Scotty
08: Site Admin
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Everything posted by Scotty
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I believe that is a possibility as the articles of association for the SPFL say something about being able to expel members if they take them to court or something like that .... dont know the exact wording, but someone did mention it in the discussion somewhere - or perhaps I read it online elsewhere. Bottom line I think is that Hearts and the League are waiting to see who blinks first .... but the outcome in the end, i believe will be that Hearts get a few extra dollops of cash to sweeten the blow (while Stranraer and Partick get ignored) and that things proceed as planned with relegation/promoton Scottish football has really shot itself in the foot yet again and proven that it is still stuck in the early 20th century. It comes from Doncaster down and includes some very small minded and parochial individuals who cannot see past the bifocals perched on the end of their noses. They can reconfigure and rename the leagues as many times as they like while basically staying the same. it does not improve the product, it is not progressive, and it does nothing to develop the game in the country and thereby improve the image and competitiveness of the sport at a national or international level. Improving the product on both those stages could and probably would lead to more investment, interest and sponsorship. We are on a downward spiral, and have been since the 90s yet no-one has the gumption to try and reform from the ground up. This time in history, with a global pandemic on a scale none of us have ever witnessed is/was an opportunity to press the reset button on many things in our lives and the methodologies by which we approach them ... it just seems ludicrous that an organisation who know their model is broken and needs to be fixed wont even pay it scant regard.
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Took a chance and ordered the biggest size for me and age 11/12 for my almost 7 year old ..... at worst he can grow into it
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Must be a dual carriageway !
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There is no such thing as the SPL, but pedantry aside, I fail to see how the monies would have been diluted. The sponsorship model has always been similar .... There's a really high percentage for finishing in 1st or 2nd place of the Premiership then the prize money drops considerably for third. After that it drops by about 2% per position, takes another dive to the amount given to the top of the 1st and then drops by a certain percentage through each position again through the rest of the SPFL. With the same 44 teams the distribution would remain similar and is more dependent on the amount of sponsorship than the breakdown of the leagues. That's assuming the SPFL have stuck to this model that has been used over many years and multiple league sponsors and not changed it for next season. As for the other stuff, personally, I think it is irrelevant as regardless of league setup next season things will have to change. stadium capacity, limitation on max occupancy of hospitality suites or boxes, amount of corporate sponsors, etc., etc., etc., I would argue that smaller clubs who dont fill their grounds or have fewer corporate sponsors might suffer less as creating a space that is workable under whatever the new normal will be may require less effort. For us, with less than 50% capacity used we should be able to space out our support a bit more even if it does mean some people may have to move. That will not be so easy at other clubs who have a large number of season ticket holders. With respect to COVID testing, thats also irrelevant as whatever measures are required will be required regardless of how many teams are in a division.
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Sizing clarification would be good. online the ordering options go up to 5XL and with ERREA that 5XL sizing was equivalent to about 2XL for the likes of Adidas, but the PUMA size guide only goes to 3XL. Would also be good if size guide was in a clickable lightbox that could be popped out to view the numbers in a larger size.
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I think this story still has a bit to run ... maybe to UEFA and/or ICAS especially after the ruling in France. It may come to nothing in the end but if Hearts do end up in the championship alongside us, whilst seeking any legal means to stay in the Premiership it could force them to lose focus and maybe take a while to get going when things restart. We are notorious slow starters so if we manage to prepare properly and come out of the start gates quickly for once we could do well, especially if the season is indeed shortened to 27 games. Seems I was right about the story having more to run based on lightlamp2's link above. I wish Hearts all the success they can get from this. Not only because it would benefit ICT - and I would be lying if I said that didn't matter, it does - but also because it is the right thing to do. Hearts, Partick, Stranraer, Brora and Kelty are all victims here and no league body should ever seek to disadvantage its members like this when its aim is to foster the game for the good and benefit of ALL of its members. Here's hoping that Hearts are successful and in the process they take down