The Evolution of football

No rest for the wicked this midweek as Elgin City host Inverness in the KDM Evolution Trophy. That's the Challenge Cup to you and me. This one kicks-off at 19:45 on Tuesday evening at Borough Briggs, the first game in a mini series of six games to establish who progresses to the next stages of this elongated competition. The clubs have already met this season in a League Cup encounter at Inverness with the Caley Jags edging that one 2-0 as we made hard work of seeing off a stuffy City. Elgin lost all four games in the League Cup group F, scoring 2 but losing 19. We won two and lost two but like Elgin, we never got into the knockout stages.

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Match/Ticket/Travel/Info

🚍ICT Travel Club🚍

Bus for Elgin leaves stadium 17.30. £10 a seat.

Book through the Travel Club’s Facebook or on 07462218717.

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Some may see this as a Mickey Mouse competition. I don't know where they get their ideas from to be honest. 

1. League Phase:

• Participants: 30 teams, including those from Scottish League One, League Two, and Premiership B teams (reserve teams). 

• Organization: Teams are divided into three pots based on division and regionalized into North and South sections. 

• Matches: Each team plays six league phase matches against opponents from their region (three from each of the other two pots). 

• Scoring: Points from these matches are compiled into a single league table. 

• Progression: The top 22 teams from the league phase advance to the knockout stage.

2. Knockout Phase:

• Participants: The 22 qualifiers from the league phase join the 10 Championship teams. 

• Format: The competition progresses through traditional knockout rounds (Round of 32, Round of 16, etc.). 

• Seeding: Teams finishing in the top six of the league phase are seeded in the Round of 32, along with the Championship teams. 

• Final: The competition culminates in a final next spring. Century...

If you are still following this and haven't used your pass, well done you; you can join the 1% Club. Meanwhile, undercover images of the new Trophy were leaked to the press at the weekend revealing a specially designed piece of silverware the likes of which has never been seen before (disnae look right to me). Unbelievable Jeff! That's evolution for you...

Kells is no a happy chappy regarding the format. Resting some and getting fringe players more game time, but we have to remain competitive whilst doing this. A great start to the League1 campaign for the Caley Jags who have won their opening two fixtures without conceding. A 3-0 win at Kelty (Mckay, Longstaff & Wotherspoon) was followed by a 2-0 home win over Peterhead.

We have been without Adam MacKinnon (a couple of weeks away), Ross Millen (a week or two away) and Jake Davidson (longer term) with Paul Allan recovering to get on the bench at the weekend. Liam Sole took a knock and was replaced before the hour just after scoring his first goal for the club and will be a doubt. David Wotherspoon scored the opener against Peterhead. Surely more game time for the likes of Alfie Bavidge, Chanka Zimba, Mitchell Robertson, Mathew Strachan, Jordan Alonge and Robbie Thompson with a swap of keepers on the cards to give Logan Ross a go between the sticks. Also an opportunity to rest the older legs to keep them fresh for the bigger challenge of League points.

ICT fans tickets for this match CLICK HERE

This match is non-segregated 

Stand: Adult – £15, Concession: £10, U12s: £2

Ground: Adult £13, Concession: £8, U12s: Free

Elgin went down 1-0 at home to East Kilbride at the weekend as the new League2 team got their first points in the Leagues. That was on the back of the opening fixture where Elgin lost out in a dramatic late late ending at Annan as the borders club scored in the 89th & 93rd minutes to pip Elgin who had levelled at 2-2 in the 92nd minute. Dramatic stuff and a 3-2 win for Annan on the opening day. This was Elgin's team against East Kilbride where Ross Draper was their MotM. Lewis Hyde and Brian Cameron did not feature at Annan through injury although Cameron was named on the bench along with Kane Hester who played the final sixteen minutes. Elgin picked up seven bookings at the weekend. Can we expect a bit of rough and tumble on Tuesday night. Allan Hale has a few still on the broken list at the moment Hyde, Dingwall, Girvan and Cairns.

Elgin players can be seen going through the traditional warm up routines used for centuries down at Borough Briggs as they try to manoeuvre their way round the Elgin Marbles. The placing of a trophy near the field of play is supposed to spur on the players and motivate them in their quest to win something. It's not worked since last century, but God loves a trier.

I posted this in the predictions post so I will post it on here too 😀.

It's my 40th tomorrow (or in just over an hours time 😛) so I have a good feeling about this 🔵🔴👍.

It's going to be interesting to see what sort of team we put out because Kel has been very vocal in his annoyance at the scheduling of this competition!

My first trip to BB since the old Caley days. Buzzin.

The Mantis has evolved into a Bee.

Only been once since they beat Arbroath 2-0 in the Scottish Cup 1968.

Home attendance 12,607 v Arbroath on 17 February 1968 Scottish Cup plus me.

Last time I was there Caley beat them in the Qualifying Cup. That must have been the late sixties as well.

