Billy Dodds reckons having fans back – even in the hundreds right now – is a real shot in the arm for Scottish football.
Around 700-800 Inverness supporters were thrilled to see their team get off to a competitive winning start under Dodds, with a 2-0 victory over Peterhead in the Premier Sports Cup on Tuesday.
From next week, 2,000 fans will be allowed to attend games in Scotland and, while it’s a far cry from the 60,000 inside Wembley for the Euros, head coach Dodds welcomes any number right now.
‘A breath of fresh air’
Speaking ahead of Saturday’s home tie with League Two Stirling Albion, he said: “It does dampen your enthusiasm when you walk out, even in the Championship and some of those big games we had last season, and there’s nobody there. You cannot beat it. Any manager will tell you that.
“The attendances will soon be lifted to 2,000, which is great. It’s a breath of fresh air just to hear voices – even if you’re getting a bit of stick. It’s nice to hear fans reacting to a chance. They clapped us off at half-time. I mentioned that to the boys at half-time – they are part of the game.
“It’s crazy when you think some players have not played in front of their families for over a year. You look at the Euros and the full stadia. You forget what it was like. Just to get any amount of fans in is great.
“I was at a couple of games when doing my media work last season, including Ross County v Celtic, and there was 300 there – even 300 helped. I think we had 700/800 here on Tuesday.
“To get 2,000 going forward would be brilliant. It’s great to get a bit of atmosphere, but I can’t wait until we get back to normal as well.”
Doran still has that magic touch
Dodds, meanwhile, heaped praise on 30-year-old winger Aaron Doran, who dazzled against the Blue Toon and capped his performance off with a wonderful goal from 25 yards.
The head coach added: “Aaron has missed hardly any of our pre-season work. You can see it’s benefiting him. He’s lost a bit of weight, he’s strong and he looks sharp.
“At the end of last season, he’d just come back from injury and couldn’t get himself fit. In fact, I think we left him out of a squad once or twice and that should never happen to Aaron.
“I always knew that a fit Aaron Doran would be like a new signing and I felt that the other night and I hope the fans felt that. What a performance he gave us.”
Broadfoot debut was a delight for Dodds too
And Dodds was thrilled to see former Scotland and Rangers star Kirk Broadfoot impress in his debut against Peterhead, just 24 hours after joining the club.
Dodds added: “We were lucky to get Kirk and I know people will say he’s old because he’s 36. He is the fittest 36-year-old I’ve seen.
“I think he’s a Premiership player. Kilmarnock offered him a contract and there were a lot of clubs in for him and that’s why it took so long for him to make up his mind.
“He could have taken the easy option and stayed close to home, but Kirk is driven to do well. I was worried a bit because, although he’s a fit land, he’s not played a lot of football.
“I was wondering how long I could get from him. He strolled it though and that didn’t surprise me. I was so impressed by him.”
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