After a run of home games, it was back on the road and a long trip north to Inverness for our first game of February. Manager, Peter Murphy made two changes to the side that faced Dumbarton. With Benjamin Luissint missing, Harry Cochrane was back in the starting eleven as he returned from injury and Jordan Allan was handed his first start, with Lewis O’Donnell dropping to the bench.

The two sides had faced each other less than two weeks ago in a cracking re-arranged match at Palmerston and it would take a lot for this one to live up to the same. The Caley Jags have been good on their own patch, so it was no surprise that they made a good start. As they pushed forward in the opening five minutes, Cochrane made a block when Luis Longstaff set up Paul Allan.

Seven minutes later, Brennan Dickenson controlled well before playing it back to Mikey Hewitt, in turn he played it into the box, but Musa Dibaga collected. Within seconds, the keeper was called upon again when Dickenson won a corner. Josh Walker played it in and although the stopper got a hand to it, he couldn’t force it out of play, but Queens couldn’t get the back into the danger area.

With quarter of an hour gone, a long cross field pass fall to Longstaff but he was caught offside.

A good Queens move ended with Allan having a shot, but the keeper made himself big and the shot came back off his chest.

Midway through the half, Matty Douglas made a couple of clearances, the first from Adam MacKinnon and a second to halt Longstaff. And then with half an hour on the clock, the defender came out to block when MacKinnon got away from Cochrane.

As suspected the game wasn’t reaching the levels that the two sides produce in Dumfries, but Walker did well before Allan got the ball across the six-yard box where Dickenson was waiting but Dibaga came over the top to collect. And as the home side broke, Ross Stewart pushed the ball away as Longstaff crossed.

Two minutes later a long clearance was chased by Alfie Bavidge but as he raced through the middle Douglas got there ahead of him to usher the ball back to Stewart.

However, the same player did beat Queens number one, ten minutes before the break when he stayed onside, and the keeper came off his line to narrow the angle but was beaten as the shot was played underneath him into the far corner.

Queens then made their first substitution of the afternoon when Allan who was already on a yellow was walking a tight rope and was taken off by choice and replaced by Taylor Charters.

With half time approaching, Dibaga couldn’t collect a corner and as the ball came back out to Cochrane outside the box, the midfielder tried to chip the ball into the net, but his effort was just too high. And with the final chance of the first half, Oscar MacIntyre on the left played the ball into Adam Brooks inside the six-yard area but Charlie Gilmour cleared.

HALF TIME: Inverness CT 1 Queens 0

Within the opening minute of the restart, Brooks was on the end of a Walker pass, but his foot seemed to catch on the surface, and the shot didn’t have the power to cause a problem.

On the hour mark Alfie Stewart turned 20-yards from goal and hit a left foot shot, it was heading for the top corner, but Stewart pulled off a great save to knock it out for a corner.

Hewitt then won a corner for Queens that was played in by substitute Liam Smith, but it was straight into the arms of the goalie. Smith did do well five minutes later when he got into the box and squared it across goal, but neither Brooks nor Reece Lyon could get on the end of it.

With ten minutes remaining, Charters made his way into the box, but he went down too easy. And at the other end, Bavidge played the ball in and Longstaff tried to side foot its past Stewart, but the keeper was on it and collected.

Any chance of Queens getting anything from the game all but ended six minutes from time when substitute, Jack Brydon picked up a second yellow leaving his side to see out the remainder of the game a man down.

Looking to take advantage the home side pressured and Douglas cleared the ball over his own bar to help out his keeper. As the corner was played in, Stewart collected from MacKinnon. The keeper then punched clear when Longstaff cut the ball back to Billy McKay.

In added on time, under pressure, Ethan Cairns fired wide.

As the final whistle blew, Bavidge’s goal was enough to secure the points for the Highland side and leave Queens still searching for that first away win of the season.

FULL TIME: Inverness CT 1 Queens 0