Rovers frustrated in Highland draw

INVERNESS CT 0 RAITH ROVERS 0

Raith Rovers last night missed the chance to pull clear in second place in the Championship with a goalless draw in the Highlands.

John McGlynn’s side finished the stronger but had to settle for a point which took the Kirkcaldy side two clear of Fife rivals Dunfermline and Queen of the South.

Caley Thistle are now without a win in six games and interim boss Neil McCann is still left chasing his first win since taking over, though the point moved them above Ayr United and Arbroath.

Inverness made two changes from the midweek defeat to Morton, with Sean Welsh and Daniel MacKay in for Wallace Duffy and James Keatings.

Their dire recent form had seen them slip away from promotion contention to real fears of relegation.

Raith have enjoyed a resurgent season back in the Championship, soaring up to second, and have Kai Kennedy in their ranks.

The Rangers kid spent the first part of the campaign on loan with the Caley Jags, before returning to Ibrox to sign a new deal and be subsequently loaned out again.

Instability at the back in the home ranks was obvious from the start. With two makeshift fullbacks, Robbie Deas and David Carson, in place, the flanks were ripe for Raith to exploit.

Their first foray came on eight minutes, with Reghan Tumilty’s delivery narrowly evading Gozie Ugwu for Brad Mckay to scoop clear.

Kennedy almost capitalised on a Mckay error to fashion a chance for the visitors, as he seized on a loose ball from the defender and tore at Carson. However, there were bodies back to block the cross.

Centre-back Frankie Musonda nearly profited from further indecision in the home defence from a corner, scooping his shot over the bar.

The hosts’ fortunes of late were summed up by a 29th-minute chance. Daniel MacKay saw his shot evade Jamie MacDonald and clip the inside of the post.

Kieran MacDonald somehow managed to keep it out but Roddy MacGregor looked sure to crash in the rebound. However, his shot hit the prone defender on the line and Raith survived.

While Ugwu remained a threat at the opposite end of the park, Nikolay Todorov was the focal point of Inverness’ game plan.

He was limited to a couple of half-chances before the interval.

Inverness pushed on in the second half and Welsh thumped the post with a header, while Shane Sutherland was played in behind the Raith defence but was unable to lift the ball over the advancing goalkeeper Jamie MacDonald.

The hosts also felt they had a clear penalty call waved away by Steven McLean too, when Mckay went down under the challenge of Dylan Tait.

Raith’s goal threat had dimmed in the second period and the lively Kennedy had been subdued.

A snappy interaction with Carson, after the makeshift defender had chopped him down, showed Kennedy was certainly not making friends on his return to the Highlands.

Inverness’ forward play had improved with Sutherland and MacGregor combining but Raith created a flurry of late chances as they looked to secure the win.

However, the scoresheet remained blank and Raith now sit 13 points behind leaders Hearts with a game in hand.

The sides meet again on Tuesday when Inverness visit Stark’s Park.