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So the ref's like... The jambo's are all... And we're like... Then up steps Nick Ross...

ICT undoubtedly deserve larger numbers turning out based on achievements and in a different time would possibly be seeing regular crowds in the region of 5-6,000,however times have changed. The match day experiance is generally pretty poor,Scottish football attendance has declined (outwith the OF) and only the genuinely football minded will turn out to pay overinflated prices to be over policed/stewarded and suffer generally shoddy treatment. I'm sure there are many incomers like myself who have a soft spot for ICT but the time, effort and cost just isn't justified as a neutral, so you are left with the hard core die-hards and 2-3000 is likely to be where it's at for the foreseeable future,CC and co need to accept this and stop making good supporters like the OP feel awkward or embarrassed about it,it aint the ones who goes fault. I may well tag along to Parkhead for the final,i'm no glory hunter (obviously!) but hope ICT do well and i'm sure it will be a great day out,whatever the result, its a step in the right direction for ICT and what provincial club supporters live for, I for one am jealous as feck! Good luck ICT

Wouldn't you just love to open up on them match officials?

It's about quality, not quantity.

I know it's a rhetorical question, IHE, but thinking back, for a Highland League team to mobilise that many troops was incredible. Likely went some way to convincing the central-belters of Inverness's viability when the League admission vote came a couple of years later. Not sure if it's urban legend, but reputedly some Caley fans were locked out! But anecdotal evidence suggests there may have been as many as 5,000 Caley fans there? It's not urban legend. There were fans locked out. It was simply the best support that I have ever had the pleasure to be in. It was also a night where there was no seating plan and the singing section amassed in the middle but it felt like everybody was in synch. There have been times that I have felt that the ICT away support has been close in short periods.

today is a good day.

How about a union jack, with, just to increase the amount of red you understand, a big red hand in the middle, to signify the helping hand us fans give the players. We also need a catchy slogan - after Sunday's never say die performance, might I suggest 'No Surrender' because we don't give up?

As much as I would like to see dedicated ICT commentary and/or live video of every single match ICT plays its not really viable financially. You can have all the volunteers you like and donated equipment and all sorts but some costs are unavoidable (infrastructure/bandwidth) CaleyD and others have already commented on this at length in various threads and the media team will do what they can to get as close to that 'dream' as possible but lets face it, we are talking about an audience in the hundreds not the thousands or tens of thousands (and i think saying hundreds is being generous). Neutrals are not going to subscribe and those that would take it up as a serious option number only a handful spread around the globe. If there is a way of the service being provided without negatively affecting the club budget such as sponsorship or it being self financing (unlikely even in a subscription model) then I am all for it. Otherwise, Open All Mics it is (unfortunately). If it were a game where there was going to be a capacity issue then I would agree with the voucher idea. Have made similar suggestions in the past in the days when we did sell out TCS for the odd cup game here and there ..... you reward the core fans and diehards if not everyone will be able to get a ticket. However, with a venue like Celtic Park and no likely ticket issues, I would suggest you think in the opposite direction ... embrace the so-called glory hunters, welcome them with open arms and consider them "casual fans" as opposed to the derogatory term of "glory hunter". Those 'casual fans' who make the decision to go are an opportunity to increase our core crowd on a regular basis. (These numbers are all subjective - feel free to insert your own as they are only used to illustrate my point) If our core is 3000 and we take 10,000 (just picking a number out of the air) to Parkhead then there are 7000 opportunities to convert new fans. OK, some will be fans of other teams who happen to live/work in Inverness or are mates with a fan who is going and like the idea of going to a cup final, or yes, some who are true glory hunters in every sense of the words ..... even if 75% of those casual fans would never darken the TCS gates, that would still leave 1750 candidates who might be persuaded to come on a regular basis. Its occasions like this that we can use to build our fan base

Then it's back to the pub... :ictscarf: That's all I have to say about that.

Hi guys, my first post and no doubt a controversial one. Watching the semi on Sunday(couldn't make the game!) Charlie Christie in the studio made reference to the lack of fans following Inverness being dissapointing, and how making a final could attract more into the stadiums on matchdays. I know he didn't mean it in a derogitory way but part of me felt let down by that. It really annoys me how the small(by press standards) following who show up to the games keeps getting a battering when I think we should be celebrated, this is a team which has existed for 20 years, that is a tiny amount in football terms, any team in that situation would struggle to attract over ten thousand even. In Britain football is a nostalgic affair, standing on the terraces as a youngman with your dad and grandad just as they did with their grandparents 50 years before, that type of support is ingrained into your being, the working mans weekend passion and relief. For us we have made a choice to go against the grain, it would be easy to support the big teams with all the history but no, we have chosen a team who are writing history, we have decided to support and invest in our local team and watch them flourish through the leagues despite our friends and families sticking with their Rangers, Celtics and Man Uniteds. And boy the results are so sweet, I am a proud Caley fan and have been going to games since I was in primary school and there is definitely a connection between these players and the fans...despite what's written in the press. I of course have the utmost respect for Christie and it must be very frustrating that the clubs success is not getting bums on seats and I would question a few things around that, but that's for another post for another day. My point here is that despite so many factors we do have a strong support and one that should absolutely be celebrated, on national tv he had an opportunity to aknowledge that but instead focused on the negitive, it was over in a second and I'm making a fuss about nothing I know but I am getting bored of us being embarassed about it. What are your thoughts?

