7 30 29 +1 Away 19 5 5 9 21 28 -7 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 39 13 10 16 51 57 -6 As the stats show, the sides are fairly evenly matched overall although Partick have won the last two encounters, both by 3-1. Good news week with both Cameron Harper and Roddy MacGregor extending their contracts by a further two seasons. Impressive business by the club as they invest in the future of these young stars. Latest Team News Michael Gardyne was injured in training ahead of last week's Trust Cup match with Buckie. With many players rested after our stunning start to the campaign, Billy Dodds will have the managerial headache of sorting out his best XI after a few caught the eye against Buckie. Notably scorers Billy Mckay and Lewis Jamieson and it was good to see Anthony McDonald performing so well after recovering from injury. Plenty of food for thought. Partick had some players on duty at the Scotland u21 game in Turkey where a late goal saw the Turks salvage a draw. Lewis Mayo played from the start and Zac Rudden came off the bench with keeper Harry Stone an unused sub.

Thick and fast The games are coming thick and fast and it's another fraught weekend ahead as we travel to East End Park, Dunfermline, to take on second top 'Pars' for a 3:00pm kick-off as the league enters a crucial stage with only seven games left for the Caley Jags to determine where we finish this difficult season. April will be a tough month with games coming up against Morton (a) Queens (a) Dundee (h) Hearts (a) Ayr United (h). This game can be streamed from Pars TV for £12 on PPV and you can find out how to do it by clicking HERE. Remember to register first then pay then click on 'watch' icon. Simples. We play Buckie Thistle in Scottish Cup action next Tuesday 23rd March and PPV for that game can be found HERE In midweek we had an encouraging result at Stark's Park where a Daniel Mackay goal gave temporary boss Neil McCann his first win in charge of Inverness at the sixth time of asking. Raith were reduced to ten men after ten minutes when Iain Davidson was red carded after leaving Nikolay Todorov on the turf when he challenged him from behind. Difficult to see exactly what happened on the replay but the referee was in no doubt and his card was coming out of his top pocket before Toddy hit the ground. That was Dan's 4th goal this season. That result coupled with an excellent win for Ayr United at Dens Park shows the table like this with Alloa to play Dundee on Friday night. OFFICIAL PREVIEW Pld W D L F A +/- Pts 1. Hearts 20 14 3 3 48 21 27 45 2. Dunfermline 18 8 6 4 27 19 8 30 3. Raith Rovers 19 8 5 6 32 25 7 29 4. Dundee 19 7 6 6 34 35 -1 27 5. Queen of the South 20 8 3 9 32 40 -8 27 6. Inverness CT 20 5 9 6 26 23 3 24 7. Ayr United 20 6 6 8 25 24 1 24 8. Morton 20 5 7 8 17 25 -8 22 9. Arbroath 20 5 6 9 17 26 -9 21 10. Alloa Athletic 20 4 5 11 24 44 -20 17 Last 10 Competitive Meetings with Dunfermline Athletic 1 - 1 (H) 1 - 3 (A) 2 - 1 (A) 2 - 0 (H) 1 - 0 (A) 1 - 0 (H) 0 - 1 (A) 2 - 2 (H) 3 - 0 (A) 1 - 2 (H) Oh Danny boy... 4th goal this season We played at East End Park on the opening day of the league campaign but went down 3-1 after Todorov opened the scoring in the second minute. Captain Euan Murray levelled with his head before the interval and the Pars eased away with two goals in the final twelve minutes through Ryan Dow and a belter from Declan McManus. Up in the Highlands we came from behind to earn a point after Kyle Turner drilled a low shot behind Ridgers in the first half. The equaliser was a spectacular left footed strike by Miles Storey with twenty-five minutes left and that's how it ended. ***Latest Team News*** Miles Storey played the last half hour against Raith with Kevin McHattie leaving the bench to take up some time added on. Still missing were Aaron Doran, James Vincent and Lewis Toshney. James Keatings was a used substitute against Raith but he came off injured twelve minutes after coming on. With McCann not giving much away I'll guess that one or two are still carrying knocks and we will be along similar lines to Tuesday night with maybe Miles Storey starting. Dunfermline have put promising midfielder Kyle Turner out on loan to Airdieonians. They have taken Craig Wighton on loan from Hearts and the big striker is relishing the challenge with three goals in three games. Another good loan signing is Scott Banks who had spells at Dundee United and Alloa Athletic. Former Caley Jags wage earner Owain Fon Williams is the current No1 at East End Park.

