Scarlet Pimple

It was the reception then IHE......my reception. No question aboot it. That's why I had to give in to my wife's demands and went out and bought a 55 inch T.V. I wanted a 46" and she wanted a 50" so we compromised as you can see. Shoot! About Esson--I didn't say he had a bad game. Just pointing out that he was quite a bit off his line for the one that beat him. Esson actually did very well in all other situations. Like a well-oiled engine.-- with Esson Extra in it . And Tokely was doing great until he also faded later on. Eric--I said he went for a tackle or two. I didn't say at any time that he came away with the ball did I? Running in circles but he tried, he definitely did.

Talking about pitches did you see the seemingly poor stste of Hibernian's pitch? Looked like a starving rat in places.

I don't really see why you all are blaming Hogg for the first goal. Ryan Esson was well off his line and seemed transfixed as it came towards him. Nine out of ten of that type of ball would have hit the bar or gone over and it was a bit of a fluke to be honest IMHO. Also I did see Hogg run like the clappers half-way across the park to go in to one of the Hibs' players with a bang and the ball and the player went over the line for a throw-in., He seems to be a worker and is not afraisd to shift to get the ball. Rooney and Foran were good today? Are you on something? Sorry! Were they actually playing for goodness sake? Neither of them appeared to be dangerous at all and faded out of sight for periods. Or was the fuzzy T.V. picture I was watrtching the cause of all this? Miller of Hibs was some player yesterday--industrious, pacy enough, skilled enough to take on and beat a few of our guys etc. I wish he was in our team. Rordan did a bit of puffing but although he came close at times he was not really that much of a threat I don't think. Sure, he is a clever lad, but his long range attempts at goal were unlikely to trouble Esson. In the first 15 to 20 minutes I thought Hibs were going to score at least two and looked really dangerous. They had, at least at that stage, urgency and hunger in their play that Caley lacked and I was nervous --this fired up the crowd and they had their chances I must say. Eric ran about a lot, did tackle a couple of times but frankly speaking was ineffective. Doran tried hard and also backtracked quite a lot, which meant he had to run distances to catch the player who got past him. Why is he the only one dsignated to take all corners. Two successive corners of his went sailing over all the heads and out over the goal lines -- completely wasted efforts!! Inexperience ? Probably and tiredness a bit, maybe. Have a good week coming up.

Yup! I noticed that,--a bit strange eh?And their log-in was a disaster -could not find a way to get it right..kept getting into a cul de sac . So I emailed them and a nice guy named Martin sent me the webpage for the TV viewer without my needing to log -in. Now that is a smart guy who knows how to service his customers. After that it was good. Their Tv service package is for overseas video viewers only which is ineteresting.Competitively priced too. Was great to see our team in action and to be able to assess the performance for myself instead of relying on other folks to update me. Geez--I didn't make a spelling mistake in that sentence, theings are looking up. It's a bit like their pitch--needs an upgrade! Their T V is not too bad is it? What did you think of it? When the sun was up the East stand was so bright that one could not make out any spectators but this improved as the sun moved. Good crowd there today. Dunno how many; could not judge but at least 10,000 to 12,000 I reckon. Will watch the report.

were the better team and deserved to win. Caley has quite a bit of work to do, Are they as fit as they could be?

Hibs were the better team and growing in confidence. They have some very "possession-driven" players who are very good at keeping and distributing the ball. Frankly,overall, Caley were second to the ball throughout the match and simply did not put as much effort into the whoLe thing as the Hibs team DID who clearly wanted ppossession and a win more. Some of our passing was woeful, intercepted by Hibs players time after time. It's not about the players getting tired because that affects both sets of players . Where was Adam Roooney today--nothing but a ghost? ! And the second Hibs goal caught Esson off his line and ,,,sure,,,it was unexpected but these guys are industrious and dangersous and I see them continuing to climb up the table on this display.We simply did nokt match them in aggression and effort. And let me just add that this was not a dirty match at all. But it was about industry, wanting to win and controlling the ball. Hitting on the break is fine for an experienced team with a very strong defence but is unlikely to win matches by itself. Terry, IMHO, should have made more changes earlier in the match and just gone for attack. Foran was not effective and ICT left it all too late. After MacDonald came on he tried hard but had little support and there was no cohesion up front By that time the team had faded and Doran must have been getting really tired because at least two succesive corners went past the goal and out over the line -a complete waste.And he seesm to be the only player designated to take corners because I see him running from one side of the park to the other to do this. Is that good? Not much else to say. Hibs