Hi Caley Girl any luck with the email address for me?

It's a right wing Government thing........and not something liable to change even if the current UK Government does, given the reluctance of NuLabour to roll back any Tory policies at any time..as they tend to continue with them, but blame the previous Government for them. (Much as the Coalition is still blaming NuLabour for the fact that the Coalition has added a lot more than £400 billion to the overall national debt since 2010). Food banks are the safety net of safety nets. It is only when government fails that food banks have to step in, and they show that welfare cuts and inefficiency cause hundreds of thousands of people to depend on emergency food aid. This Government has failed. Problem in the UK is that the Government is just not accepting that their policies have anything to do with anything. Despite the fact that the Trussell Trust is practically a partner in the Welfare State, with the DWP issuing vouchers for people to access food parcels on an emergency basis, Ian Duncan Smith has dismissed claims that the problems are linked to welfare reforms and attacked the charity for publicity-seeking. He further said that the reason more people access them is because they know they are there! Church leaders, many of whom work with the Trussell Trust, or have non-aligned Food Banks/Soup Kitchens, were incensed by reports in December that the government had turned down a potential pot of £22m of EU funding for food banks, on the grounds that the UK did not want to be told by Brussels how to spend money for European structural funds. Go figure! According to research last year for the Scottish Government, (DEFRA has produced research for the UK Government, but it has not yet been published....one wonders why!) the top three reasons for referrals are currently benefit delay, benefit change and low income. There is uncertainty in when welfare recipients will receive money and how much they will be getting. Interviewees also reflected on the effect of the bedroom tax, an increase in sanctions and increased referrals from the Scottish Welfare Fund. The statistics shows that 23,073 people (including 6500+ children) in Scotland were provided by Trussell Trust with emergency food parcels between April and September 2013. Between Spring 2012 and Spring 2013 the Trust has seen a 170% increase in demand. Over half of referrals were related to benefit delays or benefit change/withdrawal, an 11% increase on the previous year. In 2009, there was one Trussell Trust foodbank operating in Scotland. By October 2013, this had increased to 42 established and 17 in development. As of October 2013,there are around 400 Trussell Trust foodbanks across the UK, which provided emergency food aid to around 400,000, and they think, to fully address the problem, there would need to be between 750 and 1000............just how sodding sad is that in 2014 in a country which bums itself up as being a developed country, having the sixth biggest economy in the world and being a world "leader". A world leader in what, I ask myself........wasting money on nuclear boy's toys and keeping the rich in the manner to which they have become accustomed? I'm inclined to think that it is the rich and the politicians who have the real "entitlement" mindset, not those they are trashing with monotonous regularity.....but what do I know.......maybe Cameron is worth £142,500 a year of our money to help the growth industry of food banks...and maybe the CEO of RBS is worth £1million a year, though I can think of no cogent reason as to why he is....... but then I buggered if I can see what makes Wayne Rooney worth £250,000 a week either, so I am obviously not a Thatcher's child.

That is a BIG decision and a BIG boost.

Maybe so but any Invernessians who normally support Celtic, or anyone else for that matter, are more than welcome to lend their support at the final. Who knows, we might even get a few converts.

Who? You should know. He's talkin' bout your generation.

Seething.

Wouldn't you just love to open up on them match officials? Suspended from CTO pending a full investigation

Nah. He was mince. Consistency was non existent. Should be a long time before he is near a game at a high level again. Sadly, it won't be.

Charlie giz a wave, Charlie Charlie giz a wave.... waaaaaaay!

What have the kids done to deserve this? Think of the children. Won't somebody please think of the children!

If it was a Saturday then it would be fine as there are a lot more early trains to get folk to Glasgow. I think Scotrail will be able to run additional services on the Sunday as there will be plenty of spare track time.

I think that complaints about the semi final were ligitamate but moaning now about Celtic Park at 230 on a Sunday is just taking it a bit far. It has to be Ibrox or Celtic Park to fit everybody in so does the difference in capacity really matter that much? And when your taking maybe 10000 fans to a final does the timing of one beaten up old sprinter train really matter that much either? Its a drop in the ocean. I would hope that their would be at least one special train leaving maybe 9ish and lots of other travel options. Glasgow for 230 in the spring is very different from Edinburgh 1215 in the dead of winter. I think that we will do our cause no good at all if we keep moaning about each and every arrangment thats made.

Have a greenie

Transport for Aberdeen supporters.

Good. As you say, concise and accurate....

