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Inverness CT 2-3 Rangers - SPL

A defeat in Charlie Christie's first official game in charge but a battling performance against Rangers with Craig Dargo and Dennis Wyness on the score sheet yet again
 
 Sunday 29th January 2006  Tulloch Caledonian Stadium  INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE FC  2 (Dargo 13, Wyness 72) Team: Brown, Tokely, Dods, Munro, Hastings (Bayne 87), Wilson, Fox (Hart 71) , Duncan (Golabek 46), McBain, Dargo, Wyness
Subs – McCaffrey, Proctor, McAllister & Fraser
 RANGERS FC  3 (Boyd 6, 58pen , Andrews 27) Team: Waterreus, Hutton, Andrews, Kyrgiakos, Murray, Burke (Prso 39), Malcolm, Ricksen, Buffel, Boyd (Novo 75), Lovenkrands
Subs – A Rae, G Rae, Smith, Carcary & Klos
 Referee  A Freeland  Attendance  7380  Man of the Match  Mark Brown (ICT)  
A baptism of fire for the new management team of Charlie Christie & Donald Park. Caley Thistle’s 11 game unbeaten SPL run ended at home to Rangers with the game live on Sky TV. TV pictures showed that Caley Thistle were desperately unlucky on two occasions – one Rangers goal was illegal and a penalty should have been awarded to the home side late in the game. They were however rescued on several occasions by fine saves from Mark Brown.
Ian Black missed the game through suspension and was replaced by Liam Fox. For Rangers, Barry Ferguson was absent due to a broken nose sustained in a training collision with Marvin Andrews.
Rangers put the Caley Thistle defence under pressure from the off and were rewarded in just six minutes. Chris Burke made a strong run and his defence-splitting pass reached Thomas Buffel on the left of the box. Buffel sent a square ball into the centre and Kris Boyd scored from six yards.
Craig Dargo set the home stands alight when he equalised in 13 minutes. A Ross Tokely long ball through the centre ran kindly for Dargo and he hit low past Ronald Waterreus from 12 yards.
A curling corner by Peter Lovenkrands from the right and a diving “header” from Marvin Andrews made it 2-1 in 27 minutes but TV evidence later showed that the ball actually came off Andrews’ arm. The goal stood and Rangers pressed to kill off the game. A great save by Mark Brown from Buffel just before the break kept the score at 2-1.
Half Time 1-2
The game seemed to go beyond the home side in 58 minutes when Peter Lovenkrands came into the box from the left and was sandwiched – the referee pointed to the penalty spot and Boyd made no mistake.
Home heads went down for a while then a Dennis Wyness goal in 72 minutes set up a lively last period. Barry Wilson hit goalwards from 18 yards and Waterreus dived to his right in the direction of the shot – Dennis Wyness reacted quickly and headed the ball into the unattended part of the goal from six yards.
A minute later there was controversy when a Wilson ball across goal was nearly turned into his own goal by the arm of Ian Murray but Waterreus made a tremendous save. Penalty claims were turned down but once more TV pictures showed this to be a harsh decision.
Alan Hutton blocked a Wyness header from 12 yards in 74 minutes. Three Lovenkrands corners in a row, with eight minutes left, put pressure on the home defence but all were cleared.
Full Time 2-3
Despite a strong finish Caley Thistle could not manage an equaliser and Rangers took the points. Caley Thistle remain sixth.
Guest
By Guest in Reports 2005-06 ·