Doncaster and all his useless cronies in the process.Some players/managers just 'fit' a club. Robbo is one of those. Given the resources he has had (or more specifically not had) he has done remarkably well for our club in his management career and I hope to see him continue in that role for many years to come. You want to sanctify Yogi or Butcher - go ahead. Personally I wont try and tell you that you are wrong. Both had wonderful moments in charge of ICT and have a rightful place in our history. Getting us back to the Premiership, winning us the Scottish Cup - you cant take any of that away. However, also remember that both of these managers oversaw the greatest budgets in our club's history, one to bounce back to the Premiership and the other whilst we were in it. If you want a manager to make something out of nothing using a budget to match then Robbo is your man , and right here, right now, I would rather have him at the helm than any other manager in our history.That's my shortest away game over here ... Toronto to Montreal is 336 miles using the shortest route. Have made the trek to Palmerston and back the same day a few times from Inverness and that was brutal in a minibus so Annan to Brora would be even worse. Not so bad if they make a weekend of it though.I think that if we do go up to the Premiership then there is no better season to be unready than next season ..... no-one is ready ! There will be a bigger pool of players available on free transfers than normal, many with a point to prove and our operation on the playing side will already be pared to the bone in terms of wages meaning we may have more wiggle room than some. I would be doing some lateral thinking about now, perhaps seeking out and forging new relationships with other clubs to see who we could get in on loan for the Premiership season if it happens and we are in it. Between who we have, who might be available on a free, and potentially a few quality loanees we could certainly look to finish in a decent spot next season. I wouldnt be planning any European travel for late 2021 just yet but a comfortable 7-12 finish if its 14 and we build from there .... just like we did before.I got 4 around the same time. One black one is still going strong. The rest, one black, two grey, only gave up the ghost last year.I guess the CP shop might be a good indicator of what is possible ... we may not get full range, but some decent looking stuff in there : https://shop.cpfc.co.uk/ I do have to say that for all their faults, the Errea leisurewear range was pretty good, and I especially liked the Polo tops. They were well made and really durable.Online with worldwide shipping please 🙂 Get it into the local shops too if possible. Rather than just sports shops, perhaps - if the tourism does pick up post-Corona - we could think a little bit laterally and target some of the touristy places. For example, I always go to the Woolen Mill out at Holm Mills on our trips and I see plenty of golf shirts from various vendors alongside all their own stuff. A rack of tops from the local football team might sell. I know its economies of scale but I saw this in Paris with PSG shirts everywhere and the same for local teams in other places we have visited ....This is the full press release. Not sure if TM4TJ wants to add any of it into the article ..... It does explain who ILI are in more detail. Also got to say I do love that kit also. great job. The club is delighted to unveil two major new partners to Caledonian Stadium and they are joining us together by way of our brand new 2020/21 home kit! Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC are pleased to confirm that we have signed a multi-year partnership with PUMA, one of the most famous brand names in world football. They will become our technical kit supplier as well as our official retail partner. Speaking on behalf of PUMA, Russ Thomas said ‘We are delighted to welcome Caley Thistle to the PUMA family. We are really thrilled to partner the Club and look forward to bringing exciting new product into the Club Shop and onto their Fort George Training Ground over the coming weeks and months.’ Club CEO Scot Gardiner said “I am delighted to conclude this prestigious partnership for the club and having worked closely with the team at PUMA in previous years, I know very well the reputation of this worldwide sportswear brand and the quality of their product.” “We have looked at the first 25 years of ICTFC kit and we believed that it was time to try and recapture an identity for our home kit in particular. The many people we discussed previous years designs with all seemed to be thinking along the same lines and I hope the fans are in agreement.” “We will look to launch pre-orders for the home kit early next week with delivery later in the summer due to COVID-19. Our striking new PUMA Away kit will be revealed in short order as well, along with a brand new training wear range. I know that Manager John Robertson, the players and everyone associated with the club is looking forward to working with PUMA.” Also joining the club as significant new partners are Intelligent Land Investments. Intelligent Land Investments, or ILI is a green energy group, based in Hamilton, with a history of successful renewable developments. It is currently planning the £600 million Red John pumped storage hydro scheme at Dores, just south of Inverness. They will be the main shirt sponsor of the club with their