Max Anderson is urging Caley Thistle to seize the chance of a second successive win – in order to show they are more than one-hit wonders.
The on-loan Dundee midfielder has made a real impact in the team since arriving in August. His debut earned ICT their first point in a 1-1 draw at home to Dunfermline Athletic.
A nine-match winless run had Inverness bottom of the table and boss Billy Dodds and assistant Barry Wilson were sacked after eight of those games.
In came former Scotland, Rangers, Everton and Newcastle United striker Duncan Ferguson as the new manager last week and the Caley Jags earned a fine 3-2 win at Arbroath, taking them off bottom spot and above Morton on goal difference.
Two teams with high spirits
Morton will be their opponents at Cappielow on October 21, following the international break.
This Saturday, third-placed Partick Thistle head to the Caledonian Stadium and 22-year-old Anderson reckons this is a crucial match to try and win.
He said: “The win helps us more than anyone else. It helps us to believe in ourselves.
“After winning one game, I’d say this second game against Partick is more important. We need to build upon last week.
“Partick are up to third after their 3-0n win over Dunfermline, so this will be two teams going in feeling really positive, so hopefully it will be a good game.
“This is the last match before the international break, so we don’t want to go into that feeling we could have done more.
“The manager will make sure we’re ready for that as well.”
‘Intense’ training under Ferguson
Former Scotland under-21 player Anderson won the title with Dundee last season and also clinched promotion with the Dark Blues via the play-offs two years previously.
He explained the arrival of Ferguson has been evident on a daily basis.
He said: “The training has been intense, but really good. It’s a demanding environment, which is what I want to be in.
“You need to be pushed every day. That’s what all the boys want because that keeps everyone on their toes. That’s what the place needs to be like.
“The boys don’t want to leave anything out there.
“The manager is wanting all of us to make sure we’re playing to our best, to give it everything they’ve got.
“The capabilities of this squad has been far better than our results have been showing.”
👏 A place for @billymckay22 in the SPFL #TOTW https://t.co/B7Pl7OlyMy pic.twitter.com/RXDr9Ptgqb
— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) October 3, 2023
‘We know what we’re capable of’
Despite results overall being dreadful for ICT, all their league losses have been by just one goal.
Anderson, who is on loan for the entire season, stressed the players always knew they were better than the league table was indicating.
He said: “We didn’t look like a team that had not won for nine games.
“That was the thought process going to Arbroath. We know what we’re capable of and we were able to put the pieces together and hopefully that can continue.
“We had been losing games only by one goal and those results hurt the most in some ways. If a game is sitting at 0-0, like at Raith Rovers recently, and it looks like you will get a point, then you lose a late goal – that can be the difference.
“We all know that as a team and that’s what we’re looking to put that right.”