inverness ct 0 qos 0
Gary Naysmith felt a stalemate in the Highlands proved there was far more to Queen of the South than mere firepower. The Doonhamers have been praised for their Stephen Dobbieinspired goals spree so far this season. But the blank in Inverness was their fourth clean sheet from eight Championship games – a tally the former Scotland defender finds highly encouraging. Naysmith, who felt a draw was a fair result after a poor spectacle in the Highlands, said: “I like to get consistency from my team and we’ve now had four clean sheets in five games in the league. “It shows how hard the lads are working because when you have the attacking flair of Dobbie, Lyndon Dykes, Andrew Stirling, Gary Harkins and Josh Todd and still get that amount of clean sheets, it shows they’re putting in the graft as well. “I would never turn down a point at Inverness. I never set up to get a draw, but I think a draw is a good point for us.” In a blustery wind, Queen of the South started strongly, initially troubling the home defence with good movement and intent. Caley Thistle, unchanged for a fourth match, took time to warm to the task although Aaron Doran’s 25-yard attempt had to be parried by keeper Alan Martin. Caley Thistle began to find fluency after the half hour, but the better play failed to prise open the Doonhamers’ defence. The second half opened with Callum Semple heading over the home bar from Stephen Dobbie’s corner. The hosts resorted to the speculative, with Sean Welsh rocketing wide from distance with the breeze at his back. Just after the hour, home manager John Robertson decided an extra striker was needed, bringing on Nathan Austin for winger Tom Walsh. Stephen Dobbie’s lack of involvement was a talking point but after 67 minutes the Queens frontman almost split the cross bar with a 30-yard free-kick. Home pressure built towards the final whistle with a low Rooney cross belted clear by Semple, but it was all in vain. Home manager John Robertson said: “I don’t think either team did enough to win the game.”