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Just thinking,if County go on and beat Hibs, Peterhead manage to do the same with Rangers. We have the Scottish Cup still tucked away,then all three Cups would be in the hands of clubs coming from the Highland League. Nice one for the suits at Hampden

Nice to see another Highland team going to a cup final, and in the process knocking out the Scottish champions. Always enjoy a cup upset, where the underdog beat the Big team (sound familiar). Yet again some Celtic supporter's & media beleive that it is a forgone conclusion that Celtic will be in the final. But no County earned it and I don't be grudge them that, If I did it would make me rather small minded. So let's focus on retaining the Scottish cup and hopefully start by beating Motherwell. Mon the Caley

Well, someone had to say it. It would be fantastic if another Highland team reached a final and indeed wrecked Celtic's annual right top a treble.

As a near-Weegie who came to Caley and then ICT support by marriage to an Invernessian, I don't feel the County-hate that the native Sneckians do. And so I'm delighted to see a proper team - any team - put one over on either half of the Old Firm. Good on them. Over the next week or two, of course, they'll have to put up with all the same whingeing about reffing decisions from the club and their whiney supporters and their partners in Scotland's Old Firm lovin' media that we had to put up with after the Big Cup semi last season.

I know we all love to hate County, but I think some of the above comments go way too far. I have friends and colleagues who are County fans and I wouldn't dream of displaying such hatred to people based on the team they support, I'm just happy when we have the bragging rights (which is most of the time)! I'm not sure I want to see County lift the cup but I'm glad that Celtic won't.

Absolutely brilliant result for County. I completely disagree with all the bad wishes for them. It is all that is wrong with the world. We are country cousins. Many came to our finals to support us. I will do the same on March 13th and hope they win.

Just brilliant for County! As we know, a League Cup Final is a huge deal - let's hope they enjoy the significant media attraction as we did, and take then Cup to the Highlands!

I doubt that is actually true. Living in Ross Shire almost everyone here seems to support County and pretry much all the kids in my school support County without exception. Do you have any proof that they have more season ticket holders from Inverness than Ross shire as I would find that very hard to believe.

Well county have a chance to win the league cup now, much like us last year in the SC they got a bit of semi final luck. We lost the final a few years ago now they go into the final as favourites. Great for Highland football, thats 3 major finals between the 2 teams in the last few seasons, both cups could be in the region - this has to be beneficial for both clubs, its getting harder for the media to ignore the region and football teams, hopefully the national coverage will help both bring players up north. As much as I dont want RC being successful, I'd rather that than see the OF continue to dominate football and their fans who think they will win everything year on year. Just sad that we didnt play better in the quarters or we would have played that semi today. Hopefully the sucess of RC will push our players on to be even more deterimined to get to another final in the Scottish Cup.

Don't be so nieve. They have more address season ticket holders with Inverness addresses than Ross shire ones. Of course if they are successful they affect our business prospects as a club!

Having just read Mr Meekings' Article today I see nothing rude, abusive, derogatory or sarcastic in it, either towards Mr. J Hughes or anybody else, including the club. Josh leaves the indelible impression that he is tired of his injury(ies) and would love to get back to full fitness and regain his place in the team as soon as is feasible and allowed by the specialists that are attending to him. In fact his summations are factual, honest and it's extremely doubtful to me that J Hughes has harboured any rancour or resentment towards him personally. Especially when he sums up what he feels could be J.H's feelings about it all that have led to J.H's somewhat public statements. Josh demonstrates , IMHO, that he is a very honest man and something of a diplomat to boot. And, from what I have read, I can't imagine anyone taking offense at his remarks; so what's all the babble about anyway? Let's face it though--if the players' absence from the team en-masse affected the placing and success of the team at the end of the season in a very detrimental way, such that his job was then very much at stake and attendances were down, etc., leading to a possible financial crises for the club, then whose jobs and careers' would be the ones at risk? The players or his? Obviously not the players who could always claim injury prevented them from playing. Furthermore, as the man responsible for putting the best team on the pitch and also being responsible for the ultimate success of the club, his professional pride and future job placement(s) could be deeply affected as well. So, I see no fault at his expressing his passionately-held viewpoint publicly. Why? Well, consider this: If these same players, about whom J H might suggest were unwilling to play for the club because of niggling injuries, were self-employed, would they have the luxury of staying away from work until they felt that their serious injuries were sufficiently healed to allow them to resume work without fear of any complications? .The answer is NO... unless they were wealthy and were able to employ other people to do their share of the work in the self-employed business that he/she operated. Assuming they could not afford employees and in the building of their fledgling business their presence was vital to success, what choice would this businessperson have since his/her absence would result in the loss of the business, the capital investment, his/her health (through stress) and possibly his/her marriage? The answer is, therefore, NONE. i.e. Regardless of any injury the modus operandi is ...."Play on MacDuff, or starve." Therefore, the other side of the coin is that players nowadays are very well off. In fact some don't know how lucky, even mollycoddled, they actually are. What with specialists and doctors and trainers aplenty to attend to their every need, together with good food probably supplied by the club, an interesting profession, together with the many other perks that one can assume are attendant on this trade. e.g...trips abroad etc. So, if players can play through minor injuries FOR the benefit of the club, can you see anything wrong with that expectation? I can't. In the case of very serious injuries, of course, a different scenario exists but I feel certain that these latter categories are NOT what the Manager is referring to.....? Maybe the real issue here is actually not about hurt feelings (to which I answer..."Diddums.") but whether or not J. Hughes is speaking the truth?

