Scarlet Pimple

No mention of Kevin McNaughton in your "good"list? Apart from his recurring injuries he was a very steady and obviously experienced back was he not?

Setting aside the prosaic language of the Precis set, what was the score for the Nairn game -- or was it called off?

Is that star cluster .....wait for it...."ORION?"

I have a feeling that you are talking to me, Jock, but since I don't detect sarcasm I am not quite sure. Just kidding, oldest poster on here .Ummmmmm? Are you tipsy perchance? I never ask permission to sit down on the ICT site but invariably I'm reminded by Mrs. Pimple that ...."blah, blah , this is the last time I am going to tell you that your meal is on the kitchen table"-- Dire warning since her cooking is very good and so that's the signal to shout.."Aye, aye, captain, coming pronto." Frank Kelly speaking, I was so surprised to see your wizened handwriting coming out of the blue that I kinda overlooked the content of yer message. But old Scarlet , being a lurker, see-all-hear-all-say-nothing kind of spy, misses little and was pleased to learn that the wizened fingers still work in the Australian sun. What on earth are you doing over there? Visiting relatives I'll be bound? Jock, what's the news about the dying Great Barrier Coral reef? Can it be resuscitated I wonder? It's like all of us old timers, once you start to deteriorate it's an uphill battle to regenerate the life-form. That's a harbinger of death of the planet and no mistake The Americans are making great efforts to send probes into outer space because they can see that we are slowly but surely destroying the planet and we will need to have our escape planned precisely or it's curtains all round.. Yet the Donald seems hell-bound and determined to ignore global warming and bring us all down within a few years. Keep into touch, Jock and keep out of the midday sun ....eh?

What Doofers has just written. Makes perfect sense and a fairly in depth review. Steady the Buffs and all. Get the financial house really in order , stop spending money on items and deals that offer little or no return on the investment and cut the cloth accordingly. Prudent thoughts in action Sunny here again in B.C. today--i.e. about half a day's rain yesterday was after three months of constant, broiling sun. Going to sleep at 87 degrees is no fun.Good job no matter what the lawn grass looks like it will all come back in October when the annual monsoon starts up.

Potand Brush-- My point is your point and Question :- i.e Can someone please list the current Board Members and advise what their day job or position is in each case. Then we outlying persons can keep into touch with all the bewildering changes going on just now.? Thanks.

Oh you are awful, Jock, .......... But I like you! "What he said" is about all I can muster between taking deep breaths of smelling salts. Out of hibernation then are you? Or has your wife just finally given you permission to start posting again? Sigh! What would the club do without the old stagers to fall back on , eh?

Whew! That video is an eye opener. Where is the needed urgency and flair in our team? If ICT had the same drive, self-confidence, speed and determination as Dunfermline then it might have been a very different outcome. Their youngsters were something else and seemed to get close to goal like a hot knife going through butter. I was having a hard time determining which names went with which players. But, in one case, on the right of the video, despite about 5 ICT players bunching close to the Dunfermline player he still was able to pass them all by and get a shot in to score. We seem to need a much more experienced defense. Ridgers made some good saves so it seems unfair to single him out but he was maybe slow to react before that ball came in from the left wing and soared over him to go into his top left corner. OR, the Pars left winger should never have been allowed to get that close-in before he lofted a lovely ball over Ridgers. Sigh!

But at Tulloch it does appear as if the pot of gold has run out.Along with the morale which may well be heading South as we breathe. I sincerely trust that our new manager is made of really sturdy stuff because if he quits we are well and truly scuppered. And personally I am just plain demoralised and scared. As soon as I'm off the site I am going to go and get a wee dram which is sitting in the kitchen patiently waiting for me.

What Laurence says in bard-speak is that a rose by any other name smells the same,. I.e..... Unless it stinks?

Probably an accurate assessment!

Does anyone feel sorry for John Robertson? Is he playing people to just try to find out if they have a spark of quality and with what combinations we have the slightest chance of anything working? If so, we can't blame him for that but it does sound as if he's being put out in left field by the Board to either sink or swim. Like he's a miracle worker or summat? I'm very reluctant to single out and name individual players but, for example, why would Mr. R. play Susan if he has proved to be so poor as some of you have consistently said on here that he has been in the past few weeks? To give him experience? For what? More defeats? Well, it does seem as if my theory of building a very strong defense as a first step is not a priority. It appears to be leaking like a sieve, whilst the scores get bigger and bigger. Should I change my name to Nervous Nellie Pimple because now I'm holding onto the panic button for dear life to make sure it doesn't escape my grasp?

