Inverness CT 1 - 1 Aberdeen

Aberdeen had to settle for a draw in Inverness as they slipped out of the top six. All the action came in the second half after a fairly forgettable opening 45 minutes. Smith struck in the 55th minute with a spectacular 30-yard drive into the top corner. The home side equalised when Esson could only parry a Proctor shot and substitute Bayne fired the loose ball into the net. The Dons have now drawn the last three matches and now face Hibernian at Pittodrie next week.

Aberdeen threatened first and Dodds took no chances in the first minute when he booted the ball out of play as Nicholson threatened. Aberdeen had made the better start to the match and in the 6th minute Muirhead broke on the left and delivered a telling cross that was headed wide by Crawford. The visitors were now laying siege to the Inverness goal as the home side struggled to get out of their own half. Muirhead was causing problems and he won the first corner of the match in the 11th minute. Unfortunately the delivery from Smith was poor and the ball was easily cleared. Two minutes later Mackie had an effort blocked then McNaughton went close with a clever shot that floated inches wide.

Inverness threatened in the 17th minute as Wyness and Dargo combined but Severin was on hand to sweep up. A minute later Dargo again found himself in a good position but squandered the chance when he failed to pick out his striking partner. Aberdeen then went close seconds later when Severin headed a Smith free kick straight into the arms of Brown. Aberdeen were almost caught in the 25th minute as the home side broke with Aberdeen committed in numbers. Fortunately Dargo was well offside and play was halted. A minute later Aberdeen wasted a good free kick opportunity before Wyness and Dargo combined well after the ex-Don left Diamond trailing in his wake.

Calderwood reacted by replacing Dempsey with Winter and the substitute almost made an immediate impact. A corner was nodded down by Severin and the midfielder's shot was blocked. A minute later Crawford created space for himself and drilled a shot wide of the target. In a final throw of the dice John Stewart replaced Steve Crawford in the 80th minute. Two minutes later McNaughton burst forward and fired his effort over the bar. There were appeals for a spot kick in the 84th minute as Nicholson was tumbled, but the infringement happened outside the box and the free kick was easily defended.

Then intense pressure ended with Brown saving a Lovell header after the striker latched on to a Severin cross. With a minute remaining Inverness broke and Esson was forced into a save from Wyness. Aberdeen threatened in injury time as Severin went close. The home side cleared and broke quickly. Fortunately Anderson got back in time to ensure the Dons earned their point. At the end of the day they will be disappointed after dominating much of the match.

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Match Stats:

		ICT	Dons
Goal Attempts		7	10
On Target		5	4
Corners		1	3
Possession		49%	51%

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