Marius Niculae ensured a happy Highland homecoming for Craig Brewster last night as Inverness wore down plucky Arbroath, writes Alasdair Fraser.
The 28 times capped Romanian and his more established strike partner, Dennis Wyness, shared the goals as they worked to impress the player-manager they must keep out of the side.
Niculae's double was a particularly classy return as the former Primera Liga and Bundesliga striker broke his scoring duck in Scottish football.
Niculae grabbed his first on 34 minutes when he collected a Wyness lay-off and let rip in spectacular fashion to beat Scott Morrison from 25 yards.
A fine three-man move brought the second goal for the hosts after 64 minutes.
Ross Tokely's reverse pass allowed Russell Duncan to hit the bye-line on the right and Wyness swivelled to tuck away the cross. But just when Arbroath looked to be tiring, they punished a defensive mix-up to hit back in 71 minutes.
Brian Scott's attempt was only half-cleared by a skied Stuart McCaffrey header and there was confusion between the defender and Tokely.
As McCaffrey stooped the ball hit his back and Scott was able to stab the ball home.
It took only three minutes for the home jitters to lift, though, as Niculae curled a sublime 25-yard left-footed free-kick into the top right hand corner.
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