Former Inverness Caley Thistle manager Craig Brewster reflects on feel-good factor in Highland capital 20 years after the first Scottish Premier League match to be played at the Caledonian Stadium
The Highland capital was celebrating 20 years ago today as top flight football arrived in Inverness itself for the first time.
Although Inverness Caledonian Thistle had earned promotion to the 2004/05 Scottish Premier League, their ground failed to meet the league’s requirements.
A deal was struck to expand the Caledonian Stadium which saw Caley Thistle play the first two rounds of fixtures that season, equating to 11 “home” matches, 100 miles away at Aberdeen’s Pittodrie Stadium.
After a rapid effort from Tulloch Homes, though, ICT returned home to host Dunfermline Athletic in the SPL on Saturday, January 29 2005 for the first top flight match in the Highlands.
It would be a successful day in all senses of the word. More than 2000 fans had bought season tickets before seeing a single kick off in Inverness itself, and 5449 supporters packed into the new-look ground to watch a 2-0 win for the Caley Jags.
Barry Wilson would score the first goal at the newly-rechristened Tulloch Caledonian Stadium, before player/manager Craig Brewster sealed the victory with a goal of his own in the 73rd minute.
For Brewster, at that point just weeks into his first managerial role, juggling the excitement levels around ICT’s homecoming and keeping the players focused on the match itself was a fine balancing act.
“First of all, Caley got into the Premier League in 2004, and it was an amazing achievement having only just amalgamated in 1994,” he recalled.
“John Robertson then left to go to Hearts, and I was a player at Dunfermline when suddenly Inverness wanted me as manager. It just felt right, so I arrived and we were playing 100 miles away for our home games which was bizarre really.
“I didn’t have any reservations about that – the only disappointment for me was that the fans had to travel 100 miles.
“It was okay for us as a team. We left on a Friday after training to go to a hotel, and the boys were well looked after. That wasn’t a problem, it was the fact that the fans had to drive 100 miles that was the killer.
“Pittodrie is a fabulous stadium, so we were lucky in that respect that we were playing at a super stadium. I think we still had good numbers attending all the games, which was great.
“Before the first home game back at the Caledonian Stadium against Dunfermline there was a lot of hype, so I took the players away to Brora on the Thursday to get away from everybody talking about the new stadium.
“The squad of players were really close anyway, so it was great to have a change of scenery for a night or two. The club were all for it, and it obviously worked in our favour.
“We had a good team anyway, whether we were staying at home or away, so I had total trust in those boys. The levels of performance they gave me from when I arrived to when I left was just amazing.”
Returning home to Inverness certainly helped bring a feelgood factor to the club after what had been a challenging start to life in Scotland’s top league.
After the victory over Dunfermline, Caley Thistle would only lose two of their next nine Premiership fixtures – to Celtic and Aberdeen – in a run that included five more wins and a draw with Rangers.
The club had certainly captured the imagination of the city, too, with an average attendance of 4900 at the Caledonian Stadium that season.
Having already achieved what must for so long have felt like an impossible dream, players, coaches and supporters were reveling in ICT’s status at the top table of Scottish football.
Brewster felt that wave of momentum too, and looking back on that period he only has one regret: choosing to leave for Dundee United in January 2006.
“Having a Premier League job as my first manager’s job with Inverness was just brilliant,” Brewster said.
“For a manager going into a club, you have to understand what type of response you get, and the response I got from all the players was fabulous. From there, we went from strength to strength.
“We had the feelgood factor. We went from playing our home games 100 miles away to being back in our own stadium on our home patch – there’s nothing better. The attendances for our home games in the early part of the Premier League era tell you all you need to know.
“Caley Thistle had been knocking on the door for a number of years and now they were in the big league. Now we had a stadium to match that, so everything was falling into place.
“I had a fabulous time. I was lucky to be there twice as manager, and I foolishly left the first time.
“That does still stay with me a wee bit. I didn’t realise how good a team I had at Inverness, and I probably didn’t realise what was in store at Inverness.
“I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to come back, and I was gutted to get moved on the second time.
“At the end of the day that’s life isn’t it? I would like to think I signed a few good players, and helped a few players on their way and helped experienced players get even better. I loved living in Inverness, and I met my wife up there, so it was a magical time for me.”
There are no shortage of highlights Brewster holds on to from his time with Inverness.
One in particular that stands out was the weekend of his 41st birthday, when Celtic visited the Highland capital.
With friends and family attending with the intention of celebrating, the Glasgow giants threatened to put a dampener on what could otherwise have been a party atmosphere when Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink scored twice inside half an hour to put Celtic 2-0 ahead.
John Rankin pulled one back for Inverness from the penalty spot just before half time though, and David Proctor and Don Cowie would have Inverness in front just after the hour mark.
Despite Proctor’s red card shortly afterwards, Caley Thistle held on for all three points, and the celebrations could begin in earnest.
“I’ve got special memories of my time at Inverness,” Brewster added.
“When I look back, the response I got from the players and everyone at the club, and what they did for me, was amazing.
“I’m experienced now and I’ve seen a lot of things, and while the manager gets the plaudits all the boxes have to be ticked. The way the players ran for me was amazing, so that’s why it was so special for me.
“We go on coaching courses, and we get our badges, but nobody actually understands what a manager’s role is until you are appointed somewhere.
“I was a player for Dunfermline one day, and the next I was in front of a group of players in charge of them. That is something that isn’t easy to adapt to for some people, but the Inverness players obviously took to me right away, and vice-versa.”
On the club’s current plight, sitting in administration in the third-tier, Brewster continued: “It’s sad to see what can happen when things aren’t managed properly.
“You’ve got to be lucky with bringing in good players, and I know it’s a difficult part of the world to attract good players to, but everything has got to be managed.
“If it’s not managed properly, then you see what can happen. For me, it’s just sad.
“Nobody can see into the future, and when things are going great we don’t really appreciate it. When things go against you, you suddenly think about how good – or lucky – you were before.”