Inverness Caley Thistle players will be fired up for last game of the season in Highland capital as League One champions Arbroath come calling
Inverness Caledonian Thistle head coach Scott Kellacher expects his players to have plenty of fire in their bellies going into the final home match of the League One season this weekend against champions Arbroath.
It could be a day of celebration in the Highland capital, as a win for Inverness coupled with Annan Athletic dropping points would see the Caley Jags secure their place in the division for next season.
However, that will be easier said than done against a team who secured the league title with matches to spare.
Caley Thistle have not won any of their four clashes with Arbroath is season across all competitions either, but Kellacher does not think his squad will need to lean on that for motivation as they are already well aware of how big the game is.
"The boys will fire themselves up,” he stressed.
“I'll be doing my part, as will the staff. We will have the boys in the right frame of mind, but they know what's at stake.
“They don't need me to keep going on. They have been used to having big games every week.
"I can't praise them any more than I have. As a young group of boys, what they have had to go through and the position we found ourselves in, we've also picked up injuries.
“Despite it all, they have not moaned – they have just got on with it the best they can as we all have – so we will be as positive as we can and look to get three points.”
A recurring theme in Kellacher’s comments over recent months has been praise for the level of support ICT fans have given their team, both at home and on the road.
With one last home game to play this season, then, the Caley Thistle head coach is looking for his players to go on the front foot and repay that support with an entertaining display.
“We’ve always tried to perform for the fans, and that’s what I have tried to make them feel a massive part of it,” Kellacher added.
“If we don’t have fans, football is nothing, but this year the fans have been on a massive rollercoaster with us.
“They have been up, they have been down, but they have always stuck by us.
“That’s what myself, the players and the staff have all needed, because it’s been really hard going.
“I can’t thank them enough for the way they have got behind the team, so I’m just asking for one last massive push from them.
“There may be spells in the game where it doesn’t go our way, but we need them to keep encouraging us and get behind us, because the boys need the support.”
