ALEX FISHER was conspicuous as he slipped through the door, a trick he performed twice earlier in the afternoon to evade detection by a sleeping Motherwell defence. This time he was allowed to ghost into the company of the assembled press pack, distracted by the rumbling of discontent from behind the window.
On the other side of the glass, what had been a bizarre but upbeat picture had suddenly turned sinister. In the immediate wake of Inverness Caledonian Thistle’s confirmed relegation from the Ladbrokes Premiership, a dribble of fans bursting onto the pitch soon became a flood. Players were picked up from their knees and embraced by fans, selfies were taken with Richie Foran’s disconsolate lot before they were eventually allowed to trudge off the park.
It didn’t take long for the attention to turn to the board, and in particular chairman Kenny Cameron, as a group of around 100 young fans converged at the mouth of the tunnel. Chants of ‘sack the board’ as well as colourful requests for Cameron to leave the premises were still ringing out as Fisher introduced himself.
“I think we can come straight back because it's a very tight-knit team in there. At times, our quality can speak for itself,” said the 26-year-old. “Regrettably, we have finished last - but we've shown ourselves to be capable of some good things. So the team, if we stick together, will definitely turn things around very quickly.
“Truth be told, the dressing room was pretty flat after the game. The gaffer said his piece. It's a very disappointing occasion, to get so close, to put so much energy and put ourselves on the path to what would have been a great escape - it's quite a heavy comedown.
“But it's a strong-willed changing room and these are the experiences you have to learn from. No-one wants to lose games. Had we put maybe a couple of results together earlier in the season, it would have taken pressure off - but hindsight is a wonderful thing. We took it to the wire, we got our result on the day and focused on what we could control. It's just a shame the other result didn't go our way.”
It was a surreal afternoon as the curtain on what was ultimately a disastrous season was brought to a close with fight, victory and just the merest splash of sporadic revelry. A brace from Fisher coming within three minutes of Greg Tansey’s opener put Inverness into a commanding lead against a lacklustre Motherwell. The Lanarkshire side eventually got two back through James McFadden and a late Ryan Bowman penalty.
There is no lack of ability in this Inverness squad. Indeed, it’s no bold statement to declare they are not the worst football team in the Premiership in terms of ability. Quite far from it. This was evident again at the weekend. Iain Vigurs displayed a few nice touches, Liam Polworth controlled play and Ross Draper marshalled the midfield well.
But a lack of talent was never Caley Thistle’s problem. An absence of fight cursed them throughout this season at various stages. Time and time again a positive result was earned, but the character was simply not there to build any momentum. This was a fact which repeatedly frustrated their manager, a gutsy player in his own right, whose troops left it just a game too late in the end to finally follow Foran’s example.
“It’s not the last four or five games that have done us - it’s been all year,” said Ryan Esson, the Inverness goalkeeper. “We knew it was going to be a big ask once we got to March. We drew games we should have been winning and ultimately that cost us.
“The way we’ve finished this season will stand us in good stead going into the next season. We won our last two games and should have taken a point from the Kilmarnock game before that. It was a combination of things that cost us.”
Over to Motherwell, and Ben Heneghan, the club’s centre-half, says he is happy to remain at Fir Park next season despite being linked with a summer switch to Rangers. The defender has been one of several targets, along with team-mate Louis Moult, reportedly on the radar of Pedro Caixinha to bolster his squad for a Premiership push.
Going from Chester last season to a potential move to the Glasgow giants would be a massive leap for the former Everton kid, but Heneghan insists he remains focused on having a more prosperous season at Fir Park next time out.
"As far as I know, I’m a Motherwell player. We’ll see what happens over the summer," he said. "But I’ll be back in here pre-season, as far as I know. It’s nice to have the recognition but it’s not coming from me.
"There hasn’t been any contact with me. I just keep my head focused. If something happens, it happens. If it doesn’t, I’m happy here.
"It would be some leap from non-league, you could look at it that way. But I just keep my head down, enjoy my summer and get ready for pre-season.
"They’re huge clubs, known world wide. But, until I know any different, I’m here at Motherwell. I’ve got another year on my deal at Motherwell. I’ve had a chat. But, until I hear anything concrete, I’m still here."
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