Sneckboy

We also get the chance to get that elusive first top-flight win at Firhill - to 'complete the set'! That box still needs ticking!
 

Inverness Caledonian Thistle 0-0 Hibernian

Full-time score according to the Bet365 website.

Apparently, we're playing Hibs today (Monday 11th) at 2pm at the Highland Football Academy.

Inverness CT v Hibernian

I notice Yngwie's been muscling-in with some stats - so I've been moved to respond and think-one-up!

Although ultimately, we've missed-out on the top 6, we've done really well against the teams from the 'northern half' of Scotland. Or more accurately, the teams from the Highland area in the SFA's Highland/Lowland geographical split.

At the conclusion of the regular season, in such a 'mini-league' we are a distance ahead of Ross County and the two Dundee clubs. Obviously, a meaningless stat, but interesting, nonetheless.
Just 2 defeats for us - both 1-0 losses to St Johnstone. But we still finished 'above' them in this table.

In a parallel universe, we'd now be preparing for a Premiership semi-final play-off against the winners of the 'Lowland' version (Celtic), while 'our' winners (Aberdeen) would be set to meet 'their' runners-up (Hearts)!

3 hours ago, ictbob said:

Anybody no if there's been an announcement on when the remaining fixtures will be released?

The next 'round' of games are in a fortnight, so I'd imagine they'd be announced early next week.

7 minutes ago, Alex MacLeod said:

According to this article we are third bottom ahead of Partick and County http://stv.tv/sport/football/1321105-celtics-average-wage-bill-is-25-times-higher-than-ross-countys/ I dont know where they got the figures from or how they worked out player wages over company wages (Players and staff)

Yeah, that STV report refers to the publication I 'linked to' in the post just above.

26 minutes ago, Caley Mad In Berks said:

Sat 09 Apr 2016

Gary Wood scored again for Formantine today in a 5-1 win over Clach.  I notice an S Leslie scored for Clach.  Not sure if that is our ex player Stuart Leslie.  Anyone know?

It is him, indeed! You don't miss a trick!

Also, perhaps for this section - congrats to Zander Sutherland and the rest at Brora Rangers. They won the Highland League Cup (knockout-tourney) this afternoon, for the first time in their history! At the 70th time of asking!
A 0-0 draw after-extra-time against Nairn County, resulted in penalties...and Brora won 5-4. Zander netted the decisive kick.

I too, think it's Hamilton Accies. Or certainly, I've heard Martin Canning mentioning it in interviews!
The most recent data I can find is from the end of the 2014 season. Naturally, from then, Dundee and Hamilton aren't listed, while obviously Hibs and St Mirren are.
The Scottish football figures are near the end of this comprehensive study - on their page numbers 104 & 105. http://www.globalsportssalaries.com/GSSS%202015.pdf

1 hour ago, rocky1 said:

Is it time to call it quits with John Hughes acknowledging he has brought success to the club but it appears he has run his course .

Great coach but obviously not capable of building a team from lower league players that we can afford.

Give Richie a chance and give him a Donald Park or Kevin Macdonald as coach ( the latter did no bad with Leicester as we can see )

I may be misinterpreting you, but are you really crediting Kevin MacDonald with the current, astonishing form of Leicester - a club he has had no connection with for over 22 years?

Seems he's also got a crystal ball - describing the cup semi as the appetiser ahead of 4 main meals in the league next season. So Rangers are guaranteed a top-6 finish next campaign? Granted, I reckon they will be in the top-6, but I'm just a punter on a football forum. The head of the SPFL should not be coming out with that in the media.
I'm sick of it all, already. The Daily Record's website in the Football section had 23 'items' on it last night, with 18 of them having the word 'Rangers' in the headline.

A quick snapshot from now, mid-way down the page reveals Rangers referenced in 7 of the 9 viewable items.

Highland League
Zander Sutherland (Forres Mechanics 0-3 Brora Rangers)
 

With a month to go, it's starting to heat-up on the discussion thread! 
Here's a poll to cast your 'vote'!
(like the real ballot, this is anonymous)

Totally agree!
Although it was coming, last night confirmed the inevitable - and sadly, the end of the wonderful period of the Ibrox outfit being away from the party.
Unfortunately, for most of the media, this now signals the return to 'normality', and is supported by misguided reports this morning of Rangers returning to the top-flight.
Some even state it's a 'return to the Premiership', which is particularly wrong - as the division even wasn't called that when the former Rangers were playing in the top-tier!
And other media 'outlets' are calling the highest division the 'SPL', which has ceased to exist for several years now.

It's like a cancer returning after 4 years in remission.

