Queen’s Park 1 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 4

Charlie Fox dropped out of the home squad due to a slight knock with Lewis Reid brought in from the start as his replacement with Stuart McKinstry handed his first taste of league action from the start.

Inverness skipper Billy McKay kicked off however the Spiders were soon in possession as the ball was played out for a throw in. Reid got an early touch as he played a pass out of defence however the opening three minutes saw nothing in terms of chances created.

Stuart McKinstry showed a lovely touch on the left wing on five minutes as he moved away from his marker to set up an attack which resulted in a dangerous cross to the back post that just eluded Ruari Paton.

The visitors earned the game’s first corner on nine minutes through a deflected shot however Dom Thomas rose and headed the cross away from the danger area.

Queen’s grabbed the lead on 10 minutes with the goal coming from the right wing where Ben McPherson charged forward and found Thomas. The skipper went past his marker and crossed into the six-yard box where Paton just failed to connect however Turner got the ball under control before turning and slotting past Mark Ridgers.

Six minutes later, and after Duncan Ferguson’s side had created a half-chance at the other end that Tommy Robson mopped up, Jack Thomson released Paton who looked set to net until Nikola Ujdur slid in and took the ball off his toes.

On 21 minutes an equaliser arrived from the Inverness right as Nathan Shaw was allowed to wriggle clear and pick out a cut-back that was perfect for Max Anderson to guide past Calum Ferrie from 18 yards.

With half an hour gone Shaw created danger again with a run and chipped pass that was chested down by McKay however Ferrie was perfectly placed to gather the striker’s shot.

Ferrie was again well-placed to keep out an Ujdur drive with his knees before Queen’s threatened with a lightning raid kicked off by Jack Thomson that was ended when a shot from McKinstry was charged down.

Ten minutes from the break McKay had a close-range strike ruled out for offside with the visitors denied again on 38 minutes when Ferrie pulled off a tremendous triple save to keep out Shaw, McKay and Anderson.

Despite being under pressure Queen’s looked to get the game to the Highlanders and five minutes from the break they almost grabbed a second goal as the ball was worked to Thomson 16 yards out however the midfielder’s shot cracked against the bar with McKinstry unable to convert the rebound.

Inverness boss Duncan Ferguson who had picked up a yellow card when McKay’s goal was disallowed, picked up a second one, and was banished to the stand, in first half injury time after claims for a penalty after Shaw tumbled were denied.

Half-time – Queen’s Park 1 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 1

The second half looked to have started in spectacular fashion for Queen’s as Paton ran free however an offside flag ended the chance of a second goal. As Queen’s continued to press their appeals for a penalty were ignored as Thomson crashed to the ground as he chased a McKinstry pass.

Nine minutes into the restart McKinstry showed a nice touch again as he came off the left wing and darted towards Ridgers’ goal before whipping in a shot that just flashed wide of the far post.

McKinstry won a corner three minutes later and Alex Bannon did well to get on the end of the ball as it was lofted in however there were no takers for his knockdown.

McPherson did well to block a shot from Anderson on 59 minutes however the Caley Jags took the lead from the resultant corner as Cameron Harper’s dead ball was flicked home by the head of Ujdur.

Ferrie did well to punch a free-kick clear on 66 minutes under great pressure with David Wotherspoon sending the loose ball over.

Two minutes later Bannon appeared in the visitors’ box again with his footwork creating an opportunity this time however again there were no takers.

Home Head Coach Robin Veldman made four substitutions after falling behind and adjusted the shape of his team and the changes almost worked quickly as McPherson popped up in an advanced position with his cross just scrambled away.

Unfortunately, Queen’s Park fell two goals behind on 75 minutes when Wotherspoon was picked out and he danced his way past Reid before slamming a shot past Ferrie.

Five minutes later Wotherspoon was fouled by Cameron Bruce on the touchline and McKay netted the resultant penalty to make the score 4-1.

Queen’s Park – Calum Ferrie, Ben McPherson, Alex Bannon, Lewis Reid, Tommy Robson (Cameron Bruce 70), Jack Thomson (Louis Longridge 59), Jack Spong (Will Tizzard 70), Jack Turner, Dom Thomas, Ruari Paton, Stuart McKinstry (Barry Hepburn 59).
Unused substitutes – Sam Kane (G/k), Aaron Healy, Patrick Jarrett, Lucas McCormick, Zach Mauchin.

Inverness Caledonian Thistle – Mark Ridgers, Wallace Duffy (Jake Davidson 84), Cameron Harper, Daniel Devine, Charlie Gilmour (Sean Welsh 90), Billy Mckay (Harry Lodovica 83), Max Anderson, Morgan Boyes, Nathan Shaw (Luis Longstaff 81), David Wotherspoon (Adam Brooks 83), Nikola Ujdur.
Unused substitutes – Cameron MacKay (G/k), Zak Delaney, Robbie Thompson, Cillian Sheridan.

Referee: Craig Napier.