Head coach Billy Dodds insists tunnel vision is keeping Caley Thistle on the right track as they chase down a promotion play-off position.
Inverness, boosted by Saturday’s fine 2-0 home win against Raith Rovers, are five points behind fourth-placed Ayr United in the Championship table.
Victory against in-form eighth-placed Arbroath on Tuesday would slice the gap to just two points with just four games left.
In all competitions, the Caley Jags have now won five of their last six games.
Arbroath, meanwhile, have climbed up two spots from bottom thanks to their own seven-match unbeaten run – albeit with five draws including the 0-0 result against Championship leaders Dundee at the weekend.
ICT also have the Scottish Cup semi-final against Falkirk on April 29 to prepare for, but Dodds explained the key to their strong set of results is only looking at their next opponents.
He said: “Including the Scottish Cup semi-final, we will have played seven games in April. It’s a hard ask.
“But we’re a team that has shown before we can get a good run of results, but it’s going to take a lot of hard graft and concentration and a wee bit of luck along the way.
“It’s pointless to look at the other games coming up, including the semi-final, unless we take care of Arbroath.
“If we look too far ahead, we will get ourselves into trouble. We’re ready for Arbroath and we know it will be tough.
“They have a completely different mindset right now – that’s what (Arbroath manager) Dick Campbell and his team will want to bring into this game and to keep their unbeaten run going.”
With most of his players off the treatment table and in the squad, Dodds is delighted to see his team deliver wins when they need it the most.
He said: “I can’t ask any more of the players. They just have to keep winning games by any means.
“I have asked them to put pressure on the teams directly above us and we’ve moved up a couple of places and we can add further pressure to more teams above us if we beat Arbroath.
“It will be a really tough fixture, we know that, but we will give it our best shot.”
Hard graft will be needed on Tuesday
Arbroath will present a formidable challenge. Not only have they conceded ust one goal in their last six games, they have not lost an away fixture since November.
Dodds knows his side will have to work tirelessly in order to achieve the win they need against the Red Litchies, but he’s confident they can get the job done.
He added: “Partick Thistle had a similar record when they came up here recently. They had not been losing many goals and we had to work hard that night to get our goal.
“That was such an important goal for us in terms of momentum, mindset and getting three points on the board, which has helped kick-start this run.
🙌 The goals from yesterday's 2-0 win against Raith Rovers
🎯 Jay Henderson with the opener
💥 Great finish from Nathan Shaw to make it 2-0! pic.twitter.com/47NI9z1fQh
— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) April 9, 2023
“Given Arbroath’s strong defensive form, we will have to work extra hard to score against them, but we are always a threat, especially at home.
“I always fancy us to score and I tell my players that – if we keep clean sheets, we will win games.
“I always fancy us to get a reward, whether it’s one goal or a couple. We will score in games, we just have to concentrate on the defensive side as well.”
Home form is turning for the better
And Dodds is thrilled that, with more players fit a ready after a season of injury woes, his team are now on a run of three successive home victories.
He said: “A lot of people pointed out our home form wasn’t great earlier in the season, but that coincided with when we were badly affected by injuries.
“We have really come on to a good run of form and we go into Tuesday with plenty of confidence.
“I have to add Arbroath will be confident, too, as they are on a great run of form. They have got themselves flying away from relegation trouble.
“It’s such a big game, like the others we have faced in the last few weeks. We need to just try and take those three points.”
Anything less than a victory would allow Morton to leap back in front of ICT in the division should they defeat Hamilton Accies at Cappielow on Tuesday.
Inverness travel to Aberdeen to take on bottom side Cove Rangers on Saturday, before heading to second-bottom Hamilton Accies next Tuesday.
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