Inverness CT 2
Dundee Utd 1
League (Premiership)

Match Report

United arrived in the Highlands in the knowledge that an away victory would place them just a point behind their third placed hosts with three games left to play. This was the first clash of a May double header in Inverness. Manager Jackie McNamara elected to stick with the same side that earned a great single goal victory over Aberdeen at the weekend. PFA Manager of the year, John Hughes, made two changes to his side, with Draper and Devine replacing Doran and the suspended Raven. With torrential rain having fallen all day in Inverness, the pitch was carrying a fair amount of water by kick off time.

The awful weather conditions had a major impact on this game after just two minutes when a straight forward pass-back to the Caley 'keeper held up in the surface water just outside the box. Esson was forced to race out to intercept the ball ahead of Ciftci. The clearance landed at the feet of Robbie Muirhead and with Esson stranded, the youngster lofted the ball into the empty net from 35 yards. Both teams struggled to cope with the tricky underfoot conditions, but United adapted best in the early exchanges. Muirhead almost doubled his talley on seven minutes when his right foot cross from the corner of the Inverness penalty area flashed off the far post. The young striker was causing Inverness no end of trouble and after Telfer was fouled at the edge of the penalty area, Muirhead forced Esson to beat away a low, curling free-kick destined for the bottom corner. Eight minutes from interval, Inverness got themselves back on level terms. Watkins danced in from the left side and cut back to Edward Ofere who made no mistake, slamming home from the penalty spot. United looked shell-shocked and had still not settled when Caley went in front. This time it was a wonder strike from Danny Williams in the 42nd minute. His long range, left foot effort flew past Cierzniak and into the 'keepers top left corner.

The second half started as the first finished, with Caley on the offensive. Watkins again caused problems, muscling out Dixon before squaring for Ofere just a yard from goal. Fortunately for United, the big striker managed to squirm the ball wide when it looked easier to score. Less than ten minutes into the second period, United were forced into a change when Dillon replaced the injured McGowan. The change at the back didn't prevent Caley coming close to extending their lead just minutes later. United were let off the hook when the linesman adjudged Watkins to be in an off-side position before he struck his effort low into the net. With conditions worsening, the game deteriorated. Chances were at a premium for much of the second half. As the game edged towards full time, substitute Anier had a great chance to get United level. Erskine fizzed in a cross and Anier latched onto the ball but his effort was blocked at close range. The ball rebounded to the striker but his second attempt spun over the bar. United rallied late on with a succession of corners but were unable to breakthrough a stubborn Inverness back line.

Manager's Comment:
“We got a good break with our goal. I'm disappointed with the way we lost the goals. In the second half I think we should have scored at least one. It's a game we should have got something out of. We had chances. Some of our decision-making was disappointing. Mistakes led to our first goal and their first goal but there were a lot of things we could have done better with those conditions."

Fan's Comment:
“It was a very promising start for United but after about twenty minutes we dropped completely out of the game. Robbie Moorhead has given us a bit of a spark up front but we are no where near creative enough going forward. Every game is a struggle at the moment and it seems a long time since we looked comfortable in a game. To be fair, the conditions didn't help matters.”

Match Photos courtesy of Riki Grauer