snorbens_caleyman

Thanks, Charles. My Dad always referred to Lamont Graham as Scoobs, never Scoobies, so it seems odd to me to see that name. Probably everyone except my Dad called him Scoobies!

Thanks, bughtmaster. It was "Herb" that I wasn't sure about, and Bill rings a bell with me. I wonder who Herb was. Sadly there's no one I can ask.

Can't see any new signings being made until everyone knows who the manager will be next season. And that's (probably) not going to happen overnight.

Indeed. Almost sounds like a cunning plan to exit with a payoff.

Three short, silent films of BB activities in days gone by. They were on a videotape which belonged to my late father, John (Jock) Smith of the 5th company, and which I have recently digitised. I hope that they will be of interest to some of you here. Inverness Battalion Camp - Carrbridge, 1950 - 11 minutes. The only person that I recognise is my father, ducking his head at 09:34-09:35 as the camera sweeps along the line of people. Inverness Battalion Camp - Carrbridge, 1953 - 6.5 minutes. 01:16 - Lamont Graham - Scoobs - walking backwards, directing the litter pickers 02:13 - line-up of officers includes Scoobs, Herb MacDonald?, George Fraser, Ian (Flash) Reid and Jimmy Robertson 06:14 - Scoobs again, watching the cricket Inverness Battalion 50th Anniversary - New Colours and Church Parade - 04 & 05 June 1960 - 5 minutes Ironically, the most recent film has the worst quality of the three. It looks like there was a parade to and display at the Northern Meeting Park, followed next day by a march past at the Town House and a service in the Methodist church on Union Street. I don't recognise anyone in it. I don't have any more films like this. I have many large boxes of still photographs which I intend to digitise over the coming months (years, probably), so if I find anything which may be of interest I'll post it here. Garry Smith

On more than one occasion I watched him weave his way into the box... and then fall flat on his face. Sorry for going off topic here.

Grey hair now, live in St Albans (Snorbens), sister is still called Judi, and my Dad died about 13 years ago. He had a long association with the 5th BB - in fact he decided it was time to resign as an officer when I reached BB age. He was also secretary of Thistle for a couple of years in the late 60s, and I played the records on match-days at Kingsmills during that time. They wouldn't let me do the announcements because my voice hadn't broken. Although my heart was with Caley, it was great for a young kid to see a football club from the inside, and to watch Thistle turn into a free-scoring goal machine - Tony Fraser, Ian Stephen, Johnny Cowie, Bobby McLean, et al. My Dad didn't get on with Jock McDonald, so he resigned after a couple of seasons, before the Jags actually won the league. Dragging this back on topic, Dad worked for the Highland Health Board, so my first golf, before I joined IGC, was round the mountainous course at the Craig. The only course where you needed crampons rather than spikes!

My late father used to talk about a supposed actual event at Grant Street Park. The stand-side lineman felt something strike his shoulder, and when he glanced down, he saw something roughly circular on the ground. He assumed it was a pie ... until it started to move off. Someone had lobbed a live tortoise at him.

Looks like it, though I have not been down there for 25 or more years. Originally, the burn meandered along the right-hand side of the 8th almost as far as the green. It crossed the 9th just in front of the tee. You didn't have to cross the burn to reach the 6th green. In the 70s, they straightened out the burn - and turned it into a raging torrent - and constructed a new 6th green so that you had to pitch across the burn to reach it. The burn then crossed the 9th at the bottom of the slope leading up to that green.

Oh dear, it's like when you used to catch me coming in late. My name is Garry Smith and I did play golf quite a bit with Laurie, including in the IRA team. I last met Laurie, and his wife Tina who was also a classmate, at the IGC Xmas Eve dinner back in December. I was in the same year as Laurie, Billy Urquhart, Dave Milroy, et al - and also one IHE, who I'm pretty sure won't remember me.

Those trees have had a chequered past! The IGC centenary booklet doesn't contain many pictures, but it does contain three of approximately the same area, around the 6th, 7th and 8th. (I acknowledge the violation of copyright – IGC please forgive me.) The first picture below, from 1912, shows the 6th green and the burn. In the distance, on the left, is Old Mill Lane and what is now the 8th tee, featured in the pictures earlier in this thread. In 1912, IGC did not own the land on the other side of the burn, hence the reference to the “original course boundary wall”. The 1920 picture below is from near the 7th green, above and to the right of the women teeing off in TBB's original picture. The trees are still there. Chronologically, the next picture is TBB's original picture of the women teeing off. I am not a fashion expert, but guess that it is from the 1930s. In that picture, the trees are gone. Now fast forward to 1983. Young trees are growing along the burn, and presumably these are now the mature trees in TBB's colour picture. I played at Culcabock mostly during my secondary school years, 1968-74. During that time, the club planted lots of trees around the course – including between the 1st and 18th, on the 3rd, 4th and 5th, and in the angle between the 6th and the 7th. At the time, they were in fenced-off plantations from which you got a free drop, but nowadays you'd just have to play out. Frankly, the course now looks terrifying compared to the one that I used to hack around!

