Billy Dodds insists Caley Thistle don’t have an easier route than rivals to the end of the season – because any team can land knockout blows.
Sixth-placed Championship side Inverness are seven points away from Ayr United, who now occupy that final play-off position of fourth place. ICT have a game in hand over the Ayr in their favour.
Thistle’s sizzling 4-0 rout of leaders Queen’s Park pushed them into third position on Friday night.
After hosting Raith Rovers on Saturday, ICT can potentially make further in-roads if they can defeat visitors Arbroath on Tuesday.
Rovers lost 2-1 at Hamilton on Tuesday night and are one point and one spot below the Caley Jags, so winning in the Highlands in their only realistic option.
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After these next two fixtures, Inverness tackle rock-bottom Cove Rangers then travel to bogey side Hamilton, who they have yet to take a point from this season.
They then take on title-chasing Dundee, have a Scottish Cup semi-final against Falkirk on April 29, before rounding off the season against another play-off rival in the shape of Ayr United.
Boosted by their hammering of the Spiders on Friday, Partick next faced Ayr before tackling lower ranked opponents.
Morton, in fifth, have still to face Queen’s Park, Dundee and Ayr United.
‘Crazy’ to consider league positions
Having four of their last six matches against teams lower in the table, according to head coach Dodds, means nothing.
He said: “Someone said to me that we have the easier run-in, but it’s crazy if I even think about that.
“The other night Hamilton beat Raith, so we’ve all got hard run-ins. We’re all looking forward to it, and it will come down to who handles it the best.
“If I start looking at certain teams like we should be taking points, that’s when we will slip up.
“We’ve given ourselves a brilliant chance with the win against Morton, so I’m not thinking about the run-in, just what my team can do.
“We say it every week that anybody can beat anybody for a reason, because it’s proven time and time again.
“We have to handle every game, and it is genuinely now down to who handles the run in the best out of the seven teams that have a sniff, and higher up they’ll win the league.”
Carson goal could be crucial moment
A late David Carson goal sealed a 2-1 Inverness win at Morton last weekend, coming after Grant Gillespie had tucked away a controversial penalty.
The manner of that gutsy result pleased the ICT head coach, but he knows his players cannot take their eyes off the ball for a minute in pursuit of their top-four target.
He said: “I’ve used the word pivotal quite a lot recently.
“When we played (and lost to) Hamilton and then Queen’s Park, I thought those could be pivotal moments, and it was the same last week.
“It’s only pivotal if we back it up, but it’s a big result in terms of confidence and momentum.
“We’re in a good place just now, but you can quickly lose that – we’ve seen that when we’ve thought other teams we’re going to pull away, and then they have a couple of bad games.
“We’re in a good place just now, and we’re hoping to carry it on. I’ve always said we can go on a run, and I think we’ve produced that, but I think we’ve had to show a response to Queen’s Park within that too.
“We’ve shown good mental strength to put together a brilliant run so far, so long may it continue.”
Fans can ‘buy into’ promotion surge
Dodds believes that now we’re at crunch time in terms of results and potential success, there is every reason to relish these high-stake clashes.
He added: “I think it’s fair to say from a staff and players’ point of view, there is a sense of excitement going into these games, but also the fans’ point of view.
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— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) April 5, 2023
“They will buy into it like they did last year when they came in their numbers realising how big the fixtures are.
“We’re hoping for that momentum to grow, we’re hoping for a big crowd on Saturday and we hope to get three points on Saturday, because we’re right in it now.
“We weren’t a few weeks back, but the response from my players has been nothing short of magnificent.”
ICT will be out to protect a remarkable 23-year run of unbeaten league matches against Raith this weekend, a statistic Dodds and his players prefer not to talk about.
It’s advantage Dundee in title chase
That victory for Partick has given the Firhill club an outside chance of making a late title push, although Dundee are the strong favourites after Queen’s Park’s three successive defeats.
The Dark Blues make the short trip to Arbroath on Saturday and are only one point off the summit with two games in hand over Queen’s with just six fixtures remaining overall. It’s a golden chance for the Taysiders.
Partick are two points below Dundee, but have played two matches more, meaning they require results elsewhere to favour them in order to challenge for the championship.
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