STEVE MARSELLA aims to complete a journey from Huddersfield to the Europa League when Inverness Caledonian Thistle head into a high-stakes Scottish Premier League derby at Ross County on Sunday.

The 45-year-old goalkeeping and scouting specialist from Fartown is part of the Terry Butcher-led management team up in the Highlands who are turning heads in England after leading Inverness to the verge of European action for the first time in their history.

Thistle, whose boss has been linked with both Barnsley and Doncaster this season, make the short trip to County’s Victoria Park in Dingwall in third place, a point ahead of St Johnstone, who host a Motherwell side already assured of runners-up spot to champions Celtic.

Third place brings a Europa League berth, and Butcher, right-hand man Maurice Malpas and Marsella are determined to make sure they clinch it after Inverness missed out on the chance when losing 2-1 at home to Dundee United last Saturday.

Marsella, once a Town academy coach, also worked with Butcher at Brentford before again linking up with him at Inverness in 2010 after stints at Worksop, Barnsley, Notts County, Crewe and Icelandic club Keflavik.

The far North of Scotland is familiar territory to the former Halifax trainee, who as a player, had a long stint between the posts at Elgin City, helping that club win promotion from the Highlands League to the senior Scottish set-up in 2000.

Marsella moved into coaching with the Scottish Football Association, again working in the Highlands, before working alongside Butcher at Brentford, then Icelandic manager Gudjon Thordarson.

He has been hailed for his player-spotting ability, and has covered 60,000 miles a year to help build an Inverness squad which includes the likes of 27-goal top scorer Billy McKay (ex-Northampton), Welsh winger Owain Tudur Jones and former Tranmere defender David Raven.

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