Caley Thistle returned to within three points of the summit, with a thoroughly convincing win this evening against St Johnstone.
First-half goals from Billy Mckay and Marley Watkins proved decisive in a one-sided game, with Saints second-best and lucky not to have been on the receiving end of a larger defeat.
The win maintained Inverness’ 100% start to 2015, a sequence of results that has brought them four straight league victories for the first time since May 2011.
A crowd of 3,161 was the result of the hosts’ “pay what you can scheme”, which was perhaps more than the club would have otherwise expected for a midweek match on a cold, January night.
It was a particular improvement on the 1,326 that watched on the last time the Caley Jags played under the lights at home, in last month’s 4-0 Scottish Cup win against St Mirren.
John Hughes made two changes, with both enforced through suspension. Greg Tansey’s accumulation of yellow cards meant he and David Raven, sent-off in the 2-1 win against Kilmarnock a week past Saturday, missed out, with Marley Watkins and Danny Williams restored to the side.
Saints made three changes to the side that returned to winning ways with a 2-0 win against Partick Thistle on Saturday, following successive defeats against Hamilton and Aberdeen.
Dropping out were Brian Easton, Steven Maclean and the injured Chris Millar, replaced by Tam Scobbie, who started for the first time since August, Scott Brown, and Brian Graham.
The latter was the topic of controversy in the previous meeting between the sides at McDiarmid Park last month, winning and converting the decisive penalty in a 1-0 win, before receiving a two-match ban for diving.
The Perth side set the early tempo, forcing a succession of corners in the first three minutes. They were inches from taking the lead when Liam Caddis’ cross was flicked on by Graham, taking Graeme Shinnie by surprise as the ball flashed off the full-back’s shin and narrowly over his own crossbar.
On his return to the side, Williams was first to threaten for Inverness when his low run-in-shot from 20 yards nearly caught out visiting keeper Alan Mannus, who only half-cleared the ball before it was knocked behind by Steven Anderson.
The hosts came even closer on 15 minutes when Aaron Doran sidefooted just wide, after probing play Billy Mckay and Graeme Shinnie.
Caley Thistle were beginning to settle into their stride, and Nick Ross, impressive since returning to the side lately, chipped a deft cross to the near post, with Mannus having to dive at full stretch to claw away a header from fellow Northern Irishman Mckay.
As the first-half wore on, Inverness were the dominant side in possession, perhaps reaping the benefits of their unexpected break following the postponement of their game against Dundee United on Saturday.
When the opening goal arrived in their favour on 34 minutes, it had long been coming. Ross got the break of the ball on the left-flank, and he chipped to the far post, with the advancing Shinnie pulling back for Mckay to drill home his 10th goal of the season – and his fifth in four games.
The Caley Jags doubled their lead to give them some breathing space just four minutes before half-time.
Carl Tremarco raced down the left before drilling across goal, with Mannus at full stretch but failing to reach the cross, allowing Marley Watkins to sidefoot home at the far post.
Moments later Tremarco came within inches of netting his first for the club, when he fizzed a volley wide from the left angle of the box, as the Caley Jags edged closer to a killer third.
Inverness continued to be the more fluent side into the second-half, and Doran was unlucky to see his curling shot palmed away by Mannus, before the follow-up was lashed over by Ross.
Despite Saints’ positive start, Tommy Wright’s side had struggled to get a foothold on the game thereafter, with Dean Brill a virtual spectator.
Williams and Watkins slotted back into the side seamlessly, and were among their side’s top performers, with their side’s dominance all the more impressive without Raven and Tansey.
However, Ross was the man who impressed the most in the heart of the midfield. The 23 year-old has found opportunities hard to come by this season, but having come back into the side for the 1-0 win against St Mirren earlier in the month, Ross was influential for a third game running.