Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C.

Third Division (1994–1997)

After a promising start to their inaugural campaign in 1994–95, the club eventually finished sixth in the Third Division.

Their first league game was against Arbroath on 13 August 1994, which ended in a 5–2 win at Telford Street Park. The team was led by the late Alan Hercher, who bagged a hat-trick and also claimed the title of ICT's first league goalscorer.

The following season, Inverness CT showed improvement with a third-place finish. In Season 1996–97, they won the Third Division Championship following a 4–1 home win over Albion Rovers in front of nearly 3,000 fans. This was just 5 months after moving into the Caledonian Stadium.

Second Division (1997–1999)

The club spent two seasons in the Second Division. After a closely fought campaign, they finished runners-up to Livingston in Season 1998–99, thereby securing promotion to the First Division.

First Division (1999–2004)

Season 2003–2004 could be regarded as the club's most successful up to that point. In November 2003, they defeated Airdrie United 2–0, with goals from Steve Hislop and David Bingham, to win the Scottish Challenge Cup, and also reached the Scottish Cup semi-final, losing a replay 3–2 to Dunfermline Athletic after a 1–1 draw at Hampden Park. However, the greatest achievement was on the final day of the season, when Inverness defeated St Johnstone 3–1, with goals from Paul Ritchie, David Bingham and Barry Wilson and, as a result, pipped Clyde to the First Division title. This made the club eligible for promotion to the Scottish Premier League (SPL). However, SPL rules at that time stated that all member clubs must have a stadium with a minimum capacity of 10,000 seats. Caledonian Stadium did not meet this criterion, leaving the club's Board with a dilemma: either to remain in the First Division (like Falkirk the previous season) or to groundshare with Aberdeen, over 100 miles (160 km) away. After consulting with supporters, the Board decided the 'sacrifice' of one season in Aberdeen would be an acceptable compromise to ensure Premier League participation for the club.

Scottish Premier League (2004–2009)

Inverness playing St Mirren in May 2008 at the Caledonian Stadium.

A change in SPL rules during the 2004–05 season reduced the stadium seating requirement to 6,000 seats for SPL membership. The Caledonian Stadium was rendered a valid SPL venue after a rapid ground expansion, with two new stands added. The stadium was renamed as the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium in honour of the local building firm that completed the work in only 47 working days. The chairman of Tulloch, David Sutherland, was also chairman of the club at the time and remains a major shareholder.^[14] The club returned to playing in Inverness, defeating Dunfermline 2–0 in their first SPL game in their own ground on 29 January 2005, thanks to goals from Barry Wilson and then player-manager Craig Brewster.^[15]

During season 2008–09 season, the team incurred a number of bad results and struggled near the bottom of the SPL. Eventually, manager Craig Brewster was sacked after a run of seven consecutive defeats, ending with a 1–0 loss to Hamilton Academical.^[16] This was the first time the club had sacked a manager, and the fans had previously voiced concern about Brewster's ability.^[17] Brewster was replaced by former England international Terry Butcher, who was unable to prevent the club's relegation, despite an initial improvement in results. Inverness Caledonian Thistle's tenure in the SPL eventually ended in May 2009 after suffering a 1–0 home defeat to Falkirk.^[18] Their final total of 37 points remains the highest ever for a team finishing bottom of the SPL.

Return to the First Division (2009–2010)

The team celebrating winning the First Division title in May 2010 at the Caledonian Stadium.

After a slow start to their first season back in the First Division, which looked set to be won at a canter by runaway leaders Dundee who were 15 points ahead in January, Inverness put together an astonishing run of form which saw them go on a 21-match unbeaten run. On 21 April 2010, Inverness secured promotion back to the SPL with two games to spare after Dundee lost to Raith Rovers. Inverness became the first team in ten years to secure an immediate return to the SPL. The team went on to celebrate their promotion with a 7–0 win at Ayr United, their biggest ever away win. On the final day of the season, Inverness beat Dundee 1–0.

