Inverness Caledonian Thistle are back at the top of the Championship after win over Queen of the South
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Scottish Championship
Inverness Caledonian Thistle 2
Queen of the South 1
Scorers - Inverness: Welsh (12) Gardyne (80) QOS: Connelly (74)
Inverness Caledonian Thistle are three points clear at the top of the Championship after victory over Queen of the South at the Caledonian Stadium.
Sean Welsh's free kick put them in front early on, but they were made to pay for missing a number of chances with Lee Connelly equalising midway through the second half.
But Michael Gardyne scored the winner 10 minutes from time to put Inverness three points ahead of second placed Kilmarnock.
Inverness only took 12 minutes to break the deadlock when they won a free kick at the edge of the box as Paul McKay brought down Manny Duku.
Welsh confidently stepped up and his low drive curled around the defensive wall and past Solomon Brynn into the bottom right hand corner of the net.
Caley Thistle created a number of chances in the first half with the ball falling kindly to players in the box.
However, they rarely managed to test Brynn on goal with chances being shot off target or tamely towards the goalkeeper.
Their best chance to double their advantage was when Michael Gardyne’s cross from the left wing was on offer to Duku and Tom Walsh in the six-yard box, but their heads missed nodding the ball into the net by inches.
Queen of the South improved in the second half and started creating a number of chances.
The closest they came was when Mark Ridgers had to be quick off his line to deny Max Johnston reaching a pass from the right wing and most likely finding the net.
Inverness responded when Gardyne launched a thunderous low drive from 25-yards out which forced Brynn to tip around the post.
Queen of the South almost levelled immediately when Max Johnston was allowed to drive into the Inverness box and saw his effort go wide of the left post.
The Dumfries outfit did equalise midway through the second half after the Inverness defence was guilty of backing off Lee Connelly and from 12 yards out fires a great strike into the top right corner of the net.
But Gardyne came to Caley Thistle's rescue 10 minutes from time, latching on to a long ball from Robbie Deas in the box and firing into the net to win all three points.
Inverness: Ridgers, Welsh, Deas, Devine, Gardyne, Carson, MacGregor (McAlear 57), Walsh, Broadfoot, Allardice (Jamieson 76), Duku (McKay 63).
Subs (Unused) Mackay, Harper, Doran, Sutherland.
Queen of the South Brynn, McKay, Connelly, Debayo, Liddle (Soares Junior 67), McGrory (Fitzpatrick 70), East, Joseph, Nditi, Johnston (Paton 87), Gibson.
Subs (Unused) Cowie, Cooper, Chima, Henderson.
Referee: Alan Newlands.