Is that a real house at a permenant address or one with wheels at a temperary address?

Well done County, they deserved their place in the final. Boy did I enjoy hearing the wind being knocked out of the pundits sails especially after their gloating about the under 27 seconds goal and the Celts are sensing blood -----------They were right though they were, in a sense, bloody awful. Come to the Highlands and see the Cups

Really great that the Highlands' 'wee team' put paid to Celtic's hopes of a treble. Didn't something similar happen to the poor lads last year too? The churlish inner me sort of hopes County don't win the final, but in another way it would be great for the Highlands if they did, especially, as another poster said, if Peterhead made it a trio of Cups coming north. So good luck to Peterhead too.

I heard this being discussed on radio Scotland on Saturday morning. Pretty poor decision as they didn't want to split the mainstand and have both fans sharing the servery areas. They highlighted what teams they support ie Motherwell etc and had tickets for the main stand but in hospitality, as with hospitality its mixed supporters yet they can't do it for normal paying fans. St Johnstone were allocated less than an average home match and Hibs were allocated double. Pretty poor way to treat the Perth fans. Sporting integrity not.

Yeah, I'm originally from Inverness and grew up there. So I have an ICT season ticket with an Easter Ross address for my sins.

Was thinking the same, great achievement beating Celtic, their fans will be delighted, would be good to have both cups in the Highlands.

Duncan's brother David was a tremendous player as well, played for Middlesbrough, Wigan, Grimsby, Gillingham, Bournemouth, Scunthorpe and Darlington amongst others.

I always like to see the "wee" teams do well, but not County. We are in direct competition with them for players, fans, sponsors etc and any success and additional money they have can only be detrimental to ICT.

Not enough direction from Yogi on the touch line..... Everything communicated through Brian Rice. Maybe it's a good cop bad cop routine.... But managers should manage. Not seen a great deal of that recently

Maybe but personally I'd have rather he'd done it less publicly

A typo appraisal and a Dad's Army quote? Wow, that was a real zinger back CyberBritNat.. considering the debate on here could be an enjoyable spectacle, it's just noteworthy how sour, negative, condescending and ugly your input reads, compared to some enjoyable inputs from both sides of the debate

It's immature, ignorant, generalising drivel, like the above which has the BBC only trusting Charles Bannerman with the latest tug of war updates from Drumnadrochit or the results from the knitting championships in Elphin, and not proper news. I've not spoken to a single former pupil of yours with a good word to say and you prove on here why, time and time again. It's embarrassing to watch, the constant nazi references, misogynic/racial undertones at times. We all know it hurts you dearly that the Snp continue their success, but maybe you should concentrate on why your arguments are failing and why the opposition is so terrible in Scotland (less than 50% of people know who Dugdale is) The constant demonising and obsessing over the Snp is clearly not working with the electorate and it's probably because many voices sound so negative, bitter and out of touch, just like our own Mr Scrooge on here. Merry Christmas one and all

Hi Joe did you move from a home on our side of the bridge?

I don't see how that's a threat tbh. If the tourists want to buy the lucky charms and pegs its entirely up to them.

Welcome to the forum, Ed! I think the deafening silence from all the SNP folk on here provides the answer to your question. But the point of the budget was not to do something the electorate would like or which the SNP think would be good for the country, it was to do something which was unpopular and which could be blamed on the Tories in Westminster. Being able to blame the Westminster Government for the hardship facing many of our citizens is a far more important consideration for the SNP than the fact that our citizens are facing hardship. Hence a budget that increases the hardship when currently devolved powers provided an opportunity to increase taxation of the better off in order to better address some of the social problems in our society. The budget suits the SNP's purpose but is not something they want to debate.