The game started at a hot pace wioth Hibs dominating with some greatr football. Players that stood out were Wotherspoon, Miller and Towell. The last-mentioned worked hard ans I saw Towell wipe the sweat off his face once. Caley also played quite well but mostly in defence. Esson is really on form and had a great save midway through the first half Rooney was not outstanding and service to him was very limited.He did have one chance to score but the keeper got a last ditch foot on it and saved the day. Mind you the same thing happened at the other end. Doran has played very well and rarely loeses a ball to the opposition. Odhiambo runs about a lot but, according to the Hibs commentator, has passed more to the opposition than to his own teammatezs. The Hibs T V is a bit blurred and I can hardly make out the players--but, heh, any port in a storm. Tokely doing well as has Duff and Munro--real solid at the back. Esson has been very effective and agile. Foran hardly seems to feature. Did take a nice corner but Caley nbow simply playing too far off the Hibs players thus giving them plenty of room to use their undoubted skills and pace. Time for Terry to make a change I think and start getting playters up the field--after all he says he wants to win all the games left--Not on this stuffy and defensive display unless he has at least 3 forwards up the park. The Hibernian pitch looks in very poor condition in places.Not impressive for a superior SPL team. If Hibs score then they could easily win the match because it will be difficult for Caley now to get into an attacking mode right away to recover the position. Inverness Caley Thistle are going to have to come out with a more aggressive attitude otherwise some of these very dangerous Hibs raids are finally going to pay off. At the moment it does look as if Hibs have lost a bit of steam but Caley have not had a shot on goal either that was worth looking at. This could easily end 1-0 or 0-1 --a draw anyway. The fiurst hald at one point had developed into a fast, almost freenzied great game but that all fell away when Hibs started to fade out a little. O.K Back to the T.V. Cheers Scarlet

You bet, Top Six. I have completed the deal and my excitement is mounting. Many thanks for that reference which allowed me to meet a very co-operative party. Enjoy the game, Scarlet

Doofer's Dad--I know how lonely it is at the top when no one answers so greta post--BRAVO.

IHE --I wnat you to know that when you write with tongue in cheek, an sardonic smile playing about your finely-chiselled lipsand irony in your soft tones --you are extremely amusing. But you need to....... relax , this i snot going to cost you a cent.

Oh, and by the way, Neil Doncaster, IMHO , is not a leade,r he is a facilitator. He facilitates whatever flies best in the pevailing wind. And that wind is NOT the wind of change --merely the hot air of adjustments suitable to those clubs who have the most influence in Scottish football...no names, no packdrill, like! You will get no change out of Neil Doncaster, if for no other reason than the fact that since he has only been in his new job for a short while he will be in no rush to give up his office, his salary and his perquisites for really radical, rollicking change. Passive resistance and no movement forward, resulting in an even more stultifying Status Quo, will be the order, if not the odour, of the day. He knows which side his bread is buttered on. For sure, he is well aware of what his mandate is and was undoubtedly aware of it prior to, and after, he was hired--crudely put it ran something like this from the beaks.."we are looking for a facilitator, who will not make waves and who understands that business is business and the strongest influence in the Scottish game comes from Glasgow. We want you to be as inflexibly flexible as possible, dangerously dynamic as you dare not to be, as palpitatingly passionate about REAL change as a Thistle is which wants to change into a toadstool; and then some! Folks--don't lose all hope. With a bit of luck Terry will be in charge of the Scottish game at some time within within the next 30 years and hope springs eternal in the human breast doesn't it? Translation : "We are screwed!"

