Butcher hails Caley's winning blend

24 October 2010 12:12
Inverness boss Terry Butcher believes he has found a winning blend away from home by combining youth with experience and reaping the results.[LNB] The Highland club beat Kilmarnock 2-1 at Rugby Park on Saturday to make it four away games unbeaten in the Scottish Premier League this term. They have now taken 10 points from a possible 12 on their travels this season.[LNB]Adam Rooney's disputed 42nd-minute penalty and a Johnny Hayes strike was enough to withstand a late Kilmarnock onslaught led by Rui Miguel's 75th-minute header.[LNB]Butcher said: "People keep asking me how we're doing it away from home and I keep saying I haven't a clue, but what a bunch of players they are.[LNB]"The first-half against St Johnstone last week, you'd think the players had never met each other before, but here they are battling hard for each other and by hook or by crook we held on and won the game.[LNB]"We've played better than that this season, but sometimes you have to come to a place like this against a quality side and grit it out even if it's against your philosophy.[LNB]"We defended well and it paid dividends and I have to credit the players' attitude. We've a few experienced ones, a lot of younger ones and not much in between.[LNB]"The young players are inspiring the older ones and neither want to let the other set of guys down. Nick Ross is only 18 and played in three different positions today.[LNB]"The older ones can see the younger ones running around for the cause and are saying they want to do the same, which they are."[LNB]Kilmarnock manager Mixu Paatelainen cast doubt on the penalty awarded by referee Euan Norris when Momo Sissoko felled Russell Duncan, but admitted his own players made individual mistakes.[LNB]For the Inverness second goal, Frazer Wright was badly caught in possession and Paatelainen accepted that elements of the loss were self-inflicted.[LNB]Paatelainen said: "According to the players, Momo never touched the player, but for my liking he goes too fast into that challenge anyway.[LNB]"He should slow down just before he tackles the player, the players say it was a dive, but from where I was sitting Momo should have known better inside the penalty box.[LNB]"If he never touched the player it's a shame because we don't want to concede penalties that aren't penalties.[LNB]"At the other end, I felt it was ball going to hand [from Inverness defender Graeme Shinnie], but we didn't get the penalty, unfortunately it didn't go to our liking.[LNB]"I felt the first-half was a good performance as well, we had good chances to score, but possibly we weren't decisive enough in front of their goal.[LNB]"I said to the boys in the dressing-room, that there comes a time when we get punished when we pass it from the back instead of launching it forward willy-nilly. There's never a good time, but the second goal came at a bad time for us.[LNB]"It was too tight for Frazer to pass, he should have gone for a safer option, but unfortunately he didn't and we got punished by a good finish."

Source: Team_Talk