Danny Devine is urging his Caley Thistle team-mates to finish as they started in the Championship to bolster their promotion bid.
The Inverness defender was superb in helping the team beat leaders Kilmarnock 2-1 on Friday night to secure a play-off berth.
On Tuesday, they travel to basement hosts Queen of the South knowing a win would put the seal on a third-place finish and give them a slim chance to catching second-placed Arbroath.
Dick Campbell’s part-timers moved nine points away from ICT by beating Queens 5-1 at the weekend and are now just one point away from Killie before those two rivals meet at Rugby Park on Friday.
Belief strong for ICT promotion push
The late-season surge in form is similar to the way Inverness began as they won seven games in an eight-match unbeaten start.
Devine, 29, is thrilled the team has turned an 11-match run without a win into four victories and draw over the past month.
He said: “We were in a bit of a rut and it has been good to come out of it and go on another good run of wins and points, similar to what we did at the start of the season.
“It is just about us trying to maintain that and carry on the good form we are showing just now.
“We all believe that we can go and achieve something special this year.
“Promotion would mean a lot. It has been a few years since the club has been up in the top-flight.
“It would be a great achievement, but we’re not looking too far ahead. That’s the aim, but there is a long way to go.”
Confidence high in dressing room
The chances are Inverness would need to come through six games to win promotion to the Premiership.
That’s why Devine is pressing for the side to aim for an unbeaten surge against Queen of the South, Morton and Hamilton before the play-offs kick off on Tuesday, May 3.
He said: “We want to give it a really good push for promotion.
“There are a lot of games and we’ll need a little bit of luck along the way, but we’re more than confident within that dressing room that we can carry on the good spell of form we’re showing now and build momentum into the play-offs.
“Wins breed confidence. As long as we keep winning games and keep putting in good performances, the confidence will stay within the group.
“A bit of momentum going into these play-offs is crucial for us.”
Big change from one year ago
A change of management last season saw Neil McCann come in after boss John Robertson took time out for personal reasons, assistant boss Scott Kellacher was out long-term through illness, then current manager Billy Dodds was brought in to assist.
In the end, they finished just three points shy of the top four in a shortened campaign due to Covid.
For Devine, after a tough 2021, they are determined to give the play-offs their best shot to try to take the step-up.
He said: “It was a tough year last season, with everything that went on.
“The boys regrouped in the summer and really hit the ground running in pre-season. We went on a really good run of results at the start of the season, which set us up quite well.
“Even through that bad spell, with no wins in 11 games, that good run at the outset kept us within touching distance.
“We found form at the right time and hopefully we can keep building on that.
“By any means necessary, we know the objective here. We’ll look to keep winning football matches and see where it takes us.”
No negative vibes under Billy Dodds
Even when the Inverness side went on that three-month run without a win, Devine revealed Dodds was never one for showing anything other than positive signs.
He said: “The gaffer has been excellent for us. In the bad run, he always kept us upbeat – which is so important.
“I don’t see the point of being negative, it does you no good.
“We knew we had the quality to stop the bad run and we are showing now the confidence we have.
“At this stage, it is about momentum and hopefully we can keep going.”
Injury scare was concern for Devine
Northern Irishman Devine feared the worst when he suffered a knee injury in the 1-1 draw at Dunfermline in January.
However, the defender recovered quicker than expected and was back in action one month later for the 1-1 draw at Hamilton.
He is thrilled to be part of a team making a perfectly-timed press for promotion.
He said: “I heard something pop in my knee that day against Dunfermline and I feared the worst.
“I saw the physio and it wasn’t as bad as I first thought it was.
“I was delighted and I wanted back as quickly as I could and I’m glad to help the club push for the goal of getting through the play-offs.”
