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League Cup drubbing As expected, Inverness were dismissed by a rampant Motherwell before half time. An early tap in from Kevin van Veen put Motherwell in control and before half an hour Danny Devine turned a Matt Penney cross into his own net. Our injury woes increased with Nathan Shaw being replaced by Steven Boyd after thirty minutes. Sean Goss won a penalty which was converted by van Veen and it was game over by the interval. Another van Veen penalty completed his hat-trick with twenty three minutes left. The game then descended into a substitution frenzy with Motherwell safely into the draw for the next round. Good luck to them. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Danny Devine and Wallace Duffy were back in defence but Aaron Doran, Austin Samuels and George Oakley were all missing along with long termers Shane Sutherland and Tom Walsh. This was a big ask for a struggling Championship side and a big step up in quality. And so it turned out, but the lack of passion and desire is something new to us and that needs to be addressed. Unfortunately this was no surprise as Motherwell brushed a poor Inverness team aside before the interval. Our highlight was in the 87th minute when Calum Mackay replaced older brother Daniel. Plenty for Billy Dodds to think about, and sadly we look out of our depth at the moment. Date: 31/08/2022 Venue: Fir Park, Motherwell Attendance: 3982 Referee: Kevin Clancy Motherwell: 4 Manager: Steven Hammell Lineup: Kelly; McGinn, Solholm, Lamie, Penney, Goss (Maguire 79), Slattery (Miller 79), Spittal (McKinstry 72), Efford (Aarons 71), Tierney, van Veen (Shields 76) Subs (not used): Oxborough; O'Donnell, Mugabi, Cornelius Scorers: van Veen (9, 38 pen, 67 pen), Devine (og 26) Booked: Slattery (19) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 0 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Duffy, Devine (Hyde 71), Deas, Harper, D Mackay (Calum Mackay 87), Carson, Allardice, MacGregor (Delaney 45), Shaw (Boyd 29), B Mckay Subs (not used): C Mackay; C Mackay, Scorers: none Booked: Deas (55), Ridgers (66), Boyd (86) Sent Off: none a

Oh no, another game incoming   On the back of a couple of desperate results, we now have the daunting task of travelling to Fir Park to face Premiership side Motherwell in the knock out stages of the League Cup. We have often succeeded when the chips are down, however even our most optimistic of fans are struggling to see how we can change our fortunes given our current resources and desire. Poor showings against Partick Thistle and Morton in the Championship were not ideal preparation for the trip to Motherwell and many frustrated fans will be giving this a body swerve. It's almost as if the team won't give full commitment to the cause, why should the fans spend their hard earned cash to flog the dead donkey. Anyway, we live in eternal hope, but maybe this simply won't be our year. Motherwell have been blowing hot and cold recently and two late goals for Kilmarnock saw them go down 2-1 on Saturday. Dumped out of Europe by Sligo Rovers, they opened their Premiership campaign at Paisley with a 1-0 win. Followed that by losing at home to St Johnstone before stunning Aberdeen at Pittodrie by 2-3. A 1-0 win over Livingston preceded the Killie game giving them 3 wins and 2 losses. Our own form to be honest has been luke warm and ice cold in equal portions, however the last two games have shown us to be ill-prepared for the battle and I fear for us going to Fir Park on Tuesday night. The best we can hope for is a break from our Championship chores and come out refreshed for the rigours of going to Starks Park at the weekend. If not, it could be a long week. Latest Team News Little movement on the injury front, let's see what Dodds has to say about that ahead of this fixture, or maybe just the usual smoke screens.        

Hello Cove! We welcome new Championship club Cove Rangers to the Caledonian Stadium on Saturday afternoon for our final group G League Cup group stages encounter. It's a 3:00pm kick-off for this game and we should see some familiar faces in the Cove ranks. Former Inverness players Iain Vigurs, Rory McAllister and Ross Draper are still on the books at Balmoral Stadium. Ex Aberdeen players Shay Logan, Mark Reynolds and Fraser Fyvie are also well established opponents and Mitch Megginson is a danger to any team. Last Time Out Cove surprisingly lost out 3-2 at home to Kelty Hearts. McAllister and Vigurs featured in that game with Fraser Fyvie and Robbie Leitch scoring for them. Shay Logan also started but it was Kelty that took the points, and they even had the luxury of Nathan Austin missing a first half penalty. Leitch's late goal made the score closer, but Cove were well beaten. Other group G results: Cove 1-2 Livi, Albion Rovers 1-2 Cove. Inverness eventually cruised to a 4-0 win over Albion Rovers. An early goal for Billy Mckay and a stunning free kick from Cammy Harper gave us the cushion needed at the interval. Another quickie a minute after the restart from Wallace Duffy impersonating a striker and a steal from Harper with his head ended the scoring to put Inverness in a strong place to qualify from Group G. Three wins for the Caley Jags so far over Kelty, Livi and Albion Rovers. The last time we played Albion Rovers thirteen years ago we also ran out 4-0 winners. Even better, we went on to beat Dundee to the Championship title and got promotion to the Premier League for the second time. Sounds good, let's have another bash at that. Cove Catch-up by Eric A corresponding fixture last season saw Paul Hartley in charge, however after guiding Cove to promotions through the leagues to the Championship he has been lured south of the Border to manage Hartlepool United. Hartley and his assistant left this summer after a fee was negotiated. Incoming manager is Jim McIntyre whose coaching career has included Dunfermline, Bristol City (first team coach), Queen of the South then Ross County September 2014 to September 2017 when he was sacked alongside assistant Billy Dodds. Most recently managing Dundee season 2018/19 but was relieved of duties after only 4 wins in 31 games. Former Inverness players Iain Vigurs, Rory McAllister and Ross Draper are still on the books at Balmoral Stadium. Former Don's Shay Logan Mark Reynolds and Fraser Fyvie are also well established opponents and Mitch Megginson is a danger to any team. Incoming players so far are Evan Towler a 17 year old left back on loan from Aberdeen FC B, and Gerry McDonagh a centre forward once of Nottingham Forest Youth to U23 set up but after being with a number of English clubs has arrived at Cove on a free transfer. Latest Team News Sutherland and Walsh are long term casualties

