Duncan Ferguson thinks Caley Thistle are play-offs semi-final favourites against Montrose – and he wants his survival battlers to prove why in Tuesday night’s first leg.
Inverness finished ninth in the Championship on Friday as their 3-1 win over Morton was not quite enough to overtake Queen’s Park, whose 2-0 victory over Airdrie kept the Spiders up by one point.
ICT’s haul of 42 points and a positive plus-one goal difference made it a tough one to take.
They now face Stewart Petrie’s fourth-placed League One finishers, who rounded off their campaign with back-to-back wins over Kelty Hearts and Queen of the South, in a two-legged play-offs semi-final tie.
After tackling the Gable Endies at Links Park, they return to the Caledonian Stadium this Saturday, with the semi-final winner playing League One runners-up Hamilton Accies or third-place Alloa Athletic in the play-off final over two legs next week for a place in the Championship next season.
Ferguson thinks Caley Thistle will be considered favourites in their semi against Montrose – and must handle the weight of that tag, as well as physicality from their rivals.
He said: “We’re probably the team that’s expected to win the play-offs.
“We’ll be the favourites going into the first match, so we’ll have to handle that.
“I think the boys have played well over the piece, and hopefully we can take that into Tuesday and perform.
“That’s the main thing, we have to perform and stand up to Montrose.
“They will be strong on set-plays, so we have to make sure we’re fighting for every ball and then play our game, and we’ll be fine.
“I am just asking the players to do their work, train hard and we’ll set the team up tactically ready for the match.
“It’s a big match for us, but it’s also a big match for Montrose.
“Over the last five games in the Championship, I think we’ve the second-best points return of any team, behind Dundee United.
“We have momentum, and we have confidence and we’re ready to go.”
‘It will be a tough match’ – Ferguson
Montrose, who finished four points clear of Cove Rangers in League One, have reached three Championship play-off semis since 2019, but not progressed beyond that stage.
QUARTER 4 REVIEW
Last Saturday saw us complete our final round of fixtures for this, so how did we fair overall over the last 9 games? https://t.co/FbmmKKQwOl pic.twitter.com/PnsS98miOX
— Montrose FC (@MontroseFC) May 6, 2024
Ferguson is in upbeat mood that his determined squad can stave off their opponents’ challenge.
He said: “Montrose have got an experienced team, but we’re going into it off the back of a win.
“I think everyone can see that performances since I’ve been here have been very good.
“When we’ve lost, it has only been by one goal 99 per cent of the time, and we only finished three points off fifth.
“We’re not a bad team. It’s just that unfortunately 42 points weren’t enough.
“Beating Morton has given us confidence, and hopefully we can take that into this game. It will be a tough match, but we’re ready.”
Plastic pitch to rule Carragher out
Winger Luis Longstaff and forward Alex Samuel have recovered from knee and facial knocks and are expected to be ready for Montrose.
Midfielder Sean McAllister will face a fitness test on Tuesday as he has a groin strain.
A knee injury sustained on a synthetic surface in 2022 means on-loan Wigan defender James Carragher will likely sit this out due to Links Park having a plastic pitch with Ferguson erring on the side of caution.
He said: “It’s an issue with the synthetic pitch to be honest.
“We’ve got to be careful with him – he has had a really bad injury in the past, so we’re concerned about him playing on a plastic pitch.”
Repeat of win at Kirkcaldy would do
Ferguson has no other concerns about the Links Park surface, pointing to the 3-2 win at Raith Rovers as the ideal example of Inverness performing on plastic.
He added: “Montrose will be fired up and have won their last couple of games (against Kelty Hearts and Queen of the South).
“It’s on a plastic pitch. We’re not used to that, so it is a big advantage to them. Hopefully we can overcome that.
“We had a good result down at Raith (a 3-2 win) on their plastic pitch, so hopefully we can do the same.
“We’re good enough, so we’ll be going down there to win the game.”
Three away defeats in eight months
Inverness earned 24 of their 42 points away from the Highlands and Ferguson insists that must give them added belief as they hit the road on Tuesday.
He said: “Our away form certainly gives us confidence.
“Going into the play-offs with a win gives you a bit of momentum.
“Our away form has been excellent since I’ve been here. I think we’ve only lost three games in eight months – and hopefully that continues.”
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