Scott Kellacher insists young red card villain Robbie Thompson will learn from his costly first half exit after Caley Thistle suffered a first league defeat since October.
The Caley Jags’ head coach saw the hosts’ dominance ebb after being reduced to 10 men after 34 minutes.
Thompson, superb lately for the Highlanders, took a second yellow card for a trip on counter-attacking Fraser Taylor.
Arbroath would grasp the vital breakthrough seven minutes after the break, when Ross County loanee Dylan Smith, facing his hometown team, pounced with a neatly-taken header.
A stoppage time error by Manchester United loanee James Nolan then led to Gavin Reilly’s late second clincher as the Lichties’ rose to the top of the League One table.
No complaints over second yellow
Kellacher’s ICT now sit 11 points off third bottom Annan above them, with a game in hand.
It was their first loss in the league since Kellacher’s first match in charge, the defeat to Dumbarton.
He said: “We’ve always known we’ll have setbacks along the way.
“We know how hard every game is going to be. We started well enough and were in control of the game, but the sending off changed it.
“Robbie is a young lad and he will learn from it – these things have happened to more experienced players than him in football.
“It is important he takes it on the chin. It did change the game for us and that is the frustrating part.
“Robbie’s first yellow card was very harsh. I don’t know where he is meant to put his leg.
“He has won the ball and his momentum has taken him through.
“The second one is a booking, there is no getting away from it. If you pull someone down you get booked for it.
“Experience tells you to let the player go as he still had 75 metres to go.”
Kellacher believes ICT are now seen as a huge scalp as they recover form in League One.
He stressed: “I thought we were comfortable and you can see how much it meant to them coming up and beating us.
“Teams are desperate to beat us.
“It is a hard one to take as the second half became scrappy, which they wanted.
“Gutted as we are, we were all positive before the game and we are positive afterwards. We will get setbacks and bumps along the way.”
Arbroath had only won 12 of 55 previous meetings with Caley Thistle, but beat them last time out, at home in the league in October.
They had also drawn on their League Cup visit to Inverness in July, but found themselves immediately on the backfoot against the confident hosts as the first half unfolded.
Tough ask after early red
Caley Jags dominated possession, moving the ball niftily but were unable to find the killer touch or pass in and around the penalty area.
Disaster struck for the Highlanders after 34 minutes when the already booked Robbie Thompson clipped Fraser Taylor down on a surging run forward.
The one-man deficit for the hosts rejuvenated Arbroath, who at last began to threaten.
Just seven minutes into an Arbroath controlled start to the second half, Caley Thistle were behind.
Ross County loanee Dylan Smith, back in his hometown, powered a superb header high into the net after meeting Fraser Taylor’s cross.
Soon after, Taylor pounced as the Lichties split the home defence but keeper Musa Dibaga pulled off a brilliant save.
ICT missed a dream chance to level with 15 minutes left as Nolan’s long diagonal into the box was skilfully controlled by Adam McKinnon but then knocked over the bar from eight yards.
CALEY THISTLE (4-2-3-1): Dibaga 7; Nolan 6, Savage 7, Devine 6, Strachan 6 (Bray 68, 4); Gilmour 7, Allan 6; R. Thompson 6, MacKinnon 6 (Gardiner 82, 3), Longstaff 7; Mckay 6. Subs: Patterson, MacLeod, MacKay, S. Thompson, Walker.
ARBROATH (4-1-4-1): McAdams 7; Smith 8, Watson 7, O’Brien 6, Wilkie 6; Flynn 6, Taylor 6 (Reilly 76, 3); Stewart 6, Murray 5 (Spalding 58, 4), Dow 6; Gallagher 6 (Slater 76, 3). Subs: McConnell, Callaghan, Coulson, Bisland, Sinclair.
Referee: Colin Steven 6
Man of the match: Dylan Smith
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