CaleyD

Still waiting for someone to mention one of these local companies that are so great and could do the job and would charge less.....just one, that's not asking too much is it?

And who was it that asked for a change of caterer in the first instance? If the club were claiming that everything was perfect and not doing anything then I could perhaps see the point of some of the comments being aimed at them....but their not and they are, for once, trying to improve things. It's one thing to find a good supplier, but it's quite another to run an efficient catering service on match days and I'm certain that the club would be delighted to hear from all these local companies people think could do a better job whilst offering a worthwhile return.

That image looks familiar :)

Can we keep on topic....there's a separate thread already running discussing the catering situation and if you have anything constructive to add then you should do it there.

Firstly, the opinions of fans being talked to at games is that they prefer the new caterer to the old one and things have improved. Still room for improvement and this will continue to be worked on and monitored. Secondly, if people have nothing constructive to add then can you please just not bother posting. Saying "It's crap" over and over again adds zero value in terms of feedback and it's getting to the stage...yet again...where the posts and feedback that do add value are being lost among the rest and when that happens then it only serves to discredit the views of everyone.....or the club simply stop reading/listening.

Yeah, they just have the camera tower over on the other side for the craic and the people filming from there normally are just figments of your imagination!!!

I'd have them taken out and shot....it's just one thing after another with this bloody club, when will they ever learn? After all, we only had 3660 people there today, you think they'd be able to please everyone!!!

Oh....and Munro got the Sponsors MotM, they just hadn't got the info to me in time to announce it.

Also, as I said on Twitter and announced at the game, a big thanks to everyone who helped clear the pitch and stadium....with special mention to the Dundee fans who also turned up to assist.

Only thing we could come up with that fitted the circumstances of the indirect free-kick was that Douglas must have picked up a pass back. Taking a kick from outside the permitted area would only have resulted in having to take the kick again under normal circumstances (I think) and would have been a harsh booking. What was shocking was that Douglas then moved early to charge down the free kick, ref had card out of pocket...must have realised he'd just booked him, and put the card away again. Not much to complain about with the penalty, although it was a close call on whether it was in the area or not. Not a tackle Lionel should have had to make as it should have been offside....and not the biggest of fouls, but we would have been calling for it had the situation been reversed. The goal was very well taken....Rooney picking up the ball midway into the opposition half and keeping his cool as two defenders closed him down and the keeper came out at him to slot it confidently under the keeper and into the net. The kind of chances/opportunities he's been blowing this season, so good to see him stay composed and with any luck he'll have taken some confidence from it. I thought Proctor had another great game...potential MotM...and Tokely must be wondering if he'll get straight back into the team when he comes back. Duff seems to have brought the midfield together and I wouldn't be at all upset to see us signing him on loan till the end of the season. Sanchez was getting into good position but the ball just wouldn't break cleanly for him or he might have logged a couple of goals. All in all a pleasing performance and had we not been trailing by so much then I doubt we'd be seeing many complaints about pulling off a draw in this one. Probably the end of any realistic opporchancity we might have had to pull ourselves back into contention for the league....but please can we not have any of this "the season's over" BS. Still a lot to play for, even if first place is out of sight.

You're right, it has been like that for years....and I've always said that it will take time and effort (from everyone) to overcome and break down the barriers that have gone up as a result. Unfortunately many things that should and could have been done whilst we were enjoying the relative luxury of SPL level income were not done and it's only now that certain people at the club are realising the benefits it would have brought. Now they want to do it and there's no money in the pot to help make it happen and it falls at the feet of the fans to do everything to get it off the ground and seems like the club are giving very little support, or are allowing it reluctantly. There's no secret in the fact that I have very little time or respect for those who sit in our boardroom and I don't do anything I do for them, I do it for the club...for the badge...and for us. Without the fans we have no club and despite everything I still live in hope that one day the fans will wake up, grasp the nettle and drive this club to where it should be....with or without the support of those currently upstairs.