Good one KingBeastie

Best review ever!!! Thank you

Haha. Think i‘ll avoid taking my (new) glasses to game for a while. I tell you what though. The celebrations at Nicks goals.... absolute scenes. That goal and the post penalty shoot out celebrations were more enjoyable than Feb 8th. So Sunday was my most memorable moment... and it was all a feckin blur after Gregs goal. #Scenes

How about, more accurately, We Are Caley Thistle....?

The Dundee fans are virtually united in their approval of the appointment.

Have to disagree with Alan. I don't know about anyone else but if i am not working offshore i will be trying to get as many mates(most of which have come to games before, some not) as possible to come with me to the final and my brother will be doing the same. Would that be a bad thing? It's not like there won't be room and they will be there supporting ICT, their affinity starting through me and my brother and who knows, it might even stick. We brought two mates each to the semi who made (almost ) as much noise as us and we will easily make double figures with close mates and family for the final because it is the kind of occasion that will attract the fans that don't normally go. Like PerfICT said above, if even a couple of them start to attend more often then job done. My parents are fans, live 70 miles away in Fort Bill so only make a couple of games a season due to work, cost and convenience. If there is ever an occasion for them to make a special effort then surely this is it? There are of course more hardcore fans out there than them but i resent the gloryhunter tag a bit for anyone that goes that's not included in the 3000. As for CC's comments, he is right but i agree with the OP in that he maybe could have focused on the positive side which was us bringing along a very healthy crowd imo in the face of a very unhelpful SPFL.

Scot Rail have tweeted that they are in discussions with clubs about putting trains on. ScotRail ‏@ScotRail 1h We’re working with Aberdeen + Inverness FCs to put on extra services for fans travelling for League Cup Final. We’ll update asap.

Not this AGAIN! Small crowds at ICT are a fact (but not unique in Scotland). The young age of the club is a factor for all the reasons above. The trick is to get as many as possible to the final - ESPECIALLY those who don't usually go. If you can convert a few of them on account of the occasion, that's a bonus. Win the thing and even more will be converted because their is just that bit more history to buy into....

No need to discourage anyone whether they regularly attend or not. Given the venue, there will be tickets for everyone. The more the merrier even those who might not watch us again unless and until we reach another final.

The thing is lets look at St Johnstone and Motherwell. Motherwell are a bigger club and have a bigger support but they still struggle to consistently get over 5,000 to home games when they have been one of Scotland's more consistent clubs over the last few seasons. St Johnstone on the other hand have been in Europe and trebled there average gate in the league. Had more at there semi Final on Saturday than they do at McDairmaid and back in 1999 filled the ground playing a big derby vs Dundee to qualify for europe. Even Kilmarnock have more fans that could turn up week in week out but they don't and the stadium is terribly empty. If the media want to pick on teams for poor crowds then have at go at these teams that have the crowds but don't see them every week. We are a Young club and havent had the generational development of support over the years as others have. They should lay off us as we dont have the crowd to turn up these clubs do. I agree with Charlie and everyone else that it is disappointing to not have a larger support that cub certainty deserves but the supporters we do have a brilliantly dedicated lets not take anything away from what we have already got.

Tell him if he does it again he'll be loaned out to Rangers.

Have to disagree, there is no doubt we have a very loyal core of fans especially those hardy souls who go home and away. However, there is no doubt that given the population of our catchment area and success as a club the numbers who attend the TCS is a disappointment and it was perfectly proper of CC to say so.

Because the first train from Inverness gets in at 14:05. Astonishing yet not surprising that they've again set a kick off time that is impractical for Inverness fans travelling by train. They clearly don't care one jot about our fans.

Sure someone mentioned already but I m always repeating myself, its an age thing. Just like to congratulate Tremarco and Hughes decision to put him on. He did a perfect job at a perfect time and broke up everything. Brilliant. Did exactly what it says on the tin. BRAW

You only know 7000, stop exaggerating.... If he's been on the bevvy (if? who am I kidding) then that's only really 4,000!

Me + 8,000 others

Fair play to Roger Daltrey and the boys.

Not enough "orcs".

Gotta feel sorry for Capital Caley tho... He missed Nick's goal and ALL of the penalties... Not because he left early but because he broke his specs in the melee after Tansey's strike!

And the ref's still like... Then it goes to penalties and we're all like... And now the jambo's are... Then it's full time, us and the players are all going...

His tenacity and control at the vital moment was outstanding. Calm and cool did it for me. In that situation he could have been forgiven for losing control and muffed it. That was simply terrific piece of skill.

I was thinking much the same despite the fact that towards the end I think he was beginning to really struggle. It is significant that at the death when Hearts should have been really pressing for the win and the ball was crossed from inside the box for McCallum to head over, there were 7 ICT outfield players in the box but only 5 Hearts players. So Billy and 5 Jambos outside the box. It was also significant that at the end of normal time, the Hearts players looked as though they had lost the game. OK so they would be gutted that Nick had nicked an equaliser, but with a numerical advantage of 10 against 8 outfield players it was still theirs to lose. They should have been getting to the manager quickly, eager for instructions as to how to take us apart in extra time. The difference in commitment and belief between the 2 sides was huge.