Caley Thistle have been rocked with the news Aberdeen loan striker Alfie Bavidge will miss the last five games of the season.
And as the club’s bid to stay in League One intensifies, boss Scott Kellacher highlighted what has become a long list of sidelined players as he called on fans to roar the squad he has left on to safety.
ICT, who have been in administration since October, have climbed from bottom spot to eighth place, overcoming a 15-point deduction.
Kellacher, who replaced axed Duncan Ferguson in the Inverness hot-seat when administration kicked in, has got his mainly young team on an upward surge, with 11 wins, three draws and eight defeats.
However, with just five games to go, Caley Thistle are eighth in the league and have work to do to secure automatic safety.
Kellacher was furious after Saturday’s 4-1 League One loss at Queen of the South allowed ninth-placed Annan Athletic – in the relegation play-off spot – to draw level on 33 points thanks to their 2-1 comeback victory over Kelty Hearts.
Losing Alfie Bavidge ‘is a real blow’
At the weekend, Inverness were without six-goal forward Bavidge (hamstring) and winger Luis Longstaff (groin) injuries, while defender Remi Savage served a one-game ban.
After two scans, it has been confirmed that 18-year-old Dons ace Bavidge – who was injured early in the recent 4-1 victory over Stenhousemuir – won’t feature again in ICT colours and has returned to his parent club.
Bavidge, who spent the first half of this term on loan at Ayr United in the Championship, netted six goals for Inverness – including the winners against Queen of the South, Kelty Hearts and Dumbarton: a value of six points alone.
Ahead of this Saturday’s trip to second-top Cove Rangers, Bavidge and Longstaff are two of NINE players now out.
Also missing are: defenders Lewis Nicolson (post-knee operation), Jack Walker (tonsilitis), Jake Davidson (post-knee operation), midfielders Calum Macleod (hip), Shae Keogh (calf), and attackers Ethan Cairns (post-appendix operation) and Ben Corner (post-knee cartilage repair).
Kellacher calls for ICT fans’ backing
Kellacher told The Press and Journal: “We really are down to the bare bones in terms of numbers and the backing of our fans, who have been terrific all season, can really help every single player in these closing five games.
“To now miss Alfie Bavidge, who has been such a big player for us, is a real blow, there’s no doubt.
“He’s been terrific since he joined us, as has his Aberdeen team-mate Alfie Stewart, who scored another for us on Saturday.
“Players are now missing coming into the nitty-gritty part of the season, where we just need to try and get over the line.
“We don’t have the biggest squad in the league and we’ve a number of boys sidelined – some of whom have been missing already at points this season.
“We need the fans to keep getting behind us and the boys need to work extra hard.
“Listen, we know need to be far, far better than we were on Saturday, but we’re focused to deliver wins – and we need our fantastic supporters to help us.”
‘No stroll in the park’ – Kellacher
Kellacher insists their survival battle is far from over ahead of this weekend’s trip to Cove, who are eight points off top spot after losing 1-0 at Arbroath.
He said “We played well for the first 30 minutes on Saturday and got our goal. We should have taken confidence from that.
“They didn’t do that – and that’s the really frustrating thing.
“I believe in this group of boys. I keep telling them that. Look at what we’ve achieved so far – but we can never think we’ve done enough.
“Annan won on Saturday, and I have said all along that Annan would win games. At no point did I say this would be a stroll in the park.
“I know how hard it is to win games, and when you pick up injuries and suspensions, it becomes much tougher.
‘We must roll our sleeves up for Cove’
“There’s a lot going on at the club (in terms of administration), but our main focus has always been on the pitch – it is up to us to get it right.
“With our results so far, we’ve got ourselves into a decent position, given the 15-point deduction, but never once did I get carried away or say we would do this or do that.
“That’s why I have said since day one that staying in League One is the most important thing. That’s where we will keep our focus.
“Every side is fighting for points. We must roll our sleeves up for Cove on Saturday.
“Hard work has taken us to where we are. After the first half an hour against Queen of the South, we stopped working – or didn’t work as hard as we normally do to win the ball back.
“We kept the ball at times, but we need to rediscover our ruthless side.”
Queens tackle Annan this weekend
Kelty Hearts’ defeat in Annan, combined with Montrose beating Stenhousemuir 3-2 means the Fifers are now seventh, but still four points in front of ICT.
This weekend, Kelty are at home to a relegated Dumbarton team, who pulled off a shock 3-2 victory against Alloa, and Inverness will hope Queen of the South take the derby points against Annan.
For more Caley Thistle news and updates visit our dedicated page and join our Facebook group.
Conversation