Substitute Liam Fox's 88th-minute goal denied Dundee full points and ensured the race to avoid relegation from the Bank of Scotland Premier League will boil down to 90 minutes next weekend.

Dundee dominated for long spells and should have been a few goals ahead at the interval, but a combination of wasteful finishing and back luck ensured they went in level at the break.

Brent Sancho gave them the lead early in the second half and they looked to be comfortable, until the final 10 minutes when they allowed Caley to peg them back.

Fox, who replaced Roy McBain in the 71st minute, was on hand to blast home from eight yards after Sancho denied Stuart Golabek with a goalline clearance.

Duffy recalled Tom McManus after his recent suspension and also added Sancho and Scott Robertson to his line-up at the expense of Fabian Caballero, Stephen McNally and Mark Fotheringham.

The Jags made two changes from the team which lost out to Livingston last weekend. In came Richie Hart and Richard Hastings for the injured Barry Wilson and teenager Ian Black.

Dundee started rather nervously, as you would expect in a game of such importance, but soon got into their stride and dominated the entire first half.

They were on the wrong end of a contentious offside decision as early as five minutes in, with McManus appearing to play on the shoulder of a defender rather than in front of him as the linesman suggested.

The referee, Craig Thomson, did little to endear himself to the home support four minutes later by denying the Dark Blues a very strong penalty claim. Robertson nipped the ball past Golabek and was dumped on the turf by the Jags captain but the official immediately signalled for a corner kick much to Duffy's annoyance.

Robertson's kick landed straight on Bobby Mann's head, but he could not tee it up well enough for Callum McDonald, who weakly shot into Mark Brown's hands.

Robertson, who spent the first half of the season on loan to Division Three side Peterhead, was revelling in only his second start and should have given his side the lead in the 17th minute. He timed a run through on to a McManus through-ball to perfection, but was eventually thwarted by Brown who came racing off his line to block his angled shot.

The momentum was certainly behind Dundee at this stage and they surely must have thought the all-important first goal was theirs two minutes later. Sancho, back after an ankle injury, did well to stretch and flick McManus's free-kick goalward but the ball ricocheted back off the inside of the post.

Dundee kept bombing forward and were looking assured on the ball, but nothing would fall for them in front of goal. Lovell was odds-on to score in the 24th minute after latching on to Garry Brady's defence-cutting pass, but Caley's Grant Munro did enough to unnerve him and the chance was lost.

It was one-way traffic and the Highlanders had to rely on their goalkeeper again, in the 36th minute, to deny Iain Anderson whose 30-yard free-kick was whizzing to the bottom left-hand corner.

Duffy's plans were dealt a blow a minute later when Robertson, who until this stage had been man of the match, limped off and was replaced by Stephen McNally. Duffy was forced to shuffle his pack and switch McDonald to left-back so McNally could play on his favoured right side.

He made a further change at the break and brought on Caballero for Brady, who had been limping in the minutes before half-time.

Dundee finally got the goal their play in the first half deserved. They won a corner on the right after Duncan deflected McManus's shot wide, but the visitors' defence was helpless to prevent Sancho from rising above them to bullet the corner beyond Brown.

Sancho, whose strike was his second for the club, bolted to the fans in the stand behind the goal and was joined by his team-mates in celebration but, when the dust finally settled, was booked for leaving the field.

Caley player-boss Craig Brewster, who won the Scottish Cup with Dundee United in 1994, confirmed his unpopularity around Dens Park by introducing himself to the action for Bryan Prunty in the 64th minute.

The woodwork denied Dundee their second a minute later. Lovell raced on to a wonderful long ball by Mann but despite controlling it at the first attempt, cannoned a shot off the crossbar.

Derek Soutar was the villain at Dunfermline last weekend, but quickly became a hero with fantastic one-handed save to deny substitute Rory McAllister in the 74th minute. The youngster, who replaced Bayne minutes earlier, sent a header sailing to the top corner until the keeper plucked it from the air.

Lovell was replaced by Neil Barrett with 10 minutes left, as Duffy tried to bolster his midfield and close out the game.

That proved to be their undoing, as they invited Caley on to them and eventually paid the price as Fox pounced in the 88th minute to lash home the second ball.

Teams

Dundee Soutar, Robertson (McNally 37), Mann, Sancho, Robb, McDonald, Brady (Caballero 45), Smith, Anderson, McManus, Lovell (Barrett 82).

Subs Not Used: Dubourdeau, Larsen, Fotheringham, Sutton.

Booked: Sancho.

Goals: Sancho 49.

Inverness CT Brown, Tokely, Dods, Munro, Golabek, Hastings, Duncan, Hart, McBain (Fox 71), Prunty (Brewster 63), Bayne (McAllister 71).

Subs Not Used: Fraser, Proctor, Black.

Goals: Fox 88.

Att: 6,691

Ref: C Thomson (Scotland).