Inverness CT -V- Dunfermline Athletic Caledonian Stadium Tuesday night 29th December @ 18:30pm ***Early kick-off*** Championship Football Covid restrictions apply Live Streaming available from ICTFC Happy New Year when it comes

Toddy Niks it. Inverness took the lead after eighteen minutes through a Jordan White header. Morton squared the game through Aidan Nesbitt only for Shaun Rooney to put us back in front. Unfortunately Morton sub Reece Lyon equalised. However Todorov snatched a win from the jaws of a draw with an injury time goal, heading in off the post for a dramatic ending to the game. Inverness were the only Championship team to win on a night of three draws, so we stretch another two points away from the chasing pack. Phew! Inverness were without the suspended Brad Mckay after his red card against Hibs last Friday. Sean Welsh and James Vincent were out injured with James Keatings making the bench alongside u18 midfielder Kane Davies, his first involvement with the squad. Form side Morton were without Kris Doolan, Kyle Jacobs and Cameron Salkeld. A brisk night in the Highland capital saw Morton start brightly and Mark Ridgers had to make the first save of the game inside a couple of minutes from Nicky Cadden. Danny Rogers did well to save a header from Jordan White and a minute later he tipped behind an effort from Miles Storey after he cut inside. Rogers could do nothing to stop White opening the scoring a couple of minutes later with a header from a Tom Walsh cross. Walsh shot over the bar from outside the box as Inverness pressed for a second goal, but as the visitors settled Ridgers had to save another effort from Cadden. Cadden appears to be the most likely source for an equaliser and he fired a free kick just wide as play levelled out. Morton might feel hard done by as Inverness scored when keeper Rogers was struggling after taking a knock, but it's White's header that was the difference between the sides at the break. Half Time 1-0 Wintry weather greeted the teams as the second half got underway and a White header looped onto the top of the net and at the other end Baird headed over the bar from a corner. A second corner saw Luca Colville shoot just over as the vistors came out of the blocks sharply. A cross from Charlie Trafford found the head of White but a poor connection saw Rogers gather easily. On the hour Aidan Nesbitt levelled the game from a Strapp cross. Our lead was restored when Shaun Rooney headed home from six yards six minutes later, the assist from David Carson at a free kick. Morton keeper saved two efforts from White and MacGregor but it was the visitors that were next on the scoresheet after a spate of substitutions and it was substitute Reece Lyon from close range. Thankfully one of our own substitutes settled the game in the second minute of injury time. Carl Tremarco had headed a Doran ball across the box and there was Toddy to head it in off the post. A night of drama finished off with three points. Lovely jubbly!!! Coupled with all the other games ending goalless, then it's not such a bad night after all. Here's the goals......... From BBC Sport Inverness Caledonian Thistle manager John Robertson: "It was a rollercoaster. I thought first half we were great. Danny Rodgers kept the score down - we should have been two or three ahead. "It's 2-2 and you think it's going to be two points dropped. They hung in there and big Toddy's popped up for the last-gasp winner. It's a big, big three points for us." Greenock Morton manager David Hopkin: "Bitterly disappointed but fantastic effort from my players because I thought we deserved at least a point. "We've not matched three headers and that's what's cost us, but everything else in the game I thought we were the better team." Oooerrrr, I think your grapes are sour David Highlights from Morton TV Date: 03/03/2020 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 1772 Referee: Craig Napier Inverness CT: 3 Lineup: Ridgers; Rooney, Toshney, McHattie, Tremarco, Walsh, Carson, Trafford, MacGregor (Doran 73), Storey (Keatings 79), White (Todorov 73) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Davies, Harper. Scorers: White (18), Rooney (67), Todorov (90+2) Booked: Trafford (64) Sent Off: none Morton: 2 Lineup: Rodgers; Tumilty, McGinty, McAlister, Nesbitt (Nesbitt 72), Orsi (McLean 81), Strapp, Blues, Cadden, Colville (Lyon 68), Baird Subs (not used): Ramsbottom; Muirhead, Millar, McHugh. Scorers: Nesbitt (61), Lyon (76) Booked: Tumilty (74) Strapp (90) Sent Off: none a