Charlie Christie Confirmed as Manager

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Charlie Christie was unveiled this morning as the new Caley Thistle manager. As widely speculated, the Caley Thistle legend will take over the hotseat and have Donald Park in position as his No.2 CHARLIE CHRISTIE TAKES CHARGE Charlie Christie became the first Highlander to be appointed to the helm of an SPL club when he accepted the post of Head Coach at Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC.
Donald Park, who had a successful previous spell at the club and is highly respected, returns to the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium as Assistant Head Coach.
Both have signed two and a half year contracts and take up posts immediately.
Club chairman David Sutherland said:"We had a very robust spate of applications for the job, which is a sign of how far this club has come.
"But we're delighted to offer the Head Coach position to Charlie, with Donald Park at his side. Together they bring commitment and continuity to the club and we hope they can continue the progress made under previous incumbents. This is the blend approach I flagged up from the start - enthusiasm and an 'old head'.
"It's a milestone for the city and the supporters that an Inverness lad who came through the Highland League and has been connected with Caley Thistle as player and coach since its formation has now risen to command the top footballing position at the club."
The new Head Coach will report operationally to Director of Football Graeme Bennett who says:"Charlie is completing his UEFA Coaching Licence and is extremely well qualified to move to the next stage of his development by taking full charge of team affairs.
"He was always at the forefront of our thinking and we see his partnership with Donald Park as offering stability while allowing them to build on Craig Brewster's achievement to bring their own fresh thinking into play.
"We hope that going down the Highland route -- Donald being a Lochaber lad -- gives us a double act who will succeed and stay much longer than their predecessors."
Charlie Christie commented:"I'm grateful for this huge opportunity the club has given me and I'm determined to justify the board's confidence. It has perhaps come a bit earlier than anticipated but once I knew Donald Park was willing to work with me, I knew we had the capacity to get the job done.
"It's been a pleasure to work with an incredible group of players who I believe can achieve so much more if they want it badly enough.
"The high standard of fitness must be mantained and even improved and we'll work hard to do that and Donald and I will look at bringing in someone to help on that aspect.
"These players have superb self-belief and I want to keep that going while putting my own stamp on things in due course. As an Inverness lad, it's a special thrill to take this job -- others have moved from this club to achieve their dream, but with this appointment I'm where I want to stay."
Charlie Christie joined Caledonian FC in the Highland League as a 16 year old and moved to Inverness Thistle three years later. He signed for Celtic at 21 and spent two seasons there before returning north where he won honours with Caley and Thistle.
He has been involved with Caley Thistle since its inception and in February 2003 he became the first player to make 300 appearances for the club, a mark equalled only by Ross Tokely (November 2004). He combined playing and youth coaching until hanging up his boots in summer 2004. Craig Brewster appointed him a first team coach early in 2005.
Donald Park was signed by Caley at 16 from Lochaber High School and was transferred to Hearts two years later. After a long playing career, he coached at both Hibs and Hearts. He left Caley Thistle in November 2004 to become assistant manager at Hearts.
Guest
By Guest in News 2005-06 ·