Many of us have had our say but unless we move on now in unison and adopt a positive attitude we will not help get the club out of the tangle it is in. Chums, if you think the management (the Board) is going to get down on bended knee , beg for forgiveness from the fans, answer all our constantly repetitive questions and say "Meah Culpa" a dozen times, whilst genuflecting in rhythm with your claims and advice, then I do not see that ever happening. That's why I say let's move on out of the whirlwind where our emotions will continue to overwhelm us and address the real issues now confronting the club. If for no other reason than the fact that the steady new Manager needs the fans to get behind him and his efforts and allow the Board to reflect, change course and be more flexible and communicative in the future. Remember they are human too and if they are all we have for the time being, and maybe for the rest of the season for all we know, then we have to allow for that even if it hurts like heck. At this stage we are darned lucky to have a steady hand like J.R's on the tiller and he needs us to be onside too otherwise from whence does he draw his own positive emotional energy? If we don't support him 100% then he will end up crushed, which is not good. I want to turn over a new leaf and set a new course on the compass because the past isn't going to change no matter what we say.

Please let's just move on and try to leave the negative territory behind. For me I was not impressed or pleased, but somewhat mollified, to be advised by Caley Mad In Berks recent posting that his contact letter to Chairman Finlayson was also not answered. This is surely a measure of the man who now occupies the top position on our Board. Gentlemen and ladies' of the Jury, what kind of example is that to send to the supporters or the footie world in general? "Nuff said. Least said soonest mended, eh? As the Donald would emote...."Sad, very Sad.!"

If everything hits the wall again this season you can be sure that this Board will blame John Robertson. If they are so feart that they cower behind closed doors, revealing as little of their plans as they can, don't give interviews (as far as I can judge from afar) and won't engage outside parties (Press etc) in any kind of spirited exchanges.. where is the drive and leadership going to come from to get our ball rolling? What we need is another General George Patton of WW11 fame to step forth into the limelight with a "rummel 'em up" approach and stoke the fires of controversy that will get the blood churning and set a blaze under the pants of everyone around? And, if J. R. leaves, that will be a real disaster which will leave us ...where? Deeper in the wilderness for a start, minus a manager for second, and unable to attract a top class manager for sure. Especially since we are a far north and somewhat parochial destination that folks who have not actually spent some time in Inverness may well see as a drawback to moving here:- i.e. It won't be like the current Hearts situation where the 'phone is ringing off the hook and good candidates are contacting the club asking for an interview before they have even drawn breath. Mind you , with the loyal and good support they have from their fans, the stadium atmosphere which I have heard is genuinely great, and a very interesting new stand about to take shape, this is an attractive club in a very attractive Capital city which is renowned for it's medical teaching excellence, and sundry other attractive features too numerous to mention. Caley thistle doesn't have such assets and will have to blow their trumpet very loud and strongly to arouse interest. Ads I say ...the Wilderness beckons.

Well, the club seems to have unearthed a bustling manager with a will and a desire for forward thinking. His position is a difficult one and he needs time to establish himself and turn around the engine of the club which is faltering badly right now. But unless this club gets wise about interactions with the public, how to sell stuff and respond to all legitimate enquiries relating to things that may be of great benefit to the club, either right now or in the future, then it could just fade away into lower-level obscurity. And that, IMHO, currently is a real and present danger So where is the spark? A plan of action based on dynamic forward thinking and planning is a must for ICT at this time. Sad as it may be, I see the signs of decay rearing an ugly head and a huge lack of enthusiasm and determination to succeed. pervades the scene. And if I am wrong then that's because the news coming out of the Boardroom is, apparently, non existent and fans (i.e. the lifeblood of the club) are not being catered to by being advised as to what the future plans for the club are. Right now, based upon what seems to be common knowledge, I get a feeling that professional help and instruction on all levels is vitally necessary for this Board to fully understand selling their business product. When you are involved in, or take-over, a run-down business you have to take yourself by the scruff of the neck, work very hard, produce top quality work and be very selective in the type of person (and the quality of their work) that you hire. Not to mention that checking on the work of new hires must be assiduously implemented and carried out over a more lengthy period of time than you had at first imagined. Otherwise, you are climbing a mountain even before you can start to plan well in advance because there is urgency involved. Running a tight ship and seeing clearly what you must do to set the ship on a very positive course with continually improving standards of performance is vital. And one of the most important aspects of a business is ADVERTISING and the repetitive promotion of what you have to offer. i.e. So experienced professional advice must be sought out and implemented and /or checks made on what the successful competition is doing as well.

