Inverness CT 1 - 1 Kilmarnock: Golobart is both villain and hero

The Caley Thistle manager saw his team dictate and dominate for most of the 90 minutes yet fail to capitalise in a display he felt summed up their season.

“Toothless, not ruthless,” was how the former Rangers and England captain summarised after the 1-1 draw ended any lingering top six ambitions for his team.

“I can’t believe it. I’m going to get a CD at the start of the season and just rattle off the same old story,” Butcher said.

“It’s like Groundhog Day. I don’t think I’ve ever dominated a match so much with Motherwell or Caley Thistle in the SPL.

“We’ve never had so many opportunities. We got into great positions and haven’t put them away.

“We’re toothless not ruthless, when it comes to it. We work hard to get into good positions and picked up good second balls. It was waves of attack and we could have got a deck-chair for Ryan Esson.”

If Spaniard Golobart’s calamitous first-half moment marred an otherwise dominant Inverness display, there were other guilty parties after chance-after-chance went astray.

On 19 occasions – eight on target, 11 off, the art of sticking the ball in the back of the net eluded the hosts.

Given the buzz of anticipation surrounding next Sunday’s League Cup final showdown with Celtic, Killie’s players had made all the right pre-match noises. There were four strategic changes, perhaps with an eye on Hampden, although striker Dean Shiels was suspended.

Caley Thistle’s season-long injury afflictions had spread to attacking areas with the flair of Jonny Hayes sorely missed at times.

The hosts quickly looked the hungrier and more focused side and, at times linking superbly with little passes in the last third.

Before their opening goal, Killie’s sole threat saw a Mahamadou Sissoko header knocked over the bar by home defender Josh Meekings.

In contrast, the hosts probed and found rhythm some with Sam Winnall and Billy McKay buzzing around dangerously in the attacking areas.

Of the numerous opportunities, the Highlanders should have scored after 13 minutes when Richie Foran’s clever through-pass sent in McKay.

The Northern Ireland Under-21 player cut wide past Killie keeper Cammie Bell before stumbling.

By the time the ball broke back to Winnall for an eight-yard strike, Bell was back on his feet to block superbly.

The chances mounted and there was disbelief when calamity struck Terry Butcher’s side after 31 minutes.

As the ball bounced inside the home box, Golobart rashly attempted a backward scissor-kick clearance facing his own goal.

To the on-loan Wigan defender’s horror, the mis-hit arced up and over Ryan Esson and nestled in the corner of the net.

Having mostly dominated to no avail, Caley Thistle picked up where they left off in the second period.

Immediately, McKay carved space superbly for Greg Tansey to lash a shot low and wide.

Soon after Killie keeper Bell required treatment, injured by Golobart’s eagerness to lunge in at a lost cause.

McKay’s curving run in from the right then ended with a curling toe-poke just past the far post as the hosts missed opportunity count continued to rise.

The absence of a killer touch was again apparent as a well-worked Inverness move on the right ended with Gregory Tade firing wildly over from the cusp of the box.

Richie Foran was blocked brilliantly from ten yards by Bell, who later managed a saving touch to tip a McKay blast over the bar with seven minutes left, but Killie’s luck ran out a minute later.

It was a moment of redemption for Golobart, with Shane Sutherland’s deflected cross sparking chaos.A Foran header was palmed away by Bell before a McKay attempt was blocked on the line. The ball spun on the line and Golobart atoned for his own goal with the final touch from barely a yard out.

MAN OF THE MATCH Cammie Bell (Kilmarnock) Several top drawer saves from the on-form keeper, but ran out of luck late on.

TALKING POINT Kenny Shiels swore TV showed the Caley Thistle leveller was off-side.

Referee: C Murray. Attendance: 3,060