Austin Samuels hopes he’s timed his scoring return to perfection – enough to land a starring role in Caley Thistle’s Scottish Cup semi-final with Falkirk.
The striker stepped off the bench to score in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Championship leaders Dundee, a result which takes the Highland club’s promotion play-off bid to the final night when they host Ayr United on May 5.
For now, all roads lead to Hampden and Samuels’ third goal of an injury-hit season could give head coach Billy Dodds food for thought ahead of the weekend’s showdown.
Dodds was delighted with Samuels’ scoring impact and highlighted the fact he’s relying on his squad as they target a final against holders Rangers or champions-elect Celtic.
Striker thrilled to hit net once again
Overall, the former Wolves hitman has been out for five months over two spells this season with fibula injuries. His weekend strike was his first goal since hitting two in a 4-1 win against Cove Rangers last August.
Last year, he made a key contribution as ICT reached the play-off final with two goals against Partick Thistle in the quarter-finals.
When asked whether his leveller against Dundee might give him a chance in the semi, he said: “It is good timing for sure. I’m delighted to get it – my first goal since I’ve come back from injury.
“I’m told Hampden is a big pitch and I like to get about the pitch, so hopefully I can play a part.”
No hint of complacency – Samuels
Caley Thistle won six Championship games in succession before drawing with Dundee.
Now they can focus fully on Falkirk and 22-year-old Samuels says they must believe they can get the result required to reach the final for the first time since the club won the trophy in 2015.
He said: “We’ll take the pressure off ourselves going into the game and play the game, not the occasion.
“We need to treat it like any other game, but when you do that, you have to make sure you’re still competitive and performing to the right level.
“There can’t be any hint of complacency, but we’ll go into it with confidence, thinking we can win.”
Confident – and ready for Hampden
And the Englishman insists it’s only now the punishing league schedule is on hold can he turn his attention to the semi showdown.
He said: “For me personally, I take every game as it comes. I can’t speak for the other players.
“The cup semi hasn’t really been on my mind too much, but now we can focus on it fully.
“I’ve never experienced Hampden, like a fair number of the squad probably.
“It will be something new, but our fans will be there to support us, so that’s a real positive. I’ll go out there confident we can win the game and get to the final.”
Late goals keeping Inverness on track
So, ICT know that these crunch games against Falkirk then Ayr will shape the end of their season. Will they have a cup final on June 3? Will they be competing in the promotion play-offs?
Eight victories from their last 10 matches overall has been terrific for raising belief within the squad, according to Samuels.
He added: “When you keep getting results, like we have, it goes on to the next one and then the next one after that. It helps you, that momentum.
75' | 1-1
GOALLLLLLLLLLLL! AUSTIN SAMUELS MAKES IT 1-1! pic.twitter.com/s76O0aid9U
— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) April 22, 2023
“We keep getting late goals, whether it is winners or equalisers like Saturday, and that builds confidence. When you don’t, it is deflating.
“Sometimes though, you’d rather win the game comfortably, 2-0 or 3-0. We’ve been very resilient, and we’ve been playing well.”
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