Window Pain This transfer window has become a real pain in the back passage for Inverness Caledonian Thistle with practically our entire first choice defenders leaving our ambitionless and penniless club for more lucrative contracts elsewhere. Only veteran defender and captain Carl Tremarco remains of what was once a solid back four. However, don't worry Caley Jags fans. Whilst all around us are strengthening their squads, we are going to do Gaelic translations across the tannoy at the stadium. That should be enough to get us back into the Premiership. You just couldn't make this up. Alloa are the visitors this week for the Championship clash at the Caledonian Stadium on Saturday at 3:00pm, and they will have hot property Kevin O'Hara in their line-up. He's the scorer of eight goals in his last six games, including two against Inverness in the Scottish Cup tie at Recreation Park. It's the fifth meeting of the clubs this season with three Inverness wins and one draw so far. The case for the defence..... The case for the defence rests with the Caley Jags board. It's now official, Jamie McCart has left the building, something we all knew for a few weeks, but it's official now Jamie McCart statement. He has sat on the bench for our last two games whilst the i's were dotted and the T's were crossed, so now we have the official line. He's off to Perth. So the heart has been ripped out of central defence with Coll Donaldson already playing in dark blue over the bridge. The season will really disintegrate should Shaun Rooney be whisked away. Here's hoping we can keep him as our defensive showing at Ayr did not fill the fans with confidence, so pick any two from Lewis Toshney, Brad Mckay and Kevin McHattie for central defence. I rest my case. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Alloa Match information and ticket prices Scottish Cup 5th round information v Livingstone Official Preview Transfer deadline day and the best ICTFC can come up with is the introduction of Gaelic announcements. For the love of God. airson gràdh Dhè We'll laugh about it one day? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Inverness suffered a disappointing defeat at Ayr last week, going down 1-0 to the Honest men. However, it would have been rude to beat them on Burns night, so we helped them out with a wee assist from our defence. A sloppy pass out from Kevin McHattie saw the marked Charlie Trafford lose the ball to the alert Stephen Kelly who strode forward and slotted the ball past an exposed Mark Ridgers. Meh, just not the start of life after Coll and Jamie we were looking for. If truth be told we rode our luck on a number of occasions when Ayr looked likely to overrun us. However, we were also denied by the woodwork and some dubious refereeing decisions. That apart, Ayr would have been disappointed had they not kept all three points at Somerset Park. Alloa got themselves off the foot of the table with a tremendous away win at Palmerston combined with Arbroath beating Partick to send them to the bottom with a 2-1 win over the Jags. It was looking good for Alloa when they raced into a two goal lead over Queen of the South. Hot streak striker Kevin O'Hara opened the scoring and Robert Thomson added a second in the 14th minute. Queens hit back in the second half through substitute Jack Hamilton and equalised before the hour through Stephen Dobbie with a stunning strike. However, man of the moment O'Hara popped up again with ten minutes to go to give the Wasps a hard earned win. This weekend's Championship fixtures. Partick Thistle V Ayr United (Friday 7:05) Inverness CT v Alloa Athletic Dundee United v Arbroath Morton v Dundee Queens v Dunfermline A less than enthusiastic Robbo as reality kicks in....... ***Latest Team News*** James Keatings is a major doubt with a hip problem and Cameron Harper returns from his loan spell at Elgin as our defence falls apart. Donaldson no more, McCart no more, Rooney??? Alloa have taken in Rangers youth keeper Kieran Wright on loan til the end of the season with Jamie MacDonald injured. They have also managed a loan deal for Crystal Palace's Scott Banks. Here's top scorer Aaron Doran banging one in against Alloa this season.

