Inverness CT 2 - 1 Stirling Albion

Challenge Cup - KDM trophy
Friday, September 5th, 2025, 8:00 PM at Caledonian Stadium
Attendance: 543
Referee: Graham Grainger
Inverness CT  Stirling Albion

Goalscorers
Chanka Zimba (35)
Liam Sole (94)
Ross Cunningham (31)

Team Managers
Scott Kellacher Alan Maybury

Starting Eleven
Ross Munro
Oscar MacIntyre
Mitchell Robertson
Daniel Devine
Calum MacLeod
David Wotherspoon
Joe Chalmers
Liam Sole
Chanka Zimba
Alfie Bavidge
Billy Mckay
Robert Duffy
Stewart Murdoch
Lee Hamilton
Ross McGeachie
Ross Cunningham
Harley Ewen
Aidan Cannon
MacKenzie Carse
Corey Thomson
Adam Brown
Russell McLean

Substitutes
Logan Ross
Ross Millen
Sam Thompson
Remi Savage
Archie Kerr
Matthew Strachan
Jordan Alonge
Adam Mackinnon
Luis Longstaff
Derek Gaston
Robbie McNabb
Kyle Banner
Cooper Knox
Samuel Featherstone
Jack Harkness
Kane Thomson

Substitutions
Luis Longstaff for Alfie Bavidge (53)
Adam Mackinnon for Chanka Zimba (72)
Jordan Alonge for Joe Chalmers (84)
Jack Harkness -> Russell McLean (59)
Robbie McNab -> Lee Hamilton (72)
Sam Featherstone -> Harley Ewen (72)
Kyle Banner -> Corey Thomson (72)

Bookings
David Wotherspoon (52)
None.

Red Cards
None. Stewart Murdoch (76)
Appearances & Goals To Date
Ross Munro (GK) 10 apps -
Oscar MacIntyre 7 apps -
Daniel Devine 264 apps10 goals
Mitchell Robertson 4 apps -
Calum MacLeod 37 apps3 goals
Joe Chalmers 106 apps6 goals
David Wotherspoon 21 apps8 goals
Liam Sole 11 apps3 goals
Billy Mckay 347 apps121 goals
Chanka Zimba 7 apps4 goals
Alfie Bavidge 17 apps9 goals
Adam Mackinnon (sub) 41 apps3 goals
Jordan Alonge (sub) 10 apps -
Luis Longstaff (sub) 77 apps8 goals

Starting Lineup
Youngest Player:Alfie Bavidge (19 years 152 days)
Oldest Player:Billy Mckay (36 years 327 days)
Average Player Age:26 years 189 days
Domestic Players:7 (63.64 % of starting eleven)

Matchday Squad
Youngest Player:Archie Kerr (17 years 203 days)
Oldest Player:Billy Mckay (36 years 327 days)
Average Player Age:24 years 320 days
Domestic Players:13 (65.00 % of matchday squad)

First Team Debuts

Milestones

Late Sole Goal Sinks Binos


The third set of fixtures in the KDM Trophy brought Stirling Albion North to face Inverness at the Caledonian SarensPSG Stadium. The hosts had won their previous two Challenge Cup fixtures and the Binos have one win and one defeat.

Inverness went with a strong squad, both on the bench and on the park with plenty of attacking options and Ross Millen appeared on the bench. Stirling once again put Robert Duffy between the sticks with their danger expected to come from Ross Cunningham and Russell MacLean. And it was Cunningham that opened the scoring after half an hour with a superb strike before Zimba levelled four minutes later in an open first forty-five. Less action after the break until Stewart Murdoch was red carded for clattering Oscar MacIntyre. Liam Sole waited until the 94th minute before grabbing the winner to make it three from three for Inverness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a minutes applause for Jimmy Bone the match got underway and Ross Cunningham was first to make a keeper work with a shot from just outside the box, Ross Munro saving low down. A second effort from Cunningham slipped wide and at the other end Danny Devine was blocked at close range and Alfie Bavidge shot wide. It had been a bright opening fifteen by both sides. Adam Brown's free kick was comfortably saved by Munro and there was no takers for Liam Sole's low cross into the box to the relief of the Binos defence. Joe Chalmers was denied by Duffy and Alfie Bavidge was unlucky not to open the scoring after great play by Sole down the left with Chanka Zimba's follow up looking like it came off the bar. Just after the half hour Cunningham's willingness to have a go paid off as he cut inside after beating two defenders before firing high into the net from twenty plus yards for a tremendous goal for the Binos. That lead was short lived when Zimba scored from close range four minutes later, who else but Liam Sole with the assist. Zimba was blocked from adding a second near to the interval from close range and on the interval Mckay headed over before also shooting wide.

HALF TIME: 1-1

Billy Mckay continued where he left the first half with Duffy saving at the expense of a corner. Substitutions littered the final third of the game with play becoming disjointed. Plenty huff and puff in the second half but we failed to blow the house down. With fifteen minutes left the Binos were reduced to ten men when Stewart Murdoch was sent off for a late challenge on Oscar MacIntyre. We laid siege on the valiant defenders of the Albion thereafter and Mckay, Sole, Longstaff and MacLeod were all thwarted. Mitchell Robertson had a couple of go's late in the game as we tried to snatch a win from the jaws of a draw. Aaaaand finally, after sixteen corners, we eventually score from one. Liam Sole was yer man as he won the match in the 94th minute. Talk about leaving it late.

FULL TIME: 2-1

Match report written by tm4tj



None.