Caley Thistle interim boss Neil McCann said he was proud of his players after they exited the Scottish Cup with a 2-1 defeat against St Mirren.
Former Ross County captain Marcus Fraser struck the winning goal for the Buddies with a minute remaining but the Caley Jags impressed during a rip-roaring tie that surged from end to end.
Nikolay Todorov had notched his sixth goal in five games to put Inverness in front early in the second half but Kristian Dennis levelled almost immediately.
Extra time and the possibility of penalties was looming large until Fraser popped up as the unlikely hero for the Paisley men.
McCann admitted he was bitterly disappointed with the outcome but praised his players for their efforts.
He said: “I don’t think we deserved to lose the game.
“St Mirren may possibly argue that they deserved to shade it – I would argue the other way. I think, if anything, if it was going into extra-time, we were looking strong.
“I felt we were actually looking a wee bit fitter.
“We were pushing hard.
“We would have been confident going into extra time.
“We maybe just switched off ever so slightly for the goal. Their good players got into areas where they could hurt us.
“Marcus Fraser comes from right-back, so it’s a gamble on his behalf, and that’s credit to him.
“It’s a sore one, but I’m so proud of them and I think everybody in Inverness who watched will be proud of their side.
“That’s the second Premiership team we’ve matched. We really deserved to win at Ross County – away from home – and I’d still argue we deserved to go through tonight. We will go up the road disappointed but really encouraged by that performance.”
McCann hopes his players can use the setback as motivation for their Championship run-in as they push for promotion ahead of huge game against Dundee on Tuesday.
He said: “Of course they deserve to be disappointed because, had they not performed, you go away and understand that you deserved nothing from the game.
“But that disappointment needs to be used as a weapon and turned into positive mental attitude.
“If we can compete against a really good side who just missed out on the top six and already been in a major semi-final, then we can compete against anyone.
“Dundee are a good side – they beat us when we last played – but I think we are a different animal now.”