A look back at Inverness Caley Thistle’s recent opening day results ahead of their first League One campaign in 25 years
Inverness Caledonian Thistle play their first third-tier match in 25 years tomorrow afternoon when Dumbarton come calling at the Caledonian Stadium.
It will be the beginning of a League One campaign that everyone involved with the club will hope ends in success in the form of a return to the Championship.
Having played at a higher level for so long, and coming after a turbulent summer in the Highland capital, it will feel like a unique set of circumstances when kick off rolls around.
That said, how do Caley Thistle generally fare at the start of a new season? Here’s a look back at their opening-day record over the past five seasons.
2019/20 – 4-1 loss at Dundee United
Two of the favourites to lift the Championship title went head-to-head on the first weekend of the Championship five years ago, and unfortunately for ICT the match played out in similar fashion to the title race.
Coming up against an imperious Lawrence Shankland, who was proving he was far too good for that level, only a Tom Walsh strike in the first half could respond to four goals from the future Scotland international.
When the campaign was brought to an early end, United were 14 points clear of Inverness at the top of the table, and although ICT would have backed themselves to go up through the play-offs they were never given that opportunity.
2020/21 – 3-1 loss at Dunfermline
When Championship football resumed in October after the Covid-19 pandemic forced a shutdown of football for months, it was not the celebratory occasion it could have been for the Caley Jags.
Playing in an eerily empty East End Park, it was Dunfermline Athletic who picked up a win at the first possible opportunity thanks to goals from Euan Murray, Ryan Dow and Declan McManus.
Only an early strike from Nikolay Todorov provided any consolation for Caley Thistle, who would end that season just outside the play-off places in fifth.
2021/22 – 1-0 win at Arbroath
A better start to a much better season, Shane Sutherland’s 66th minute strike was all that separated the two teams at Gayfield three years ago.
The two teams would meet again in the play-offs at the end of the season, resulting in one of the most dramatic triumphs in ICT’s storied history, even if that did take a lot out of Billy Dodds’ side ahead of their ultimately unsuccessful play-off final against St Johnstone.
With Arbroath once again in the same league as Inverness this season, Duncan Ferguson will be hoping to create more positive memories on the east coast.
2022/23 – 1-1 draw at home with Queen’s Park
The first of back-to-back openers against Queen’s Park, this season saw Inverness go up against a newly-promoted team high on confidence and end up sharing the spoils.
Billy Mckay would equalise shortly before half time after future Inverness player Jake Davidson opened the scoring, although it was the Glaswegians who would finish higher up the table.
Caley Jags supporters will certainly not be complaining if Mckay and Davidson are both on the scoresheet again this weekend.
2023/24 – 2-1 defeat at home to Queen’s Park
A poor season last time around got off to an appropriately disappointing beginning, losing in the Highland capital.
It was perhaps a foreshadowing of Caley Thistle’s poor form at home that would eventually contribute to the club’s relegation through the play-offs.
Dom Thomas and Tommy Robson had put Queen’s Park two goals up before Davidson again found the net, this time against his former side.
With just a single opening-day victory over recent years, ICT will be looking for a change of fortunes on the pitch to kickstart a new era at the club with their imminent takeover.
