Billy Dodds reckons too many Caley Thistle players let the side down as they crumbled to a 5-1 Championship defeat at Partick Thistle.
The Inverness head coach labelled the defending “atrocious” after their second rout at Firhill this term, having already lost 4-1 there in August.
Close-range finishes from Brian Graham and Kyle Turner from similar crosses had the hosts 2-0 and coasting against their injury-hit visitors, with nine Caley Thistle players out.
Cole McKinnon and Aaron Muirhead piled on the misery with early second half goals.
Substitute Aaron Doran netted a 63rd minute consolation for the visitors, before Danny Mullen’s fifth for rampant Thistle.
The margin of the defeat matched the 4-0 rout Inverness suffered away to Morton in October.
It means seventh-placed ICT now host Cove Rangers on January 2 with only a two-point advantage over Jim McIntyre’s side.
Dodds didn’t pull any punches with his full-time assessment, but believes all hope is not lost in the second tier this season when he gets some bodies back.
He said: “It all caught up with us. We are bodies short. We keep on talking about it.
“But that tells me who is good enough and who is not – players have had an opportunity and it confirms that some of them are not at the level.
“We should be playing better than we did. I said to them that I couldn’t believe some of the things they were doing on the pitch.
“We need bodies in and players back but we need to hang on in there until then. The guys that are in there are not doing it.
“We got three back then I lost three – I can’t get started.
“If you keep talking about injuries people think it is excuses, but it is where we are.
“I am an honest guy, I tell the truth – I truly believe if I get the right personnel in during the window and get players back we will go on a run at some point.
“The window is coming up and middle to end of January there are a batch of players back.
“I have never seen anything like this in my life – but you have to take it on the chin.
“I want to get to the time where I get my players back and I add a few and I can say I have had a fair crack at it.
“The defending was nothing short of atrocious and not good enough. Certain people really let us down in our time of need to be switched on, focused and professional.”
Partick cheer after illness woes
Home boss Ian McCall was struggling with illness which was sweeping through the Glasgow club, so assistant Alan Archibald took on press duties at full-time.
He said: “The result perked him up a little bit. He stayed until the end, but we have had a virus all week going through the club – a few guys didn’t come in yesterday.
“Darren Brownlie and Steven Lawless weren’t in on Thursday, but managed to play.
“From start to finish, we were on the front foot and started well. We knew they were low on numbers because of their injuries, but we scored at good times.”
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