Pumped Again As sure as Inverness Caledonian Thistle can beat Ayr United, Partick Thistle can beat us. Partick hold the Indian sign over Inverness this season with another 3-1 win over second place Inverness. James Keatings had levelled an Alex Jones opener for Thistle, but further goals from Steve Saunders and Dario Zanatta made it a long and miserable journey back up the A9. That win moves Partick up to eighth in the table. Immortal Howden Ender was on hand to witness our demise....... Ok I have slept on it and my “report” will be more considered, less emotive but still very critical. I suspect that after savouring the win and performance at Alloa and the positivity following the Dundee game I may well have underestimated Plastic Whistle and I feel that the team did as well. We have been crying out for a Plan B and that has been recently been delivered and in some style. There may be a load of armchair managers on this forum but there were a few things tactically that Robbo was blinded to yesterday. You can play the tippy tappy football on 4G or well cared for surfaces in cold and frosty conditions. Robbo has introduced that recently but – when you are faced with a boggy pitch, it is feckin freezing cold, added to by a strong, swirling wind and driving rain (especially in the second half) then the “hoof” is a more sought tactic. McCall sussed us yet again. He played two lines of four playing deep in defence. They only pressed when we were in the final third. They were only too happy to sit back and let us play meaningless passes across the pitch and often played backwards as well. And did we do just that !! And then we did not use the width. When we did go wide we looked more threatening. How many times did Storey run forwards but then stop and play the ball backwards or sideways. Doran simply does not have the stamina and pace in such conditions and defensive set up. But then again we do not have a holding forward or a striker with the “poacher” penalty box instinct. I would also criticize Doran and Storey for not channeling back and that increased the workload on Carson and Trafford. Plastic Whistle had the old head in Kenny Miller (playing in central midfield) and pace up front which made them always dangerous on the counter. BUT we did not revert to the hoof and Robbo stuck by the starting XI until it was too late. Our following was bellowing for the changes eventually made since the hour mark and then it was too late. We were always “chasing” the game which again wholly suited Partick. Alex Jones, who had been wholly ineffective, popped up early in the second half to put the Whistle ahead. KEATINGS pulled one back and, at that stage, you felt that we would take over. Well we did possession and territory wise but always looked susceptible to the counter. Saunders put those thoughts to bed and Zanatta scored a third with the last kick from an incredible angle. Lets just sum things up as “so disappointing” and three valuable points chucked away. For once I can see the comments made by both managers afterwards. McCall said – “I was really pleased, I thought it was terrific entertainment. "It could have been 5-3 to us but yes a big three points and takes us above Morton. You are only four or five points off fifth place now so we've another big game next week." It was terrific entertainment for the home fans !! Our three would have come from goalmouth scrambles and/or from dead ball situations. Robbo replied - "It was a good game, both teams obviously had chances. I thought we were the better team in the first half, a couple of great saves from Scott Fox, a couple of great chances from set plays. And you need to take those chances." We had at least double the “chances” but they took theirs. We were the better of two bad teams at half time. I would have at least doubled our chances from set plays. And Ridgers kept us in the game in both halves with two sensational saves in both. I am sure that there will be a Happy Clapper stating IF we had gone 2-1 up or IF we had taken one of those second half melee chances. There are no feckin Ifs in football. And as for McLean and the stand side linesman it is more shocking proof of the deterioration in standards this season. Although they gave strange and bad decisions against both sides. I am looking forward to seeing the replay of the alleged White “dive” which did look more like a penalty from our distant viewpoint. Apologies if this Smileymometer is insulting and aggravating but it is a personal perspective and I dare not give points !!. RIDGERS – May have fecked up the third goal but he kept us in the game and is the only player close to being a MOM candidate, far less a MOM ROONEY ? – Wish that he had been playing wide right instead of Storey. He was the one player looking to drive forward instead of the incessant “Ray Wilkins” passing tactics. TREMARCO ? – Looked shaded but does not exactly get much defensive support from Doran. Is Carl hitting the end of his playing days ? DONALDSON ?