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Inverness Caley Thistle v Ross County - 05/10/14


RiG

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First Highland Derby of the season on Sunday at 12:45. ICT are unbeaten at home, Ross County haven't won away from Dingwall in the league. Despite a strong start to the season ICT have wobbled in the last couple of weeks and still look susceptible to making errors at the back when placed under pressure. Aberdeen made it quite an uncomfortable afternoon for us on Saturday and County will no doubt look to do the same. Our team is perhaps more settled than Ross County's at this minute and we are certainly favourites but the game at New Year showed that there is substance in the cliché that form goes out the window in a derby match.

Interesting stat, ICT have yet to win a game under John Hughes after conceding the first goal.

I can't see our starting XI changing unless we have any injuries:

Brill

Raven Warren Meekings Shinnie

Draper Tansey

Watkins Christie Doran

Mckay

Looking forward to it :)

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No matter what anybody says it's almost impossible to call this one. County looked good on Saturday, best game of the season but that's not saying much. No idea what the team will be. Logic would say we start with Saturday's team. However we had made progress against Motherwell and assumed the same starting team against Aberdeen. Didn't happen and we went backwards. Hopefully the experimenting has stopped and we'll compete, but who knows? Obviously not me.

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I have a good feeling about this. 3-0 Inverness.

This fixture always reminds me of the 2 occasions a Ross County fan has admitted to me that they take greater pleasure in seeing Inverness lose, than they do seeing Ross County win. I'm sure there are a few others on here like that.

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The new look back four are in for a big test anyway. Toshney up against Doran and Carey against Watkins should be interesting.

In Terry Butcher's last derby - the abandoned game last October - ICT were relentless with the long diagonal for Marley Watkins to win against Ben Gordon. If Yogi had sense he'd do something similar.

For what it's worth I think Carey defended excellently during 90% of the Hibs and Dundee games. He times his headers well to make up for a lack of physical presence. But he got a yellow card (which was very soft but these things happen) and then couldn't get too tight to Martin Boyle after that, which led to the goal being conceded. An early yellow could cause trouble again.

County pressed really well from middle to front against Dundee, and we know that ICT don't like it up 'em when pussyfooting with the ball at the back, so County really need to keep high up the pitch. I don't think Billy Mckay is quicker than Jackson Irvine and Ben Frempah over 20 yards, so it should be worth keeping a high line. Scott Boyd will be over his dead leg, so it wouldn't be a huge surprise to see him come back in, but it would be unfair on the others who had a good game.

It goes without saying that Mckay is due a goal and it's a tempting bet - he had one league goal in nine matches before the 3-0 drubbing in Dingwall, and he had one in seven before scoring in the following derby. He's gone seven without scoring just now. Dundee couldn't get enough service into the box to test Irvine and Frempah enough, but there was an early heart-stopping moment in County's box where the ball was allowed to bounce from a corner kick. If that is allowed to happen again then there will be trouble.

But I'm reasonably optimistic. County have loads of attacking options. The first goal is crucial for both teams, of course.

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Please change the thread title to The Cold Firm Derby. Thank you.

El Kessocko is the preferred term. want nothing to do with the bigot fest.

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County will be encouraged by their win against Dundee and we have proven to be resilient after defeat so probably will be a closer game than the league points tally suggests, I would go for a battling 2-0 win for us.

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It only took 5 posts for a Dundee fan to get involved. Shocked tbh.

We should win but we have got County just as they've won and will be full of confidence, with the added factor that most of their players will be playing their first highland derby.

2-1 ICT

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That'll be because it's Telford Street.

Sorry man, that's Victoria Park. The camera doesn't really pan out to show the west stand or the jail end, but it definitely is VP (we had just got the terracing at the away end and the east stand was still a strip of grass).

Also explains why we're in home kit, and they're in their away kit.

EDIT: Maybe confusing because at the start of the video (0:08 secs ish) it says ICT v RC, rather than the other way round, so implies ICT are at home...

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