Rovers Return Albion Rovers, infrequent visitors to the Caledonian Stadium, head North on Tuesday for an evening kick off in Inverness. The third Group G game for the Caley Jags has a 7:45pm start against the League 2 side. Inverness top Group G after two wins on the road at Kelty and Livingston and have a game in hand over Livi who share top spot on six points. Rovers have one win from their three games played, an excellent 0-2 win at Kelty where late goals from Sonkur and Reilly were the difference. They also ran Livi close before going down 3-2 and a narrow 1-2 loss at home to Cove Rangers. They do like a late goal, and came back well against Livi. Maybe a word of warning not to take the foot off the pedal. Latest Team News Sutherland, Walsh, Devine, Welsh, Duffy and Ram were all missing at Livingston. Eric's Rovers Roundup As you would expect from a bottom tier club there are no big name additions to the Squad, all below added on free transfers. Jack Leighfield, goalkeeper from Edinburgh FC Ayrton Sonkur a centre back from Stranraer FC Lewis Kidd right back, previously spent a short spell with Albion in 2021, more recently with Edinburgh City which he left at the end of January 2022. Michael Paton midfield from Brechin FC Kyle Fleming another midfield player from Annan Athletic FC Amaury Testa a French born winger both left and right side, from Caledonian Braves. Blast from the past We have played Albion Rovers 14 times with 9 wins and 4 draws and a solitary defeat. The last time we met Rovers was in 2009 and that was also in the League Cup. Here's our line up from that game, a 4-0 win at the Caledonian Stadium. Esson Tokely - Bulvitus - Munro - Djebi Zadi Eagle - Cox - Stratford - Hayes Rooney - Foran Subs: Sutherland, Ross, Proctor Goals: (Eagle 8, Rooney 16 Bulvitus 41, Munro 57) Crowd: 681 That was the season we ended with a flourish. Fifteen games unbeaten to pip Dundee to the title. Feck you Dundee you'll never win the league. Same again this season would be much appreciated. Maybe a bit of Deja Vu.

Lions Tamed Livingston had the better of the opening exchanges and Nouble had the ball in the net but was flagged offside. Ridgers was the busier keeper early on but a swift counter attack saw Austin Samuels open the scoring after 37 minutes. Inverness held that advantage until the break. Daniel Mackay bundled in a second shortly after Max Stryjek was sent off for felling Austin Samuels in the box. Jason Holt pulled a goal back late on then proceeded to miss a penalty three minutes later as Inverness saw out the game to win 1-2 and go top of Group G. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Inverness were without half a dozen regulars and no defenders on the bench: Sounds familiar. Devine, Duffy, Welsh, Walsh and Sutherland were the main casualties with Saturday's scorer George Oakley benched. Jason Holt was tasked with getting the game underway as Livi kicked off this Premier Sport cup tie. Joel Nouble puts the ball into the net for the hosts but was adjudged offside. The bustling forward who was a nuisance at Arbroath last season will be a nuisance again tonight. Former Hearts player Esmael Goncalves did well to fire a ball across goal for Scott Pittman, but he was unable to get on the end of it. Three minutes later the powerful Nouble and Goncalves combined well but Mark Ridgers saves well on his line. All the early pressure came from the home side but in the nineteenth minute a Cammy Harper free kick was met by Robbie Deas and his header looped beyond Stryjek and the ball came back off the bar before Phill Cancar cleared at the expense of a corner. Stryjek was called into action minutes later when Daniel Mackay bent a shot goalwards and the keeper pulled off a diving save to deny the Caley Jags forward. Ten minutes before the break Ridgers did brilliantly to tip a Nicky Devlin shot from his own half onto the crossbar at full stretch. Two minutes later and Austin Samuels gave Inverness the lead. From twitter @ASutherland1983: Woooof! Scintillating counter attack from Caley Thistle. Starts on our own goal line featuring a stunning pass from Allardice to get MacKay away and he crosses to the back post for Samuels to tuck it away from close range. Just before the interval Jack Fitzwalker was booked for a late challenge on Scott Allardice. HALF TIME: 0-1 Again, Livi came out of the blocks fast without over troubling Ridgers. The main topic of conversation happened on the hour when keeper Max Stryjek did some sort of Kung Fu on Austin Samuels. RIG on Twitter: Livingston are down to ten men as goalkeeper Max Stryjek is sent off for a late challenge on Austin Samuels inside the box! Samuels is released by a quick ball from Ridgers and the Livingston keeper is sent off for a late challenge on the ICT striker.RIG saw it like this: The drama kicked off when a long clearance downfield by Ridgers got Samuels in behind the Livi defence and Stryjek came rushing out and leathered him in the face Street Fighter style. Out came the red card and Livi were down to 10. Cammy Harper was denied from the free kick as sub keeper Konovalov saved brilliantly in the top left of his goal. RIG: A piece of MacKay magic saw us extend the lead. A raking pass sent Mackay away and he ghosted past Devlin using some kind of elastico type skill that had us on our feet. He drove into the box and stabbed an effort towards goal which looked like it may have gone in possibly with a touch off a Livi defender. It was a stunning piece of skill that I hope we get to see back again. Inverness looked comfortable until the final few minutes when Livi got a lifeline. Substitutions maybe played a part in this as we looked disjointed with the incoming players getting up to speed. The final few minutes suddenly became uncomfortable after Jason Holt reduced the deficit with six minutes left after he turned on the edge of the box and drilled a shot into the bottom corner of Ridgers' net. He missed a great opportunity to level the game three minutes later as he ballooned a penalty high over the bar after Oakley was deemed to have pulled Scott Bitsindou to the ground. Game over as we saw out the remainder of the time. Inverness were best served by the three D's. Delaney, Deas and Dan. Sounds like an Irish Showband If you can keep up with the ball, here's some highlights...Worms eye view form Tony Macaroni At home to Albion Rovers next Tuesday night No game on Saturday. Date: 12/07/2022 Venue: Almondvale, Livingston Attendance: **** Referee: Alan Muir Livingston FC: 1 Manager: Lineup: Stryjek; Devlin, Fitzwater, Cancar, Penrice, Kelly (Bitsindou 74), Pittman, Holt, Bahamboula (Konovalov 61), Goncalves (Anderson 46), Nouble (Shinnie 74) Subs (not used): Longridge, Brandon, Montaño, Omeonga, Mullin. Scorers: Holt (84) Booked: Fitzwater (44), Kelly (56) Sent Off: Stryjek (59) Inverness CT: 2 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Deas, Harper, Delaney, D Mackay (Doran 72), Allardice (Oakley 77), MacGregor, Hyde, Shaw (B Mckay 63), Samuels Subs (not used): C Mackay; Oakley, Cairns Scorers: Samuels (37), B Mckay (67) Booked: MacGregor (21), Delaney (69), Oakley (88) Sent Off: none a

