I don’t have time to post any more than this for now but Panos Thomas has emailed shareholders with a very lengthy update where the headline looks like being confirmation that, unless £200K can be raised by October 16th, then Administration would be “inevitable” since the club would be insolvent.

Edited October 2, 20241 yr by Charles Bannerman

Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC can confirm Adam Brooks, Cameron Ferguson, Flynn Duffy, Wallace Duffy and Jack Newman have all the left the club with immediate effect following the ongoing review of the financial position with the Joint Administrators.

We could not have asked for anything better at this stage!! This is so far extremely good news.

1 hour ago, CaleyHedgehog said:

What would you expect really, they love to stick the knife in even deeper. It has always felt that where ICT are concerned they really can't stand it if we try to rise above our lowly, wee highland club, station.

Nope. just the standard rule that's been in place for a few years now. Its a bit like kicking a man while he is down, but not aimed at ICT specifically. 

 

55 minutes ago, Satan said:

BBC News - Three buyers interested in Inverness Caley Thistle
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78dlgx1e0vo
Action already.

1. Alan Savage + others?
    
2. Ketan Makwana + phygital friends? 
    
3. David Anderson / Don Lawson fronted bid? - from the Daily Record last week, this consortium of 6 businessmen was also reputed to involve Morrison/Munro/Cameron. 

Its all rank speculation on my part, but hopefully, being in the hands of professional administrators means that the decision on who can bid or be taken seriously is based on merit rather than bullshit.  

 

33 minutes ago, CELTIC1CALEY3 said:

We could not have asked for anything better at this stage!! This is so far extremely good news.

I couldn't agree more...we still have a solid spine to the team [if fit] , a bit sorry for both Duffy's  [Flynn never really got a chance]

I'm up for the Queen of the South match in Dumfries in a months time, I'm excited, but it will be emotional too

Fingers crossed that a reset/re-birth is possible, with more realistic expectations

Maybe there will be a time to change the Eagle on the badge to a Phoenix! (temporarily?)

The interested parties are all new interested parties, I’m told, with “sporting backgrounds”. 

Seems like the most appropriate place to post this link to the latest Wyness Shuffle podcast. Plenty of admin chat from the guys here!

 

Edited October 24, 20241 yr by RiG

On 10/23/2024 at 2:25 PM, Charles Bannerman said:

I think Scot Gardiner was a very easy individual to take an instant dislike to. He simply exuded an unpleasant aura which his intermittent attempts at charm utterly failed to conceal.

The PandJ’s public exposure of that was a masterpiece.

Not the first to express this either. Rab Douglas got dingied by him too. Not only dislikeable in general but arrogant.

He's probably a proper suck up to his bosses so all they see is sunshine. Everyone else has to suffer though.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/sport/football/dundee-fc/1268923/rab-douglas-scot-gardiner-dundee-fc-inverness-spfl/

Not sure if this video is posted on here or hidden in a link, but this is the official release from the club.

Alan Savage and James Stephen spoke to the media yesterday (Thursday 24 October) for an update on the club after entering administration.

 

Cheers Don

I thought James Stephen spoke extremely well.  He comes across as a very competent individual who genuinely wants to do what is best for the football club.  I was quite heartened by what I heard.  Good to get confirmation that assets of the stadium are firmly in the control of the administrators and not with Ross Morrison.  Ownership of the land surrounding the stadium is not so clear, but one way or another, the process should provide clarity on that soon.

I agree, he came across very well.

The discussions with Morrison are going to be key to a CVA being achievable.

Scott Young said on Saturday that dialogue with him was ongoing so hopefully they quickly reach an agreement.

3 minutes ago, Robert said:

I agree, he came across very well.

The discussions with Morrison are going to be key to a CVA being achievable.

Scott Young said on Saturday that dialogue with him was ongoing so hopefully they quickly reach an agreement.

The administrator clearly said that secured debt does not fall within the CVA so Morrison will play no part in that.

It wasn't clear how that would be dealt with but he seemed confident it was not a stumbling block.

Anyone else confused by the comment about no sideshows and then talk about bringing in a restaurant franchise?

Restaurants etc are failing across the whole of the uk just now on almost an hourly basis. The idea that anyone is going to open one at the stadium with those existing risks and in an untested location is up there with running our own concerts, battery farms and the like.

Here is a reminder about the land used by the Company and possibly explains why Alan made reference to the Council helping in the survival bid.

https://ictfc.com/significant-milestone-for-ictfc-as-tulloch-agrees-transfer-of-stadium-lease/

 

8 minutes ago, STFU said:

Anyone else confused by the comment about no sideshows and then talk about bringing in a restaurant franchise?

Restaurants etc are failing across the whole of the uk just now on almost an hourly basis. The idea that anyone is going to open one at the stadium with those existing risks and in an untested location is up there with running our own concerts, battery farms and the like.

My first initial thought was that it would be some kind of quick service/fast food style franchise that would work hand-in-hand with the stadium opening hours/business model that way appealing more to the type of service that would be easily achievable on a fast basis such as matchday.

People don't want to be sitting about for food as such.

If it is a sit-down fuss then I think I agree with your assessment above.

19 minutes ago, STFU said:

The administrator clearly said that secured debt does not fall within the CVA so Morrison will play no part in that.

It wasn't clear how that would be dealt with but he seemed confident it was not a stumbling block.

Thanks, I misheard him. 

14 minutes ago, STFU said:

Anyone else confused by the comment about no sideshows and then talk about bringing in a restaurant franchise?

