IT took Danny Devine a matter of seconds to discern that Richie Foran was the real gaffer of the Inverness Caledonian Thistle dressing room. Now the central defender, who moved south from the Highlands to Partick Thistle this summer, is determined to show him who is boss.
The tangle of the Thistles is one of a number of intriguing match-ups on the opening day of the Ladbrokes Championship season, the trash talk between Devine and his old pals beginning pretty much the day this meeting at Firhill on Saturday was spat out by the SPFL's fixture computer. Foran finally inherited the top job in Inverness this summer, but Devine feels he moved up in the world when he travelled south this summer and is determined that the Maryhill side should carry on their early season momentum with victory against his old club.
A 2-0 victory against their Glasgow rivals Queen's Park means Partick Thistle have strolled through their BetFred group with an 100% record but making a fast start to the league campaign is even more vital - not least because Partick didn't win any of their first 10 matches in all competitions 12 months ago. How they could have done with those wins when they missed out on the top six by a solitary point.
"I laughed when the fixtures came out but it’s just one of these things and I just have to get on with it," said Devine. "Hopefully we pick up all three points. I’ve had a couple of texts since the fixtures were announced but it’ll all go out the window when the first whistle blows. Aaron Doran and Josh Meekings have been in touch but the main thing is that we get the win. We’re desperate to win the game and get off to a good start."
It is a rare accolade for a rookie to begin his coaching career in Scotland's top tier but Devine reckons he has the strength of character to carry it off. "If anyone can handle the step up Richie can," said the Northern Irishman. "In the changing room he was a real leader. Everyone respected him as a captain and a person. He won’t be fazed by it. This is a different situation with different tests for him but I think he’ll do well.
"He was great with me from the day I moved up," Devine added. "He’s hard but fair and I’m sure he’ll take that into management. I think the continuity is maybe the best thing for them. He’ll do well hopefully, just not too well."
As many kind words are heading in his old team's direction, Devine feels he has taken a step up in the world this summer and nothing that has happened in the opening exchanges of this season dispels that notion. Caley Thistle may have reached a League Cup final and won a Scottish Cup during his time at the club, but the Northern Irishman sees no reason why Partick shouldn't do likewise during this campaign. While goalkeeper Tomas Cerny was twice tested during this win against League One opposition, Partick had the game in their grip from the moment, after six minutes, when Chris Erskine looped in a header for the opener, the game eventually made safe with quarter of an hour remaining with a header from Liam Lindsay.
"I think I’ve moved to a bigger club," said Devine. "Based in Glasgow, Partick Thistle are a big club and hopefully we can challenge for the top six and on the trophy front. I don’t see why we can’t. You look at Ross County winning a cup last season and Inverness the season before. So there’s no reason why we can’t. It’s been a great start for us but we definitely want to put a marker down. Getting those first three points at home would set us up nicely."
While Thistle were without Christie Elliott, Gary Fraser, Abdul Osman and Stuart Bannigan, manager Alan Archibald appears to have more depth and variety in his squad than in previous years but the first priority remains just ensuring SPFL safety. "Every year we try to stay in the league then try to build on it," he said.
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