Olde Rivalries Resumed Inverness and Livingston meet up again with both clubs having previous as they made their way to the top divisions. This time it's a Group G League Cup encounter, or Premier Sports Cup for all you anorak's out there. Game is at Livingston on Tuesday night with a 7:45pm kick-off. The teams are level at the top of group G and this game could go a long way to decide who progresses into the knockout stages of the competition, something we have failed to do in recent years. However, let's not forget we are still warming up for the main task ahead. Tickets and Transport Info The Future of ICT Both clubs recorded away wins on Saturday as the season got underway: Inverness left it late before seeing off Kelty Hearts in a testing fixture at New Central Park. With six new faces getting game time for the Caley Jags it was an old head on familiar shoulders that scored the only goal in a highly competitive match. Substitute George Oakley scored on his second debut for Inverness in the last minute of the ninety to break Kelty hearts (see what i did there) Livingston were 3-0 up just after the break at Albion Rovers through Scott Pittman, Josh Mullin and Bruce Anderson. However, Rovers staged a fightback after Livi made a spate of substitutions and counters from Ayrton Sonkur and Michael Paton left them twenty minutes to get an equaliser. Alas for the wee Rovers, Livi held on to get the win. Venue H2H v Livi Pld Won Drn Lst For Agst + / - Home 19 9 4 6 32 25 +7 Away 20 7 6 7 30 31 -1 Neutral 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 39 16 10 13 62 56 +6 Decent record overall against Livingston. The last encounter saw Inverness knock Livi out of the Scottish cup on a landmark day for this club. A Sean Welsh strike was the difference between the sides. Most Recent Competitive Meeting - Click on score to show more stats and Highlights Feb 8th, 2020 Scottish Cup (5th round) (H) 1 - 0 Both clubs have come a long way since this first competitive meeting between the sides in August 1995. First Competitive Meeting - Cick on score and peer through your fingers... Aug 12th, 1995 League (H) 0 - 3 Latest Team News Billy Dodds used all six of his Summer signings at some stage of the game on Saturday. Unfortunately Max Ram was injured early on and Zak Delaney stood in for him. Danny Devine Wallace Duffy and Sean Welsh were not on duty and Shane Sutherland and Tom Walsh are out longer term. From Barry's coy interview, sounds like Welsh will miss out. Barry holding back.... Eric's Livi squad checker shows this: Manager David Martindale has added to his defensive options with signings Philip Cancar a centre back from Western Sydney Wanderers, Jamie Brandon ex Hearts right back and a defensive midfield player in Scott Bitsindou who came through the Anderlecht youth system and recently at Belgian second tier club KSK Lierse Kempenzonen. Up front Esmael Goncalves joins on a free, has previously popped up in Scotland with St Mirrren and Hearts. Dylan Bahamboula having been a Republic of Congo International player, once of AS Monaco and more recently at Oldham Athletic added to the attacking options. There's a couple we know plenty about. Andrew Shinnie, Josh Mullin and Joel Nouble. Shinnie left Inverness to join Birmingham City in July 2013. Josh Mullin was at Hamilton Accies last term and scored a screamer against us. Nouble was an important striker for Arbroath last season on loan and they missed him when he returned to Livi in January.

By George! We are off and running The first ever fixture between the sides ended with a 1-0 win for the visitors. It took a late strike from George Oakley to separate the sides as the Inverness pressure eventually paid off. Billy Mckay hit the post with a header in the second half and keeper Darren Jamieson pulled off a string of saves to deny the eager Inverness side. Agyeman came close in the first half when Delaney cleared away from goal but that was as close as it got for the hosts with Ridgers making some routine stops. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Billy Mckay got season 22/23 underway and was soon working Jamieson in the home goal, the keeper tipping his effort over the bar in the eighth minute. Max Ram's debut ended prematurely as he was injured and replaced by another debutant in Zak Delaney. He was called into action moments later to clear Agyeman's effort off the line. What an introduction for the Irish defender. In the seventeenth minute a great ball from Doran picks out Mckay going through on goal. He gets his effort away but it is blocked. Likewise, Aaron Doran and Roddy MacGregor also saw efforts blocked by the under pressure home defence. Lewis Martin had a couple of attempts as the interval approached, one saved by Ridgers, the other fired over, both from a narrow angle and at the other end Austin Samuels fired over the bar. Doran shot over from a direct free kick just before the break, and MacGregor shot wide as we ended the half with a wee flourish, however it ended goalless at the interval. Half Time: 0-0 Kelty's best spell came just after the break and when Agyeman broke forward on the right. He found Reilly who in turn fed Higginbotham who brought out a diving save from Ridgers who palmed the ball away, and the defence were first to react to clear the loose ball. This was soon followed by Reilly getting a free header on target, but again Ridgers matched the effort to tip the ball over the bar. Minutes later Forster headed wide from a great position. Agyeman also shot wide from an even better position when he should have made the keeper work. Doran then volleyed a tremendous dipping shot from thirty yards that Jamieson tipped over. Inverness had upped the tempo and a Cammy Harper cross was headed onto the base of the post by Billy Mckay. A series of half chances saw the visitors build the pressure on the home goal and it paid off on the last minute when substitute George Oakley beat the offside trap to slot the ball into the net from fifteen yards. great wat to get your account started for the season. As expected, it was a hard fought encounter against a well organised team who will do well in league one. Good to get the win in a competition we have not done well in over the last few seasons. Six new players all getting some game time and no shows from Danny Devine or Sean Welsh. Ridgers was solid in goal and Allardice, Harper and Boyd performed admirably. Billy Mckay was unfortunate not to grab a couple of goals, but they will come. Overview from Yngwie on CTO: We were slightly better than a solid but unspectacular side, certainly in terms of possession. But it was Kelty who actually had most of the good chances, especially in the early stages of the 2nd half, and they really should have been in front but thanks to some good saves and poor finishing it stayed level. As the 2nd half progressed we look far more likely to score, Billy came closest with the glancing header which came back off the post, and in the last minute I was mightily relieved to see no flag raised as Oakley was played through on goal, after we had been caught offside countless times during the match. Good result in the end, a win’s a win, but we are certainly not firing on all cylinders yet going forward with a distinct lack of good final ball or shot. Date: 09/07/2022 Venue: New Central Park, Kelty Attendance: 601 Referee: Barry Cook Kelty Hearts: 0 Manager: John Potter Lineup: Jamieson; Martin, Forster, O'Ware, Peggie, McNab, Tidser (Owens 80), Reilly, Barjonas, Higginbotham, Agyeman (Strang 74) Subs (not used): Hill, Brown, Cameron, Campbell Scorers: none Booked: none Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 1 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Ram (Delaney 14), Deas, Harper, Samuels (Shaw 79), Allardice, MacGregor, Doran (D Mackay 63), Boyd (Oakley 80), B Mckay Subs (not used): C Mackay; Hyde Scorers: Oakley (88) Booked: none Sent Off: none a

