David Carson will answer the Caley Thistle call to play wherever he’s needed – as long as he’s pitching in to keep the Highlanders riding high in the Championship.
The defender has proved for some time now he can be relied upon to do his job well, be it at right-back or in midfield.
He’s like a few ICT players, who can excel in more than one position and it’s working a treat for head coach Billy Dodds as the side hunt for a fifth successive win this weekend when they go to Cove Rangers.
Carson, 27, has watched left-back Cammy Harper be a sensation in midfield when asked to go forward and the pair even linked up to good effect at the start of this winning run.
He said: “At the Raith away game, Cammy and I played in midfield together. The following week, at Dundee, Wallace (Duffy) didn’t make the squad through illness and that’s when I dropped back to right-back and I’ve been there since.
“Cammy has done brilliantly in midfield, but whether the manager puts me at full-back or in midfield, I’m capable of playing in either role.
“Whenever I pull on that shirt, it doesn’t bother me where I play. I know what’s asked of me in both roles and wherever I’m selected I’ll give it 100%.”
Strong defence key for Caley Thistle
Carson, who was snapped up in 2019 by John Robertson from Morpeth Town, is a key figure within the Caledonian Stadium and he’s made 13 appearances so far this term.
Friday’s 1-0 home victory over Partick Thistle took Inverness level top with the Glasgow Jags and Ayr United.
Carson takes pride in helping the back-line deny another opponent, which laid the foundation for the latest win.
He said: “We’ve kept four clean sheets within our first nine games and we have one of the best goals-against records. That’s really pleasing and long may it continue.
“I know if myself and the rest of the defenders do their jobs, we have more than enough quality in the attacking-third with our goalscorers who will put the ball in the net when it counts. Billy did that on Friday and there are many boys who are capable of that.”
Home win keeps winning run going
Carson was also delighted that, following away wins against Raith, Dundee and Ayr, they overcame the big challenge of beating Partick on home turf, thanks to Billy Mckay’s winner.
He added: “There’s a lot of confidence within the club on the back of the three away wins.
“It was then important to get back home and put on a performance for our home fans and pick up three points.
“That’s exactly what we did on Friday night, which was really positive and it leads us into Saturday against Cove.”
Cove aiming to strike back with win
After posting fine wins against Arbroath and Dundee, Saturday’s hosts Cove slipped to a 3-0 loss at Raith Rovers on Saturday.
While Cove will be plotting a big reaction against their north rivals, Carson insists the focus at Inverness is on keeping the positivity high.
He said: “Cove will be working on their game-plan after losing last week, looking on where they need to improve.
“We’re looking at the positive side of things, following on from what we’ve done well and looking at what we can improve on.
“We want to keep the momentum going and hopefully pick up three points, which will put us in an even better position come Saturday night.”
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