Inverness Caledonian Thistle drop down Championship after suffering defeat to Arbroath
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Scottish Championship
Inverness Caledonian Thistle 1
Arbroath 2
Scorers - Inverness: Mckay (39) Arbroath: Bird (29) Gold (41)
Inverness Caledonian Thistle have dropped to eighth place in the Championship after suffering defeat to Arbroath at the Caledonian Stadium.
Arbroath in ninth place are now only one point behind Caley Thistle as Duncan Ferguson saw his team fall to their third defeat in four matches.
Jay Bird gave Arbroath the lead just before the half hour mark before Billy Mckay scored nine minutes later.
However David Gold's regained the lead for Arbroath four minutes before half time and the visitors held on for victory.
Inverness made one change from the team that lost 2-1 at Greenock Morton on Tuesday night as Nathan Shaw replaced Luis Longstaff in the starting line-up.
Inverness could have taken the lead in the opening minutes when Nathan Shaw played neat one-two with David Wotherspoon and charged into the box.
But his shot is well saved by Derek Gaston who diverted the ball out for a corner.
After a quiet opening period, Arbroath took the lead just before the half hour mark. Scott Stewart's cross found Jay Bird in the six yard box who beat his marker to fire home from close range.
Full-back Jake Davidson had a great chance to level the scores minutes later when he connected with a pass into the box and only had the goalkeeper to beat.
But from 12-yards. albeit from wide angle, fired inches wide of the left post.
But Inverness did level six minutes before the break, Wotherspoon sent Cameron Harper down the left and his cross into the box found Billy Mckay to fire home from six yards out.
However, Arbroath went into the break in front when they regained the lead two minutes later. Jermaine Hylton's cross into the box was unchallenged by everyone except David Gold who nods home from close range.
Inverness struggled to threaten an equaliser for most of the first half, but with 10 minutes remaining Charlie Gilmour went close when he headed a Wotherspoon corner inches over the bar.
But Arbroath's lead was rarely threatened in the second half as they comfortably held on for victory.
Inverness: (4-4-1-1) Ridgers, Harper, Devine, Gilmour, Mckay (Lodovica 90), Davidson (Sheridan 90), Anderson, Boyes, Shaw, Wotherspoon (Brooks 90), Ujdur (Longstaff 45).
Substitutes (Unused): Mackay, Welsh, Delaney, Bray, Thompson.
Booking: Ujdur (20)
Arbroath: (4-5-1) Gaston, Steele, Hamilton, Slater, Gold (Stowe 71), McIntosh, Stewart, Norey, Hylton, Lyon (Jacobs 60), Bird (Dunnwald-Turan 76).
Substitutes (Unused) Adams, Jacobs, Stowe,
Booking: Gold (17) Bird (34) Hamilton (90)
Referee: Iain Snedden