Hey big spenders We're back! The season begins on Saturday with the group stages of the League Cup. This season it's known as the Premier Sports Cup and Inverness travel to the artificial surface of New Central Park, Bath Street, to take on newly promoted Kelty Hearts in a Group G encounter. The 'Maroons' have a good mix of seasoned professionals and some exciting emerging talent and that saw them promoted to League One last season as Champions with five games of the season still to play. Tempted by the generous wage income were seasoned campaigners like Kallum Higginbotham, Joe Cardle, Michael Tidser Thomas O'Ware and of course former Inverness striker Nathan Austin. All players who could perform at a higher level. The usual merry-go-round of players saw many leave Inverness for pastures new, with some new faces coming in to bulk out the squad. Out went loan players Reece McAlear, Logan Chalmers, Joe Hardy with Kirk Broadfoot returning to the central belt. Former Inverness and Clach defender Harry Nicolson has joined League of Ireland club Finn Harps. In come Stephen Boyd, Nathan Shaw, Zak Delaney and the man with the cool name, Max Ram. George Oakley has returned to Inverness after a three year hiatus. They will meet up with those still on contracts which will be the core of our squad. Shane Sutherland is out long term after his knee injury during the play-offs. Tom Walsh is another who will miss the start of the season. We also have an excellent youth academy with a number of players ready to break into the first team squad. Eric has been doing his homework: Kelty Hearts open the season with newly appointed manager John Potter, a one time Dunfermline, Clyde and St Mirren player who since retiring has been in a coaching role under Jack Ross at St Mirren, Sunderland and Hibs. He replaces Kevin Thomson, who resigned after Kelty lifted the Scottish League 2 title. The 42-year-old Potter had 20 games in charge of Dunfermline in season 2014-15 and later assisted Jack Ross at Sunderland and Hibernian. More recently, he coached at Queen's Park, who won promotion to the Championship via the play-offs. They have added to the defence with the signing of Lewis Martin from Dunfermline on a free transfer. Up front ex ICT player Nathan Austin is in the squad, Nathan joined ICT Jan 2018 until summer of 2019 but had limited appearances due to injury. Experience in the forward line include Joe Cardle (35) of numerous clubs including rivals County season 2014/15. Also 33 year old Kallum Higginbotham who spent last season with Real Kashmir in India, and previously with Dunfermline. Latest Team News Daniel Mackay is the latest player to do the olde Peters & Lee as he has returned North on a season long loan from Hibs. That will be a welcome addition to the squad along with George Oakley, two players that we know will fit in with our work ethics and already know the routine up here. With Shane Sutherland and Tom Walsh missing the start of the season, these will be ready made replacements to add to the other new summer signings. Scott Allardice will be like a new signing after he made his comeback in the play-off games at the end of last season. We still have the core of our defence with Duffy, Devine, Deas and Harper all available. Welcome home, welcome Come on in, and close the door You've been gone, too long Welcome, you're home once more TICKET INFO Tickets available now in advance via Fanbase and Pay at the Gate will be available from Central Park on Saturday. Kelty have said that there is no segregation in place for these matches Adults: £12 Concessions: £8 Under 16s: £4

Inverness CT -V- Cove Rangers

Inverness CT -V- Albion Rovers

Kelty Hearts -V- Inverness CT Ticket Info : https://ictfc.com/ticket-info-kelty-hearts-a-09-07-2022 Supporters Bus Info : Venue Info : https://keltyhearts.co.uk/new-central-park/

Livingston -V- Inverness CT Ticket Info : to follow - will be posted on official site https://ictfc.com Supporters Bus Info : Venue Info : https://livingstonfc.co.uk/stadium/find-us/