Edit: Obviously, my last sentence is a an analogy in a football context.

It seems we're playing Falkirk again, tomorrow! (Thursday 7th)

1pm Falkirk Stadium
Falkirk v Inverness CT

2 hours ago, PandB said:

Sh1t, I'm not available for next week, not impressed. We regularly can't fill the bench due to injury but we still fulfill out fixtures FFS!!!

It's John Hughes, who, on occasions, has chosen not to fill the bench - for reasons known only to him! This has been a source of on-going puzzlement this season.

5 hours ago, rocky1 said:

How come when we had 9 first team injured we could not get a postponement- ah we live North of Perth  of course , how foolish of me not to understand central belt bias !

I don't recall the SPFL board refusing any of our requests for postponing games this season.

4 hours ago, 12th Man said:

And who employs the doctor?

So what if all of your keepers are suspended? 

The football club employs the doctor. But regardless of employer, doctors in the UK are regulated by their professional body, the General Medical Council. Doctors can be 'struck off' by the GMC. Acts of dishonesty would seriously jeopardise a doctor's fitness to practice.
Although you didn't specifically state any such thing, the underlying implication evident from your comment is that Hearts are up to 'funny business'.

Can we please leave all this unedifying paranoia to clubs like Celtic!

I tend to agree with the above two comments. It's to our advantage this game Is off. We'll now know if a draw or win is needed against Hearts when they come here.
Incidentally, all teams are allowed to request a postponement if they are unable to field a team considered 'strong enough'. The rules are there - the SPFL haven't just made-this-up this afternoon to disadvantage Caley Thistle!
 

Huisdean, You may claim some of the previous postings have been ridiculous, but your closing comment above is also just that - ridiculous!
There is no 'next level' for this club. The absolute pinnacle was reached last season - it's never likely going to be achieved again! It was a one-off.
Scottish Cup Winners and 3rd in the League plus European football. And we're damn lucky to have been around to see it!
"...take the club up a level..."
Get real.

It was the Football League Trophy Final this afternoon at Wembley in front of a crowd in excess of 59,000!
Barnsley 3-2 Oxford United.
Sam Winnall started for Barnsley with Marley Watkins an unused sub, and Alex MacDonald was in the losing Oxford side.

I assume Marley will still get a winners' medal, so well done to the pair of them.
 

Penalties taken for ICT. (Most recent: Iain Vigurs (scored) v. Motherwell - 2nd April 2016)

Match penalties
Greg Tansey Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y (100%)
James Vincent Y (100%)
Richie Foran Y (100%)
Iain Vigurs Y (100%)
Aaron Doran Y X (50%)

Penalty shoot-outs
Ross Draper Y Y (100%)
Aaron Doran Y Y (100%)
Iain Vigurs Y (100%)
Greg Tansey Y X (50%)
Richie Foran X X (0%)

Combined total (* = penalty shoot-out)
Iain Vigurs (100%) Y* Y
Ross Draper (100%) Y* Y*   
James Vincent (100%) Y
Greg Tansey (91%) Y Y* X* Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y
Aaron Doran (75%) Y* Y Y* X
Richie Foran (33%) X* Y X*

Ben Greehalgh also on target this afternoon v Basingstoke.

Dean McDonald has been released by his latest club, Dulwich Hamlet.

Result:
Inverness CT 1-2 Celtic
Andrew Macrae scored for us. Dean Brill was in goals and Ali Sutherland was playing, as was Jason Brown. But that's all I can garner from Celtic's Twitter.

48 minutes ago, Renegade said:

I searched him yesterday and the results I found seem to show that he's an ex-Hibs youth. 

Yogi probably knows his Dad!
If this does materialise, then good luck to him! And if he's reading this then, I apologise for suggesting your signing was an April Fools Day joke!
Use it as motivation to prove me wrong!
(Sneckboy, loosely translated in Gaelic, means 'northern *****').

As AlexMacLeod noted on the 'Contract Situation' thread, It appears that a young player called Aiden McKee has impressed on trial and it seems likely we'll be signing him in the summer. Or so his Twitter suggests!
He plays for Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale U20s. This is all from Google! Don't think he's been featuring for the first team in the Lowland League, but I noticed he was an unused sub in LTHV's Scottish Cup tie at Huntly.
Granted, he's not got the most 'stellar' footballing CV, but he's young, and all players start out somewhere - but if he does sign, it'll be with a view to the future.
I'm reluctant to say this, as it's incredibly disrespectful, but this isn't an April Fool is it?

Not sure I'd describe Abdul Osman as 'young' in a footballing sense. He's 29.