Caley Thistle’s players are feeling the pace as they chase a top six berth and a place in semi-finals of the Scottish Cup, but midfielder Liam Polworth is confident his team-mates can go the distance.
Inverness face a frantic race to the split with tonight’s trip to McDiarmid Park to play St Johnstone the first of seven matches for the Highlanders in the next month.
Having just played three games in eight days the run-in has become a test of the Scottish Cup holders’ staying power, but Polworth is confident his side can cope with the demanding schedule.
He said: “It’s a huge game for us at St Johnstone, we are really eager to get the three points that will take us back towards the top six and that is what we are pushing for.
“Getting a top-six spot is massive, we set ourselves the goal at the start of the season to get there and it’s where everyone wants to be.
“We have a lot of games to play, and they are starting to pile up, but everybody would rather play games than train.”
Manager John Hughes is without the services of several players.
Polworth has not been immune from injury as he struggles with a hamstring strain.
Playing for his hometown team Polworth knows what it would mean to take Inverness into the top six and the midfielder is determined to push himself through the pain.
He said: “All my friends and my family come to watch, apart from my dad Iain who is the manager at Clachnacuddin, but my mum and my girlfriend come to the games all the time.
“I have been carrying a little bit of a hamstring injury over the last few weeks but it is one of those things I am just trying to get through.”
It is not just the league which is dominating Caley Thistle’s thoughts, however, as the cup holders try to reach the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup next week.
Andrea Mbuyi-Mutombo’s equaliser against Hibernian at Easter Road has set-up a replay at Caledonian Stadium on Wednesday and Polworth is confident his side can progress to a semi-final against Dundee United.
He said: “It was great goal equalising goal against Hibs at the weekend. Lewis Horner and Jordan Roberts did really well and a great finish from Andrea.
“It was an important goal, it took us to a replay and hopefully we can go on and win it. The supporters will be right behind us, hopefully we can play better than we did at Easter Road last weekend. If we can create more chances I think we can go on to win the game.”
The cup can wait. Victory by two goals or more tonight will be enough to take Inverness into the top six above their opponents on goal difference, but Polworth expects a difficult evening in Perth.
He said: “There’s never really very much between ourselves and St Johnstone, it’s usually just one goal either way or the other.
“Every game it that tight but it’s one game we are going to win.”
