DODDS HAS NO DOUBTS OVER MARATHON MEN

INVERNESS boss Billy Dodds has insisted he has no fears over his players’ fitness as they aim to make history by reaching the top flight. Tonight’s Premiership play-off second leg against St Johnstone at McDiarmid Park is Caley Thistle’s sixth game in a gruelling 20-day schedule after seeing off both Partick Thistle and Arbroath. No team has ever successfully negotiated their way through all three rounds of the play-off schedule to win promotion. But after coming from 2-0 down in the first leg in the Highlands on Friday night to draw 2-2, Dodds has zero concerns over his Premiership hopefuls running out of steam in their push for glory. ‘I’m not worried about our fitness,’ said Dodds (pictured). ‘We finished as the stronger team on Friday, so the fitness is certainly there. ‘We had a good week’s rest between the Arbroath second leg and the first St Johnstone game on Friday. ‘It was physical after we played Partick going into the Arbroath game but I felt we were rested up well. ‘We are not the favourites but we have got ourselves back in the tie. ‘No team are favourites now because we are level. ‘At half-time on Friday, St Johnstone were heavy favourites. There’s pressure — and pressure can do strange things in football.’ Dodds expects a healthy contingent of Caley Thistle fans to travel down the A9 to cheer on their side in their bid to return to the top flight for the first time in five years. ‘I don’t think the fans would have snapped up tickets at half-time when we were 2-0 down,’ he admitted. ‘I think around 700 or so were sold at that point and they might have been handing them back! But I think we will sell even more now because the supporters know we are on the cusp. ‘We are nearly there but St Johnstone will be the same because their support was fabulous. ‘Our supporters were also great on Friday and I’d expect the same. It will be noisy, tense and nervous. ‘But my players now believe they belong at this level. At the start of the game, they didn’t believe it. ‘But by the end on Friday night in terms of fitness, belief, taking the ball on, scoring goals and having a killer instinct — it was all there. I hope we start like that tonight.’