‘Recovery is coming,’ head coach Billy Dodds tells Inverness Caledonian Thistle supporters
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BILLY Dodds knows it must come soon – but is convinced a morale-boosting win to re-ignite Caley Thistle’s season is close.
The Inverness head coach watched his team start brightly against improving Ayr United but then succumb to a couple of classic sucker punches.
This was a ninth game without victory and boos rang out at the final whistle.
Caley Thistle’s fighting qualities never waned in the 2–1 home defeat, but belief certainly seemed to drain away as a familiar scenario unfolded.
Dominant in good spells previously, the hosts saw Ayr grasp the lead with one chance and one finish after 35 minutes, an all too easy Sean McGinty header from Kerr McInroy’s corner.
Energetic and full of intent in the first period, with loan wingers Logan Chalmers and Sam Pearson impressing, Caley Jags failed to exert the same control after the break.
Hopes disintegrated as Tomi Adeloye, just 90 seconds on the park, kneed in the second goal after 64 minutes and then, four minutes later, David Carson earned a second yellow card for a rash challenge on the scorer.
While young Lewis Nicolson trimmed the margin late on, there was to be no stirring recovery of the sort witnessed previously against Partick Thistle.
“I can understand the fans’ frustration, but I’m frustrated as well,” Dodds said. “I thought we were the better team in the first half. We’re not playing to our capabilities, I’m not going to kid you on, but we also need a bit of luck. Two chances and Ayr take them both. That is a kick in the stomach to a team not winning recently.”
Asked about the fans’ reaction and whether he still had full backing at the club, Dodds said: “We’ve got a lot of youth and inexperience within the squad, but ask the players, of course they are still with me,” he said.
“Otherwise, they wouldn’t keep giving what they have been giving, right to the end in matches.
“It’s just not going our way just now. It is not a great run of results, but anybody that knows me knows I keep going.
(Patience) would be good. We’ve shown our capabilities earlier in the season. It is up to me to keep the boys going. There’s a real team spirit here. If you know the boys, you know they’ll keep going and get the win.
“It has to come soon – I’m not stupid – but when we get that win, I’m sure we’ll get right back in about it.
“We’ve a group of boys who just need that wee trigger to get them going.”