Winning start for Dodds The season kicked off in earnest tonight for the Caley Jags with a group 'A' League Cup encounter against Peterhead. It was a winning start for Billy Dodds in his first competitive game in charge of Inverness. It was a second defeat for Peterhead who been beaten in their opener by Hearts at the weekend. After a cautious start Inverness began to control the pace of the game but chances were at a premium. The best chance came when Aaron Doran spectacularly flicked a cross goalwards but Brett Long dived to his right to prevent a goal. Tom Walsh blazed a strike over on the run after a dummy from Duku put him through. Manny Duku was causing problems on the ground and in the air. Sean Welsh missed a tremendous opportunity as he headed just over when it looked easier to score, but it remained goalless at the interval. Early in the second half Duku broke the deadlock with a drilled effort from just inside the box and Aaron Doran doubled the advantage with a stunning thirty yard shot into the top corner four minutes later. The hosts saw out the remainder of the game well in control with Peterhead rarely threatening. New signings Kirk Broadfoot, Manny Duku, Reece McAlear and Tom Walsh all started with Michael Gardyne coming on from the bench. Kirk Broadfoot and Manny Duku both impressed on their debut's with Tom Walsh and Aaron Doran playing with a spring in their step. Match Reaction CTO Robert said: "Enjoyed that. Very dominant and two early goals in the second half secured the win. A couple of thoughts driving home. Broadfoot and Fyffe swapped centre half roles at half time. The whole defence clearly had confidence in Fyffe which was good to see. We looked stronger down the right with Carson and Walsh than down the left with Harper and Doran, but then Doran turned up with his goal! A word for Sutherland. He put a real shift in and didn’t give Peterhead a minute. MOM for me was actually Welsh. He was pulling the strings in midfield. A very encouraging start and we still have Deas, McDonald and Mckay who have not featured so far." CTO Jaggernaut said: "I thought the first hour was very encouraging. We were closing them down well when they had possession and our passing was brisk and on point. We lost a bit of our rhythm with all the subs, but there were a lot of good performances out there tonight." Date: 13/07/2021 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 300ish Referee: Peter Stuart Inverness CT: 2 Manager: Billy Dodds Lineup: Ridgers; Carson, Fyffe, Broadfoot (Devine 65), Harper, Doran (Gardyne 57) Welsh, McAlear (MacGregor 57), Walsh (Hyde 78), Sutherland, Duku (Allardice 66) Subs (not used): C Mackay; Nicolson, Duffy Scorers: Duku (50), Doran (54) Booked: none Sent Off: none Peterhead: 0 Manager: Jim McInally Lineup: Long; Mulligan, Conroy, Jason Brown, McDonald, Ritchie (Strachan 86), S Brown, Cook (Ferry 55), Kesson (Cameron 46), Jordon Brown (Payne 55), Lyle (McLean 55) Subs (not used): Wilson; Mushanu Scorers: none Booked: Jason Brown (86), McLean (89), Conroy (90) Sent Off: none a

It never came home.....but football is back. It's the start of a new season and we welcome fans back to the Caledonian Stadium with Peterhead our first visitors in a group 'A' League Cup encounter. The game is a 7:45pm kick off on Tuesday night and although it's restricted, there will be fans allowed to enter the stadium as covid regulations relax. The game can also be streamed live from ICTV for £10 The new season brings new challenges with Billy Dodds now the man in charge of the dugout with Robbo 'upstairs' as Sporting Director. There's also some returning faces as well as some new faces. With a restricted pre-season, it looks likely that League Cup games will form part of our preparation to tune in the players for the challenge ahead. Three pre-season games saw an Inverness XI beat Clach 5-0, Forres 1-0 and draw 1-1 with an Aberdeen XI in a closed door friendly. I imagine it will be our standard low key start to the season with players still getting to know each other. It's difficult to determine who will and who won't feature this early in the season. Manny Duku, Reece McAlear, Michael Gardyne, Tom Walsh, Aaron Doran, David Carson , Sean Welsh, Cammy Harper, Shane Sutherland and both keepers have all been involved in pre-season games along with most of our young academy graduates but there has been no sign of Danny Devine, Wallace Duffy, Anthony McDonald, Robbie Deas or Billy Mckay yet, and still waiting for confirmation if the Kirk Broadfoot rumours are correct (player/coach). As an aside, I notice that Toddy scored twice for Dunfermline Athletic in a 4-2 win over Partick Thistle in his first competitive game for the Pars Peterhead have already played their opening fixture, a 2-0 defeat at Balmoor against Hearts on Saturday. Gary Mackay-Steven and Liam Boyce the scorers for the visitors with a goal in each half. Stirling Albion beat Cove 3-2 in group 'A' on Saturday as well. The other group 'A' game tonight is Hearts -V- Cove Rangers with Stirling Albion having the night off. Peterhead's starting XI v Hearts Wilson; Strachan, Mulligan, McDonald, Conroy, Ritchie, Ferry, McCarthy, Cameron, McLean, Payne. Subs: Cook, Kesson, Brown, Long, Lyle Latest News Kirk Broadfoot confirmation. Inverness Caledonian Thistle are delighted to announce the signing of central defender Kirk Broadfoot on a 1 year deal. As Head Coach Billy Dodds continues to build a squad with a blend of youth and experience, Kirk becomes his sixth summer signing alongside Tom Walsh, Billy Mckay, Manny Duku, Reece McAlear and Michael Gardyne.

