Bulgarian Defender And He Rose Unchallenged To Head Beyond The Reach Of Fon-Williams
Dundee moved off the foot of the Ladbrokes Premiership table with a well-deserved 2-1 win over 10-man Inverness at Dens Park.
- By TheDarkBlues
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Paul Hartley's side also leapfrogged their lacklustre Highland visitors thanks to goals in either half from striker Craig Wighton and defender Kostadin Gadzhalov.
Wighton put the hosts ahead with a fine 25th-minute finish and Gadzhalov headed them further ahead after 60 minutes, prior to Carl Tremarco's late header giving the visitors some hope until Lewis Horner's stoppage-time red card.
It means the Taysiders, who have won three of their last four league matches, are now sitting seventh in the table ahead of a hectic December when they will aim to climb even further up the league.
Dundee, who were unchanged from the side which lost late on to Rangers last time out, knew a victory would take them above Richie Foran's Inverness so had no shortage of incentive to deliver in front of the home fans.
Inverness, meanwhile, welcomed back midfielder Greg Tansey from suspension following his recent sending off against champions Celtic.
It was a slow start from both sides but, after 15 minutes, Inverness' Billy King tried his luck with a long-range effort which Scott Bain was glad to see soar over his crossbar.
At the other end, Dundee replied when full-back Cammy Kerr whipped over a left-wing cross and Marcus Haber's downward header went inches past Owain Fon-Williams' near post.
But, after 25 minutes, Wighton broke the deadlock.
The Dundee-born teenager ran onto Tom Hateley's pass just inside the box, before steadying himself and curling a 12-yard shot into Fon-Williams' far corner.
Wighton was in the thick of the action again just before the half-hour as Dundee sought a second goal.
This time he turned neatly inside the box and appeared to be brought down by Josh Meekings, but referee Andrew Dallas waved away their appeals for a penalty.
The visitors tried to get back on level terms in the 39th minute when Lewis Horner crossed from right for Tremarco, but his header went right into Bain's arms.
Dundee continued their search of a second goal after the break and Paul McGowan's deflected effort from distance was not too far away in the 53rd minute.
However, after 60 minutes, they did make it 2-0 through Gadzhalov in simple fashion.
Hateley's flighted free-kick was met by the Bulgarian defender and he rose unchallenged to head beyond the reach of Fon-Williams.
Inverness pulled a goal back in the 81st minute as Tremarco's looping header from Horner's deep cross beat Bain, but hopes of a late leveller came to an end when Horner was sent off deep into stoppage time for a last-man foul on Wighton as he raced clean through.
Match reaction
Dundee manager Paul Hartley: "We were pleased with how we played at Ibrox even though we lost late on, but the players have shown real character and determination to get three wins in the last four games.
"We have got some good players here and the change of shape at the back and having Marcus Haber up front for young Craig Wighton has made a real difference as Craig's talent is there and he is now producing it.
"That win takes us off the bottom of the table and it just shows what a few wins can do for you, but we know that Inverness played better than us at times, so we have to be happy with the result, but we can play better."
Inverness Caledonian Thistle manager Richie Foran: "We were the far better team, We played them off the park at times and that was our best performance of the season but lacked a cutting edge and we were a little bit too open at the back.
"I told the boys that was a great performance, but don't get me wrong, we have to start taking our chances when we are on top in games and stop conceding as many as we have been.
"That aspect of our game is not good enough and I have told them that we have to get better at the back to stop that happening and stick the ball in the net more ourselves.
"Dundee have gone up to sixth, which shows how the league is at the moment and if we go and score the goals from the chances that we are creating then we will be alright."
Line Ups
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1Bain
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55Gomis
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6O'Dea
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26Gadzhalov
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30Kerr
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7Hateley78'
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4Vincent
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18McGowan
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3Holt
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21Haber
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33Wighton
Substitutes
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9Loy
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10Duffy
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11Williams
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12Mitchell
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16Etxabeguren
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20El Bakhtaoui
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27Curran
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25Fon Williams
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17Horner
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5Warren
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6Meekings
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3Tremarco
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8Draper
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11Vigurs
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10Doran Cogan
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16Tansey
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20King
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26Doumbouya
Substitutes
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1Esson
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15Mulraney
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19Boden
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21Sutherland
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29Cole
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43MacRae
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