company logo emblazoned on both home and away jerseys. Speaking to the club this week, CEO Mark Wilson said “Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC has been part of the community for an illustrious 25 years. Alongside the Club, the ILI Group wants to play a major part in the city’s economic and social life by creating local employment and investment. This sponsorship is an indication of our determination to be here for the long-term.” ICTFC Chairman Ross Morrison and CEO Scot Gardiner have spent a number of months working closely with ILI CEO Mark Wilson and his team and everyone is absolutely delighted to see the fruits of those discussions finally illustrated on what we hope will be one of the best selling Caley Thistle jerseys for many years. Speaking last night, the Chairman commented, “We have worked hard with Mark and the guys at ILI since last year and like us, they are extremely determined to have a positive influence on the economy of Inverness and the surrounding area as we begin to exit from this pandemic, we look forward to a long and successful partnership which will hopefully deliver an injection of prosperity back into the Highlands.” ILI follow the excellent solicitors and estate agents McEwan Fraser Legal, who successfully partnered Caley Thistle and we thank them for their sterling support. Similarly, we thank Errea for their backing over many years as kit suppliers.that ticks all the boxes of the story so far. i think you are bang on. Worst part is that if they went with DD's suggestion above your post, one which has been touted hundreds if not thousands of times by many folk, then they would have achieved exactly that and looked forward thinking and fair in the process. The words piss-up and brewery definitely spring to mind when talking about Doncaster and his cohorts.Realistically, unless the rights situation has drastically changed in the last couple of years, it could be for whoever you want .... The club own the rights to their own games with the exception of any they may have signed away to the likes of SKY. If you are buying a digital season ticket then you would, by virtue of that, be a season ticket holder .... the devil will be in the details but it may be a way to increase income from overall ticket sales whilst still being able to stick within social distancing norms within the stadium. The big question is whether the cost of providing the service will be profit making or not. no point in doing it if it costs the club a lot of money it does not have.https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/52903945 Clubs have always had the right to broadcast live video of their own games overseas so there should be no copyright issues in doing so outside of the Premiership. The Premiership wrinkle is likely because SKY negotiated "exclusive" rights to those 48 games and this had to be negotiated on that basis. Same is true of audio commentary where Radio Scotland hold the "non-exclusive" right to broadcast within the UK (and in doing so, block their coverage outside the UK). Where the issue might occur is in the UEFA blackout arrangements that currently see live games on a Saturday afternoon at 3PM blocked from viewing for audiences within the UK. I believe the SFA/SPFL supply their chosen blackout arrangements to UEFA at the start of the season so again, if allowing virtual season tickets, online memberships or PPV services this should not be a huge hurdle to overcome ... hell it might drag Scottish football into the digital era along with the rest of the world ! At ICT I believe we do have the technical infrastructure in place to be able to stream games (and commentary) if we wish. This was upgraded and overseen when we were last in the Premiership. There is however a cost factor in having the bandwidth to publish all this so its not without a fair bit of cost .... Would be good to see it up and running though and worldwide availability of our games would be great for the diaspora elsewhere .....contracts likely expire end of June. As I posted on another thread ..... For once I see this very similar to MLS at the end of a season. In MLS there is typically a small core of players under contract to the club at the end of the year with a lot of others being placed on free agency list or contracts and options 'waived'. Many of these re-negotiate their deals and end up back at the club the following season. Not typically how it works in Scotland or elsewhere .. but there will be a tremendously huge player pool this summer and some on that list may end up being re-signed when they either cant find something else or the club has more insight into the path to come out of lockdown and back to football. Can see Charlie Trafford heading to the Canadian Premier League - maybe with Calvary FC in his hometown CalgaryFor once I see this very similar to MLS at the end of a season. In MLS there is typically a small core of players under contract to the club at the end of the year with a lot of others being placed on free agency list or contracts and options 'waived'. Many of these re-negotiate their deals and end up back at the club the following season. Not typically how it works in Scotland or elsewhere .. but there will be a tremendously huge player pool this summer and some on that list may end up being re-signed when they either cant find something else or the club has more insight into the path to come out of lockdown and back to football.
