Shell-shocked Lichties look to bounce back

Steven Doris admits shellshocked Arbroath are hurting badly after taking a hammering in the Highlands but are determined to bounce back quickly in the league.

The Lichties were swept aside by the rampant hosts but could begin the recovery process back at the same venue tomorrow night as they face the Inverness under-20s on Irn Bru Cup duty.

Arbroath were missing a clutch of players through suspension – Jim Scott, Ryan McCord and Ricky Little – and could name only two outfield substitutes.

They also looked dead on their feet at times just three days after the cup defeat to Cowdenbeath.

Doris, expressing his disappointment, was making no excuses and pointed to the importance of regrouping for the cup test.

The 27-year-old striker, who had spells with clubs including Dundee and St Johnstone, said: “Inverness is a hard place to come. I was up here last year with Stirling Albion so knew what to expect.

“I think we perhaps showed them a bit too much respect in terms of letting them have the ball. We never really got up the field and pressed them.

“The early goal also put the heads down a wee bit.

“In the second half, we created a bit more in terms of chances but a lot of the boys are hurt by the result. We never did ourselves justice.

“When the Betfred Cup draw was made it was a good group for us to be part of and we started not too badly. But the last couple of results for us were a wee bit of a setback.”

Had they been fully ruthless, Caley Thistle would have hit double figures. Scott Boden netted a hat-trick, with Billy King, Carl Tremarco (2) and Ian Vigurs also finding the net.

Arbroath manager Dick Campbell said: “I’ve been on the end of seven goals before and it’s not pleasant.

“I’ve already made it known I’m not a lover of the new system. That’s seven full-time teams we’ve played now and I can’t believe that the week before the league season even begins I’m needing to give my players a rest.

“We had guys suspended who will play in the team regularly and we can’t afford that against a team of Caley Thistle’s calibre.”

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