Motherwell 1 - 4 Inverness CT

League Match
Saturday, September 9th, 2006, 3:00 PM at Fir Park, Motherwell
Attendance: 4,091
Referee: William Collum
Motherwell Inverness CT

Goalscorers
McDonald (71) Ross Tokely (25)
Craig Dargo (48)
Grant Munro (78)
Rory McAllister (88)

Team Managers
Maurice Malpas Charlie Christie

Starting Eleven
Smith
Quinn
Craigan
Reynolds
Paterson
McBride
Kerr
Lasley
Foran
Elliot
McDonald
Mark Brown
Richard Hastings
Ross Tokely
Grant Munro
Darren Dods
Barry Wilson
Roy McBain
Ian Black
John Rankin
Graham Bayne
Craig Dargo

Bench
Meldrum
McCormack
McLean
McGarry
Fitzpatrick
Connolly
Coakley
Michael Fraser
Stuart McCaffrey
Russell Duncan
Liam Keogh
Alan Morgan
Zander Sutherland
Rory McAllister

Substitutions
McLean -> Paterson (18)
McGarry -> McBride (53)
Coakley -> Elliot (65)
Liam Keogh for John Rankin (80)
Alan Morgan for Ian Black (81)
Rory McAllister for Craig Dargo (83)

Bookings
Quinn (55)
Lasley (75)
John Rankin (34)
Ian Black (37)

Red Cards
None. None.
Appearances & Goals To Date
Mark Brown (GK) 184 apps -
Darren Dods 79 apps3 goals
Richard Hastings 265 apps2 goals
Ross Tokely 368 apps27 goals
Grant Munro 174 apps5 goals
John Rankin 6 apps -
Roy McBain 232 apps13 goals
Ian Black 50 apps1 goal
Barry Wilson 277 apps75 goals
Craig Dargo 43 apps22 goals
Graham Bayne 68 apps11 goals
Alan Morgan (sub) 27 apps3 goals
Liam Keogh (sub) 103 apps3 goals
Rory McAllister (sub) 26 apps3 goals

Starting Lineup
Youngest Player:Ross Tokely (27 years 192 days)
Oldest Player:Craig Dargo (2008 years 40 days)
Average Player Age:30 years 176 days
Domestic Players:10 (90.91 % of starting eleven)

Matchday Squad
Youngest Player:Ross Tokely (27 years 192 days)
Oldest Player:Zander Sutherland (2008 years 40 days)
Average Player Age:30 years 176 days
Domestic Players:17 (94.44 % of matchday squad)

First Team Debuts

Milestones
Ian Black played his 50th major competitive game for the Club.

Barry wilson has a great day as he sets up all 4 of Caley Thistle's goals against Motherwell.

Ross Tokely opened the scoring in a tight first half but second half goals from Craig Dargo, Grant Munro and Rory McAllister's first league goal - which was also ICT's 100th goal in the SPL - sealed the match in style.

Club Historian Ian Broadfoot reports on the match at Fir Park.

The Hearts’ result at Tynecastle equalled ICT’s worst defeat in the SPL but a fortnight is a long time in football – this fine win at Motherwell equalled the club’s best SPL score.

Motherwell manager Maurice Malpas may not have been happy with his strikers or his defence but Charlie Christie was delighted to gain the first SPL victory of the season. With Dennis Wyness still sidelined Craig Dargo came back from injury to partner Graham Bayne up front. Otherwise the team from Tynecastle remained intact.

Ian Black, fresh from signing an extended contract, made his 50th appearance. His name may not have appeared on the score sheet but the Highland hero of the day was Barry Wilson who set up all four goals and was always a threat with his pinpoint crosses.

After exchanges at both ends Motherwell should have taken the lead in 20 minutes when Kevin McBride failed to connect with a Scott MacDonald cross in a good position.

The first goal came five minutes later at the other end when a Wilson free kick was punched away by Graeme Smith but only as far as Ross Tokely. The big defender scored with a looping header to open his account for the season. In 36 minutes the Steelmen came close when a Brian Kerr 20 yard free kick rebounded off the bar. With the break looming Smith parried a Wilson drive and Bayne was robbed of the ball by Brian McLean as he seemed certain to score.

Half Time: 0-1

The second goal came just three minutes into the second half when Wilson robbed Paul Quinn and squared the ball to give Dargo a close-range chance which he did not turn down. The Motherwell camp began to realise this was not their day when in 54 minutes Richie Foran missed the easiest of chances from just two yards out.

They did pull one back in 71 minutes when Scott McDonald headed home a Keith Lasley free kick. Smith made an excellent save from Dargo in 78 minutes but the resultant corner from Wilson proved fatal. Bayne flicked it on and Grant Munro was in the right place to hammer home his second goal of the season. It was now all over for Motherwell and their fans started to head for home. Youngster Rory McAllister finished the scoring two minutes from time when he headed in another Wilson corner.

Full Time: 1-4

A good day’s work, three valuable points and a small but significant climb from tenth to ninth.

Match report written by Ian Broadfoot



Pld W D L F A +/- Pts
1. Celtic 6 4 1 1 11 5 6 13
2. Rangers 6 3 3 0 13 6 7 12
3. Hearts 6 3 1 2 8 6 2 10
4. St. Mirren 6 3 1 2 7 7 0 10
5. Aberdeen 6 2 3 1 6 4 2 9
6. Kilmarnock 6 2 2 2 9 11 -2 8
7. Falkirk 6 2 1 3 4 8 -4 7
8. Dundee Utd 5 1 3 1 6 5 1 6
9. Inverness CT 6 1 3 2 8 9 -1 6
10. Hibernian 5 1 2 2 6 6 0 5
11. Dunfermline 6 1 2 3 5 7 -2 5
12. Motherwell 6 1 0 5 4 13 -9 3