– Appears to be trying to play in the Virgil Van Dyke mode. Unfortunately looked more like Dick Van Dyke at times yesterday. McCART ? – Probably came the closest to scoring from the dead ball situations. Defensively and passing wise he was the Julie Andrews beside Dick Van Dyke. Perhaps he should have retrieved Red Cards brolly. STOREY ? – My high hopes blew away in the Maryhill winds. Why did he not run at the defenders ? I lost count of the times that he stopped, back tracked and passed back !! CARSON ? – I thought that he played well and gave his all. Again he rarely got forward and tended to be another Ray Wilkins impersonator. TRAFFORD ?– Bad day at the office. Gave his all but his distribution was poor and he made no impact. DORAN ? – Hugged the touchline for most of the game. Did not defend at all. Most of our good stuff came down the right and even Aaron resorted to the back pass. WHITE ? – I have really tried to give him the benefit of the doubt but he did not win anything in the air and why did we relent with trying to play the ball into his feet. In his defence who was there to play it off to ? KEATINGS ?– If that was playing number 10 then why was he so deep ? You cant be a playmaker and a No 10. He was deep playing balls into the feet (mainly White) but then who was playing off White. Answers on a small piece of toilet paper. ROBBO ? – You should have changed the tactics and McCall sussed that. Keatings Overhead. Boom !!!!! Date: 14/12/2019 Venue: Firhill, Partick. Attendance: 2144 Referee: Steven McLean Partick Thistle: 3 Lineup: Fox; Williamson, Penrice, O'Ware, Cardle (Zanatta 58), Bannigan, Miller (Palmer 86), Jones (Harkins 72), Cole, Kakay, Saunders. Subs (not used): Sneddon; McGinty, Robson, Slater. Scorers: Jones (48), Saunders (64), Zanatta (90 +3) Booked: none Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Lineup: Ridgers; Rooney, Donaldson, McCart, Tremarco (Harper 85), Doran (Curry 84), Carson, Trafford, Keatings, White (Todorov 84) Subs (not used): C Mackay; B Mckay, McHattie, MacGregor. Scorers: Keatings (57) Booked: White (35), Robertson (manager 35) Sent Off: none a

Another chance missed. Inverness slumped to an extremely disappointing defeat at Cappielow as Bob McHugh scored a double to keep Morton's decent home form going and prevented Inverness from making any headway after Ayr United lost to Dundee last night. Mitch Curry levelled the game midway through the first half but a Coll Donaldson error allowed McHugh to steal an unlikely three points for Morton. Despite dominating possession, we were unable to create enough clear openings and went back up the A9 empty handed. Caley Stan was surprisingly philosophical about the event........... I thought we were ok yesterday but we suffered from the fact that Morton, having scored the early goal, were never tempted to open up at any point. We'll never know if the opening goal was offside unless someone else was filming it but the defence has attempted to play him off and he's taken the goal really well. That happens. Terrible mistake from Donaldson for the second - the kind of mistake that he's always got in him - I wonder if Robbo is tempted to bring Brad in on Tuesday as a wake-up call (WAKE UP COLL!). We've got lots of options in the forward areas now, and Robbo started with a surprising combination. Deprived of space, they took a lot of shots from distance and tight angles, struggling to create clear-cut chances. When the subs were made, the shape didn't change but we were on top in the game and the four of them were already playing very high so I'm not sure what else Robbo could do. I felt throughout the second-half that we were more likely to score. We've blown a great chance to cement ourselves in the top 4, but this league is very tight and we could still find ourselves top of it on Saturday night. Date: 26/10/2019 Venue: Cappielow Attendance: 1408 Referee: Euan Anderson Morton: 2 Lineup: Ramsbottom; Welsh (Millar 65), Baird, Grant, Strapp, Jacobs McAlister, Salkeld (Muirhead 79), Lyon, Colville (King 86), McHugh Subs (not used): Rogers, McLean, Nesbitt, Sutton Scorers: McHugh (6, 81) Booked: none Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Lineup: Ridgers; Rooney, Donaldson, McCart, Tremarco, Storey (MacGregor 84) Carson, Vincent, Curry (Walsh 71), Keatings, White (Todorov 70) Subs (not used): C Mackay, B Mckay, McHatte, Trafford. Scorers: Curry (27) Booked: Todorov (86), Carson (90+4) Sent Off: none a