I thought it was meant to be a community club as well....and my understanding of that is that everyone does their bit and it's not take take take all the time, on either side. It seems to be left to the same people all the time to try and make things happen whilst the vast majority do nothing more than sit back and moan and complain about this that and the next thing. Yes, it's been a battle for far too long to get things done or be given the opportunity to get things done, but the opportunities are now starting to present themselves and all those who do the moaning run a mile when asked to step up to the plate and do their bit. So far this season the fans have been asked to assist with a painting project, a plea was made for programme sellers and HT draw sellers, I've asked for assistance with the stadium announcing and for people who can help with getting video highlights on the go and the wall of silence when you ask the fans to do anything is deafening. I've complained as much as the next person the past few years, but it's always been backed up with a "here I am, what can I do" attitude. If the fans want this to be a community club then they have to be willing to put in some of the work to make it happen. The club have been far from perfect on allowing these things in the past, but things are showing signs of changing and the fans need to embrace that and help instead of expecting everything handed to them on a plate.

Unfortunately I don't think we (ICT) have the luxury of being able to choose what will happen...one way or the other. I suspect what little we had in the bank at the start of the season is all but gone and we won't be able to pay off one manager and appoint another. I also suspect that we'll see another round of cost cuts at the end of the season...and maybe even some in January...where the squad size will be cut as much as possible. Whether we can afford anything other than a young unexperienced manager come the end of the season will very likely be another deciding factor on how things pan out. It's pretty unreasonable for us to expect people to stay, even if they would like too, when they can probably command a good bit more elsewhere. This club is very much a victim of it's own poor decision making and management over the past 7 or 8 years and without some radical changes and major new sources of investment then any ideas we might have about appointing proven managers and players in the foreseeable future is pure folly. We've no money in the bank, we've no assets to borrow against and our contract policy means that even our best players are worth very little in the transfer market. As a result we don't have the luxury of choice or decision making, so it matters not a jot what any of us want as we're very much relying on what card fate deals us next.

As nobody has come forward to assist with filming the match on Boxing Day then it is very unlikely, at this point, that we will see it happening.....the camera cannot operate itself and I'm not going to mess those who have offered use of the equipment around at the last minutes, especially at this time of year when they should be spending time with family etc. I do have a volunteer for the January 2nd game, but they are not available regularly beyond that, so we still need fans to step up to the plate. I have to say that it saddens me a bit that with so many people mumping an moaning about no highlights being available that we haven't been able to find a single person willing to do something for their fellow fans.....is the principle of a little give and take really dead among our fans?

Update from the club. They are looking for people to go down to the Stadium tomorrow at 10am to clear ice and snow from the stands ahead of time. They are also looking for people to be available from 8am on Saturday to start clearing the pitch and getting grit down in the stands and around the stadium to allow the match to go ahead. IMPORTANT - If you are able to assist with either of the above, can you please email or phone Emma Williamson direct on 01463 227455 or [email protected]

Filming could be done from the Scaffolding and/or the press area in the Main Stand. Obviously the cameraman and equipment needs to be protected from the elements, especially at this time of year, and we are looking at getting some kind of roof & windbreak on the scaffold as I imagine that would be the preferred vantage point. With regards the Buckie situation....ensuring we've dotted all the i's and crossed all the t's with regards to permission and licensing is part of the reason it's taken a while to get things up and running for us. The process isn't so much a minefield as a maze. You get one thing sorted and turn the corner to realise it's a dead end and you have to backtrack to the start and find another route. There's no clear guidelines on what you should do, only a list of rules saying what you cannot do.

"Potential" Good News. The fans have wanted this for some time and we've now been given the opportunity. Ultimately this is all about fans doing something for other fans and I really hope that this, and other projects to come, get the support they deserve in that regard.

I already have a call in with Bromley Eagle, but I would ideally like to have 2 or 3 people sharing the job. That way we have cover for when people have to work, holidays, illness etc.

After what seems like an eternity of discussion involving CTO, The Supporters Trust and the Club...we have the green light to push ahead with this project. The only caveat placed on us is that the club, understandably, don't want this to cost them anything and we feel that, with the support we've already been offered and your help, we can achieve that. We have secured the use of a suitable camera...certainly short term...and Scotty and I will be providing the webspace and technical resources to get the footage online for the official website. What we do need is a couple of reliable/capable volunteers to assist with camera operation and a bit of gopher work at home games (we will look at doing away games further down the line). Ideally we will put a "Fans Media Team" together in order to spread the workload and ensure we have the fanpower to ensure this is a success. So, if you have any experience of operating a camera...or know someone willing/able to help...then we'd love to hear from you. We will need people for other things...and hopefully other projects...but a camera operator is priority right now.

