Leaderboard

From reading the Highland News Article the key points would seem to be....... Tournament Organisers are accusing ICT of a late request to bring the final forward by a couple of hours. Counter-claim by ICT that they informed the organisers on 25th February of travel arrangements and had been assured that should they reach the final then it would be brought forward. ICT had already beaten the team they were due to play in the final 5-0 (the host team) earlier in the tournament and the problem only arose at this point in time. The organising committee seemed happy to pull the final forward but one individual who seemed to carry more sway than others told them he would not let it happen. Keeping the players there longer was not feasible as it could have resulted in them missing a day of school on their return (could you imagine the uproar if they had done this?) All in all I get the impression that one member of the Dutch organising committee seems to have taken the huff at ICT beating his team 5-0 earlier in the tournament and as a result has made things difficult (impossible) for us as a result. I see little, if anything, more ICT could have done given the position they were placed in. I also can't imagine for one minute that Charlie Christie would have deliberately taken the lads over to a tournament knowing that they could not play the final if they qualified that far.

David McNamee has been released by Aberdeen and despite him not being all that great he's infinitely better than McCann

im sorry but i dont get why you are so angry cairngorm yes it is a shame that the under15's couldnt play the final but your soloutions (With hindsight) are massively unrealistic in this day and age to do anything last minute often costs twice as much you seem to think it comes down to make a couple of phone calls and everything is sorted, if things were that easy do you think the coaches wouldnt have done it? you also seem hell bent on the idea that this was there only chance to play in a final, if the kids have any go about them then they should look at this as a stepping stone and go next year with the intention of winning the thing lastly might i add that i dont see you making any offers to do anything to help. if you are so disgusted with the way things are being run then how about you get up of your bum and volunteer to help out in some way?

Now that the facts are known I expect cairngorm to come back on and publicly apologise to Charlie and his team of coaches and to acknowledge that the problems were outwith the control of those involved with ICT. Accept that you took a half story and tried your damnest to make it into a big black mark for ICT without thinking out what you were saying or puting forward the whole picture. Its the organisers of the tournament created the problem. Remember also that these tournaments are a means of developing the kids. Getting them used to competition and to being away from home. Its about letting them experience the game outside of their own communities and about developing their skill. I'm quite sure that, even if they didn't play in the final, they will have gained a great deal from the trip and will put that to good use in their future playing careers.

Having publicly accused the coaches of incompetence and arrogance, is that all you've got to say?

The Green Party's position is that the future prosperity, indeed the very survival of our society depends on a healthy environment. If you pollute the environment and use up all the planet's resources to benefit from a quick buck now, you will not have an environment in the future which will be capable of sustaining us. You can only acheive that by influencing the wider economic and social policies which impact on the environment. Environmental pressure groups are all well and good and can do useful work in protecting specific environmental sites but what are they protecting those sites from? They are protecting them from the environmental consequences of the economic and social policies of the Government of the day! We need a Government which understands that our long term health, happiness and prosperity requires a healthy environment. Economic activity needs to be sustainable and social activity needs to be in harmony with the environment. That's the function of government and it's why the Green Party has to be a mainstream party increrasingly shaping the policies of the day.

How's about "revalations" from a local journalist that one party has been involved in the use of "free scoring trialists"! Despite all parties as long as anyone can remember being involved in the same practice,beheading is deemed the only appropriate punishment in this case, game aff

This is ridiculous...what kind of democratic system allows the delay of a vote because someone knows they aren't going to get the outcome they want? The longer it drags on the more time and money is being wasted on plans and proposals that don't meet the desires of the people. Get the vote over with, scrap the bollocks you've put on the table, resign if you don't like it and allow someone else take over and do the job properly. On the face of it, yes, most of that would make sense....but when you start to peel back the spin and look at each of the proposals in more depth you find they are fundamentally flawed and, IMO, many of them would never come to fruition and are only now being put out there so that if (when) the plans for a 10 team SPL are rejected (if we ever get round to seeing a vote on it) then Doncaster and his cronies can say "look at all these good things we were going to do and you voted against them"....much the same as what happens with lobbying and manifestos etc in the lead up to a General Election. Why must Doncaster play the "all or nothing" card? Why can't things like redistribution of money within the SPL, relaxing stadium criteria, creation of additional relegation/promotion place, obligations towards youth initiatives and the early start/winter break all be introduced without the changes to the league size? No reason I can think of, other than using them to bribe clubs into accepting the 10 team top league and allowing the SPL the remit to take control over the whole game in this country. They can't look after the 12 teams they have already, heaven knows what kind of shambles we'd end up with if they were looking after another 30 teams.

All good points CaleyD: It is still very harsh on the kids who some of them might never reach another final. As for missing a day from school, i think the schools would have understood , as the kids would be going back after the holidays. Who has not taken their kids from school a day earlier or sent them back a day laterwhere school holidays are involved

No i am not a parent of any of the kids involved. What i am is someone who believes in football and gets fed up with people saying kids would rather play, X-boxes , play stations, Etc Here are kids who get through to a final in Europe and the club could not organise it properly. Make a quick phone call to ICT, we are in the final book another night in the accommodation for the boys , re book the ferry, use the club credit card to take care of it, we can sort it all out when we get back. Hells bells , was there that much money lost from the cancelled games against Celtic from TV rites, they could not afford that. We have International Companies as sponsers???? could they not have paid the extra costs. Scottish football at the moment is not riding high anywhere at the moment, is this another nail in the coffin called complancency that we dont care, about the youth that we should be nurturing. The club have let these young footballers down,the club kicked them in the teeth, you got to a final , so what?? the mini bus is leaving to catch the ferry.( 14 plus luggage) What did you say Callum Messi , shut up Mac Ronaldo, stop moaning , hey Wully Cruyff, behave yourself . Ach its only a final , we are Scottish we are in them all the time, you are only 15yrs old you will be in loads of them in Europe, bleeding nora you will be in the World Cup finals. We are the super Caley.we dont need to play in finals, we reach them , we dont have to play in them , we are that good

They should have played the final

cairngorm you seem to be very bitter for someone who's not affected by this. Perhaps you should stop and engage your brain before rambling on. First thing is the youth set up at ICT is run as its own entity and is funded by donation and Flybe sponsorship. It is not funded by the club, as such, and would not be affected by any cancelled game as you seem to imply. Second point is the ferry. It is extremely difficult to find space at very short notice for a coach and its passengers. I'd go so far as to say it would be unlikely that space was available on any of the ferries.

The under 15s reach a final of a tournament in Holland , can they play in the final?? no they cant!!!Why not i hear you all ask. 1) Ferry times were booked wrong, the management(U15s) didnt get them changed 2) They didnt book another nite in the accommodation for the boys so they could play in the final. 3) The coaches asked the organisers to change the time of the final, such arrogance on their part expecting tournment organisers to change things because of their own incompetence. Parents paid out a lot of money for the young boys to go out there and play and take part in the tournament, they reached the final , a trophy could have been brought back, the boys could have had winners medals. Now they have nothing. ICT a SPL team??? They dont have the ambition of one. The club cant afford to buy players they have to try and bring them through and what happens they reach the final AND nothing else is done for them . Hang your heads in shame ICT and those involved in this catastrophe. As for the young boys well done, you all played your part like professionals , pity the same could not be said about those in charge of you.