A late Grant Gillespie penalty earned Morton a 1-0 victory at Caley Thistle in a Championship game which seemed certain to end goalless.
There was little flair or cutting edge from either side, but the Ton snatched all the points with a killer spot-kick with five minutes left.
The hosts were looking to recover from their 4-1 defeat at Partick Thistle last Friday, while Morton were aiming to build upon their goalless home draw against Dundee.
Before a ball was kicked, these sides were locked on five points apiece, so there was always going to be great value for the victor, even just five fixtures.
Last term, ICT won three of the four league meetings against their Greenock opponents. Most games were close, but the Highlanders did run riot with a 6-1 rout at Cappielow.
That sparkling show, however, came a few days after the Ton knocked Caley Jags out of the Scottish Cup, on penalties, after 1-1 draws over two ties.
Former Inverness midfielder Dougie Imrie took over the hot-seat at Morton just before Christmas and led them to a mini-revival, with the club finishing seventh, away from relegation danger.
A two-year contract extension given to Imrie on Friday was a further boost for the visitors, who were unchanged from last weekend’s 0-0 draw with Dundee.
Home head coach Billy Dodds, however, made four changes to his line-up, with defenders Wallace Duffy and David Carson, winger Steven Boyd and striker George Oakley given starts.
Centre half Zak Delaney and on-loan Hibs winger Daniel MacKay dropped to the bench, with Lewis Hyde and Aaron Doran missing out completely. Daniel joined his brother Calum MacKay as substitutes together for the first time.
Injury blow for ICT striker Samuels
In blazing sunshine, both sides began with a brightness about them, with Boyd in particular making his presence felt with some neat passing.
A timely tackle from Robbie Deas stopped Jai Quitongo in his tracks when he was put through clear by Robbie Crawford.
ICT needed to make a switch on the 25th minute when forward Austin Samuels went off after a knock and he was replaced by Nathan Shaw.
Midfielder Roddy MacGregor tested away goalkeeper Brian Schwake from distance five minutes later but it was a comfortable enough take.
ICT midfielder Allardice was perhaps lucky to escape with just a yellow card eight minutes before the break when he seemed to go in late on Quitongo just outside the box.
Caley Jags keeper Mark Ridgers then pulled off a fine stop to deny Jaze Kabia from a pile-driver. He then pushed Cameron Blues’ follow-up over the bar, but the flag was up in any case.
Handball call led to winning penalty
There was little to enthuse the fans in the heat until 58 minutes when another Ridgers save prevented Quitongo’s shot flying into the net after the forward connected with Kabia’s cross.
The teams cancelled one another out for the remainder for most of the second half, with a Roddy MacGregor header looking like the closest to a breakthrough.
That was until, with five minutes remaining, referee Nick Walsh pointed to the spot after Wallace Duffy was adjudged to have handled the ball when he challenged Jack Baird.
It was a big call and Gillespie crashed the spot-kick powerfully beyond Ridgers to seal the win.
It’s a result which pushes Morton into fourth position, with ICT dropping to eighth.
Caley Thistle hit the road to Premiership Motherwell in midweek for their second round tie in the Premier Sports Cup before returning to league duty at Raith Rovers next weekend.
CALEY THISTLE (4-4-2) – Ridgers 7, Duffy 6, Harper 6, Deas 6, Carson 6, Billy Mckay 6, MacGregor 6, Oakley 6 (Daniel MacKay 66), Allardice 6, Samuels 6 (Shaw 25), Boyd 6. Subs not used – Cammy MacKay (GK), Devine, Delaney, Calum MacKay.
MORTON (4-4-2) – Schwake 6, Pignatiello 6 (Hynes 80), O’Connor 6, Baird 6, Kabia 7 (McGrattan 80), Blues 6, Muirhead 6, Quitongo 6, Crawford 6, Gillespie 6, King 6 (Strapp 67). Subs not used – Green (GK), Lyon, Lithgow.
Referee – Nick Walsh.
Attendance – 1,924.
Man of the match – Jaze Kabia.
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