Restaurants etc are failing across the whole of the uk just now on almost an hourly basis. The idea that anyone is going to open one at the stadium with those existing risks and in an untested location is up there with running our own concerts, battery farms and the like.

Surely it is more in line with hiring the stadium out for concerts (which worked well) rather than setting up your own company to run them?  The restaurant franchise would pay the club a rent and take the profits.  Potential opportunities too for vastly improving the hospitality options on match days.  Certainly worth exploring, I would have thought, as part of a strategy of making best use of the assets of the stadium?

22 minutes ago, STFU said:

Anyone else confused by the comment about no sideshows and then talk about bringing in a restaurant franchise?

Restaurants etc are failing across the whole of the uk just now on almost an hourly basis. The idea that anyone is going to open one at the stadium with those existing risks and in an untested location is up there with running our own concerts, battery farms and the like.

It sounds a bit unlikely to me, but worth exploring I suppose given that the worst that happens is that we stay as we are. We either get a bit of extra income or we don’t, we can’t lose money on it.

17 minutes ago, MrCaleyjag said:

My first initial thought was that it would be some kind of quick service/fast food style franchise that would work hand-in-hand with the stadium opening hours/business model that way appealing more to the type of service that would be easily achievable on a fast basis such as matchday.

People don't want to be sitting about for food as such.

If it is a sit-down fuss then I think I agree with your assessment above.

Given Savage was talking about people enjoying the view etc I think it was very much a sit in style affair he was talking about.

If we wanted to do fast food then one of the concourses would surely be better suited.

16 minutes ago, DoofersDad said:

Surely it is more in line with hiring the stadium out for concerts (which worked well) rather than setting up your own company to run them?  The restaurant franchise would pay the club a rent and take the profits.  Potential opportunities too for vastly improving the hospitality options on match days.  Certainly worth exploring, I would have thought, as part of a strategy of making best use of the assets of the stadium?

Everything is worth exploring I just find it strange that during such a press conference it would be placed out there front and centre as a big idea especially after commenting that we'd have no more sideshows.

7 minutes ago, Yngwie said:

It sounds a bit unlikely to me, but worth exploring I suppose given that the worst that happens is that we stay as we are. We either get a bit of extra income or we don’t, we can’t lose money on it.

We were told that about the concerts and battery farm.

Stay as we are and face no loses until the venture fails the space ends up out of use during any eviction period and not generating income and then we have to pay to convert it back into something it can be used for.

I know more people say they trust Savage but we had people saying the same when Muirfield came in and then when Crook came in and then Morrison came in (we had someone else among that too but I forget his name).

'Give them a chance' hasn't served us very well the last few years and this is a red flag for me.

15 minutes ago, STFU said:

We were told that about the concerts and battery farm.

I don’t think we were, were we? Anyway, as a reminder, ICTFC made money from both the concerts and the battery farm, even though both projects can be considered failures overall.

Edited October 25, 20241 yr by Yngwie

8 minutes ago, Yngwie said:

I don’t think we were. Any anyway, as a reminder, ICTFC made money from both the concerts and the battery farm.

I'm starting to think you actually believe that and aren't just playing some weird game of pedantry.

15 minutes ago, Yngwie said:

I don’t think we were, were we? Anyway, as a reminder, ICTFC made money from both the concerts and the battery farm, even though both projects can be considered failures overall.

I think made money might be pushing it? I think the concert company covered some maybe all costs. Don't think club have made a penny from battery farm unless you know otherwise? 

1 hour ago, STFU said:

The administrator clearly said that secured debt does not fall within the CVA so Morrison will play no part in that.

It wasn't clear how that would be dealt with but he seemed confident it was not a stumbling block.

To me, Morrison’s large secured loan has always been one of the central issues here. As I understand the Charge, the security amounts to any or all of the club’s assets - which clearly raises the immediate issue of the future of the stadium. Morrison’s options would appear to be - to insist on full repayment which would immediately put the future of the stadium at risk; to write the whole lot off entirely; to accept shares in the company in lieu of payment and hence become the largest shareholder, although what these would nominally be worth post-administration is anyone’s guess; to do nothing and leave the debt outstanding; or some combination of the above.

It’s strange. When they sold off the Social Club for something like £140K to Grassa’s pension fund a dozen years ago or so, I found myself talking about “selling off the family silver”…. but I thought at the time that taking this policy much further (as has happened big time) was inconceivable. In the end, it emerges that this was just the thin end of the wedge.

I really find myself getting quite angry every time I ask the question- “How and why the HELL did they persist for at least five years with a policy of gross over-expenditure sustained by ever more absurd attempts to persevere with it?

Edited October 25, 20241 yr by Charles Bannerman

1 hour ago, old caley girl said:

I think made money might be pushing it? I think the concert company covered some maybe all costs. Don't think club have made a penny from battery farm unless you know otherwise? 

Was it not sold to Ross Morrison for 250k?

11 minutes ago, ICTPaisley said:

Was it not sold to Ross Morrison for 250k?

That’s what I had in mind RM and 2 others actually). It generated a cash sum that I’m sure dwarfs the various fees incurred in submitting the application.

Regarding the concerts, we know that we rented the stadium out. No sums ever mentioned but I would guess at a good 5 figure sum. We also provided services to the concert company for providing staff and selling tickets etc, which I’m sure would have been at no less than cost, and probably a margin built in.

So even though both projects could be deemed disastrous and regrettable for various reasons, it appears to me that the both generated money for the club. Sorry if that’s not what people want to hear!

Edited October 25, 20241 yr by Yngwie