Ross Tokely believes Inverness have finally earned the respect of the rest of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League thanks to their impressive return to the top flight.
The Highlanders reclaimed their place among Scottish football's elite this summer after triumphing in the Irn-Bru First Division and Tokely claims most teams thought they would be the whipping boys this season. Instead, Terry Butcher's men have more than held their own in the SPL, with an unbeaten away record stretching back more than a year helping propel them to fourth in the table.
"It's taken a while for us to get any respect," the full-back said. "When we got in the league first of all the SPL teams thought they would just roll over us. We've had to work hard to get an established name for ourselves. Getting relegated was a blow but we have come up and shown we can play with the big boys."
He added: "I don't think where we are is a false position at all, I think we've merited where we are and we want to stay there.
"I think teams are fearing us, we've got guys who will go out there and attack, we've got the skill and the speed and we will cause teams bother.
"When teams are at home, their fans expect them to come out and play and that means less pressure on us and that suits us."
Tokely would love to see Caley Thistle end 2010 with their unbeaten run on the road still intact.
He added: "The challenge is to keep the record going. Every one of us is proud of that record.
"When we were 2-0 down against Celtic we knew we had a fight on our hands to keep it going.
"We watched Hearts on Tuesday against Motherwell and they are a physical side and we will definitely need to be at our best to get something from the game."
Source: PA
