Former Caley Thistle captain Gary Warren is urging fans to keep the faith as he reckons the club have golden chance of landing a top-flight return this season.
The Inverness side’s 2-1 weekend loss to basement visitors Dunfermline Athletic drew criticism from some supporters as the winless run stretched to five matches as they fell to third spot in the Championship.
Warren, who joined Southern Football League Premier Division South side Tiverton Town this summer, is also a coach at League Two Exeter City as well being a college lecturer in sports and exercise science.
Despite putting in the hours over three roles, the 37-year-old, who won the Scottish Cup and Challenge Cup within his six years in the Highlands, is firmly aware of his former club’s progress under Billy Dodds and he reckons, despite a slump in form, they can target promotion to the Premiership.
He said: “I keep in touch with how the club are doing. Some of my best football was experienced up in the Highlands and I follow their progress.
“This season is probably the best position they have been in for achieving promotion. They have got a manager in Billy Dodds who is showing he is very good with the boys.
“They have got a number of good attacking options going forward, which is what you need. I know they have dropped off a bit in the last couple of weeks, but I really think this could be their year.
“No disrespect to the other teams in the Championship, but they’re not the strongest in comparison to previous seasons. If Caley Thistle are to go on and win promotion, this is going to be one of their best opportunities.
“Kilmarnock will be the team most folk will look at, but they are similar to Inverness in terms of infrastructure and how they are organised.
“It will be close at the top between a few teams, but Inverness have got as good a chance as any to go for promotion. They have got good youth and experience and goals within the team. It’s promising.”
No need for fans to panic – Warren
Defender Warren, a huge fans’ favourite in ICT colours, understands the frustration felt after a few difficult weeks, but with the team just still four points behind leaders Killie, he says supporters can remain positive about the possibilities.
He added: “There is no need for the fans to be despondent or panic about the last few results. The club are in a great position and they’ve beaten top teams like Kilmarnock and Raith Rovers already this season.
“For me, no side is going to run away with the league this season. It is just about finding that consistency again and ensuring, if you are on the back foot in games, you turn losses into draws. If you can then win your home games on top of that then you have a chance.
“Inverness is a tough place to go if you’re an opponent, so they have to try and take advantage of that and building up the wins again.”
Bag vital victory before December
On Friday, the Caley Jags are on the road to Dumfries to tackle second-bottom hosts Queen of the South before Scottish Cup and SPFL Trust Trophy home ties against Morton and Raith Rovers respectively.
Just ahead of the hectic rush of December matches, Warren hopes the Highland side can net a big three points this week to spark a fresh run of positive form.
He said: “While it can be difficult to go to Queen of the South, over the years Caley Thistle have had some good results at Palmerston. It won’t worry the boys.
“From Friday and leading right into the Christmas period, the boys will want to be putting together a really good run, to try and accumulate as many points as they can.
“The games come thick and fast in December and the weather changes, becoming a lot colder and fresher. Hopefully they can get as many points as they can as quickly as possible.”