Cappielow, the final frontier. Morton host Inverness this Saturday as we look to keep in touch at the top end of the table after last week's disappointing home draw against lowly Alloa. The Championship game at Cappielow kicks off at 3:00pm in one of the last few bastions of medieval stadiums left in Scotland. It has a wee Dublin end and a Cowshed and some old floodlights from Love Street. Olde and quaint, but delightful nonetheless. Cappielow has been home to Greenock Morton since 1879 and has a present capacity of 11,589. That makes it the tenth largest football stadium in Scotland. The ground record was set in 1922 against Celtic when an alleged 25,000 were in attendance. That game was a league decider and it ended in a riot. Nothing new then! Match report from The Scotsman, May 1st 1922 A late goal at Greenock saved the situation for Celtic, who found the Scottish cup holders lively company. It was a keen game in the first half, with Morton predominating, and the first goal scored, by Alf Brown, was well merited. Dodds and McNair were very shaky against a virile Greenock attack, and French and McNab were unlucky not to count. Celtic's left wing did good work, but their shooting did not seriously trouble Edwards, who was grandly supported by McIntyre and Wright. Morton continued aggressive in the second half, and looked like holding their lead, but Celtic came away near the close, and amid excitement McAtee obtained the equalising goal. The local club put up a great fight, and on the whole were the superior combination. The attendance was estimated at 20,000. Many of the Celtic supporters carried banners, and at half-time there was an ugly scene on the ground, free fights being engaged in. The playing pitch was invaded, flags were seized by the police, and a number of people were arrested. Happily order was quickly restored, and the match proceeded. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The ICT Supporters Travel Club are running a bus to Cappielow Book on their Facebook page HERE or on 07462218717 ADMISSION PRICES @ Cappielow Adult: £20 Concessions (Over 65s, Students, 18-20 yrs): £15 Child (12-17): £10 Under 12s: £1 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Last week we were at our frustrating best as we threw away a great opportunity to top the division after a late Jordan White header looked to have sealed the points. However we undid all the hard work of getting ahead by giving the Wasps the chance to earn a point after uncertainty in defence saw Jamie McCart give away a needless throw-in. The ball found Alan Trouten unmarked to gain Alloa a point. They had taken the lead five minutes in after a tidy move saw Liam Buchanan execute an equally tidy finish. Carl Tremarco scored a stunning contender as he fired an angled shot off the bar to square matters. Overall, it was a disappointing result given every other result could not have been hand picked better. Tremarcoooooooo! Oh yessss, what a goal Tommy! Table prior to Ayr v Dundee game..........................................Other Championship games this weekend:- Ayr United 1-2 Dundee (Friday) Alloa Athletic v Queen of the South Dundee United v Dunfermline Morton v Inverness CT Partick Thistle v Arbroath James Keatings returned to action last week with a 15 minute substitute appearance. He smacked the bar in injury time with a curling and dipping free kick and we will need his creativity to break down any resistance. Mitch Curry also made his league reappearance after 11 weeks out and Brad Mckay returned to sit on the bench. The pleasing aspect of having injured players return is tempered by the fact that Sean Welsh is out long term and Tom Walsh and Nikolay Todorov have missed the last few games. Robbo has no new injury surprises for us as we look to get back on track, Sean Welsh the only casualty left. It has been reported that Tom Walsh and Nikolay Todorov are also back in full training so expect these returnees to be introduced as