snorbens_caleyman

All kicked off by the restoration of the monarchy. Yes I know that they were Catholic vs Protestant, but they were mainly about power and dynasty, not religion. We're way off-topic - I'll stop now

Aye, that Martin Luther, just a trouble-maker. If it wasn't for him, then the Highlands would today be able to support two top-flight football teams. I'm no more a historian than Charles, but I thought that the Reformation went fairly smoothly in Scotland, with Presbyterianism gaining the upper hand quite quickly. It was the influx of Irish Catholic immigrants into Glasgow about 300 years later which kicked off the sectarianism that we still have today. Rangers and Celtic were formed in the midst of this, at a time when Glasgow was by far the most populous and powerful city in Scotland - the "second city of the British Empire" - so it's hardly a surprise that they came to dominate the scene.

Well, I suppose that with a third of our league season still ahead of us, anything could happen. My first priority would be to secure 8th spot, hoping that injuries are kept to a minimum over the next few weeks, and demanding that discipline is good throughout that period - we can't afford suspensions. Then we can see what shape we are in - on and off the park - and start thinking about next season. Winning the Challenge Cup would surely instil some confidence and bring the team closer together, too.

OK, I will ask the obvious question. What do you think they should do? I am sure that they will welcome constructive suggestions.

Actually, I think that an early meeting between CJT and the Chairman is important, to resolve something that I keep banging on about, and that Charles has mentioned above. That is, to allow the CJT board to state their case and present their credentials in support of any claim that they may make to be in control of 10% of the voting rights. The Chairman and the ICT Board should then decide whether or not they will accept such a claim, possibly after taking legal advice. In fact, the CJT board should themselves probably take legal advice before making any such claim. If CJT don't make such a claim - or if the ICT board reject it - then the next question is who the hell does control these votes. Settle that first - then you can start discussing the state of the path between the car park and the stadium.

You have the advantage over me of actually seeing them play - week in, week out. I did see - on TV - the Crusaders game, and the team that played in the second half would have struggled against Cradlehall Nursery. Was it any better today? If, as you suggest, no one really turned up, then I would be very concerned. Yes, it looks safe at the moment, but if there is a bit of complacency and another couple of defeats, then all of a sudden you are wondering how on earth you can fashion any sort of win.

Not until we are assured of finishing higher than ninth.

That surely means it'll be a sterile, defence-dominated 0-0 today

Sorry to misunderstand you, cif73. I'm not used to being complimented!

I know I said this last year. Shouldn't the current board be trying to find out who controls this sizeable share of the voting rights? An AGM or EGM would descend into chaos if a vote could be swung by someone claiming to have control of that 10%, but no one could verify whether they actually had that voting power.

I was trying to say that it was probably the equivalent of €250K in sterling, using the exchange rate on the day that the record was added to the Wiki entry. By "curiously precise" I meant that it would look odd to most people, who would expect to see round figures. I wasn't implying that the Wiki author had inside information.

The fee is listed at https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/ryan-christie/transfers/spieler/188077 as £225K. On the German version it is €250K, which is presumably the origin of Wiki's curiously precise figure of £221,645. I don't know anything about that website. There is often a difference between a headline figure and the amount that changes hands. Maybe some of the transfer fee is dependent on appearances? But over 50% would seem to be excessive. Did he have an agent, who would receive a cut? (His Dad?) BTW, I see that it's Ryan's 23rd birthday today. Happy birthday, Ryan

Hawkeye mentions "our reputation", and, of course, it is a vicious circle. Once you establish a reputation, then the refs will be looking out for you. A positive feedback loop. The problem has been there all season. Here's what I said on 02 Sep, after the match against Aberdeen U-20s. (Which, from reading the comments, seems to have been similar to Sunday night - a game of two halves against a weak side.) "I see Trafford has been red-carded. Is it me, or is discipline worse this season? There seemed to be a lot of yellow cards in the previous games - even last week at Brechin." Back then, Robbo's main priority was to find a viable team, so maybe discipline wasn't his top priority. But at this stage of the season, with everything to play for, it's essential.

Did you know that there was also a second half?

Semi-final - need to lose another man before extra time

So what's the biggest lead from which we have lost?

Not convinced by our defence. An early second half goal by Crusaders would make it very competitive.

I thought it started out as speculation, and ended up virtually as a call for the replacement of the current board. So I wouldn't have given it as much time as you did

I think that ictchris and Charles are both right in a way. Players are being paid their market value, but that market is over-inflated. In short, it's a classic bubble. However, despite many predictions over the years, the bubble as a whole shows no sign of bursting. Individual clubs come and go, according to their financial circumstances, and the difference between the richest and the less rich clubs has increased. But the bubble as a whole remains intact, as record transfer fees and wages show.

Better start saving, then! A quick search gives current prices for Tomatin 25 and 27yo at around £175. But it would be fantastic if there was a small collection of casks in the warehouse, filled and stored all those years ago under the loving care of Big Jock himself

Looks like we've just given them a rumour to investigate

I still have an unopened bottle of the commemorative Tomatin somewhere...

I don't have any records, but I have the feeling that that we often get off to a bad start after a break - whether due to weather, internationals, half-time or the summer!

Winning some silverware would be very appropriate.

It all sounds good to me, but it would put the top clubs out of sync with European competitions. (OK, who just said "They're out by the end of August, anyway"?) And if Scotland ever qualified for the European Championship finals or (non-Qatar) World Cup finals...