One team in Glasgow Partick Thistle

Inverness Caledonian Thistle V Partick Thistle
Homecoming Scottish Cup Fourth Round.
Tulloch Caledonian Stadium
Saturday 10th January 2009 3.00pm.
Reporter: Jimmy Olsen (aka Pete Dempsey)
Attendance: 1,803
Referee: E Smith

I did not know that I was to be covering this match until around noon when a series of frantic texts arrived from my brother who could no longer make it to the match. As a cub reporter, this was my big chance. Forgive the lateness of this report as I have no previous experience and as I had a drive back throught Glasgow then onto Northampton this was the first opportunity I have had to get the thing together.

I had never visited the Caledonian Stadium before nor indeed Inverness, and saturday was not the day to do so as the weather was terrible. A wet and gusty city with a wet and gusty stadium made me expect the worst. I have seen so many games in the past that failed to take off in terms of excitement when the weather was this dreich. However, I was to be pleasantly surprised by the way the game was played even though the result did not go our way.

Ian McCall made few changes to the side that overpowered Clyde at Broadwood last week. Scott Chaplain named as a substitute, was joined on the bench by new boy Kris Doolan signed from Junior side Auchinlech Talbot.

There was a general acceptance that this was going to be a keenly contested game between a struggling Inverness and a good first division side and they were not far wrong. The difference between the two sides was Filipe Morais and lady luck - both playing for Inverness.

Morais was making his debut for the Inverness club and scoring two goals must have made him an instant favorite with the Highland club’s fans. The game began with the home team’s McBain  firing a long range shot over Jonney Tuffey’s cross-bar in the seventh minute. Two minutes later they were at it again with new boy Morais putting in a dangerous cross, but fortuantely Caley had no one able to capitalise. Another effort shortly afterwords this time from Barrowman went wide of the post from ten yards out kept the pressure on the Jags. Rather than wilting in the face of this early pressure Ian McCall’s side pushed forward and Liam Buchanan’s shot from the edge of the box forced the Caley keeper into making a low save.

Certainly Caley had the edge in the opening stages, but Thistle were starting to get into gear and Gary Harkins was showing some flashes of quality. Unfortunatlely Robertson had to be replaced by Mark Roberts due to injury and so the team needed to be reshaped somewhat. However, the team had no time to settle before they were one goal down. In 28 minutes Morais lasted a long range shot at the Thistle goal which took a massive deflection and into the back of the net. There was nothing Tuffey could have done about this as he was beaten by the deflection not the shot, but they all count and it was now one nil to ICT.

Thistle were slightly stunned by this unfortunate goal, but they rallied and played some good football, but to be honest they lacked real penetration up font and there was little in terms of direct chances. Marc Twaddle had a chance taking the ball from a Harkins free kick, but the ball went well past the ICT goal. A Harkins shot from 30 yards marked the last real effort of the first half, the ball going well wide.

Thistle were down but certainly not out. They made one change for the second half with Scott Chaplain coming on for Liam Buchanan. However, Thistle were two behind within minutes of the restart with Iain Vigurs firng the ball into the back of the Thistle net from just inside the penalty area. Thistle again did not buckle and alomst pulled one back in the 50th minute when McKinlay set up Scott Chaplain whose effort required a quality save from the ICT goalie. The Jags did have the ball in the net in the 54th minute, but Donnelly was adjudged to have been in an offside postion. A minute later Morais got his second goal pushing through past Tuffey to put the ball into the empty net. Three nil to Inverness. Again though Thistle did not let their heads go down and instead continued to play some decent football, but there was no way back for the side and ICT went through to the next round of the cup.

I left Inverness slightly dejected at the result, but encouraged by the way Ian McCall and his players responded throughout the game. After a stop for some excellent chips and curry sauce it was back down the road to Glasgow.

Inverness CT: Fraser, Tokely, Mihadjuks, Munro, Djebi-Zadi (Hastings 45), Morais (Rooney 81), Duncan (Gathuessi 73), McBain, Vigurs, Cowie, Barrowman.

Players not used: Esson, Wood.

Goals: Morais 28, Vigurs 46, Morais 56.

Partick Thistle: Jonathan Tuffey, Archibald, Harkins, Storey, John Robertson (Roberts 25), Paton, McKinlay (Doohlan 75), Rowson, Twaddle, Donnelly, Buchanan (Chaplain 46).

Players not used: Hinchcliffe, Michael Robertson.

Attendance: 1,803

Ref: E Smith