Boss Billy Dodds insists Caley Thistle will take the game to Dundee on Saturday, with the two Championship rivals packed with potential match-winners.
It’s third against fifth on Tayside and Inverness travel to Dens Park on the back of a 2-0 win at Raith Rovers a fortnight ago.
Last weekend’s games were postponed as a mark of respect following the death of the Queen, but Dundee’s last outing on the same day was a clinical 3-0 home victory against Queen’s Park.
Should Caley Thistle bag full points, they will leapfrog their hosts ahead of next weekend’s SPFL Trust Trophy tie against Highland League high-fliers Brechin City.
Zach Robinson netted twice and ex-Partick forward Zak Rudden scored in the Dark Blues’ win against the Spiders, while ICT have Billy Mckay on a high after taking his overall tally for the club to 84 goals when sealing the win at Rovers.
ICT will aim to shut out swift hosts
Dodds said his team will start on the front-foot and aim to keep the Dundee fans quiet by repelling any early threats from the Taysiders.
He said: “I know what the Dens Park crowd can be like, so if we give them any ammunition they are going to get right behind their team and back them.
“We want to silence them. There is no doubt they’re going to come at us and start fast, but we’re not going to go there and sit in.
“We want to make sure we’re competitive and create chances, so I think it will be a good game.
“When we’ve got our full squad, we’ve got players there who can give us loads of options all over the pitch.
“We’ve got a few bodies back, so we’ve got a good, solid squad now.
“A few of them still aren’t 100 per cent, but it’s good to have them back in the squad.”
Chance to surge up league table
Knowing victory at Dens Park will guarantee a climb up the table, and above their opponents, is a big extra incentive, according to Dodds.
He said: “You need anything that can give you that edge.
“It’s not just because you’re beating Dundee, one of the favourites for the league, it’s also to climb places in the league yourself and the chance to go on a run.
📢 We are back at Dens this weekend!
Collection Info:
📅 Sat 17 Sept 2022
⌚ 13:45 – 15:00
📍 Sandeman St – Main Stand Entrance
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— Fans Supporting Foodbanks Dundee (@DundeeFSF) September 14, 2022
“If we beat them, that will be two games in-a-row, then we go into Brechin in the cup and Ayr United away which is another big one.
“We know what’s in front of us, and we’ve given ourselves a fair shot at it. We go into this one off the back of a win against Raith, so that has to give us confidence and positive thoughts.”
Dundee have reacted well to defeats
Dundee are in the last eight of the Premier Sports Cup and, when you add league results, have won eight of their 11 fixtures overall.
Boss Gary Bowyer, who replaced Mark McGhee following their relegation from the Premiership, has got them firing, with the team responding to defeats against Partick Thistle and leaders Ayr United.
Dodds recognises that Dundee have shown resilience as his own team look for back-to-back victories.
ICTFC fans will be housed in the Bob Shankly stand at Kilmac Stadium this Saturday
There will be a cash turnstile open for the match for ICTFC supporters
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— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) September 15, 2022
He added: “There’s obviously a new manager in place since Dundee went down, so that will freshen things up.
“He’s obviously got ideas, and they’ve had a decent start.
“They lost against Partick Thistle at home and had to bounce back, then they lost to Ayr United on the telly, but the one thing you do when you lose games is react and bounce back, and that’s what they did against Queen’s Park.
“Dundee will be in a good frame of mind, and with fresh ideas, sitting with 10 points, they will be happy.
“They will have wanted more, like everybody else. You get greedy and we’re no different, but we know if we beat them, we will go above them as well.”
Caley Thistle travel south boosted by Max Ram, Aaron Doran and Austin Samuels all being free from injury.
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