Dundee went down to a 3-2 defeat this afternoon at the Kilmac Stadium against Inverness Caledonian Thistle. Ryan Sweeney gave the Dee an early lead but Cameron Harper quickly equalised. Caley Thistle took the lead from a Billy McKay penalty in first half injury time. Joe Grayson made it 2-2 early in the second but Caley Thistle survived fierce pressure to snatch a late winner with Harper’s second goal. A frustrating afternoon for the Dark Blues was completed when Sweeney picked up a second yellow card and was sent off.
Dundee took the initiative from the start. Caley Thistle struggled to cope with the Dee’s deliveries from set pieces. Every corner, and there were plenty, threatened to give the Dee a goal.
The Dark Blues came agonisingly close to opening the scoring from a corner after five minutes. Paul McMullan whipped the ball into the six yard box for Lee Ashcroft to head down. Zach Robinson gave it a helping flick from close range, but the ball was cleared off the line by Billy McKay and again from Robinson’s follow up, with the referee ignoring appeals for handball and that the ball had crossed the line.
Dundee deservedly went ahead after 12 minutes. Joe Grayson’s corner into the goalmouth caused chaos in the away defence with the ball ricocheting off players and ending up in the goal. Ryan SWEENEY was credited with the final touch.
The Dee were in charge, but frustratingly shipped a soft equaliser three minutes later. A possibly unnecessary corner was not cleared; Lee Ashcroft miskicked. The ball broke to Cameron HARPER on the edge of the penalty area and he took full advantage by curling a superb shot into the top corner.
Dundee continued to win repeated corners that had Caley Thistle’s defence flapping in consternation. Ridgers fluffed one, but his defence cleared. The Inverness keeper did much better with another one, tipping Ashcroft’s powerful header over the bar.
A smart move down the right played Jordan McGhee into space, but instead of passing inside to the unmarked Paul McMullan he shot wide.
The Dark Blues were dominating, but not creating enough clear chances in open play in the later stages of the first half. It was a shock when Caley Thistle took the lead against the run of play in first half injury time.
Harry Sharp was judged to have fouled Harper who was chasing a ball wide of goal, near the byline. The referee pointed to the spot and Billy McKAY converted with a shot off the inside of the post.
There was a scare in the Dee goalmouth in the opening seconds of the second half but Sharp grabbed the ball to end the scramble before McKay or Doran could take advantage.
Dundee then took control to exert fierce pressure on Inverness. Paul McGowan came on to replace Ben Williamson, and brought fresh ideas and invention to the Dundee attacks.
Eleven minutes after the restart Dundee were back on level terms. Paul McMullen’s corner wasn’t cleared and the ball was switched back by McGowan over the head of the advancing defence for McMullen to smash a ferocious shot that Joe GRAYSON, almost on the goalline, turned into the roof of the net.
The Dark Blues cranked up the pressure and the Caley Thistle defence rode their luck repeatedly. Ashcroft’s header from a corner was cleared off the line by Boyd.
Ridger saved McMullen’cross shot and then pulled off a great save to keep out the follow up from Josh Mulligan, who should probably have given the keeper no chance.
The pressure on Caley Thistle was relentless. McMullen arrowed through the Inverness defence with a speedy run, but Ridger saved again. Mulligan saw another shot saved by Ridgers after a prolonged spell with the Dee attacking in the penalty area.
Zak Rudden and Niall McGinn replaced Zach Robinson and Josh Mulligan. Rudden had a shot blocked at the end of another lenghty scramble following a corner.
After 84 minutes Inverness broke out of defence to grab a winner, with the Dee focussed on winning the game and failing to keep the midfield tight. HARPER was allowed too much space and scored with another excellent shot from 22 yards.
A frustrating day for the Dark Blues was capped with Ryan Sweeney picked up a second yellow card when he pushed Zak Delaney over. That was the Dee captain’s second red card in successive league games he has played. With an extra man Caley Thistle were able to see the game out, wasting time until the final whistle.
A draw would have been disappointing today, but a defeat was absurd. Dundee could, and should, have won this game comfortably. Inverness were extremely fortunate to get anything from the match. Their defending, at set pieces especially, was poor. The Dark Blues should have punished the shoddy defending and scored more than two goals. Inverness rarely posed problems in open play, but Dundee were often too open as they chased the winning goal.
The match was marred by incessant controversy arising from a highly questionable refereeing performance. The Dark Blues should not blame that, or Caley Thistle’s luck, for the defeat. With a bit more composure throughout the team, in attack, midfield and defence Dundee would surely have got the three points they deserved today. The Dark Blues should have put themselves in a position where they did not have to worry about luck or the referee.
Dundee FC 4-3-2-1
Sharp
French, Sweeney (c), Ashcroft, Marshall
Williamson (McGowan 55), McGhee, Grayson
McMullan, Mulligan (McGinn 69)
Robinson (Rudden 69)
Unused subs: Legzdins (gk), Kerr, Sheridan, Anderson, Cameron, Strachan.
Goals: (Sweeney 12), Grayson (56).
Booked: Grayson (dissent), Sweeney (fouls on Billy McKay and Delaney), Williamson (foul on Allardice).
Sent off: Sweeney (two yellows).
Inverness Caledonian Thistle
Ridgers
Carson, Deas, Devine, Delaney
Allardice, Harper
Samuels (Doran 40), Boyd, Daniel Mackay (Hyde 84)
Billy McKay (Oakley 74)
Unused subs: Cameron Mackay (gk), Ram, Shaw, Calum MacKay.
Goals: Harper (15, 84), Billy McKay (pen 45+1).
Booked: Devine (foul on Robinson), Ridgers (dissent).
Attendance: 4,396.
Referee: Peter Stuart. Assistants: Andy Milne, Gordon McCabe.
Report: James Christie.
