Richie Foran gets off the mark with deserved win

ROSS DRAPER gave the game away with a crumpled smile and a subtle wink towards the manager’s fiery nature.

The theory that Richie Foran remains an oasis of tranquillity amid these early season teething troubles for Inverness Caley Thistle is myth, at least in part, so it seems.

Draper joked that, for all Foran’s apparent Zen-like calm under intense scrutiny, we should have seen him at half-time during the previous weekend’s 5-1 hammering at Tynecastle.

Whatever ructions occurred, in the same breath the commanding midfielder was quick to re-inforce the notion the Irishman’s managerial style was distinct from his stormy nature as a player.

Josh Meekings’ scrambled winner sealed Foran’s first league win in management after three straight defeats, plus a League Cup exit – and it was deserved. St Johnstone were poor and offered little.

Had Caley Thistle entered the international break pointless, pressure would only mount with Aberdeen and Celtic up next. But they still approach those challenges stuck at the bottom of the table on goal difference.

For Draper, man of the match and scorer of a crucial opener, it was time to acknowledge the new manager’s impressive temperament in his new profession, but also the stern challenge ahead.

The 6ft 4 ins tall playmaker said: “I’m a bit surprised by the manager’s calm in the technical area, but you have to suspect he has learned from his past managers.

“Sometimes, if you come in shouting and bawling, players switch off. Sometimes getting your point across calmly can give the players a better chance of taking it on board.

“He has been a player and he knows no-one deliberately plays badly. He is doing a good job and the players know that, which is why this is a good three points to kick-start his career.”

Draper, with his opener, took his tally to four goals already in the new campaign.

He stressed: “I’ve needed to add goals to my game and I’m pleased to get another.

“The win takes a bit of pressure off but we’re only four games into the season.

“There was this monkey on our shoulder about not having any points and while it’s good to get a win we are still bottom of the league and there is a lot of work to be done.

“We’ve got two big games coming up after the break and there will be a lot of work done before those games.”

Foran’s switch of Draper into a more advanced midfield role – while past manager John Hughes’ ploy – proved a masterstroke.

Alan Mannus deserved credit for a string of important saves – up to five sound stops as the home side dominated.

But Chris Kane found himself in space 12 yards out and lifted his shot wildly over under-worked Owain Fon Williams’ bar.

Iain Vigurs’ lovely chipped pass into the Saints penalty area created another superb opportunity after 27 minutes but Fisher fluffed a poor shot into the arms of Mannus.

The pattern continued into the second period and the deserved breakthrough came just before the hour.

David Wotherspoon took a booking for tripping King on the extreme left of the box. Tansey swirled a lovely free-kick across the six-yard box and Draper outleapt everyone with a towering close-range header – his fourth goal of the season.

Saints levelled with Richard Foster almost ripping the net from 20 yards out, firing high past Owain Fon Williams.

It seemed the hosts’ luck was out when man of the match Draper’s header was saved on the line by Mannus.

But another Tansey corner just into stoppage time sparked a massive scramble in Saints’ six-yard box before Josh Meekings squeezed the ball in at the back post.

For Northern Ireland international Alan Mannus, defeat was tough to take given his fine performance.

The Saints’ shotstopper admitted: “It’s frustrating, but over the course of the game we probably weren’t good enough.

“But when you don’t play that well you hope to try and dig out a result and we thought we’d done that getting the goal back.

“We’ve done that plenty of times over the years at St Johnstone. But we should have done better over the course of the game and that’s what it comes down to.”

Having repeatedly spared the visiting team damage with a mix of solid and exceptional saves, it was certainly tough on Mannus.

He was left exposed as Ross Draper headed the opener and was completely blinded by a mass of bodies as the second one fell to matchwinner Josh Meekings.

Mannus admitted: “I don’t know what happened for the winning goal. I only saw the ball at one point when it was pin-balling around the six-yard box.

“I was on the ground looking for it. On another day it might have ricocheted the other way.

“But we fought on and Richie Foster’s was a good goal. When you do that you hope it counts for more than just a good strike.”

As for Northern Ireland duty, Mannus knows the Euro Championships form of Michael McGovern means he is likely to play a side role in the World Cup Qualifying opener.

He added: “I’m happy with my own form. I feel good and coming back into training and feel good physically and mentally.

“I didn’t get any game time in France so I don’t know if I’m a better player for the experience. But the training was certainly good.

“I’m away with the Northern Ireland squad in the Czech Republic this week. I plan to keep the pressure on Michael McGovern.”