Dundee 1
Inverness Caledonian Thistle 2
League (Premiership)

Match Report

Inverness Caley Thistle edged out Dundee with a 2-1 win at Dens Park this afternoon. Ryan Christie grabbed a late winner in a close and scrappy match. Greg Stewart gave the Dee a first half lead, but Billy McKay equalised early in the second half.

Both clubs fielded unchanged sides following victories in the Scottish Cup. A pleasing sight for Dee fans was the return from injury of Craig Wighton on the bench.

After last week's explosive start in the cup tie against Aberdeen today's opening was decidely sluggish. Caley Thistle were the first to threaten. They were unfortunate not to take the lead after 10 minutes when Josh Meekings header from a corner smacked off the crossbar.

Both sides were careless in possession in the early stages with the players being too eager to move the ball forward. Martin Boyle did make a penetrating run down the right which won a free kick. Harkins fired the ball across and Clarkson saw his shot cannon off Konrad.

A poorly struck passback put Caley Thistle's keeper Dean Brill under pressure as Clarkson closed him down. Brill's clearance went straight to Boyle who tried to lob him from 30 yards, but the ball was drifting wide before being caught and cleared.

The Dark Blues started to build clever attacks, with Harkins and Stewart involved in everything. They took the lead after 21 minutes with another free kick from the right. Harkins whipped in a superb ball into the space between the keeper and defenders. Greg STEWART timed his run perfectly to score with a low volley from beyond the far post.

The goal encouraged the Dark Blues and they had the better of the remainder of the first half, although neither keeper was given much to worry about. Stewart was having a fine game on the left and was unsettling the Caley Thistle defence with his clever play and skill on the ball. Sadly he took a knock on his knee and had to be replaced late in the half. Simon Ferry came on to play in central midfield, with McAlister moving towards the left. The change disrupted Dundee's fluency and the Dark Blues never looked as good again.

Dundee started the second half promisingly, but any threat owed more to Caley Thistle's sloppiness than their own good play. Too many passes were still going astray, with both teams being equally guilty.

After 55 minutes, and slightly against the run of play the visitors contrived to dig out an equaliser that was very much in keeping with the scrappy nature of the match. Dundee failed to close down a seemingly disjointed Caley Thistle attack through the middle and allowed the ball to break into the penalty area. It fell kindly for MCKAY, who managed to get enough of a touch on the ball to send it bobbling past Bain and inside the far post.

Caley Thistle perked up after the goal, but even half chances were scarce for either side. Still neither keeper was required to make anything more than the simplest of saves.

Dundee replaced Martin Boyle with Luka Tankulic just after the hour and switched to a flatter midfield three with two up front. Harkins still had a free role behind the strikers in the free role and had a brief purple patch in the middle of the half with some skillful play wide on the right.

Kevin Thomson had to limp off after taking a bad knock and Kevin McBride provided a straight replacement.

The service to David Clarkson was disappointing on the day he was going for a record equalling goal in nine consecutive games. The nearest he came to a sniff of a chance was when Tankulic broke free on the left but his cross was scrambled out for a corner before Clarkson could pounce.

The game was a strange mixture, being very open but equally messy. Both teams tried their hardest to win, but it seemed that neither would be able to string together the sort of effective move that could beat defences that were having a surprisingly easy time.

John Hughes sent on Aaron Doran and Ryan Christie for Raven and McKay, neither of whom were having the happiest of games. The changes gave the visitors more pace up front without transforming a performance that was still as disjointed as the hosts' efforts.

Sadly for the Dee it was Caley Thistle who were able to get their game together for long enough to snatch a winner. Dundee had a couple of opportunities to break, but botched them with poor decisions and misplaced passes. Caley Thistle showed how it should be done with an 88th minute winner. Watkins outpaced McPake in a race down the left. He hammered over a low cross. CHRISTIE raced in towards the near post and his flick flew past the helpless Bain to finish off what was by far the best move of the second half.

With a lead to defend and no need to chase another goal Caley Thistle had no trouble seeing out the win, keeping possession professionally, but frustratingly, in the corners.

Neither manager will be happy with their team's performance but John Hughes will obviously be delighted that his players managed to dig out a win when playing below their best. Paul Hartley will surely be disappointed with the quality of the Dee's passing, especially in the second half. He will probably also be taking a close look at the defending for the two goals.

As for Caley Thistle, they showed their true quality for only about 10 seconds today, but that was enough to clinch all the points. Apart from that they misfired, but Dundee were no better and did little to worry the visitors' defence after Stewart's departure. In hindsight the loss of Stewart was a turning point in the match, and it is disappointing that Dundee couldn't adapt successfully. On the other hand, John Hughes must be hugely relieved he was able to make the changes that ultimately secured the win.

Match report written by James Christie - Official Dundee website