Trim Charlie's beard? What a thought. Good gracious, you would have to trim his hairline as well to create balance and then gentleman Charles would resemble an Easter egg! I am , of course, hoping that said scribe will retaliate in kind so that I can have a good laugh to lighten the load of sadness and woe that is upon us as a result of this issue having been so contentious. George Fraser is a very intelligent and able man and, from personal experience,I know that he has a good heart. His understanding of what is best for the fans will, to say the least, be full and acute. No blame should be attached to him or any other member of the Caley Thistle Board for what follows. He is set now between a rock and a hard place where nothing that he now decides will attract universal praise. The least damage that he will see after the dust settles will be, in my view, a situation where he successfully so arranges his decisions that others follow to nmake sure that the minimum number of teams remain at 12. The more I hear, the more I find the presence of Celtic and Rangers in the SPL as a big, smelly fly in the ointment. Their influence and the negative effects they have on all remaining clubs is grossly disproportionate to the amount of value they bring to these clubs. Without them, the league would be more competitive and fair and all clubs would have a better chance of remaining solvent and passionate about their game. Toadying to their financial plans and schemes means that the other clubs cannot work within their budgets and cannot therefore have all their energy directed to providing what the fans actually want to see on the park. England doesn't want them and maybe they have outlived their usefulness in Scotland. The present setup, financial and otherwise, does not work IMHO. It is not as vibrant as it could be and there is litle incentive to produce attacking football and thrills for the fans in the current situation of relegation and promotion. Fear, tentativity and caution rules the roost when upbeat , forward-looking rules and situations should be fostered instead of the stultifying ones currently in place that often cause more trouble than they are worth. e.g the offside trap--how can anything be more counter-productive and negative than that? And then you might see more originality and endeavour and a lot more thrills for the fans.--e.g. greater end-to-end stuff. And I also think that Chas should offer his face for shaving in a public place for a small donation , with all funds gathered going to either the Overseas Ex-Pats pension fund or the Inverness Caley Thistle's Indigent Reporters' Trembling-pen Society.

Donview-naughty boy! I have heard of zee Von Richtofen but Richturd? Isn't that a bit Richoffcolour..like? :biggrin:

No. I am sorry, but you do NOT have to lump it. A mass protest (peaceful of course) or a mass boycot would soon bring at least a measure of change. HOWEVER, as soon as the minimal measures implemented to get the fans back in the parks had succeeded you can bet your bottom dollar that as far as the top two clubs are concerned that would be the end of the concessions. Frankly, pals, a really sustained boycot is the only answer to bring the clubs who want this to the negotiating table. "So, what." You may ask. "Will happen if the clubs go bankrupt during, or as a result of, this process inititaed by the fans?" Frankly, it seems as if the Rubicon has now been crossed by Mr Doncaster. And his cohorts, either because of blackmail or offered miney inducements, are quick to willingly agree to his proposals and follow suit-- like sheep to the slaughter. The bottom line is not money, folks, it's whether you, the paying customer who has the real power in his or her hands, is willing to do without your Saturday football until all this baloney changes to a much more fan-orientated and fan-pleasing structure. Let's face it, you certainly pay enough of your hard earned money to watch it weekin and week out so .......................................? You can grumble all you like but you must use that power or put-up with the ten team league and, very quickly, stop moaning about it. Otherwise, you will be moaning for the rest of your life if you want to watch the Doncaster, Celtic and Rangers gravy train leave the station followed closely by all the other little puffers hanging on to their coat-tails.

J Di Maggio So where does that leave the SFA then? Do they have any job to do, any work to engage in or any influence in Scottish Football at all --in your view ?

Sounds like there are more than a few stoppages in this game. One foul seems to follow another . Nervous game for both sides then? Anybody care to summarise the action to date? :salute:

Good for you Wanderer. Seems like you may be as bored as I am . No action, no commentary, no video, no one awake. Smile.

So how are the weather conditions in Inverness for the match?

Top Six Next Year Don't fully understand your advice! If it is already stopped why would you "pause it"? And how? Doesn't seem to matter what I do, it just keeps on stopping. This has happened occasionally in past videos but not nearly as many time as this one. Is there any explanation for this?

Both Jimmy and County may be grasping at straws.

This video constantly stopped on my computer. So many times that I could not count them . The black disc in the middle of the video kept going round and round and round. Can't imagine what it could be other than the video Has anyone else had the same problem? Any explanations.

The Knowledge :- The Font of all knowledge. We are fond of Knowledege because he has the courage to speak his mind.,. and eloquently. And .......................RIGHT-ON, Knowledge. And I gave you a point for originality, determination, knowledge and spunk. Hoch! Hoch!

What would we do without IHE and his insightful reports. I have missed them so.........

And while you are at it why not tell us fans living overseas why you are cutting us off from even the most minimal radio contact. And how can allowing radio access to any of the few fans that do live outwith the U.K. have the slightest negative effect on the bottom line of ANY SPL club in Scotland ?

Interesting and good post Caley D.