required over the next few games. Coll Donaldson and Jamie McCart need to reacquaint themselves with solid defending, correct decision making and get fully focused on the job in hand. Properties that we all know they posses but need to display every week. James Vincent should discard his sideways pills and start creating for the front men and Miles Storey should concentrate on his visible talents, pace and power. If we can also get Aaron Doran to be more direct then we could be a force to be reckoned with and the strikers will benefit from some decent service instead of working off scraps. The return of James Keatings could be the spark needed to ignite the strikers. No reports of any more injuries at Morton. Look out for Bob McHugh. The former Motherwell and Falkirk player is top scorer and has netted six times this season. Officials for tomorrows game:- Referee: Euan Anderson Assistant one: Stuart Stevenson Assistant two: Ryan Kennedy ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I was saddened to learn of the passing of John Fleming this week. I knew John personally through his work at BT and as an aside he would be a referee in his spare time. John went on to become SFA head of refereeing operations. Here's a fitting tribute to the referee and the dedicated family man. RIP John. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Brad's back..... If you like a wee flutter, our partnership with FansBet can offer you something. Just click on FansBet to get started. "Remember to select CaleyThistleOnline when you register and you’ll be helping us support ICT fan causes." FansBet are partners with Supporters Direct Scotland and already have many impressive stories of giving back to and empowering fans, ranging from funding away travel, share purchases, backing safe standing projects and many more. You can read some of FansBet’s Giving Back stories on their blog at https://blog.fansbet.com/fansbet-giving-back/partners/fan/ Always remember to adopt safe gambling and responsible policies.

Stalemate Dundee and Inverness shared the points in an even encounter at the Kilmac Stadium in Dundee. Carl Tremarco came closest to breaking the deadlock, hitting the base of the post with a deflected shot in the first half and Jamie McCart headed narrowly past for the visitors after the break. John Robertson had Jordan White on the bench alongside Nikolay Todorov as he freshened up the attack with Miles Storey starting as striker. Dundee had new signing Kane Hemmimgs on from the start beside Danny Johnson. Handyman Josh Meekings was on the bench. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Speaking on BBC Sport Dundee manager James McPake: "I think it was a disappointing afternoon, we were well off where we were last week against Aberdeen. "There is a really good squad of players in there that we believe we should be a lot more consistent. I certainly need to find a way to get this right. "The concern is that we need to live up to the expectations of these fans, they need to see a team out on that park that is winning week in week out, we need to find a way to get that." Inverness CT manager John Robertson: "This is where I have got to praise Dundee and Dundee United. They have never said it is going to be a two-horse race, other people have said it - pundits, radio, TV, newspapers. They should be with the quality of players they are bringing in, the money they are able to spend, backed by a really vociferous home support, both teams, a tremendous crowd for Dundee, and they will take that away from home as well so you would expect them to be up there and they will, I don't think there is any doubt about that. "But I think the likes of ourselves, Dunfermline, Morton, Partick, Queen of the South, Alloa, Arbroath etc, everybody else in the league, we are not going to make it easy for them, we are going to fight tooth and nail." OFFICIAL REPORT ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In the second minute James Keatings headed high over the bar with James Vincent looking better placed to nod on target as the visitors made their intentions clear. Aaron Doran brought a great one handed save from Jamie Hamilton after he fashioned out a shooting opportunity from 25 yards, dipping his shoulder to ghost past a couple of defenders before firing low to the keepers left. Mark Ridgers stooped to gather a Finlay Robertson effort from inside the box as the Dark Blues responded. Forster did well on the left and his cross looked