Wasn't Raven a very significant figure in our winning of the Scottish cup?

Excellent, factual and informative post from Scotty. Now I have an inkling as to why the videos for overseas fans are unlikely to re-appear in the near future....and why our new CEO has not replied to my email on the subject of the continuance of that service. Is he embarrassed or is it just that the money is so short that they feel they have to cut all services as drastically as possible? There is no shame in the latter situation but courtesy costs nothing and that includes responding to legitimate and polite enquiries. After all , we may live overseas but we still have relatives and friends in Inverness and word of mouth can still have a significant impact on how the club is viewed in the town and so forth. To think and do otherwise in a medium nowadays which is lightning fast and interconnectivity is so prevalent is very short sighted in my view. Also it's just not a professional way to do business. Some may criticise K C but he was always polite and informative and always responded to contacts. These videos are/were very good value for the small amount of money we paid to receive them every other week taking everything into account such as their quality, the excellent, informed commentary by Don himself etc. We sit at home in a comfortable padded chair, completely protected from the cold and the elements, we have immediate access (no queues) to toilets and a cup of tea and a scone at half time and how can you beat that? If money is such an issue, why not at least put in a fair increase in the price of the service to allow a possible resumption of the service and then make an effort to arrange the resumption through putting out feelers to tech savvy sources? Or, better still, invite Mr. D..Johnstone into the club for lunch and a glass of wine, thank him for his past work and discuss relevancies and how to meet his requirements together with that of the club. I think that might pay dividends for all parties and enhance relations both now and for the future. If the club dwells in the past with the emphasis on the harbouring of past grievances, real or imagined, then it will it will fall behind drastically.Then what?

Serious question :- Can you still get in for nothing at half time, like when I visited Telford Street as a wee boy? The team is like a tower. Build it with a strong foundation. i.e. from the back and then concentrate on the top part, being the forward line. A team can't win if they can't score against us, and this strategy also gives heart and encouragement to the forwards who can concentrate on developing their moves up front. Just a thought.

Doofer is no duffer ! ! Sounds as if the whole Scottish referee fraternity has a desire to penalise ICT at every opportunity and that for a long period of time now. This means that there may be doubt about their motives and/or have been brainwashed or instructed by the upper level of beaks who run the Scottish football fraternity that Caley Thistle are still the upstart team that can beat the likes of their darlings, Celtic and Rangers, and should not be allowed to progress fairly. Especially when they should still be back in the lower leagues, don't you know, and preferably the Highland League, where their independent spirit can languish without being allowed to show us all up. If you access this link then you will very quickly see what I mean --hardly ever a mention of ICT now or even in the past but for Celtic and Rangers there is not enough paper to print the goings on at celtic Park or Ibrox. So sickening isn't it?.......................... http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/scottish-premiership Last season I was shocked by the constant whistle blowing against our team --I saw this plain as a pikestaff in the live videos of the games that we overseas viewers were allowed to view. We are either "outsiders" or playing "above our station", like. A pox on their houses....these parochial twats. Show them on the park who really are, lads.

Hiro--so it was actually 0-1 and not 1- as you posted? When I saw your score my heart rose, only to be dashed by the final outcome comments posted on here. O.K., it's off the computer and onto the breakfast table, with it being 8 hours behind Inverness time. Have a great day.

Good lad, Eagle . You've been doing your homework. Helps the old and decrepit overseas fans understand what the heck is happening to the team this season. For me it might take a little bit of time to clue into the individual names though. Hoping and praying that the wonderful Board we seem to have this season will relent and call me to say. "Scarlet, your video is ready. If you don't come and get it now it'll get cold and I will have to phone yer Mammy". OCH!

Clach does seem to have a nice grassy pitch though?

Interesting thread and comments. I'm learning from this. Since it was the Highland League that I grew up with the names of the other leagues mentioned is a mystery. What I do remember, however, was that there were some very hard working and good players in the Highland League and the pace was often pretty hectic. What standards would you say is now the norm?