John Hughes praises Andrea Mbuyi-Mutombo

John Hughes heaped praise on Andrea Mbuyi-Mutombo as he helped Inverness Caledonian Thistle reach the fifth round of the Scottish Cup.

Mbuyi-Mutombo bagged his first goal for the club with a 25-yard shot in the first half, which Iain Vigurs added to in the second to earn a 2-0 win over Stirling Albion.

It was the former Portsmouth youngster's first start since the Highland derby in October and Hughes hopes to see more from his inconsistent playmaker.

That's Mutombo's first start since October and we could have created one of two more,'' said Hughes.

He has something different and can unlock the door. He needs to get a wee bit fitter and become a better team player.

I'm absolutely delighted for him. It was all about keeping a clean sheet and getting in the hat for the next round.

That takes us to Motherwell. It's the first time this season we've won both halves of a game, so we'll take that forward.''

Referee Mat Northcroft had an early call to make when Danny Williams bundled Steven Doris to the ground. Stirling striker Doris knocked the ball beyond Danny Devine and raced clear, with Williams bringing him down and only spared a red card thanks to the covering Gary Warren.

Mbuyi-Mutombo opened the scoring after 28 minutes in spectacular fashion, collecting a pass from Williams and thumping the ball into the top corner from 25 yards.

An early spell of pressure in the second half brought strong Stirling appeals for a penalty when Ross Forsyth saw an effort charged down by Devine but Northcroft was unmoved.

Caley Thistle went straight down the other end to double their lead. Ross Draper bore down on goal and pulled back for Vigurs, who swept an effort beyond Chris Smith.

Stirling manager Stuart McLaren could not be too disappointed with his side's performance, given they had ran Inverness close over two legs.

He said: Pride is the overriding feeling. We're upset to be out of the cup and irrespective of the opponents, you try to go out with a game plan to get a result.

The chances are slim when you play a team with Inverness' quality. But we can't be too despondent with our performances over the two games and with some of the qualities we've shown.''

The potential sending off for Danny Williams in the first half did not cause too much concern for him.

A few of our boys appealed for the red card but the phrase is 'obvious goalscoring opportunity'. Steven (Doris) is a good finisher but it would have been a very decent finish to score from there. That's probably gone through the referee's mind,'' said McLaren.