1895 is correct but I think that may be at Culcabock. I have the centenary booklet that Inverness Golf Club produced in 1983, and here's what I have found. The club had originally started at Culcabock, but they set up the Longman course because they didn't have enough land at Culcabock. The Longman course was opened on 15th April 1893, and a clubhouse at the Longman was opened on 16th March 1895. However, "the end of this year [1895] also saw a clubhouse built and formally opened at Culcabock." The booklet contains a much poorer reproduction of the Am Baile picture above, labelled "Opening of first Clubhouse Culcabock 1895". So it looks as though by the end of 1895 they had two clubhouses, one at the Longman and one at Culcabock. The booklet later refers to "expenditure on the clubhouses at Culcabock and the Longman", so whoever wrote it definitely believed that they had two. The club later acquired more land at Culcabock, building a new clubhouse there in 1908 to replace the clubhouse which had existed for only 13 years.

Yup - that's the 8th tee, in the south-west corner of the course. The photographer was standing on Old Mill Lane. That's the clubhouse on Culcabock Road above the seated woman.

It was indeed a massive result, and a much needed three points. But everyone has been saying "Beat Killie and we are safe!". Unless I am missing something, we still need one more point to be absolutely sure. If Killie won their last four games they would have 44 - but our goal difference is much better. Unlikely, I know, but so are Leicester City... Am I missing something?

"There is a monster in Loch Ness, A fact ye cannae hide, It's got mair curves than a movie star, An a wiggle three miles wide An a wiggle three miles wide"

Carried the graffiti "Here lies Hector, belted by the Rector". Room 36 or 37 ?? - next to the Rector's office. Mr Dougherty - who drove a Borgward Isabella, IIRC - tried to teach me English there. We had a mutual loathing, so fortunately it was for only one year.

To put him in the shop window?

Not even Liam's Frankenstein impersonation could cheer up the Staggies' fans on Saturday.

Benzies summer sale - and just look at the weather! Plus you could help yourself to a baby from the selection parked outside in prams. My wife - not in Inverness - was once left like that. Shortly after she was born, her Mum was out shopping - arrived home thinking "I know I've forgotten something", and then remembered "****! I've got a baby!".

Was there nearly 30 years ago! Unfortunately it was a Wednesday, and most of the place was shut - and we were going home the next day. I remember that parts of it did remind me of Sneck - I remember an Argyle Street. The only souvenirs we got were a couple of baseball caps from the local store. I'll let other folks figure out where it is.

Another reason why it's not going to happen is that Hughes and Rice are signed until the end of the 2017-18 season. Sack them now and we wouldn't be able to afford a new manager or any new players.

I don't recognise anyone as Butch. Which one do you think he is? But I do see - rightmost standing gentleman, with collar and tie - Jags player and trainer George Pyke. I don't know anyone else.

One of the houses of the unholy...

Now I do believe that is the Royal Academy cricket team from IHE's year - possibly the 1st year one of 1968-69? Correct me if I am wrong, but I think I can identify some of them. Back row - left - Neil Spence (later father of former World Modern Pentathlon champion Mhairi), 3rd left Andy Smith (brother of author Ali Smith), 4th Billy Urquhart, 7th Fraser Kennedy. Front row - left Robert Milne (?) (councillor Alastair Milne's son) 2nd left Davie Milroy, 4th Willie Graham, centre (captain) Hamish MacIntyre (the Dalneigh minister's son who died at an early age in a mountaineering accident), 2 along from Hamish - Jeff MacDonald (Kevin's "big" brother). I have this ominous feeling that IHE is in there somewhere but can't spot the face. that's because when we pulled him into the prefects' room for "discipline", it was usually one of his far more commendable features that was in evidence as we set about it with a training shoe. Back row - second left, Neil Buchan (died some years ago), 7th possibly David Scrimgeour (who was a great mate of Fraser Kennedy), far right looks like Jimmy Chisholm. Front - first left, I think that could be Bryan MacGregor (later head boy and football captain), between Hamish and Jeff is Michael ("Suds") Sutherland, on Jeff's left I think that's Laurie Chancellor, far right Gavin Meldrum. Gavin's father was something like County Architect for Inverness-shire. Telephone callers to the Meldrum residence were sometimes bemused by Gavin answering the phone with the announcement "Ballachulish Dog Mortuary", or with the question "Do you want to buy some dirty postcards?".