Return to the SPL/Premiership (2010–2017)

Having won the 2009–10 First Division title in their first year back in the division since 2003–04, Inverness have since competed in the top tier of Scottish football. In 2013–14, the club reached their first major final – the Scottish League Cup – losing on penalties to Aberdeen. They then beat Falkirk in the final of the Scottish Cup in 2015. That same season, Inverness secured entry to European competition for the first time, with a best-ever third-place finish in the Premiership.^[19]

As part of the push for promotion in the 2009–10 season, Inverness went on an unbeaten away run in the league that continued through the entire 2010 calendar year, culminating in a 1–1 draw against Hearts at Tynecastle on 18 December.^[20] This extraordinary sequence ended in defeat at St Johnstone on 2 January 2011 when the Perth side won by a single goal. At the split, Inverness narrowly missed out on a top six spot, eventually finishing in a club record-equalling 7th place. However, two years later, they would finish even higher.

During the 2012–13 season, a 3–0 win over Hibernian on 8 December 2012 saw them rise to second place in the SPL (behind Celtic), their then, highest ever league position.

Continued good form over the course of the season consolidated the club's position in the top-half of the table. Victory over Highland derby rivals Ross County^[21] on 16 March elevated Inverness CT onto an almost unassailable points-total in their quest for a maiden 'top-6' finish. This achievement was confirmed the following day as the club benefited from a favourable result in the Sunday SPL fixture.^[22] This guarantee of a 'top-6' place ensured that the 2012–13 Scottish Premier League season would see Inverness CT record, their then, highest ever finishing league position.

Ultimately, Inverness CT finished in 4th place, narrowly missing Europa League qualification on the final day of the season, succumbing to a 1–0 defeat from local rivals Ross County.^[23]

Inverness CT began the inaugural season (2013–14 Scottish Premiership) of the revamped SPFL Scottish Premiership with a 3–0 win over St Mirren. This result saw the club take pole-position in the league table. They remained top of the league until the 9th game of the season when they dropped to 2nd place following a loss at St Johnstone.

On 11 November 2013, Hibernian reached a compensation deal with Inverness for Terry Butcher to move to the club, alongside assistant manager Maurice Malpas.^[24]

After an extensive recruitment process, on 4 December 2013, John Hughes was unveiled as the new manager of the club.^[25] In January 2014, Russell Latapy was appointed as Hughes' assistant manager.^[26]

In February 2014, Inverness defeated Hearts in the Scottish League Cup semi-final. Inverness struck first with Greg Tansey firing the Highland side into the lead. Jamie Hamill then scored 2 goals in 2 minutes and gave Hearts hope of reaching their second League Cup Final in two years. Just when Inverness were on the brink of defeat, Nick Ross equalised in the 94th minute and sent the game to extra time. After no goals being scored in extra time, Inverness clinched the win on penalties.

On 25 February, Inverness beat Ross County in Dingwall in the Highland Derby. The 3–0 win was the first time they had won a Highland Derby in Dingwall in the League since March 2003. They also won the next derby 2–1 on 4 April. The game was also played in Dingwall.

On 16 March, Inverness and Aberdeen faced each other in the 2014 Scottish League Cup Final at Celtic Park in Glasgow. After tense 120 minutes the two teams lined up for a penalty shoot-out. Inverness missed their first 2 penalties with Billy McKay's penalty saved and Greg Tansey firing over the bar. Despite Nick Ross and Aaron Doran scoring their penalties Aberdeen won 4–2.

Inverness finished the season with a 2–0 win over St Johnstone thanks to second half goals from Ryan Christie and Greg Tansey.

In May 2014, the club announced the American fast food restaurant franchise Subway as their new main shirt sponsor.

Between May and September 2014, Inverness kept a series of consecutive clean sheets, enabling them to achieve a club record of 616 minutes without conceding a goal.

