Danny Devine says future remains with Inverness Caledonian Thistle – and says club are well-placed to launch renewed Championship title bid next season after Premiership play-off disappointment
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Danny Devine says he intends on being part of Inverness Caledonian Thistle's squad next season – and believes they can go one better in their quest for promotion.
Devine played 82 minutes as Caley Thistle lost 4–0 in the play-off final second leg at St Johnstone on Monday night, with ICT seeing their dream of top flight football slip away for another season.
Question marks remain as to how Inverness will shape up next season – with Kirk Broadfoot announcing that he will leave the club this summer, more players out of contract and three loans coming to an end.
Devine is one of those players whose contract is set to expire this summer, but he revealed after the full time whistle in Perth that an extension is imminent.
"I've got an extension that I'm speaking about with the club," he said.
"Hopefully we'll get all that sorted in the next couple of days, and then we can look forward to next season.
"It's tough just now after losing out, but we have to look at the positives in these last six games and how well we pushed through.
"We looked down and out at times as well – up at Arbroath, going a goal down in the first Partick Thistle game – but the team have shown its character to come back.
"If we show that same character and desire again next year, along with a bit more quality, then hopefully we'll do it next year."
A disappointing evening in Perth
The defeat to St Johnstone will sting for a while as the Caley Jags break for the off-season.
Devine was left ruing the quickfire nature of the Perth outfit's opening two goals, which both came within 10 minutes of the second half kick off.
"Obviously we're bitterly disappointed," Devine explained.
"We had a great chance coming into this game, and in the end it didn't work out for us.
"I thought in the first half we gave a really good account of ourselves, and possibly could have scored a few.
"The first goal we lost was sloppy, maybe a bit fortunate, and the second goal kills us.
"They got the first goal, and the second one came quite quickly afterwards.
"It was a massive slice of luck for them, and we didn't have time to react – so they go on to win the game.
"That obviously gave them a boost and gave the crowd a lift, and we were fighting against it after that.
"The boys have put in a brilliant shift, playing a lot of games in such a short space of time, but it doesn't take away from the fact that we're very disappointed."
A game too far?
Had Inverness managed to pull off a victory, they would have made history as the first team to finish third or fourth in the Championship to earn promotion through the play-offs.
It had been a hectic run for Caley Thistle, who played six matches in a little over three weeks in the post-season, and they faced their fair share of trials and tribulations.
Injuries to Tom Walsh and Shane Sutherland hampered selection, as did suspensions to Devine himself and Wallace Duffy for the first leg of the final.
Adversity was not difficult to come by on the pitch either, with an unlikely penalty shoot-out triumph against Arbroath having briefly been reduced to eight men followed up by a comeback against St Johnstone from 2–0 down in the first leg of the final.
None of that, though, shook ICT's confidence going into the second leg, with the squad believing they could pull off an unlikely promotion right until the end.
"I think the result probably says that it was (a game too far), but we were more than confident coming into the game," Devine added.
"We were right up for it, and I think the first half showed that. We gave a really good account of ourselves and possibly could have taken the lead into half time.
"That first goal was crucial, and in the end they were the ones that got it.
"That's football. It's a tough ask, but the boys kept going until the end."
