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I'm going to revise my saying of "One Great Club, Two Great Histories". I think we've now earned the right to say...... "ONE GREAT CLUB, THREE GREAT HISTORIES"

Just noticed that our twin town /city Augsburg are like ICT entering the Europa Cup for the first time! Not just that but they also formed through a merger of two local teams in 1969 between TSV Shwaben and BC Augburg, unfortunately the similarities end their as having finished in 5th place in the Bundesliga they are already in the group stages of the competition proper. Would be great to meet up with our German cousins at this stage of the tournament though....

That's that sort of 'flippant' remark that does nobody any favours, and could be inflammatory! ICT are not a continuation of Caledonian (Caley)! Inverness then, is unrecognisable to what it's like now - from a town of 30k to now 80k in such a small time-scale is incredible. Back in the 80s/early 90s, Inverness Thistle or Caley 'going to the wall' would have been a blow to the town. Not financially, but they were simply part of the fabric. For both to 'fold' at-the-same-time was unthinkable...it was a risk, and the 'timing' had to be right. The vacancy, after 20 years, with no further opportunity in sight, had to be taken. The 'risk' involved in dissolving two 'great' (locally) clubs was certainly right. The opportunity was there to apply (and be accepted) to the Scottish League - despite interest from Gala (as usual) and others, it was virtually a fait accompli. Yes, the town lost two major institutions in its proud history - but a new one has been formed, perhaps mirroring the growth in the now City of Inverness. To suggest Caley still exist is absurd and frankly, legally inaccurate. Yes, 'Caley' is often used as the name for ICT, but that of course, is just a nickname, based on the shortening of the word Caledonian in our name. Any inference to the former 'Caledonian FC (Caley)' is unfortunately mistaken! Interested to see how many ex-Caledonian fans would be in favour of the club re-naming as simply Inverness FC?

Dear Santa, Bring it on

zzzzzzzzz Laurence, try reading the previous 7 pages first ? I work to hard to read all the pages on this web platform , some of us have work to do Nobody's asking you to read the whole board. Just have the courtesy to read the threads you intend posting in. if you post long irrelevant messages which add nothing new then we reserve the right to remove them. Thanks.

Hope we draw a team that enters from the second qualifying round. Otherwise we will find out who we are playing on the 9th with a game on the 16th!

Photographic evidence

But grass continues to grow during summer and therefore recovers more quickly after being used. Whereas as you say, grass doesnt regenerate at all during winter and thus by summer needs 7 weeks of work to get it playable again as its been used all winter without being able to recover and as such dies. It still needs to be managed correctly. Either way. But there's many reasons to switch. Better weather for fans. Less last minute call offs. Longer days. Better for fans driving home long distance. Less pressure post Christmas. For the club. No need to power undersoil heating. No need to power floodlights (this money could be reinvested in heat lamps similar to those used by Arsenal for grass recovery off season.). Also it would give the club more opportunity for events days on match day for fans to enjoy and them to earn more. The only drawbacks I've ever seen muted are fans going on holiday. Thats quite a small fry attitude. And is easily countered. I'm sure there are lower attendance's caused by horrid weather and low January cash flow also. And interruption by summer tournaments. Eh really? Because like maybe 3 players go to the World Cup from Scotland. OK. No. But then there's always the chance for better TV deals. I'm sure sky etc would love to show old firm games during the EPL off season. Just make sure they don't clash with an England game

Smee is correct. The original Caley and Thistle supporters were indeed passionate about the teams we followed, and rightly so. Also, it is not strictly correct that Highland League football was amateur. I know for a fact that some of the Caley players, even from the early 50s, when I started watching them, were well rewarded as part time professionals. I don't know how many 'glory hunters' are now supporting ICT, but for me, the more the merrier. We need all of them, and I hope our current success will breed a new generation of young fans who will grow to love ICT in the same way as we old Caley and Thistle fans loved their clubs. Some one on here posted that he thought many of the 'reuseniks' simply reverted to supporting their 'big teams' when ICT came into being. I feel sure that this is correct. In my own case, however, I never had a 'big team'. Not in Inverness when I was growing up, nor in Glasgow when I was a student, although I did watch Partick from time to time, as they were close to my student digs. Then when I moved to London in the 60s, I didn't watch football at all. Even when I moved to Berkshire in the 70s, although I like to see my local teams, Reading and Wycombe, do well, I don't class myself as a supporter, although I'll go and watch them from time to time. The only English team I like, which no one could call a 'big team', is Exeter city and that is partly because a friend of mine has been Director of Football there for many years. So it has only been Caley and ICT for me. One of my big regrets is that I have failed to persuade any of my grandchildren to show any interest in ICT. They don't even follow their local team, Reading, being too easily caught up in the hype that is Chelsea, Man Utd, Liverpool etc. But these premier league giants will never give them the same enjoyment as I had from supporting Caley and ICT.

If a genuine question.. it doesn't deserve to be shot down like this. The merger and the people that didn't support it are all still part of our history and possibly gave us the steel we needed to become as successful as we are today There was a good interview with Sergei Baltacha on BBC Sportsound leading up to the final and although Tom English didn't ask half the questions I'd like to have, it was the first time I had heard anything from his perspective. I was only 12 at the time of the merger so the season ticket bought for me at Telford street was the first time I had a season ticket for any club. I was completely oblivious to all the hatred that surrounded the merger but you can definitely hear that Sergei is still affected by his experience at that time. I don't know if someone else has posted up the interview but if you haven't heard it's worth a listen

You're not kidding about re-watching the game being bad on the nerves despite knowing the result. I watched Hunscene on Saturday night and I was still panicking when the equaliser went in.