People who pay Income Tax ARE the better off, and they pay it in proportion to how well off they are. DD is absolutely right. Priority number one for the SNP is generating discontent with Westminster and what a miserable and disaffected society they have created in recent years by creating antagonism among those who don't even realise they are being radicalised. The other thought this Christmas Eve is the misery and Anglophobic, "Bah London", Scroogelike resentment which will hang over so many Nationalist Christmas dinner tables tomorrow, given that, rather like haemophilia, Scottish Nationalism is a disease which tends to run in families. Just imagine the miserable wakes that families of these political inbreds will hold as they sup their Scotch Broth, munch their Christmas haggis, chew their neeps and swallow their Festive porridge, all washed down with the best Malt Whisky - and all at 3pm so they can avoid watching The Queen. Oh - whilst opening their non-Palace of Westminster Christmas cards from their relevant representative of the 53 and a half.

They don't like it up 'em Captain Mainwaring. Those whingeing Jocks DO NOT like it up 'em! Classic bit of Cybernattery from Bobbyjag there though. Right down to not realising that the correct word is actually "misogynistic".

Shortly ago Sturgeon was also banging on about wanting ALL parts of the UK to vote to leave the EU before such a decision could be binding. So presumably she would be just as adamant that ALL parts of Scotland must vote to leave the UK before any decision of that nature could also become binding? And now we seem to have Jum "persecute all pro-Union businesses" Sullurs breaking ranks with the rest of the separatist lobby and demanding that we leave the EU. Let's face it, Sturgeon and her chums quite simply say whatever they think they need to say to con people into supporting them or to fabricate their latest grievance. As a result, the SNP have plunged a perfectly civilised society into a mire of division and resentment. What also alarms me is that, for them to have gained their current level of support, more people than I thought are clearly unable to understand even the basics of the issues. But let's imagine that the SNP did call another Separation Referendum on the basis of a majority of Scottish voters opting to stay in the EU as against a small overall "OUT" majority across the entire constitutional entity which really matters here, the United Kingdom . (I actually have a hunch that the SNP's enthusiasm for Europe is less a matter of conviction but more the opportunist spotting of a possible source of grievancemongering, but never mind). Anyway, let's also imagine that this developed into the ultimate nightmare scenario. Despite ongoing problems over currency, foreign policy, defence and God knows what else they were unable to provide answers for pre-September 2014 - PLUS the now suddenly disowned panacea which "was" Scotland's Oil having gone t!tsup - they actually got the single, slender Yes majority which is all they need to damn us all for all time. By now Britain has left the EU, so Scotland becomes a new applicant. IF they did get Scotland into the EU, the situation is now a total pantomime. Here would be a tiny EU exclave/appendage, with a basketcase oil industry and using the bloody Euro which has just one border. And that's with a major world player with 11 times its population which Scotland - despite generations of Anglophobic rubbishing from the SNP - now desperately needs to be its main trading partner, but the said world player is no longer in the EU and uses the pound. Border controls, foreign exchange controls, trade tarrifs, an obligation to follow EU rules not designed for non-EU trade, no benefits for Scots staying south of Gretna etc etc. And does anyone REALLY think that the non-EU UKcontinuing would give a toss about Scotland if Oor Jock was sadly out of step with it? I can, of course, already hear the Nats among us chuntering "Project Fear!" but sorry chaps. It's time you woke up to the fact that you can't simply add the several inconvenient truths of this debate to the SNP Handbook of Grudgery. You are running out of people daft enough to be conned by this nonsense. A similar situation would also apply at the frontier between Ireland and Northern Ireland, but here NI would have the advantage of being part of the much larger UKcontinuing so it's that member of the Arc Of Prosperity which is Ireland which would would suffer, albeit rather less than Scotland. However, there is one part of DD's post that I just can't agree with - "Ms Sturgeon's persistence in trying to force the will of minorities over the will of the majority is really getting tiresome." DD... it's not GETTING tiresome. It's been a complete pain in the backside for years!!

Given that your lot's paranoia that it wasn't the shortcomings of their own case but the bias of the BBC that lost them the Referendum remains alive and well, you seem to have missed the opportunity of a better one liner than you have there!

No, they didn't.

Mon the celts

Was only said in jest. Your above statistic dosnt surprise me one iota. It has a lot more to do with living in a rural area and moving to Inverness for a better lifestyle and employment prospects, than all our fans crossing the bridge. If you want to start naming local pubs there are a few of them who are from north of the bridge and are county fans. Does it really matter what their post code is.

I suspect OCG is right....but maybe not for obvious reasons. It's thought/believed/rumoured that a sizeable proportion of all County season tickets are "gifted" by Global to staff, friends, people they do business with etc. Since their head office is in Inverness then the owner of all those tickets has an Inverness address, even if the people who use them may not.

I hope they beat Celtic but then get thoroughly pumped in the final.

Actually Joe I think it was Roy MacGregor that said it in press? Will try and find link when I get time. I just don't get this County lovein when we are clearly both working in the same small pond for sponsorship etc....