Inverness CT 0 - 1 Falkirk The Curse of the Caledonian Stadium strikes again as Caley Thistle just cant get a decent result at home and are sent crashing out of the CIS cup. Falkirk progress to the next round courtesy of a second half strike from Anthony Stokes in the 60th minute. Tuesday 19th September 2006 Tulloch Caledonian Stadium, Inverness INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE FC 0 Team: Brown, Tokely, Dods, Munro, Hastings (McAllister 73), Wilson, Duncan (Morgan 62), Keogh, McBain, Dargo (Hart 80), Bayne Subs: McCaffrey, Fraser FALKIRK 1 (Stokes 60) Team: Higgins, Thomson, Twaddle, Cregg, Ross, Milne, Dodd, O’Donnell (Craig 20), Gow, Barr, Stokes (Mountinho 74) Subs: Latapy, Scobbie & Lambers Referee Dougie McDonald Attendance 1198 Man of the Match Anthony Stokes (Falkirk) An eagerly anticipated cup tie against a fellow SPL side but in the end disappointment. In truth it was rather a bland game with neither side making much impact on the other’s goal. Caley Thistle’s best spell came in the last 15 minutes but they could not make the late pressure count. Falkirk held on to their one goal lead and moved into the fourth round. The first shot on goal was Liam Keogh’s 30 yard low effort in the fifth minute but it was well wide. The prize for highest of the day went to Stephen O’Donnell in the eighth minute when he shot from 20 yards over the bar and the north stand. Falkirk were forced into an early substitution when O’Donnell went off injured in the 20th minute and was replaced by the lively Liam Craig. Seconds later a Barry Wilson corner from the left reached Darren Dods just in front of the ‘keeper but his header went over the bar. A Craig corner in 27 minutes caused danger in the ICT box and Russell Duncan was forced to head off the line. The best home effort in the first half came in 33 minutes when Craig Dargo took a touch on the right of the box then turned and shot on the volley – it went high but it was a good move. Half Time: 0-0 Into the second half and the expected Caley Thistle improvement was a long time in coming. It was Falkirk that took charge and they were rewarded with the only goal of the match on the hour mark. It was created and scored by ‘Man of the Match’ Anthony Stokes. He raced down the left, cut inside, the ball took a couple of deflections into his path then he hammered it past Mark Brown. Hard-working Graham Bayne was foiled by Falkirk ‘keeper Scott Higgins in 65 minutes when his header was held. Rory McAllister replaced Richard Hastings in 73 minutes to give Caley Thistle an extra attacker and it did lead to a more exciting last 15 minutes for the sparse home support. McAllister was only on the pitch for two minutes before he had a chance. A Wilson cross from the right reached the young striker just beyond the back post but he stretched and hit it just wide. An Alan Morgan low shot from 20 yards was blocked in 81 minutes then a McAllister header was cleared by a defender. Higgins then held a Wilson header and, with five minutes left, a trademark long range Richie Hart drive dipped just over the bar. In added time a long throw from Grant Munro bounced into the Falkirk box and Bayne dived to head over. A good chance but it was to be the last one for the home side. Full Time: 0-1 Falkirk march on in the CIS Insurance Cup. For ICT – back to the league.

Goals from Wyness, Bayne and McAllister saw off Dumbarton and allowed Caley Thistle to advance to the 3rd Round of the CIS cup. Wednesday 23rd August 2006 Tulloch Caledonian Stadium, Inverness INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE FC 3 (Wyness 6, Bayne 54, McAllister 72) Team: Brown, Tokely (McBain 78), McCaffery, Munro, Golabek, Wilson, Hart (Keogh 61), Duncan, Morgan, Bayne, Wyness (McAllister 67) Subs: Rankin, Fraser DUMBARTON FC 1 (Dobbie 30) Team: Grindlay, Geggins (Boyle 47), Craig, Brittain (McKeever 89), Canning, Dillon, Bagan, Gentle, Borris, McNaught, Dobbie (Quitongo 82) Subs: McCann, Shaw Referee Calum Murray Attendance 1085 Man of the Match Graham Bayne Caley Thistle moved into the third round of the CIS Cup with this 3-1 win but it was not all plain sailing. Aberdeen’s defeat at the hands of Queen’s Park the night before was a lesson to all that lower division opponents must be taken seriously – but there was never any chance that Dumbarton would be treated lightly. In the event they put up a good fight until the home side’s third goal went in 20 minutes from time. Barry Wilson returned to the ICT starting line-up after missing the Celtic match and Craig Dargo dropped out through injury. Graham Bayne partnered Dennis Wyness up front and there were also starts for Stuart McCaffrey, Stuart Golabek, Richie Hart, Russell Duncan and Alan Morgan. Dumbarton featured ex ICT favourite David Bagan and new loan signing Stephen Dobbie from St Johnstone. Caley Thistle started well and took the lead in just five minutes. An Alan Morgan corner on the right was mishandled by ‘keeper Stephen Grindlay and Dennis Wyness took it on the turn from close range – he found the net via a touch from defender Mark Canning. ICT pressure continued but nothing quite came off. Dumbarton crept back into it and in 28 minutes a Bagan rising shot from 18 yards was touched for a corner. A minute later Dobbie raced past the home defence amidst futile offside claims and fired an angled shot past Mark Brown from the left side of the box. Dumbarton pushed for a second and in 32 minutes Chris Gentile slid onto a ball eight yards out but it crept past the post. Caley Thistle had chances close to the half time whistle with a Wyness overhead shot cleared, a Graham Bayne effort blocked then a Ross Tokely header turned for a corner. Half Time: 1-1 The home side regained the lead in 53 minutes when a Wilson free kick into the box was headed low past Grindlay by Bayne. Russell Duncan hit over the bar on the hour mark then, after further Caley Thistle pressure, substitute Rory McAllister scored the goal of the match in 70 minutes. Liam Keogh intercepted a half clearance then found McAllister 25 yards out – with no hesitation the striker lobbed it past Grindlay for only his second senior goal. There was no way back for a tiring Dumbarton side but they did manage to prevent further damage. Bayne hit over the bar in 74 minutes then with five minutes left a confident McAllister tried a first time shot from six yards but he was off balance and it also cleared the bar. In the final minute ‘Man of the Match’ Graham Bayne headed goalwards but it was blocked and his follow up shot went wide right. A good evening’s work – a potential banana skin avoided and a place earned in the third round of the cup.