Heading through tonight with my son and grandson, an evening game for him before the schools go back.

15 hours ago, CaleyTennis85 said:

It's going to be interesting to see what sort of team we put out because Kel has been very vocal in his annoyance at the scheduling of this competition!

Is there anything that says we have to enter every competition that is available to us?

What might the repercussions be if we didn't?

Falkirk and Livingston don’t have B teams in this and I think County didn’t enter a B team last year.

It doesn’t seem optional for teams in the Championship and Leagues 1 and 2 though.

I’d anticipate the starting line up being most of the players on the bench on Saturday (maybe not Allan if he’s now fully fit or Bavidge) supplemented by youngsters.

That would mean Ross, Strachan, Robertson, Alonge, Thompson and Zimba starting, and a line up that should be good enough to get a result.

1 hour ago, snorbens_caleyman said:

Is there anything that says we have to enter every competition that is available to us?

What might the repercussions be if we didn't?

Yes, it is mandatory.

Withdrawing without permission, or what would be deemed a valid reason (no lost of reasons is given), would leave the club liable to sanctions, including compensation to the opponent team for any lost revenue and/or other incurred costs. Can also be banned from entering the following season.

10 minutes ago, CaleyD said:

Yes, it is mandatory.

Withdrawing without permission, or what would be deemed a valid reason (no lost of reasons is given), would leave the club liable to sanctions, including compensation to the opponent team for any lost revenue and/or other incurred costs. Can also be banned from entering the following season.

That's all fair enough. But I didn't mean withdrawing. I meant not entering in the first place. No opponent team - and I can't see what costs would be incurred.

Time and circumstances - and country! - were different, but Man U did not take part in the 1999-2000 FA Cup. Though that was actually at the suggestion of the FA.

48 minutes ago, snorbens_caleyman said:

That's all fair enough. But I didn't mean withdrawing. I meant not entering in the first place. No opponent team - and I can't see what costs would be incurred.

Time and circumstances - and country! - were different, but Man U did not take part in the 1999-2000 FA Cup. Though that was actually at the suggestion of the FA.

Pretty much the same in the eyes of the SPFL ... but the official wording is as follows:

4.3 Before the start of the Competition in each Season the Board shall notify the Clubs required to take part in the Competition (being the 30 League Clubs specified in Regulation 4.2.1 and the Clubs required to provide Colt Teams as specified in Regulation 4.2.2 for which the Board has not agreed non-participation by any Premiership Club for the relevant Season) and may invite, through their respective Recognised Leagues and/or directly, such clubs as may be identified in discussion with such Recognised Leagues and/or as shall be considered appropriate by the Board to participate in the Competition during the relevant Season.

Source: https://spfl.co.uk/pages/rules-and-regulations

(Written before I saw Scotty's reply)

OK, it's over 31 degrees outside☀️, so I'm not going out just now. With the aid of a strong, iced coffee, I have been skimming through the SPFL rules and regs....

First observation is that they explicitly say, in their main body, that it is mandatory for member clubs to take part in the Scottish Cup (if eligible) and in the League Cup. But there is no mention of the Challenge Cup.

However, the regulations for the Challenge Cup define which clubs are eligible for it - including the 30 clubs not in the Premiership - and then go on to say that the SPFL will inform all eligible clubs of the fixtures that they have to play. The word "required" is used somewhere - can't remember precisely where - meaning that each club is "required" to take part.

There is nothing that says participation is mandatory. So, in the absence of such a statement, the word "required" is doing a lot of heavy lifting there.

There is no provision for a club to say "we're not taking part this year". Thus, if a club didn't play, then it would be a failure to fulfil a fixture, and the repercussions as outlined above by CaleyD would follow.

It would seem to me to be madness to include a club in the draw if they have already said that they won't participate. But, looking at it from the point of the SPFL, you don't want anarchy with clubs deciding which competitions they will take part in.

Edited August 12, 2025Aug 12 by snorbens_caleyman

I think the SFA/SPFL are sitting in much hotter heats when coming up with some of this stuff 🤣

Strongest bench ever in the history of ICTFC. Adam MacKinnon on the bench. Bavidge, Zimba and Robbie Thompson starting

That’s a pretty strong 11 and a very strong bench. Looks like Kell wants to win the match.

That should do the job nicely…

10 changes from Saturdays starting 11?

Great night for the game and the young guys are in fine spirits

27 minutes ago, PullMyFinger said:

10 changes from Saturdays starting 11?

Yes, only Savage started on Saturday.

They're holding yheir own, missed chances both ends. Elgin are going to tire pretty soon if they carry on chasing the game like this.

Bavidge 1 -0

R Thompson 2 - 0

Paul Allan pen 3 - 0

Allan off for Gardiner

33 minutes ago, PullMyFinger said:

They're holding yheir own, missed chances both ends. Elgin are going to tire pretty soon if they carry on chasing the game like this.

Looks like you called that right!

Gallagher 3 - 1