Caley Thistle released a statement earlier today regarding squad status as we reach the end of the season. Some good news but also some hard decisions taken. First of all the club can confirm that Aaron Doran, Nikolay Todorov, Brad Mckay, and Cammy Mackay have all agreed new deals and we will release further details of this welcome news later this week. It's fair to say that if we were not in the middle of a global pandemic with no idea when football as we know it is due to re-start, there are players listed below who most certainly would have been offered new contracts. Unfortunately that is not now possible and so with something of a heavy heart we have to give the following update. The end of June will see us say goodbye to Caley Thistle legend and club captain Carl Tremarco. Carl has spent 7 seasons with the Caley Jags, in that time winning the 2015 Scottish Cup and the 2018 Challenge Cup. Carl arrived in Inverness back in 2013 from Macclesfield Town and he would go on to make over 200 appearances and scoring 16 goals for the club. He was part of the Caley Thistle sides which won the 2015 Scottish Cup and he scored the winning goal in the 2018 Challenge Cup Final against Dumbarton at McDiarmid Park. Carl would go on to become the club captain in July 2018. The club would like to thank Carl for his truly outstanding service to Inverness Caledonian Thistle and everyone at the club wishes him the best for the future. Charlie Trafford also departs after spending three seasons with the club. Charlie joined from Finnish side RoPS in July 2017 and would go on to make over 90 appearances, scoring four goals for the Caley Jags. Fans favourites Jordan White and Shaun Rooney will also be leaving to join their new clubs having signed pre-contracts for them earlier this year. Jordan White departs the Caley Jags after spending two seasons with the club, Jordan made 89 appearances for the club and scored 26 goals. Jordan signed from Barrow and he was Caley Thistle’s top scorer in his debut season, as he hit 16 goals across all competition helping the club into 3rd place and reaching the Scottish Cup Semi Final. Jordan finished the curtailed 2019/20 season as Caley Thistle top scorer again as he hit 10 goals for the club. Shaun Rooney will also be leaving us after spending two season with the club, Shaun made 77 appearances for the club and scored 9 goals. Rooney joined from Queen of the South in 2018 and made 46 appearances in his debut season and his displays at right back saw him nominated for the club’s young player of the season award and this years player of the year. Rooney also netted 6 goals in his debut season, including a goal in the Highland Derby. Matheus Machado and Tom Walsh have both rejected offers of new two year deals and will also leave at the end of June. Matheus has been close to breaking through and we are sorry to see him leave. Tom was outstanding in season 2018/19 and even though he has struggled with injury this curtailed season, he was always a threat to the opposition when he did feature. We will certainly miss him at Caledonian Stadium. Two seasons ago the club made the bold and unprecedented decision to sign what was in effect, the entire youth team on professional contracts. In fairness, it was an exceptional group of young men. Incredibly, six of that group (Dan Mackay, Roddy MacGregor, Matheus Machado, Jack Brown, Cameron Harper, and Lewis Hyde) have all made their 1st Team debuts, this is a phenomenal return for the risk and faith shown by the club, with many of the others going on to star for Fort William during their wonderful roller coaster season. Again it may have been different for some of the boys if our proposed ICTFC Colts team had been accepted into the Highland League but that was not to be and we respected that decision and looked to find another avenue for them. The following players are due to leave the club at the end of June; Daniel Hoban Donald Morrison Gabriel Hastings Ryan Fyffe Harry Nicolson Jack Brown Ross Gunn Roddy Kennedy We wish all of the Caley Thistle boys who are leaving us a long and successful career wherever the road takes them next."Refunds sent to those who paid ....... cancel notices applied to those who had invoices generated but not yet paid. If you do see the invoice in your account please DO NOT PAY. I will try to view the outstanding invoices at least once or twice per day and cancel them manually. It actually costs me about £0.50 more to cancel each transaction than was paid. not sure if that's paypal or currency fluctuations but either way I can do without the extra cost 🙂 update : I think I was able to go through the backend database and expire all memberships as of June 1st then set it to not renew. hopefully there will be no (more) invoices generated for now. As and when we know how the land lies we can review later ....The system may be generating an invoice for many of you right now to renew your player sponsorship. As we don’t know the status of the game or our players please DO NOT renew at this stage. As and when things get back to whatever the new normal is we will review the situation. A couple of payments have already come through. I will refund those back to users on PayPal .... or in true airline style you can have a credit (joking). I have manually expired a few unpaid invoices and have now set the system to 'do not renew' any others that are still to be generated by default so hopefully it catches most renewals.Thinking of getting one of these ... An ICT equivalent would be good too 🙂
#TogetherNess - The Caley Jags say Thank You to the NHS and Key Workers The Caledonian Stadium lights up to say thank you to the NHS and Key Workers The Caledonian Stadium was an incredible sight to behold in the early hours of this morning as the Main Stand was lit up in stunning blue light to say thank you to the NHS. The club came together with Inverness based KBE Event Services to run a number of stunning smoke and light programmes which entertained the unsuspecting traffic on the A9 and Kessock Bridge. The climax being the NHS tribute in blue. ICT CEO Scot Gardiner commented: "The KBE Event Services team began work at 7pm and on my arrival back at the stadium for the final touches at 11pm, it was still too light due the fantastic clear skies. It was all wrapped up just after 2am as we had to wait for real darkness but it was definitely worth the wait and the results are amazing." "It was just a shame that we couldn't shake hands as we all had to social distance the entire evening. We will have to do that in the future once we get through all of this and get to work with Kai and his team once again in the future. It was worth it to say our small thanks to the NHS and the key workers doing so much for the Highlands and beyond."quality hosting in Germany chosen by the previous CEO to thank for that one 😉 Sorry, couldn't resist it.
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