Barry Wilson insists Caley Thistle cannot take anything for granted when League 2 side Albion Rovers head for the Highlands on Tuesday.
The first-team coach hopes his men can follow up their Premier Sports Cup wins over Kelty Hearts and Livingston by seeing off the lowest-ranked team in Group G.
Victory for ICT would all but ensure they qualify for the second round of the League Cup for the first time in six years – with a game against Cove Rangers still to come.
Yet, despite being two tiers lower, there are reasons for the hosts to be cautious about Rovers.
On matchday one, they stormed back from 3-0 down against Livi to make it 3-2 and set up a nervy ending for the Premiership Lions.
Then last Tuesday, Championship newcomers Cove Rangers had to come from a goal down to post a 2-1 victory.
Rovers run rivals close so far
And ensuring they hit the nine-point mark by beating Albion Rovers – the eighth-placed club in League 2 last term – is foremost in Wilson’s mind.
He said: “We have two homes games now and we’re on six points – but we’ve still got work to do. There is a lot of football to be played.
“Livingston and Cove had to work hard to beat Albion Rovers, albeit both of those games were at Coatbridge.
“It’s their first away game and our first at home, so we have to kick on to give us that wee bit of security before we play Cove.
“We can’t take Rovers lightly – but if we perform like we did at Livingston then hopefully we will be okay.”
Winning at Lions’ Den was ‘coup’
Beating Livi 2-1 last week was a big result in more ways than one for last season’s third-placed finishers in the Championship.
Not only did it give them the platform to progress should they beat Albion Rovers, but it underlined their quality against a side whose only home reversals in 2022 were against champions Celtic and St Johnstone.
Wilson added: “We know what Livingston are about. They have been sensational in the Premiership in the last few years.
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“They are very hard to beat, particularly at home, so it was a big coup for us. It was always expected to be the hardest of the ties, on paper.
“We’ve come out with three points, so we’re delighted.
“We want to be challenging for the title, so we need to repeat performances like the one against Livingston on a weekly basis.
“We have good options going forward, but at the back (through injury) we’re struggling numbers-wise and we had players playing out of position.”
Time for several knocks to clear up
Centre halves Danny Devine, Wallace Duffy and Max Ram and captain Sean Welsh were all sidelined for the Livi tie, with midfielder Scott Allardice coming off with a hamstring injury.
Having a week’s break before taking on Albion, Wilson hopes, will benefit the side.
He added: “It’s crazy we’re talking about needing time off after just two weeks of the season, but with the injuries that’s the way it is.
“There are two or three players who needed extra days before we go again.”
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