Win over Motherwell not enough to save Inverness from relegation

20 May 2017 05:39

Inverness have been relegated from the Ladbrokes Premiership despite beating Motherwell as Hamilton's victory consigned the Highlanders to the drop.

Caley Thistle entered the final day of the season one point adrift of Accies, and with a considerably worse goal difference, so Hamilton's 4-0 win over Dundee decided Inverness' fate.

Accies were 3-0 up inside an hour and Inverness knew they were heading for the second tier at that point, although three goals in four second-half minutes earned them a 3-2 success over Well and ensured they at least went down fighting.

Greg Tansey's 64th-minute opener started a flurry of goals, with Alex Fisher then claiming a quickfire brace for the Highlanders before substitute James McFadden pulled one back for Motherwell within a minute of coming on.

Ryan Bowman's stoppage-time penalty could not prevent Inverness recording a third win in four at the end of the season, but that run proved to be a case of too little too late due to Hamilton's comfortable home victory.

Accies knew three points would stave off relegation, at least for now, though they must now face Dundee United in the relegation play-off after thrashing the city's current top-flight side.

Rakish Bingham and Giannis Skondras scored within two minutes of each other midway through the first half and Dougie Imrie's penalty 11 minutes into the second period meant Hamilton could breathe easily, even though Inverness took control elsewhere.

Ali Crawford made it 4-0 with 14 minutes remaining and ensured they head into the two-legged clash with Dundee United in fine fettle.

Elsewhere, Liam Boyce's brace earned Ross County a come-from-behind 2-1 success over Kilmarnock.

Killie had gone ahead through Conor Sammon's penalty early on, only for the in-form Boyce to level before the break and then win it with a delicious chipped finish.

Northern Ireland international Boyce finished with 23 league goals - two more than Celtic's Scott Sinclair, whose side play on Sunday - and furthered his case for involvement in his country's World Cup qualifier with Azerbaijan next month.

Source: PA