‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ could have headlined Caley Thistle’s festive Firhill trip last December.
Then, under the guidance of manager Billy Dodds, they were blown away in a 5-1 Friday night thrashing which sent the Glasgow Jags fans on their cheery way with smiles beaming and voices booming.
It was a long trip back for Inverness and their supporters on December 23 with their team not having won a Championship game since mid-October against Cove Rangers.
And the same date this weekend, this time on Saturday afternoon, the two Thistles go toe-to-toe once more, with Inverness seeking to arrest a mini-dip after back-to-back defeats by Morton and Arbroath.
It means ICT are eighth in the division, just three points above Queen’s Park, who have dropped below the teams who have just beaten Inverness. Yet, they are also only one point behind fifth-positioned Morton.
Partick’s 2-1 weekend win at Dunfermline Athletic keeps them firmly third in the table, seven points clear of the Pars, having played a match more than the Fifers.
Meeting a Partick team in full-flight is probably not what Caley Thistle need right now.
Or maybe it is – because they side will need to rediscover their early winning form under Duncan Ferguson, which helped them pull away from trouble – for a while.
Leaking cheap goals in recent times is a concern for Ferguson, but they did get their first clean sheet under the former Everton caretaker boss when it ended 0-0 against Partick in October. They can take heart from that display.
Jags were at that stage scoring goals for fun, so it showed ICT could stand up to the challenge and they had their chances to even win that Caledonian Stadium clash.
Red-hot Partick too sharp for ICT
Last winter’s loss in Maryhill was sore for Billy Dodds and his players, with nine players out with injury.
Ex-Ross County star Brian Graham and current Staggies midfielder Kyle Turner had the hosts 2-0 ahead at half-time.
Quick-fire second half goals from Cole McKinnon and Aaron Muirhead had rattled Caley Thistle 4-0 down in under an hour.
Aaron Doran got Inverness on to the scoresheet on 73 minutes, but a converted Danny Mullen penalty piled on the misery and a red-card for Wallace Duffy for a last-man challenged added salt to the wounds.
In December 2019, ICT were also on the wrong end of a result at Firhill as they lost 3-1, ending a three-match winning run for John Robertson’s visitors.
Alex Jones, Steven Saunders and Dario Zanatta were the Thistle scorers, with James Keatings having levelled for Inverness.
Both teams are not lacking goals
At present, Partick are back in the groove are looking confident and capable ahead of Christmas week.
Since their 5-0 defeat by Dundee United on October 21, they have scored in every game.
Jags’ only defeat in their last eight games was at Raith Rovers – and they still showed they can net – as they went down 4-3 at Stark’s Park.
The good news for Ferguson is his team can score too. That goalless draw against Partick is the only fixture in 11 since he replaced Dodds that they have not made a breakthrough.
No Christmas gifts can be offered
There is little doubt Ferguson, supported by assistant Gary Bollan and coaches Scott Kellacher and Ryan Esson, will be making sure the defence are drilled to offer nothing to Partick this weekend.
As Ferguson puts it, “easy entries” into the box has given their victorious opponents helping hands lately.
The season of goodwill cannot extend to on-field gestures like that in Glasgow.
Inverness will round off 2023 a week on Saturday home to a Morton team with confidence high, a fifth-spot placing and four wins on the spin.
Results in this crazy Championship can flip fortunes in an instant, which makes for a fascinating watch.
Therefore, hitting the road north towards Christmas Eve with a win in the locker would be just the tonic for Inverness to regain that new manager bounce.
👑 Netting the winner to secure three valuable cinch Championship points.
🎥 @Jake_Vaughan_07 pic.twitter.com/GRceQwuMDp
— Partick Thistle FC (@PartickThistle) December 17, 2023
