Inverness Caledonian Thistle loan star ready for Championship title assault
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LOGAN Chalmers is convinced one win can lift Caley Thistle out of a rut and transform their Championship fortunes.
With Billy Dodds’ side caught in a run of five draws and three defeats, the need to re-ignite their promotion and title challenge with a positive result remains acute.
Chalmers, the on-loan Dundee United winger, has no doubt that breaking the sequence this weekend at home to Ayr United would be the catalyst for a major resurgence.
The 21-year-old also feels ready to play a big part in a renewed title push after being carefully eased back to full fitness in Inverness.
Having missed four months at the start of the season at Tannadice with a calf injury, Scotland under-21 cap Chalmers has managed just two starts since his January move but gained valuable minutes from the bench.
“I’m getting well-looked after at Caley Thistle and they have resisted throwing me in too deep, too quickly,” Chalmers explained
“It is virtually impossible to just go from just training and having zero action to playing 90 minutes every week. That’s when fresh injuries can be picked up.
“I’ve been available for every game and I now feel far fitter and sharper. I’m ready to go if called upon.
“My aim is to not just get plenty of game time, but to do well in games and make a real impact for the team.
“The gaffer has faith that I can do that and I’m ready to go now.
“It has been a tough spell, but I know what the boys are capable of.
“I think if we can get a win this weekend we will go on a run and kick on from there.
“I’m happy to be here concentrating on helping the lads do that.”
There has been no shortage of grit and resilience in the Inverness camp amid the undoubted lows of recent times, with Kirk Broadfoot’s last-gasp equaliser at Partick on February 9 the latest case in point. To Chalmers, the current drop in dressing room mood is understandable but masks a steely determination to turn things around.
“The fact the mood has been a wee bit down on what it could be, despite a good league position, just goes to show where the club feel they should be,” he said.
“There isn’t a dressing room in the country where confidence remains sky-high when you go for a spell without a win, but the impression I have had from the start is that there is a belief they can turn it around.
“Confidence can dip a little bit, but if you look at it we are still right up there with a great chance of being in the mix.
“I see the boys in training and I’ve no doubt they are capable of hitting a run of form at a crucial time in the season.”
The attacker already feels at home at the club, adding: “There were a couple of lads here I knew from the Scotland camp – Robbie Deas, Cameron Harper and Roddy MacGregor – so that helped me settle in as well.
“I’m really enjoying it,” he said.
