Billy Dodds hopes winger Tom Walsh can repeat his scoring feat against his old club Ayr United when Caley Thistle go on the hunt for Championship points on Saturday.
The wide creator spent a year at Somerset Park before returning to ICT in the summer of 2020.
His only goal this season was the difference between the sides when they met at the Caledonian Stadium in August.
The 24-year-old was a fraction away from netting last weekend when he hit the woodwork in the 0-0 draw at Partick Thistle.
Players can produce against old clubs
Now, as Inverness seek to stay within at least two points of leaders Kilmarnock, who face Partick Thistle, head coach Dodds admits he’d relish a repeat show from Walsh.
⏪ Tom Walsh was the scorer when we met Ayr United earlier this season!
They all count!
Info for this Saturday's game at Somerset Park👉 https://t.co/Xo8m7Nbhdc pic.twitter.com/27aBj9hknw
— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) November 2, 2021
He said: “You can look for any edge. Sometimes players can play well against the same team, where they really come to the fore. Sometimes players might look at their old team and fancy it today.
“It is nice for Tom to go back to Somerset Park. He had a good year down there and he came back to us.
“I am delighted I’ve got him and hopefully he can score the winner again.”
Dodds expects tough shift at Ayr
Ayr are sixth in the table and Jim Duffy is looking for consistency from his side after taking over from David Hopkin at the start of October.
A strong second half almost earned them a draw in a 2-1 loss at Raith last weekend and Dodds knows his players will need to graft for anything they take back up the road.
He added: “Ayr showed here how tough they can be. We had to work hard to get the winner. We were a wee bit fortunate, but we got the three points and I’ll take that again.
“I also want to play like we did against Partick. That would give us a better chance of winning the game.
“I know Jim Duffy well and his team will be hard-working and hard to beat.”
Inverness must bank away wins
Caley Thistle have beaten Killie and Arbroath on the road, drawn at Dunfermline, Raith and Partick, and lost at Hamilton.
Their performance at Firhill last week merited more than a point, but Dodds knows – to be promotion contenders – they will have to win more away from Inverness, with the team having the strongest home form in the division.
He said: “It is so important to get away results because if you start losing away from home and only win home games, you will drop out of contention.
“You have to win points away from home and I will be putting on those demands on the players. But we have picked up a point here and there and it could have been more. But I still expect to win matches away from home. Hopefully it is this weekend.”
Midfielder-turned right-back David Carson has returned to the club following the recent death of his dad, but is not in contention for this weekend. Otherwise, ICT have a fully fit pool to select from.