Further success followed that season, with a 1–0 victory away to Dundee confirming a record third-place league finish for the club. This also guaranteed Inverness qualifying for European football for the first time – they competed in the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League.^[19]

Scottish Cup victory and European qualification (2014–2015)

Inverness CT capped an extraordinary 2014–15 season by winning the Scottish Cup Final against Falkirk at Hampden Park.^[27] This result came after they had defeated Celtic in a tense semi-final.^[28]
The Scottish Cup win was the club's first major national trophy and the first won by any club from the Highlands.^[29] Furthermore, it entitled Inverness CT to enter the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League in the Second qualifying round. The club were drawn against Romanian outfit FC Astra Giurgiu. An estimated 500 fans followed the team to Romania, watching the team grind out a 0-0 draw. However this was not enough to set up a tie against West Ham United in the next round, as the Romanians had narrowly beaten the Highlanders 1-0 in the first leg in Inverness.^[30]

Relegation to the Scottish Championship (2017–present)

The team failed to carry the form from the previous season due to the loss of key players like Marley Watkins, Graeme Shinnie and Edward Ofere. Furthermore, an approach from Dundee United to bring John Hughes to the Tangerines in October was rejected by Inverness, leaving Hughes frustrated.
The club's defence of the Scottish Cup began by beating Stirling Albion after a replay. In the following round, a Jordan Roberts goal set-up a tie against Hibs. Inverness lost a replay to the Edinburgh club, who eventually went on the win the competition. Hughes left at the end of the season after mutually terminating his contract, citing a collapse in relations with the board.^[31]

Club captain Richie Foran was appointed as his successor, despite having no previous managerial experience. The club started the season scoring fifteen goals in four League Cup group games. They also recorded a 2-2 draw in the league against Celtic, the only club to take a point off the Glaswegians for close to a year. However, this good form dropped off, and Inverness did not win a league game from October until February - when a last-minute overhead kick from Billy Mckay lead to a 2-1 win over Rangers.

Inverness CT were relegated to the Scottish Championship on the final day of the 2016–17 season, despite recording a 3–2 victory over Motherwell.^[32] After Foran was sacked from his position, former manager John Robertson was appointed as his successor on 14 June 2017.^[33]

Inverness reached the 2017–18 Scottish Challenge Cup Final, after a 3–2 win over Northern Irish invitee side Crusaders at home, meaning the club's would make their fourth cup final appearance, and John Robertson's second challenge cup final at the club.^[34][35] Inverness went on to lift the cup on 24 March 2018, with Carl Tremarco scoring the only goal of the game seconds before the game was due to go into added time. Robertson became the first manager in the cup's history to lift the trophy twice with the same club.

This cup win kick-started an unbeaten run of 13 games as Inverness went from lingering around the lower echelons of the table to mid-table. However, despite a late push, an injury-time equaliser on the final day of the season, at home to Dunfermline, meant ICT narrowly missed out on the promotion play-offs by just two points, finishing in 5th place.

In August 2018, the club was saddened to learn of the death of ex-player Alan Hercher, aged 52 years. He was the club's first captain, goalscorer and hat-trick scorer - from their first league game against Arbroath. In tribute, a minute's silence was held at Inverness' first home game of the 2018–19 Scottish Championship season against Ayr United which ended in a 0–0 draw.

Ross County

Inverness have had a long-standing rivalry with local club Ross County, who are situated a few miles north of Inverness in Dingwall. The rivalry began when both teams were elected to the SFL in the 1994–95 Season. They contest the Highland derby. Inverness are the dominant team within the derby with 26 wins to County's 15 whilst 14 matches have been drawn.

Aberdeen

Another big derby fixture is the North derby between Inverness and Aberdeen, which is still regarded as a derby even though the clubs are over 100 miles apart. The rivalry started when Inverness were ground sharing with Aberdeen at Pittodrie Stadium in 2004 when Inverness first gained promotion to the top flight, and their ground was being improved to the standards required to be a SPL team. Aberdeen are the dominant team in the derby with 24 wins to 10.

Clachnacuddin

Inverness also has a long-lasting rivalry with Clachnacuddin, which goes back to before Caledonian and Inverness Thistle merged. All three teams were founding members of the Highland League, and all their grounds were close together in Inverness. This led to the City Derby. Though this rivalry is on a lesser scale than it was before the election of Inverness to the SFL, it still exists through pre-season friendlies. Inverness has 17 wins in this fixture, and Clach only two.

Attendance

Tulloch Caledonian Stadium.