dangerous before Ridgers punched the loose ball away. Dundee picked it up again though and Paul McGowan drove just over the bar from distance. A Declan McDaid free kick had to be tipped over the bar as he shot from around thirty yards, the big keeper watching it closely. A Keatings corner to the front post was met by Carl Tremarco and his low stab at the ball seemed to take a deflection onto the base of the post and behind for another corner. From the second corner Coll Donaldson headed narrowly over with the aid of a deflection off Forster. Just before the break an opportunity for both sides to break the deadlock. Tidy play by Dundee saw Kane Hemmings released on the left side of the box but he dragged his low shot across the face of the goal and at the opposite end Doran flashed a shot high and wide as the half ended, and it remained goalless at the interval. Half Time 0-0 We started the second forty-five where we left off and Tom Walsh was blocked six yards out as he tried to get his shot away. From the resultant throw in, we worked the ball back across the park and Doran picked up the loose ball on the edge of the box. Unfortunately his powerful drive was a tad too high over the junction of bar and post. Miles Storey had a great opportunity as he broke clear on the left but like Hemmings previously, he shot early and dragged it just wide, the ball trickling past a scrambling Hamilton's left hand post. From a Keatings free kick into the box, the ball bobbled around before Jamie McCart took control of it and as he skipped over some legs he dinked a wee chip towards the back post that saw Hamilton relieved to see the ball drift just wide. That brought about aa vociferous round of boo's from the home fans who were not impressed by their team being opened up so easily. Ten minutes to go and Hemmings rose unchallenged in the box but his looping header dipped over the bar with Ridgers watching anxiously. A tremendous run from Shaun Rooney saw him bludgeon his way through two or three bodies before Forster unceremoniously brought him down to earn a booking. From the free kick McCart saw his free kick deflected wide as Inverness pushed for a winner. Doran's corner was met by McCart but his glancing header went agonisingly wide and as time ticked away a long ball forward from MotM McCart was well controlled by substitute Nikolay Todorov but his parting shot took a slight deflection as it flashed past the post. From the corner Jordan White headed goalward but he got no purchase on the ball and Hamilton grasped it. In time added on White almost won the game after Doran stood up a cross into the penalty area. White rose to meet it but his header was just wide of the top corner with Hamilton flying across his goal helplessly. Much better performance than the league cup defeat at the same ground and Inverness were able to create the better opportunities and will justifiably feel pleased with their contribution. Plenty of opportunities for both sides and neither manager could be too despondent with a point apiece. Caley Stan is feeling much more positive after watching the game........ "The highlights are a bit flattering but we definitely created the better chances, especially in the last 10 to 15 minutes. A very obvious change in style without a target man and even when we brought the big guys on it was to get the ball out wide and put crosses in rather than hitting it long early. None of our front 4 really got into their stride in this game - Keatings in particular was disappointing, but Robbo had the options on the bench to change it - something we didn't have at all for most of last season. The midfield 2 had a much better balance and McCart stood out at the back. Overall, even though it wasn't a great performance, I left feeling more positive about the season ahead than I did beforehand." Date: 24/08/2019 Venue: Dens Park (Kilmac) Attendance: 5016 Referee: David Munro Dundee: 0 Lineup: Hamilton, Kerr, Forster, McGhee, Marshall, Byrne, McGowan (Todd 54), Robertson (Nelson 68), McDaid, Hemmings, Johnson (McPake 60) Subs (not used): Ferrie; Meekings, Moore, Anderson Scorers: none Booked: Robertson (62), Forster (86) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 0 Lineup: Ridgers; Rooney, Donaldson, McCart, Tremarco, Doran, Carson, Vincent, Walsh (Todorov 85), Keatings (MacGregor 71), Storey (White 70) Subs (not used): C Mackay, Harper, McHattie, Welsh. Scorers: none Booked: Donaldson (32), Storey (67) Sent Off: none a