Derby joy for County. Iain Vigurs started in the only change from last weekend with Danny Williams starting on the bench. The usual low attendance for a League Cup televised game was evident and the other change was our strip, playing in our away colours. A bright opening for the home side as they tried to banish the blues after a dreary ninety minues against St Johnstone. After ten minutes, Storey broke into the box from a ball slipped through the defence by Polworth, but as the keeper stood tall, Storey shot weakly at him and the chance was gone. Great opportunity to open the scoring and the young striker will be aggrieved that he never did better. Inverness were dominating the possession and Tremarco broke on the left. His cross was back headed by Storey but the defender was right behind him to block it. More persistence saw Inverness gain a free kick on their left side and Tansey's effort was deflected for a corner which came to nothing. Fifteen minutes gone and more had happened in this game so far than the entire ninety minutes last Saturday. Ryan Christie was prominent at the heart of every Caley Jags probing and was always looking to thread someone in. A quick throw out saw Polworth stumble on the ball as it hit his heels and Woods got a shot away, but it was deflected for a corner. Boyce could have done better with a header after 20 minutes, but he angled it just wide as County got to grips with the game, and Fon-Williams had to look sharp to deny the eager County strikers from a dangerous cross as he stooped to gather it. Martin Woods was denied by the bar with a stunning strike from thirty yards which dipped and sliced over Fon-Williams but smashed down off the bar and away to safety. A bolt from the blue and it almost broke the deadlock. The game was racing from end to end and there was plenty of action to keep the fans entertained. Half an hour gone and the game had evened out with both sides giving it a go, Ryan Christie receiving some rough treatment from the County midfielders. Iain Vigurs took some retribution and a deserved booking for a clumsy tackle on Gardyne but the free kick was easily cleared. The game was getting broken up with some petty fouling as the half time whistle approached and the crisp passing from the first quarter had disappeared. We really need to do something about our quality at throw-ins. Another one taking an eternity to see through and once more the ball lost cheaply. It's almost an advantage for the opposition when we gat a throw-in. Carl Tremarco gave away a free kick five minutes before the break and Christie skimmed a header behind for a corner. From the corner, Jackson Irvine stooped to head cleanly into the net as the defence stood watching with nobody on the back post. Criminal! Good goal for County, sloppy from Inverness. You have to say that goal was coming before the break as County were getting on top of the midfield as we ran out of ideas early. Half Time 0-1 Liam Boyce was first to try his luck after the break as he created a yard of space but fired over the bar from a tightish angle. But the warning signs are there and moments later a Gardyne shot is deflected behind Fon-Williams by Danny Devine after the keeper looked to have it covered. Game over, and Dingwall almost sealed it with a flashing header that went just over. Storey burst down the right but his cut back was missed by Vincent and straight to the other end where Fon-Williams fingertipped a shot behind at the expense of a goal kick. Meh. Devine almost gifted a third for County losing the ball in the right back position. When County worked it into the box, Gardyne was thwarted by a diving save from the home keeper. Another let off for a struggling Inverness. Martin Woods caught a booking for clipping Christie as Inverness tried to respond and Devine nodded a Tansey free kick just behind. Jackson Irvine was leading our midfield a merry dance as he strutted his stuff and drove County forward at every opportunity. Horrendous phase of the game for Inverness and Fon-Williams joined in the comedy as he let the ball fall from his grasp as he tried to throw it out then changed his mind. It's difficult to watch now as County look more likely to score a few more goals. Storey shot tamely into the keepers hands as he tried a rare shot, but it was not going to trouble anyone before County continued their dominance. Disaster struck once more as Miles Storey went down clutching his leg after a challenge from Robertson and everyone held their breath, but he was able to continue after some treatment. Tansey was next for the fresh air shot as he acrobatically missed an overhead kick. Oh how the County fans were enjoying this. Substitute Danny Williams fired a low ball into the box and a Ryan Christie flick almost went in, but it hit the base of the post and bounced into the keepers arms. Better from Inverness though. More punishment for Christie in midfield as he was once again targeted. With fifteen minutes left, it looked as though Inverness were out of the competition. Some good work by Williams and Storey on the left saw Inverness win a corner as Christie was manhandled to the ground once more. Nothing came from the corner, but once more we worked hard on the left and when the ball arrived at Tansey's feet some thirty yards out, the folk in row P in the North Stand ducked. No need to though as Greg hit a daisy cutter into the bottom corner. Inverness had woken up and another run forward by Christie saw him upended thirty yards out but nothing given. Plenty to play for as one more goal would set up extra-time. Christie was again clattered by Davies as Inverness searched for a leveller, but Tansey's free kick was too high for Devine who was adjudged to have been fouling anyway. Into the last ten minutes and the hosts had the impetus now, but one more for County would finish it and they knew it as they slowed the pace of the game making time wasting substitutions to eat away some valuable seconds. Tansey went close as he drove towards the box on the right side, however his shot across the keeper went a yard wide. A corner went abegging as well as the game went into 4 minutes of time added on and County used their noodle to waste more time near the corner flag. Woods blasted a free kick well over as time slipped away from Inverness and when Tremarco fell over the ball again the game was up. Full Time 1-2 Too little too late from Inverness and County deserved to go through against our makeshift side. We started well, finished well, but had little to offer in the middle hour of the game. Slack marking allowed Irvine his free header and a bit of misfortune for the second, but we could not complain at being only two down as County dominated the middle section of the game. Great finish from Tansey but overall, we did not do enough to take the game to another half hour. A not unexpected result, but nonetheless still hard to take given our recent troubles and little light at the end of the tunnel. MotM for Inverness was Ryan Christie who took a lot of stick from the robust County markers and was unlucky not to score with a neat flick late on. Where now for Inverness as County go into the hat along with St Johnstone. Well, it's league action on Saturday in what is looking like a must win game for us as our season disintegrates. Date: 27/10/15 Venue: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: ???? Referee: Steven McLean Inverness CT: 1 Lineup: Fon Williams, Raven, Tremarco, Vincent, Meekings, Devine, Tansey, Polworth, Christie, Vigurs, Storey Subs (not used): Esson, Wedderburn, Horner, Williams, Sutherland Scorers: Tansey (78) Booked: Vigurs (31) Raven (74) Sent Off: none Ross County: 2 Lineup: G.Woods, Fraser, Robertson, Davies, Reckord, Dingwall, M.Woods, Irvine, Gardyne, Boyce, Curran. Subs (not used): Severn, Boyd, Graham, Foster, Franks, Murdoch, Schalk Scorers: Irvine (41) Gardyne(48) Booked: Woods (57) Davies (80) Sent Off: none

