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Caley Thistle can defy the odds and escape relegation, says Russell Duncan

The former ICT midfielder backs head coach Scott Kellacher to guide the club to safety in League One.

Ex-Inverness midfielder Russell Duncan is hopeful his old club can stay in League One. Image: SNS.
Ex-Inverness midfielder Russell Duncan is hopeful his old club can stay in League One. Image: SNS.

Former Caley Thistle star Russell Duncan believes Scott Kellacher’s young guns could prove the doubters wrong and stay in League One.

The ex-midfielder, who served Inverness for a decade from 2001, won the second-tier title twice and shone in the top-flight with the Highlanders.

Inverness are now a League One club after being relegated in May and administrators are seeking a new buyer, with at least 20 parties declaring an interest.

Hit with a 15-point punishment, the club dropped to the foot of League One last month, with Kellacher replacing axed boss Duncan Ferguson.

Kellacher enjoyed his first win as the new head coach on Saturday when a 2-1  victory at in-form Cove Rangers took them onto one point – 11 points behind ninth-placed Dumbarton after 13 games.

Russell Duncan, in his playing days at Caley Thistle. Image: DC Thomson

Huge gaps have been bridged before

Duncan said: “It was a good result the weekend and that’s them back in the plus points.

“They’ve still got a massive task in front of them, but I was speaking to an Arbroath fan during the weekend and he said ‘you never know, you might actually still stay up.’

“All they can do is keep fighting, and Kel will get them playing. He’ll have a style of play of how he wants them, and he’ll have worked with them all anyway, so he knows what he’s got.

“It’s just whether they’re good enough at the end of the day and if they can bridge that gap.

“Anything’s possible. There’s nothing stopping them getting 12 more points than the team above them. They can still do it.

“They’ve still got to play Dumbarton three times. That’s the way you’ve got to look at it.

“You beat them three times, and the gap’s really close, and nerves kick in, and you just don’t know what can happen.

Caley Thistle head coach Scott Kellacher. Image: SNS.

“Inverness have just got to concentrate on themselves.

“They know what they’ve got to do. They must keep closing the gap on Dumbarton. There’s no pressure on Inverness now.

“Everybody expects them to be relegated. I think everybody’s got them down already, because of their administration and because of the points deduction, but it’s not a guarantee.”

ICT important for Scottish football

Duncan has known Kellacher for decades and they shared a Scotland triumph as teenagers in the Highlands.

In 1997, they played in a 5-1 Scotland under-16s’ win over England at the Caledonian Stadium thanks to a Mark Burchill hat-trick and goals from Peter McDonald and Jamie Smith.

He hopes Kellacher’s squad, which is peppered with young players, can keep the club up for the wider good of the region.

He said: “It’s important for Scottish football that they’re still a club and they can get themselves back up to the Championship.

“Being honest, even the Championship was Inverness punching above its weight.

“For a 30-year-old club, they’ve probably been punching above their weight for 28 of them. I really hope they can stay up, find a buyer and build from there.”

Inverness will seek to eat into the gap further this Saturday at home to new leaders Alloa Athletic.

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