We Got There In The End - A Fans View

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It's been two weeks to the day since it was confirmed that Brewster was leaving for Dundee Utd. The Board took their time to ensure we got the right man for the job and here's a brief summary of how it happened from the Fans side of the fence. As is often the case when any Managerial positions become vacant these days, there is much speculation from the fans and press about who will be appointed. In the case of ICT and Craig Brewster, much of the talk about replacements had begun even before he had left the building. And so the debate begins. Would ICT continue it's tradition of appointing ambitious young managers, or would they break from that and seek an experienced management team who would offer some longer term stability? It would seem that the Board were in no rush and immediately appointed Charlie Christie and John Docherty as the Caretaker Management Team, a task which this duo had previously undertaken following the departure of John Robertson in November 2004.
Nobody expects to see any widespread changes being made whilst a team is under guidance from a Caretaker Management, their normal role being to keep things ticking over until a new boss can be found. This was not to be the case on this occasion. On the 14th January 2006, ICT ran out comfortable 3-0 winners at home to Livingston FC. It was clear to all who were watching that something had changed, it was the same 11 men on the park, but the performance and style of play was reminiscent of the "Pele" era. Out was the long punt up the park, and in was the slick passing game which had served us so well in the early years.
Was this just a fluke result? Apparently not, as ICT went on to comfortable wins over Ayr in the Cup Replay and then again Away to Falkirk were the players seemed to be lining up for shots at Falkirk's goal, winning 1-4 and sending out the message that their would, without any doubt, be life after Brewster.
Meanwhile speculation continued as to who the new Manager would be, with Charlie Christie and John Docherty doing such a fine job, should they be given serious consideration for the job? Was Charlie ready? Was he capable? Everyone had an opinion, and the most popular opinion was that Charlie was the man, if not in the Managers role, then definitely as assistant to someone with a bit more experience.
John Robertson had been ruled out as a possible contender by David Sutherland (Chairman) in a TV interview where he made it clear the John Robertson was part of ICT's history and would be remaining there. But what about his assistant Donald Park, a very experienced Coach, but never been keen on the "Managers" role, preferring to ply his trade in the background and avoiding the limelight. It was quickly suggested that Charlie Christie as the front man and Donald Park as his assistant, offering guidance and support, may just be the ticket. The majority of people seemed to buy into this idea and Charlie Christie and Donald Park quickly emerged as the "Fans Favourite" choice.
It was obvious to all that Charlie Christie had a lot of soul searching to do, the fans felt he was ready, the club seemed to think he was ready, but did he think he was ready? Every time he spoke to the press, or was interviewed on the TV, he looked to be edging more and more towards throwing his name into the hat. It was then made known that he was willing to give it a go, but on the understanding that if he was appointed, it was because he was the best candidate for the job, and not just because he was a Local Hero.
That was it then, nearly all other candidates had been rejected, and everyone had been interviewed. Everyone was sure the announcement was imminent, and that Charlie Christie and Donald Park would be the new full-time management duo. That was until the phone rang!!!!! Ally McCoist was now seeking a meeting with the club......had the club already made a firm decision on Christie and Park, did McCoist want to be manager? Or was he seeking some other kind of role in the new coaching set-up? The only way the club were going to find out was by going and speaking to the guy.
All of a sudden people were wondering what was going on, Charlie Christie and Donald Park had been clear front runners for the job, now someone had thrown a spanner in the works. Discussion quickly centred on the merits of appointing McCoist as our new Manager, and how dedicated he would be or could be considering his other commitments. Were Christie and Park still the bookies favourites?
Anticipation was high, the press had missed the cut-off to break the story the following day and the Board had announced that they would be taking a few more days to consider the options. It would seem McCoist's approach had appealed to someone and was not purely unfounded rumour.
Rumours of a Press Conference on the evening of Wed 25th January were quashed by David Sutherland, so when were we to find out? Would it be Charlie Christie and John Docherty in the dugout for the home encounter v Rangers on Sunday? The press were obviously as perplexed as the fans with none of them making a firm statement about which it would be. David Sutherland was, once again, keeping everyone guessing.
ICT had there bi-weekly Press Conference scheduled for Fri 27th January, but no indication had been given as to whether the new management team were to be unveiled or not. On a gut feeling I decided to attend the Press Conference.
The new management team were unveiled as Charlie Christie and Donald Park, I won't bore you with the details of the Press Release, but the vibe around the stadium was a very positive one, and I don't believe they are anything but first choice for the job. The "Fans Favourites" have now been charged with leading ICT into the next phase of their already exciting existence.
As an ICT Player Charlie Christie made a total of 314 appearances and scored 34 goals in the process. As he begins his journey into management, we wish him all the best in achieving a different set of goals and hopefully making as many, if not more appearances, than he did as a player.
Donald Johnstone
Guest
By Guest in News 2005-06 ·

Falkirk 1-4 Inverness CT - SPL

Barry Wilson turns in a superb performance with a role in all 4 Caley Thistle goals. The veteran scored one and set up or provided the ball for the other three.
An emphatic win against struggling Falkirk and three-in-a-row for caretaker managers John Docherty and Charlie Christie. It was also eleven SPL games undefeated since Falkirk came to Inverness in October and won 3-0 against the odds.
 