Low key affair Inverness eased into the 4th round of the League Cup with a low key 2-0 win at the Tony Macaroni Arena in Livingston. First half goals from Miles Storey and defender Danny Devine settled the tie in our favour. It was a no frills win for Yogi who fielded his strongest available side against a Livingston team who are already adrift at the foot of the Championship table. Comedy moment supplied by Storey after clipping the ball over the keeper inside the six-yard box he then almost fell over the ball on the goal line. He did regain composure just in time to nudge the ball into the net. Owain Fon-Williams pulled off a good save in the first half to deny former Hearts and County striker Gary Glen and his opposite number, Jamieson did likewise in the second half for Livi as Storey forced his way through. Mutombo and Lopez came on late in the second period and combined well only for Lopez to have his shot saved. Mutombo hit the post a few moments later but the two first half goals were enough to see Inverness through. They will join earlier winners St Johnstone in the last eight. The Perth men saw off Championship leaders The Rangers with a first half goal blitz. Despite a spirited fightback by the first division side, St Johnstone held on to win 1-3. Move on, nothing to see here as the big team beat the wee team. Ross County crushed Falkirk 7-0 (seven), and it was rumoured there will be an open topped bus parading through Dingwall tomorrow after this. Mind you, they were only playing Bairns. Dundee United went to extra-time before ousting Dunfermline by 3-1, and Morton put out Motherwell after they were pegged back in the 90th minute by the Steelmen. However the Greenock men went through thanks to a brace from Alex Samuel. Michael Tidser added a third and it was 3-2 the final score after extra-time and a bit of unrest in the stands. Wednesday night saw Celtic go through after a tougher than expected tussle with Raith Rovers. the Hoops winning 2-0 on the night. Kilmarnock and Hearts were heading for extra-time at 2-2 after ninety minutes, but Nicholson snatched a last ditch winner to put the Jambo's into the pot. The big shock of the round was undefeated Premiership leaders Aberdeen going down at Hibernian by 2-0. The draw for the quarter final takes place on Monday afternoon at 2:30. Date: 22/09/15 Venue: Tony Macaroni Arena, Livingston Attendance: 644 Referee: Alan Muir Livingston: 0 Lineup: Jamieson, Millen, Longridge, Cole, Pittman, White (Buchanan 74), Hippolyte (Georgiev 73), Gallagher, Neill, Sheerin, Glen (Currie 82) Subs (not used): Gould, Gordon, Faria, Gibbons Scorers: none Booked: Neill (90) Sent Off: none Inverness CT: 2 Lineup: Fon Williams, Raven, Meekings, Devine, Tremarco (Polworth 76), Draper, Tansey, Vincent (Mbuyi-Mutombo 86), Christie, Williams, Storey (Lopez 86) Subs (not used): Esson, Foran, Wedderburn, Horner Scorers: Storey (12), Devine (43) Booked: Raven (47) Sent Off: none

League Cup Group A Back to league cup duty Tuesday night and it's a tough task ahead as we face Raith Rovers at Starks Park, Kirkaldy, the game has a 7:45pm kick-off. Usual covid restrictions with fans unable to attend although the action can be seen on Raith TV. The other Group A game features East Fife at home to Hearts, and that's the top of the table clash. Who knew? Rovers are romping along in the Championship with three wins and a draw. They are top scorers with fourteen goals, the latest a five goal drubbing of Morton on Saturday. They also put five past Queen of the South and are the form team at the moment. They sit above Inverness in Group A of the Betfred League Cup having beaten East Fife but losing 3-1 to Hearts who top the group. Raith have made this game available on a PPV basis, but first you have to log in to RAITH TV. Once logged in you can then select the PPV option for this game at the reasonable price of £9.99. Take note Hearts! While Raith were thrashing Morton on Saturday we were going down 2-1 at Tynecastle. We gave a resolute performance without over exerting Craig Gordon. However, Hearts were left clinging on in the final ten minutes after Aaron Doran glanced home a tidy header that had Gordon sprawling across his goal in vain as the ball nestled in the corner of his net. Rovers and John McGlynn have recruited wisely since promotion and look likely to maintain their push for a top four finish. Jamie MacDonald is between the sticks. Important player in our Scottish Cup win over Falkirk, but nonetheless an excellent keeper on his day. Reghan Tumilty, an experienced defender once of Ross County. Manny Duku, a man of many clubs, born in Amsterdam with an eye for goal. German Lars Lokotch is on loan from Livingston and is a handful for defenders. Defender Frankie Musonda comes in from Luton Town and midfielder Ethan Ross is on loan from Aberdeen. Gozie Ugwu is another burly striker who was at Pars once upon a time. The addition of these players along with youngsters stepping up and the remainder of last seasons promotion winning squad will see Rovers staying at the business end of the table throughout the season. Our injury list could only get better and we saw Shane Sutherland and Aaron Doran come off the bench with James Vincent and Danny Devine remaining seated. The next two League Cup encounters will give us a chance to ease these players back into match routines. It may be too soon for Miles Storey, Kevin McHattie, David Carson and Lewis Toshney but at least our bench is looking stronger. Here's Johnny.... With Hearts running away with Group A, it's a great opportunity for both clubs to test the water and this might be the occasion to do it before the teams meet again in a couple of weeks on Championship duty. I won't be reading too much into this result as Robbo has always said that the League Cup is not his priority although it's always nice to put on a decent performance and get some positives from the game. The eight group winners qualify for the next stage along with the four best placed second teams. They are then joined by Scotland's Euro representatives in the next stage. Celtic, Rangers, Motherwell and Aberdeen. The seeded teams in the last 16 are the four European clubs and the four group winners with the best records. The tournament reverts to a traditional knock-out format from the second round onwards, with ties decided by extra time and penalties if the scores are level after 90 minutes. Meh, the League Cup, it's not for everyone..... Milestones & Memories Lest we forget, it's getting close to the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.... Many made the ultimate sacrifice. Many never came home. They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them… Laurence Binyon

Raith Rovers v Inverness CT Betfred League Cup Group A Tuesday 10th November Stark's Park, Kirkaldy Pratt Street, KY1 1SA Unfortunately these will be closed doors games due to Covid19

Inverness CT v East Fife Betfred League Cup Group A Caledonian Stadium Saturday 14th November 3:00pm Unfortunately these will be closed doors games due to Covid19