I think i was maybe one of the only people that didnt shed a tear or 2 after the game. But i will admit i was having a problem with the celebration cheering, as it seemed as if a frog was stuck in my throat and was making my voice waiver. Think it was the sheer emotion and utter disbelief that we'd actually won. Had to watch the game all over again on sky+ on sunday morning (Was just as bad on the nerves) Just to make sure i wasnt in dreamland :) Even now watching the highlights when vinnie nets the winner it feels like i'm back at hampden again :)

I'm still dehydrated, and I'm not sure whether it is from the drink or from the several pints of water it felt like I cried at full time. Didn't really expect it, I must admit - I'm usually a bit more stoical than your average X-Factor or Masterchef contestant - but I think it was a combination of the dream coming true and a release of the tension of the previous 20 minutes or so; I'd convinced myself we were going to blow it from the moment Tremarco was sent off, even after we went ahead again, and my legs totally went from under me when the final whistle blew. Absolutely magical day though, and one of the best things about it was being able to spend most of it with a combination of the close friends that I started going to see the team with in 1996, and the close friends I have made over years of ICT away days.

My eyes watered with pride when the players were walking out, I was a bit overwhelmed by the occasion tbh. I though I would cry when we won but I just went absolutely mental when the winner was popped in. What a moment. Best day of my life(so far)

I almost past out when we scored the 2nd... With all the wild celebrating in stand I needed to calm down a little.

My face was wet with tears time seemed to stand still at the end of the match.

'Has it been asked already ? !!' I appreciate you're new but the answer is about a hundred times (literally) and the same suspects make the same points, some of them once interesting and valid ones, each and every time and winning the Champions League, never mind the Scottish Cup, wouldn't change their minds. Luckily, the vast majority, although many still have fond memories of Kingsmills and Telford Street (surely the only ground in the UK to have boasted mature elm trees on the terracing ) have moved on and are basking in the reflected glow of ICT's huge triumphs. Let those who aren't seethe in private while the rest of us get on with the basking....

"So Ted, yer man, that angry pompous fella that won the worst poster award, is he really such a blinkered old twit then?" "Shhhhh Dougal, that's quite enough, he's a very clever man you know, with the big words and that. And don't you be mixing up your Nairns and your Brochs now, or he'll be ripping you a new one." "But Ted, he told me he mixes up his Whitehill and his Annan Athletic and sure there's half of Scotland between them." "Enough I said Dougal! Anyway where were we?" "You were telling me about when that East of Scotland club Ferranti Thistle....." "Dougal! I've told you they're called the "works team". You know, like "pub team". They're a works team". "Well anyway, you were saying the dirty rotten obsessive Lowlanders ganged up on the Jags from Inversneckie". "Yes Dougal, it was a conspiracy". "So the 37 dirty Lowlanders voted for Ferr.... the works team?" "No Dougal, only 19 of them". "What, the rest abstained then Ted?" "No, they em, voted for the Jags Dougal." "Haha come on now Ted, I'm supposed to be the eejit around here, not much of a plot that is it? 19 away from 37, that's, that's eh, quite a lot. Some of them must be less rotten than others eh?" "LOOK! There was corruption. Something about eh, (waves hand dismissively) Forfar bridies being handed out. OK?" "Ah, right you are Ted. So what about the next time then?" "Well, this time they pulled a real fast one Dougal. They altered the votes so the big clubs got 4 each, the middle clubs got 2 and the wee diddy clubs got only 1." "(Snort) ah come off it Ted! I'm not thick you know! Everybody knows that would only help the highlanders! The wee diddy clubs were the ones objecting in the first place!" "No Dougal, it was a cunning plan to obsessively shaft them and get it right up them". "Ah right, I get you. They all voted for Gala Fairydean then?" "No, Caley Thistle" "What, Caley Thistle AND Gala Fairydean?" "NO THEY DIDN'T! No they didn't Dougal. (Whispers) They gave 68 to Caley Thistle and eh, some more to Ross County." "Speak up Ted! 68 out of 82? Isn't that quite a lot Ted for a lot of conspiring rotters?" "Yes but it was a dirty conspiracy Dougal, letting only the two in." "So how many spaces were there Ted?" "Eh, two." "And how many applied Ted?" "Eh, five." "Ah, right Ted."

"Proper" were they? Oooh fancy! I wasn't aiming to belittle anyone, and if I did well then I must truly say, that from the bottom of my heart.....that I don't give a hoot if a few noses have gotten out of joint because they take a game so seriously. It's a little pathetic. You're essentially saying that anyone who hasn't endured (and I stress that) the lower leagues isn't a proper fan. You're bang out of line for that. Anyone who gives their hard earned money to follow their team, no matter when they started, no matter how often, no matter how much they spend, is a proper fan as far as I'm concerned. It's such snobbery and attitude that holds the club back "ooh you weren't there on the cold dark nights in Forres. You're welcome to spend your money, but you're not really one of us". It stinks. It's no better than the refuseniks who are still bitter approaching a quarter of a century later as opposed to being proud that a small team, any team, from the highlands, against all the odds and with a tiny budget has managed to win the main cup competition in the country and qualify for Europe. So do forgive me if I have no sympathy whatsoever for them at all. It's beyond childish.