 Saturday 21st January 2006  Falkirk Stadium  FALKIRK FC  1 (Ireland 10) Team: Ferguson, Lawrie, Milne, Rodrigues, Ireland (Moutinho 64), Lima (Cregg 69), Thomson, O’Donnell (Craig 62), Latapy, McBreen, Gow
Subs – Ross, Barr, McPherson & Glennon
 INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE FC  4 (Wilson 2, Wyness 18, Dargo 38 (pen), Tokely 56) Team: Brown, Tokely (Proctor 79), Dods, Munro, Hastings, Wilson (Hart 85), Black (Golabek 66), Duncan, McBain, Dargo, Wyness
Subs – McCaffrey, Fox, McAllister & Fraser
 Referee  J Underhill  Attendance  4772  Man of the Match  Liam Craig (Falkirk)  
Barry Wilson was the hero of the day with one goal and three assists. Falkirk manager John Hughes acknowledged the fans boos and agreed they had been well beaten. Christie thought his side was ‘fabulous’.
Russell Latapy shot over the Caley Thistle bar in the first minute but it was the visitors who took the lead in just two minutes after Craig Dargo collected the ball in midfield and found Wilson on the right. The winger headed goalwards and shot low past Allan Ferguson from 18 yards for his third goal of the season.
Alan Gow should have equalised two minutes later but Mark Brown blocked his effort with his legs. In the eighth minute Craig Dargo hit straight at Allan Ferguson from point blank range and two minutes after that Falkirk equalised. Gow’s free kick was not cleared by the ICT defence and Craig Ireland rose to head home.
The Inverness side regained the lead in 18 minutes when Dennis Wyness was set up by Wilson and he carefully slid the ball past Ferguson from 12 yards. Falkirk pushed for another equaliser and Brown brilliantly turned away a Russell Latapy free kick in 31 minutes.
The points began to look safe in 38 minutes when a Wilson cross was handled by Tiago Rodrigues and Dargo slotted home the penalty – his third penalty goal in three matches.
Half Time: 1-3
Into the second half and the visitors were clearly in control. In 51 minutes Dargo hit the bar from 18 yards then Ian Black hit wide with just Ferguson to beat.
Goal number four came in 56 minutes when a Wilson corner was headed home by Ross Tokely at the near post – his second goal of the season’s SPL campaign.
Falkirk now had a mountain to climb. The team did not give up but many of their fans decided to head for home.
The closest Falkirk came was when substitute Liam Craig hit the bar in the closing stages.
Full Time: 1-4
For Caley Thistle the job was done and they fully deserved the three points. Sixth place was retained and minds now turned to the visit of Rangers on the 29th.
Guest
By Guest in Reports 2005-06 ·

Ayr United 0-2 Inverness CT - Scottish Cup Replay

Charlie Christie and 'The Doc' navigate a potentially tricky cup tie and take Caley Thistle to the next round of the cup. Goals from Dennis Wyness and Craig Dargo are enough to see off Ayr and keep the stand-in duo's winning record intact.
A midweek match at Somerset Park does not bring back the fondest memories for most ICT fans. The only previous cup match between the sides at this venue ended in a 5-1 CIS Cup loss for Caley Thistle and the early dismissal of Ross Tokely.
 