The club's highest 'home' (league) attendance actually occurred while they were groundsharing with Aberdeen at Pittodrie. With Inverness fans in the traditional home end, and Aberdeen fans filling the away end, a record attendance of 9,530 was set on 16 October 2004. This record may stand for some time, as the crowd that day was bigger than the current capacity of Caledonian Stadium.

The club's highest cup attendance was also recorded in a venue other than their home ground. A crowd of 11,296 watched Inverness play Rangers on 9 March 1996 at Tannadice in Dundee. The game had been switched to Dundee as the club's home ground (Telford Street Park at that time) was deemed unsuitable for the Scottish Cup quarter-final tie.

The highest attendance recorded at the Caledonian Stadium is 7,753 set on 20 January 2008 against Rangers.

Current squad

As of 31 August 2018^[38]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 1 GK Mark Ridgers 2 DF Shaun Rooney 3 DF Carl Tremarco (captain) 4 DF Joe Chalmers 5 DF Coll Donaldson 6 DF Jamie McCart 7 MF Liam Polworth 8 MF Angus Beith 9 FW Nathan Austin 10 MF Aaron Doran (vice-captain) 11 MF Tom Walsh 14 FW George Oakley 15 MF Sean Welsh 16 MF Riccardo Calder 19 FW Jordan White 22 DF Brad McKay 23 MF Daniel MacKay

No. Position Player 24 MF Charlie Trafford 30 MF Aidan Wilson 31 DF Logan Johnstone 32 DF Ryan McRitchie 33 GK Martin MacKinnon 34 DF Donald Morrison 35 MF Roddy MacGregor 36 DF Harry Nicolson 37 DF Jack Brown 38 MF Kieran Chalmers 39 MF Ross Gunn 40 MF Cameron Harper 41 DF Ryan Fyffe 42 GK Daniel Hoban 43 FW Roddy Kennedy 44 DF Gabriel Hastings MF Machado Matheus

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 21 GK Cammy Mackay (on loan at Rothes) 25 GK Owain Fôn Williams (on loan at Indy Eleven)

Notable players

Coaching staff

Board of directors

Managerial history

Sergei Baltacha had been manager of Caledonian prior to the merger and he carried on as Caledonian Thistle manager after the merger in 1994. He remained in charge for only one season, leaving in 1995 to be closer to his family in Perth.

Baltacha was replaced by Huntly manager Steve Paterson, who to date is the club's longest-serving manager. During his seven and a half years as manager, from the summer of 1995 to December 2002, Paterson succeeded in taking the club to the Scottish Football League First Division. He also steered ICT to their famous 3–1 Scottish Cup victory against Celtic in 2000.

In November 2002 Paterson was strongly linked to the vacant manager's position at Dundee United. However, he chose to stay with Inverness for another month, after which he left, along with assistant Duncan Shearer, to become manager of Aberdeen.

The club also had a Director of football, with former player Graeme Bennett appointed while Steve Paterson was manager.^[40]

Paterson was replaced by former Hearts player John Robertson, whose two-year reign as manager was an exceptionally successful period. Under Robertson, Inverness won the 2003–04 Scottish Challenge Cup, gained another Scottish Cup victory over Celtic, this time 1–0 thanks to a goal on the stroke of half time by club record scorer Dennis Wyness and won the First Division Championship, taking the club into the SPL.

Robertson eventually left to become Hearts manager and was replaced by Dunfermline's Craig Brewster as player-manager.

Brewster succeeded in keeping the club in the SPL. He also introduced new training regimes to increase player fitness and was successful in steering the club to good results against a number of established Premier League sides, including Rangers, Celtic, Motherwell, Hearts and Hibs. After a period of just over thirteen months at the club he left to become the new Dundee United manager after the sacking of Gordon Chisholm.

Former player Charlie Christie was appointed manager on 27 January 2006, after a successful spell as caretaker manager following the departure of Brewster, during which time Inverness achieved three wins out of three games played, including a record victory for the club in the SPL as they beat Falkirk 4–1 away from home. He resigned on 19 August 2007 due to the pressures of the job, and because he believed it to be the correct decision for him and his family.^[41] He has now resumed his former role, running the club's Centenary Club lottery.

