Striker is a better player now than 2015 spell at Inverness Caley Thistle
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Billy Dodds has hailed Inverness Caledonian Thistle striker Billy Mckay as he closes in on the club’s all-time scoring record.
Mckay’s double against Falkirk last weekend moved him on to 100 goals in Caley Jags colours – one away from the record currently held by Dennis Wyness.
Tonight’s crucial Championship match against Ayr United provides an opportunity for the Northern Ireland international to match, or even possibly break, the record, and Dodds says he has seen improvements from Mckay even over the last couple of years.
“I used to watch Billy a lot when I worked for the BBC, and when he was younger he was all about goals,” Dodds explained.
“As he’s got older, he has become a much better ball player.
“I kind of did that myself, and he’s had to take that on board. Sometimes it was all about the goals, and then it was job done, but now he’s a better player than he was three or four years ago.
“It’s experience, but there’s more to his game now than when he was in his pomp.
“It’s great to see somebody grasping that. Later on he might not thank me for it, but he can do a bit of everything, and that’s down to him.
“He has turned out to be a brilliant signing for this club again, and I’m sure he will go on to beat the record.
“He told me he didn’t want to come off (against Falkirk), and I always try to get an edge out of the players – which is the right thing to have.
“I said to him he had 10 more minutes to get his hat-trick then when he came off he asked if I couldn’t have given him another five.
“I’m looking at his age, and the amount of games that we’re playing in a short space of time and trying to manage him properly. Billy might not have realised that, but I would hope he understands.”
Caley Thistle will return to league action tonight after sealing their place in the Scottish Cup final.
The result against Ayr will determine what the build up to Hampden looks like for Inverness.
Win and make the play-offs, and it could be a busy schedule for Inverness leading up to Celtic. Anything else, and they could face a month of inactivity ahead of the Scottish Cup final.
“The workload would be horrendous, but I would rather have a go at it,” Dodds reasoned.
“I would rather have finished second or won the league, but if we finish fourth or third, at least we’re there to have a go.
“Nobody took into account that a Championship team could reach the cup final. Hopefully they do have to move the season for us.
“I’ll still have a go at it and accept it, but that doesn’t make it right.
“It’s just good to be involved in these occasions.
“It’s brilliant that we’ve reached a cup final. There was lots of pressure on, and now the pressure is on us to reach the play-offs.
“From where we’ve come from, for me it would be like winning the league. I just hope we complete the job.”
