Partick Thistle will welcome Inverness Caledonian Thistle to the Energy Check Stadium for the first leg of their Scottish Championship promotion playoff quarter-final on Tuesday evening.
The hosts finished one place and seven points worse off than their upcoming opponents, with both vying to meet Arbroath in the semi-finals.
Match preview
Posting a paltry two wins in their last nine Scottish Championship fixtures certainly left Partick Thistle vulnerable to a late Raith Rovers charge, but Ian McCall's side managed to hold off the threat of their rivals to sneak into fourth spot for the 2021-22 season.
A second consecutive promotion after their storming League One season last year would represent quite the comeback from Partick Thistle, who plied their trade at the top level of Scottish football less than five years ago before their 2017-18 relegation to the second tier.
A spate of early injuries did McCall no favours as his side went down 3-1 to Ayr United on Friday - a result which confirmed their opponents' stay in the Championship - and McCall was forced to watch that one from his home due to a bout of illness.
An altercation between a supporter and defender Richard Foster summed up a somewhat underwhelming end to the campaign for Partick Thistle, who have only won one of their last four games in front of their own supporters and have failed to score more than once in a home game since October.
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While Partick Thistle were busy slumping to a lowly end-of-season defeat, Inverness put four past Hamilton Academical to round off a stellar regular-season spring run and ensure the wind would be firmly in their sails before the playoffs.
A 28-minute flurry of strikes saw Tom Walsh bag a brace alongside Shane Sutherland and Joe Hardy, and while the second half was certainly more tame by comparison, Inverness could afford to conserve their energy after a barnstorming start to the contest.
Billy Dodds was unable to lead his side past Arbroath or Kilmarnock into the top three of the table, but Inverness ended the regular season with six wins from eight to open up a commanding lead over Partick Thistle, although a run of just two wins from nine on the road is not a recipe for success in a first leg with so much at stake.
There is only a three-day gap before Partick Thistle travel to the Caledonian Stadium for the second leg, and Dodds's side failed to win or score in their two regular-season meetings with McCall's men at the Energy Check Stadium, most recently going down to a late Kevin Holt goal in a 1-0 March defeat.
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Team News
Partick Thistle were dealt two further injury blows before the half-time whistle blew against Ayr United, with Kyle McAllister and Kyle Turner being forced off with issues on Friday.
The nature of the pair's injuries remains unclear at this point, while captain Ross Docherty was also forced off with calf tightness but expects to be fine for the first leg here.
Stuart Bannigan is on hand to deputise for Turner should the midfielder not make the cut, while McAllister's possible absence in attack could see Connor Murray handed an opportunity on the right.
Inverness did not come out of their thrashing of Hamilton unscathed either, as centre-back Wallace Duffy was hauled off with a calf injury, which Dodds is hoping is only a "tweak" and not a "tear".
The visiting boss did not rule out the prospect of Duffy being available for the first leg, but Sean Welsh is ready to come into the back three alongside Robbie Deas if needed.
Dodds otherwise has no reason to alter the side that taught Hamilton a footballing lesson on Friday, where goalkeeper Mark Ridgers only saw 45 minutes of action before being taken off for a rest.
Partick Thistle possible starting lineup:
Sneddon; McKenna, Mayo, Akinola, Foster; Banniga, Docherty, Crawford; Murray, Jakubiak, Smith
Inverness possible starting lineup:
Ridgers; Carson, Welsh, Deas, Harper; Sutherland, MacGregor, Hyde, Walsh; Hardy, McKay
We say: Patrick Thistle 1-2 Inverness
Despite their somewhat disappointing end to the campaign, Partick Thistle's form ought to go out the window in a playoff encounter, especially given Inverness' struggles at the Energy Check Stadium this term.
The momentum is firmly with the visitors, though, and McCall's injury and illness woes could see Partick Thistle cede a first-leg advantage to an in-form Caley Thistle side.
Ben Knapton