 Monday 16th January 2006  Somerset Park, Ayr  AYR UNITED FC  0 Team: McGeown, McKinstry, McLaughlin, Baillie, Ramsay (Robertson 46), Hyslop, Logan, Casey,
Conway, Vareille (Phillips 37), Wardlaw (Cashmore 71)
Subs – Weaver & Strain
 INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE FC  2 (Dargo pen38, Wyness 76) Team: Brown, Tokely, Dods, Munro, Hastings, Wilson (Proctor 82), Black, Duncan, McBain (Golabek 88), Dargo (McAllister 85), Wyness
Subs – Hart & Fraser
 Referee  K Toner  Attendance  2774  Man of the Match  Raymond Logan (Ayr United)  
Our league record at this ground hasn't been that great either : 2 wins, 4 draws and 4 defeats in the 10 games between the sides when they met regularly on Division 1 duty. Since then Caley Thistle have headed upwards to the SPL and Ayr have dropped to Division 2.
After Ayr’s fine performance in the first match this was not a night to relish. Sky TV were broadcasting live from Somerset Park for the first time, clearly hoping for a cup shock. The additional revenue was much appreciated by both sides. With six SPL sides already out of the cup all eyes were on Ayr to see if they could dispatch number seven.
Caley Thistle had technical problems with the team bus en route to Ayr, but it did not stop them seeing off their second division opponents and giving the interim management team of Christie and Docherty their second win in three days.
Apart from a few nervous moments the visitors dominated, but they could easily have gone behind in 22 minutes. A Mark Casey shot from 25 yards took a wicked deflection and came back off the post with Mark Brown stranded. Jerome Vareille was ready to shoot from close range when Grant Munro stepped in with a magnificent tackle to end the danger – offside was called so it would not have counted.
Mark McGeown dived to hold a low Barry Wilson shot in 26 minutes then in 33 minutes Dennis Wyness sent an angled shot wide of the post after good work by Ian Black. Two minutes later the match came to life after a Dougie Ramsay mishit was picked up by Wyness 25 yards out. He headed straight for goal but was pulled down as he rounded McGeown. The next two actions were inevitable – a red card for the Ayr keeper and a penalty award. Ayr sacrificed Jerome Vareille for substitute ‘keeper Eric Phillips and his first action was to pick the ball out of the net after Craig Dargo hammered home the spot kick.
It was an uphill struggle for Ayr after that not helped by heavy rain. Two minutes from the break Phillips spilled a Black shot and Dargo raced in to collect – the angle from the right was acute and he hit over. Ross Tokely collided with Ramsay just on the whistle and Ramsay did not reappear for the second half. The Ayr camp cried foul but the referee judged the clash to be accidental.
The second period was virtually all Caley Thistle but there was a heart-stopping moment in 52 minutes when Brown came out to punch away a free kick and left his goal unattended. The ball came back quickly to Raymond Logan and he had a free shot on goal. Tokely took charge of the goal line and did well to clear the danger – Logan was clearly offside but the referee chose to ignore it.
A neat move in 68 minutes set up Wilson. Wyness sent a ball from the left, Black dummied but Wilson’s effort flew just over. Any danger of an Ayr comeback was ended in 76 minutes when Roy McBain stopped the ball from drifting out of play down the left, found Richard Hastings and the full back’s cross was headed home by Wyness from seven yards.
A pitch invasion by a handful of Ayr fans held up play as time slipped away but this did not help their side’s cause. With a minute to go Ian Cashmore did have a shot blocked after a rare Ayr attack then the same player went down in the box – play was waved on. It ended 2-0 and Caley Thistle earned a fourth round home tie against Partick Thistle. With only six SPL sides in the last sixteen there are interesting times ahead.
Guest
By Guest in Reports 2005-06 ·

Inverness CT 3-0 Livingston - SPL

The pain of the departure of Craig Brewster, Malky Thomson and a couple of the coaching staff fades as the players prove that its business as usual with a 3-0 win over Paul Lambert's Livingston side.
What a week !! Caley Thistle lose a player, manager and 4 coaches in one fell swoop when Craig Brewster and his backroom team agree terms with Dundee United but in typical ICT style, the players proved it was business as usual as they rose above all the turmoil and turned in a winning performance.
 