A short time after Christie resigned, Craig Brewster was reappointed. This was a controversial decision by the club, as Brewster had left to manage Dundee United only 18 months previously.

He was eventually sacked in January 2009, after a run of seven league defeats.^[42] Prior to this, the ICT supporters had become increasingly concerned about poor performances and rumours of dressing room unrest, leading to a protest by fans at the team's 1–0 defeat by Hamilton on the weekend before the sacking.^[43]

Brewster's successor, the former England international Terry Butcher was appointed on 27 January 2009, along with Maurice Malpas as his assistant. Terry Butcher managed in over 200 matches for the club, the 100th taking place on Friday 6 October 2012, in the 3–1 win over Ross County^[44] in the first SPL Highland derby.^[45]

In November 2013, after nearly five years at Inverness, Hibernian reached a compensation deal with the club for Terry Butcher to move to Easter Road alongside assistant manager Maurice Malpas.^[24]

After an extensive recruitment process, on 4 December 2013, John Hughes was unveiled as the new manager of the club.^[25] Hughes left Caledonian Thistle on the 20th May 2016, citing frustrations with his player budget and the club's failure to retain players.^[46]

Long-term player Richie Foran was announced as the new Inverness manager on the 30th May 2016, also announcing his player retirement.^[47] Foran was in charge of Caley Thistle for just under one-year before being sacked on 29 May 2017.^[48] During his time in charge, the club finished in last position in the Scottish Premiership, suffering relegation to the Scottish Championship on the final day of the season despite a 3–2 win over Motherwell. The club needed a win from Dundee over Hamilton Academical, to secure play-offs, which unfortunately did not come as Dundee succumbed to a 4–0 defeat.^[32]

A few weeks after the sacking of Foran, former manager John Robertson, who brought the club into the Premiership for the first time in their history in 2004, returned to manage the club in a bid to get them back to top flight. Doing this, he became the second former manager to return to managing the club, after Craig Brewster left in 2006 and came back for a second spell in 2007.

Leagues

• Scottish First Division (second tier):
  • Winners (2): 2003–04, 2009–10
• Scottish Second Division (third tier):
  • Runners up (1): 1998–99
• Scottish Third Division (fourth tier):
  • Winners (1): 1996–97
• North Caledonian League (reserve team):
  • Winners (2): 1994–95, 1997–98

Cups

• Scottish Cup:
  • Winners (1): 2014–15
• Scottish League Cup:
  • Runners up (1): 2013–14
• Scottish Challenge Cup:
  • Winners (2): 2003–04, 2017–18
  • Runners up (2): 1999–00, 2009–10
• Inverness Cup:
  • Winners (7): 1995–96, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2001–02, 2004–05, 2009–10
• North of Scotland Cup:
  • Winners (4): 1999–00, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2011–12
• Chic Allan Cup:
  • Winners (2): 1994–95, 1998–99
• Football Times Cup:
  • Winners (1): 1998–99
• PCT Cup:
  • Winners (1): 1998–99

Attendance

All competitions

At Telford Street Park

• Highest attendance: 4,931 v Ross County, 23 January 1996.
• Lowest attendance: 491 v Albion Rovers, 11 April 1995.

At Caledonian Stadium

• Highest attendance: 7,753 v Rangers, 20 January 2008.
• Lowest attendance: 635 v Clydebank, 14 September 1999.

At Pittodrie Stadium

• Highest attendance: 9,530 v Aberdeen, 16 October 2004.
• Lowest attendance: 1,125 v Dundee United, 23 November 2004.

Players

• All-time top scorer: Dennis Wyness, 139 Goals.
• All-time most appearances: Ross Tokely, 456 Appearances.
• Longest spell at club: Ross Tokely, 1996–2012, 17 years.
• Highest transfer sum paid: John Rankin from Ross County, £65,000.
• Highest transfer sum received: Ryan Christie to Celtic, £221,645.
• Most goals in a single season: Iain Stewart, 27 Goals.
• Most goals in a match: Billy Mckay, 5 goals, v Arbroath. 23 July 2013. (Friendly).
• Fastest Goal: George Oakley, 58 secs, v Crusaders, 18 February 2018. (Scottish Challenge Cup).
• Fastest hat-trick: Billy Mckay, 15 mins, v Arbroath, 23 July 2013. (Friendly).