It's a tough one and I was verging between 'Yes' and 'Not Sure'. As a player he would be nothing more than a squad player and/or a "super sub". I still thinks he has enough to offer in that regard. Where we could/would get "good value" is from having a promising and, potentially, long serving coach. We talk about bringing through young players and I think there's room, and benefit, for us to be looking to bring through future coaches/managers. Would Butcher want him on the coaching staff? Is their room for him on the wage bill? What's the plan/likely scenario at the end of the season in terms of coaching/playing staff? If we can bring him in now without jeopardising anything else, then I'm leaning heavily towards the Yes...and that's how I've voted.

It all depends which version of "reality" you try to peddle. For me, the reality is that whilst there's positive change in regards to things like merchandise, catering, some avenues of communication etc...all the things we see and can quantify, the big problems are in what we don't see so much and can't/don't necessarily seek to quantify. Look around at the things you wouldn't normally give a second thought too. Advertising boards disappearing, reduced adverts in the matchday programme, all but scrapping hospitality and replacing it with the Kingsmills Club, smaller travelling supports at TCS. All things which are dramatically reducing the clubs income. From the moment we were relegated the club have pushed this "Bounce Straight Back" message, but they have done little to back it up. No new investment, no real budget for Butcher to bring in the players needed, cuts instead of investments in the younger lads coming through. In fact, despite what we were told we seem to be doing everything in reverse of what you would expect from a club with aspirations to "Bounce Straight Back". If fans are to be accused of "unrealistic expectations" then it is because they were told to expect more than what is being delivered....on and off the pitch. However, credit where credit is due, to hose who are due it. We've (eventually) seen the arrival of new merchandise lines, ones asked for by the fans. We've seen a change to the caterer following endless complaints about the last ones. We're seeing inroads and attempts being made to bring kids in...and there's more to come on this front. Fans stepped up to the plate by buying more season tickets than ever before. The staff who are left are stepping up to the plate by maintaining and improving what's within their remit. What are our Board doing??? We've had 5 lucrative seasons in the SPL...we'd never had it so good. However, we get relegated and it quickly transpires that little, if anything, had improved in the terms of how the Board had been structuring and managing the club....we're no further forward in that regard than we were when the club was formed in 1994....in fact, I would say we've probably gone backwards. If we don't change how things operate at the top, then everything else is just papering over the cracks. Who was it that once said "If the fans are still talking about the Board in 6 months time then I haven't done my job", and how long has it been since he said it? That is what I see as the "Reality" of this clubs current position.

You're best to contact the club shop direct to ask them what all sizes came in with the new stock.

Darren has just informed me that they are now buried in boxes of new merchandise at the stadium. It'll probably take them a few days to get the new stock photographed and into the online shop, so the best thing to do if you want to see/buy it is to head down to the shop.

I got the following from Darren earlier today. Apologies for the delay in posting, but this is the first chance I've had...... Q. Were the staff from Edinburgh? A. Yes, they were Hibs staff on loan until Lindley recruit their own Inverness team which as you know doesn?t happen overnight ? 1 manager will be appointed and up to 20 staff. Q. Have prices gone up? A. Yes, slightly (10p on a mince pie) but they are a better quality pie and will not run out at half time, they will also be introducing meal deals which will have an overall saving against the old prices. Q. Were the queues the same? A. Not that I am aware of, Lindley have bought 20 tills with each servery able to serve people much quicker plus they have committed to have all serveries open every game...unlike the previous caterer. For the bigger games they will also have people with big trays?s behind each goals selling pies and drinks. Q. Has quality remained the same or even got worse? A. Anyone I spoke too was very complimentary, from the next game they will also have Macdougal & Hastie?s, No 1 steak and gravy football pie in addition to Lindley?s steak pie for fan?s to have a choice. Q. Did the shop run out of things at half time? A. Not that I am aware of but will find out. Q. How long is the contract? A. 5 and a half years with an opt out at the end of the season so both parties can decide how happy they are with each other. The money we get from Lindley compared to the previous caterer has more than doubled, crucial revenue to the club. Q. What was the reason for appointing the new company? A. Do I really need to answer that one, I thought it was pretty obvious. Hopefully this provides some clarity and, with a bit of patience, the fans will see we have made the right decision to change. To make such a major change does take time to get right and there will be teething problems.