Mark Ridgers says no one at Caley Thistle will shout their mouths of about title ambitions unless they get early points on the Championship board.
The Inverness goalkeeper, who has been between the sticks for St Mirren, Partick and Orlando City, is getting set for his fifth season at the club and he’s desperate to help take the Highlanders back to the Premiership.
Solid foundations for Caley Jags to build upon
However, he’s just wanting to focus on winning, from the first league game at Arbroath on July 31, and let others talk the team up.
ICT drew 12 of the shortened 27-game campaign last term, which was the highest ratio of any club outside the top-flight.
That statistic sits alongside Caley Thistle having the second best defence behind champions Hearts last term, leaking just 31 goals.
🔙 It's Pre-Season game number 2 tomorrow as we travel to Mosset Park to face @TheCansOfficial
Match Info 👉https://t.co/0NuGXawwk4 pic.twitter.com/zoeWrJ7zYK
— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) June 25, 2021
In a season where Neil McCann took interim charge of the side in February when John Robertson was on compassionate leave, then was assisted by Billy Dodds, the players only just missed out on the promotion play-offs by three points.
Drive to turn draws into precious victories
The 30-year-old insists getting wins on the board sooner rather than later is the main goal of the group under new head coach Dodds, who has permanently replaced Robertson, who is now the sporting director.
He said: “I am going into my fifth season at the club and in my first four I don’t think anyone could argue that, as a team, we’re defensively solid.
“We drew too many times last year, but we need to turn these into wins. Had we turned just two of those draws into wins last season, we would have made the play-offs.
“We know what we have to do, as a squad. The aim at the start of the season is to get off to a good start and see how things go from there.
“We don’t want to be talking of winning titles or getting into play-offs yet. We just need to ensure we gel well and get going from the start.
🎟️ 2021/22 Season Tickets on Sale Now!
🥶 Prices frozen at last season's reduced price for those renewing their season tickets with 5 more home games in 2021/22
Info on how to renew can be found here👉https://t.co/l7zLDMcjbi pic.twitter.com/ruF5fbLMgX
— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) June 24, 2021
“Since I’ve been at the club, we tend to start slower than we would like. We end up playing catch-up.
“The promising thing is we do catch up to a point where we are back in it. We know a strong start to the season will help us massively.
“Our ultimate goal is, of course, to get promoted again, but with a number of players moving on and more coming in, we have to just see where we are after the first quarter before we talk about going up.”
Mackay and Esson keeping Ridgers on his toes
Ridgers has kept his place in the side, despite pressure from Cammy Mackay, who played in a few cup-ties last season.
The shot-stopper certainly won’t take his position for granted and says it’s a team effort which keeps him on the top of his game.
He explained: “I have loved my time at the club. I have played a lot of games. It’s always good to have competition and, credit to Cammy, over the last two years he has come on brilliantly. He has pushed me. I am there to help him.
“Ryan Esson (goalkeeping coach) also knows how I do things and I know how he does things. He deserves massive credit in terms of how I perform.
“When you have someone like Cammy, who is still young in terms of the goalkeeping position, he is improving and that helps me to get better.
“You need that combination as well as the friendship off the field, which maintains a good relationship.”
Sharp start on mini pre-season tour – now for Forres
On Wednesday, Inverness were 5-0 friendly winners at Clach and today they head to Forres Mechanics as the Can Cans prepare for a return to the Highland League next month after a year out.
Ridgers, who is 13 clean sheets shy of a new club record, believes all players want to be catching the attention of Dodds as July comes into sight.
He added: “Having played against Clach a couple of times in pre-season already, that was certainly the sharpest we have been.
“The boys are really up for it. Guys who were not really playing last season will be looking to take their opportunity to impress the new manager.
“At Forres on Saturday, it is another that you only get what you put into it. It’s all about being ready for the first League Cup game on July 13 against Peterhead.”
Caley Thistle will then head to Brora on Tuesday to face the Highland League champions.