 Saturday 14th January 2006  Tulloch Caledonian Stadium  INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE FC  3 (Dargo 26, 57pen), Wyness (59) Team: Brown, Tokely, Dods, Munro, Hastings, Wilson (Proctor 82), Duncan, Black (Hart 73), McBain, Dargo, Wyness (McAllister 69)
Subs – Golabek, McCaffrey, Fox & Fraser
 LIVINGSTON FC  0 Team: McKenzie, MacKay, Pinxten, Strong, McNamee (Walker 68), Dair, Brittain, Lambert (Vincze 46), Hoolahan, Dalglish, Hislop (Dorado 75)
Subs – Snodgrass, Dorrans, Tesevic & Roy
 Referee  C Thomson  Attendance  3604  Man of the Match  Craig Dargo (ICT)  
There was one piece of important business before the game could begin – a minute’s silence to honour team coach driver Tony Fraser who died last Wednesday. Tony was a long-serving and valued member of the organisation and much more than just a driver. He was there on day one when the club played its first competitive match and he followed the fortunes of the team avidly. His enthusiasm and friendship will be sorely missed by all.
With Craig Brewster gone, the management duties were shared, as they were just 14 months ago, by Charlie Christie and John Docherty. The line-up for last week’s cup match was amended to bring back Grant Munro, Richard Hastings, Ian Black and Roy McBain with fit-again Craig Dargo partnering Dennis Wyness up front. Livingston included former Caley Thistle favourite Steve Hislop for his debut after arriving from Gillingham.
On with the football and a rather drab first period. The first realistic chance fell to Livi’s David McNamee in 13 minutes when he hit over from 18 yards then McBain hit wide at the other end two minutes later.
Mark Brown produced the save of the match in 20 minutes from McNamee. A Paul Lambert free kick from long range was sent goalwards by Wesley Hoolahan and McNamee’s six-yard header looked certain to open the scoring. Brown’s reactions were superb and he touched the ball over the bar.
Four minutes later referee Craig Thomson somehow denied the home side a penalty when Dargo was dispatched into the net by McNamee from a few yards out as the striker attempted to latch onto Barry Wilson’s cross. Dargo gained some revenge within two minutes when he rose to head home an excellent Ian Black cross from the right – a rare headed goal from the striker.
A 36th minute header from Hislop was blocked in the box then Darren Dods stepped in as Hislop was about to turn a Lambert free kick goalwards. The home side were in control for the rest of the match and it was only a matter of time before their lead was extended.
Half Time: 1-0 
In 52 minutes a Hastings cross from the right reached Wyness at the back post but a little too high for an accurate header – it went over the bar. Three minutes later Wilson raced into the Livi box and went down under a tackle from Dave MacKay and, after a moment’s hesitation, referee Thomson pointed to the spot. There was delay while the referee attended to protests and, two Livi bookings later, Dargo took the kick and hit low past McKenzie for 2-0. This was Dargo's 9th goal in as many games.
In 59 minutes Wyness scored a magnificent goal to seal the victory. McBain passed inside from the left and Wyness turned a defender beautifully before sending a rising angled shot into the roof of the net.
Substitute Rory McAllister took on the Livi defence in 76 minutes before setting up Dargo with a hat-trick chance. Dargo made it past McKenzie but stumbled and the ball went over for a goal kick. There were half-hearted claims that McKenzie had impeded him but this was of no interest to the referee.
Livi had few second half chances – the best fell to Paul Dalglish in 77 minutes but he headed wide from close range. McAllister hit a low shot just wide in 81 minutes then Livi’s Jason Dair sent a rising ball over the bar from 25 yards.
Richard Brittain was stretchered off with five minutes left and the visitors had to see out the remaining minutes with 10 men. Dalglish headed for goal in added time but tripped at the vital moment. The final action was a McAllister effort in the Livi box – he created space on the right of the box but it was intercepted as he was about to shoot.
Full Time: 3-0
With Motherwell not playing until Sunday Caley Thistle moved back into the top six and have now gone 10 games undefeated.
Guest
By Guest in Reports 2005-06 ·

Brewster Move Agreed

Teaser Paragraph:
The Craig Brewster saga is over and as widely expected he will leave the club with immediate effect to take over as manager at Dundee United after the clubs agreed on a compensation package.
JOINT STATEMENT FROM DUNDEE UNITED FC & INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE FCDundee United and Inverness Caledonian Thistle have held amicable discussions which have led to a compensation package being agreed for Craig Brewster and his management team. Craig and his management team will leave ICT with immediate effect and join Dundee United.
Guest
By Guest in News 2005-06 ·

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