Overall

• Biggest home victory: 8–1 v Annan Athletic, 24 January 1998 (Scottish Cup)
• Biggest away victory: 0–16 v Fort William, 31 July 2018 (North of Scotland Cup)
• Biggest home defeat: 0–5 v Dundee United, 9 March 2014 (Scottish Cup)
• Biggest away defeat: 6–0 v Airdrie, 22 September 2001 (First Division); 6–0 v Celtic, 22 September 2010 (League Cup); 6–0 v Celtic, 27 April 2014 (Premiership) and 6–0 v Celtic, 11 February 2017 (Scottish Cup)
• Goal milestones: The club's 1000th goal was scored on Saturday 9 February 2008 by club captain at the time, Grant Munro in a 1–1 draw away to St Mirren.^[49]
• Clean sheet record: 708 minutes – between 23 September and 25 November 2017.
• Longest Winning streak: 10 games – between 16 November 1996 and 15 February 1997.
• Longest Unbeaten streak: 22 games – between 2 November 1996 and 19 April 1997.
• Longest Losing streak: 8 games – between 29 November 2008 and 24 January 2009.

SPL / Premiership

• Record home victory: 6–1 v Gretna, 3 May 2008.
• Record away victory: 0–4 v Gretna, 27 October 2007 and 0–4 v Dundee United, 22 August 2010.
• Record home defeat: 1–5 v Motherwell, 18 November 2012.
• Record away defeat: 6–0 v Celtic, 27 April 2014.
• Most points in a season: 65, in 2014–15.
• Fewest points in a season: 34, in 2016–17.
• Best league placing: 3rd, in 2014–15.
• Worst league placing: 12th, in 2008–09 and 2016–17.
• Most goals scored in a season: 64, in 2012–13.
• Fewest goals scored in a season: 37, in 2008–09.
• Most goals conceded in a season: 71, in 2016–17.
• Fewest goals conceded in a season: 38, in 2005–06.
• Best Goals to Conceded Record: +13, in 2005–06.
• Worst Goals to Conceded Record: -27, in 2016–17.

European football

• Best run: Second Qualifying Round: 2015–16 (lost 0–1 on aggregate to Astra Giurgiu).
• Worst run: Second Qualifying Round: 2015–16 (lost 0–1 on aggregate to Astra Giurgiu).

Scottish Cup

• Best run: Winners: 2014–15 (won 2–1 against Falkirk).
• Worst run: First round: 1994–95 (lost 1–2 at home to Queen of the South).

Scottish League Cup

• Best run: Final: 2013–14 (lost 2–4 on penalties after 0–0 draw (aet), to Aberdeen).
• Worst run: First round; (4): 1995–96 (lost 3–5 on penalties after 1–1 draw (aet), (1–1 after 90 mins) away to Berwick Rangers), 2003–04 (lost 1–2 at home to Queen's Park), 2017–18 (finished second in group stage; eliminated) and 2018–19 (finished second in group stage; eliminated).

Scottish Challenge Cup

• Best run: Winners; (2): 2003–04 (won 2–0 against Airdrieonians) and 2017–18 (won 1–0 against Dumbarton).
• Worst run: First round; (4): 1995–96 (lost 1–2 away to Alloa Athletic), 1997–98 (lost 0–2 at home to Queen of the South), 2002–03 (lost 0–1 away to Berwick Rangers) and 2018–19 (lost 1–2 at home to Dunfermline Athletic).

Miscellaneous

• Last SFL goal of the old millennium and First SFL goal of the new millennium: Barry Wilson against Clydebank (27 December 1999) and Livingston (3rd January 2000) respectively.

Matches

Season	Competition	Round	Club	Home	Away	Aggregate
2015–16	UEFA Europa League	2Q	Astra Giurgiu	0–1	0–0	0–1

Notes

• 2Q: Second qualifying round