Renegade

No he didn't. He gave Hughes the biggest budget in the club's history to play with and then some more. Hughes through the dummy out when he wasn't given even more, despite being told the club had no more money to give. This was also after Hughes had blown some of the budget on dross like Liam Hughes and Dani Lopez.

We knew this when we signed him, but Joe Chalmers could quite well be the worst left back we've ever had...and I include Lionel Djebi-Zadi in that. He just does absolutely nothing. He's fit enough to fill the role but he offers nothing in attack, looks defensively all over the place and essentially just fills a gap. At least Lionel was fast, Chalmers doesn't even have that!

Raven was a centre-back in his Liverpool days before Rafa Benitez converted him into a right back. Say he reverted back to his old position, would he be better than Elsdon was yesterday? Surely he couldn't be any worse.

We've been playing a flat 4-4-2. That type of system was done away with years ago.

Robbo seems keen on 4-4-2 but it seems so outdated. I've wondered if a 4-4-2 diamond might work. Something like - Seedorf Warren Mckay Calder Raven Polworth-----------------Vigurs Mulraney Oakley Baird Seedorf and Calder could be allowed to bomb forward and it could possibly be the rejuvenation of Raven. His passing and distribution is decent enough but his legs are slowing up. Could he be re-born in-front of the back four, acting as a kind of deep ball winner and slipping into defence allowing the full backs to bomb forward? I think it could work.

It's actually a line by Montgomery Burns m8.

I see he also plays for the same team as Antonio Reguero.

So, the caterpillar has emerged from it's cocoon as a shark. With a gun for a mouth.

I know people are disappointed Draper has left the building and I know some people are going into meltdown that he's moved to County, but the issue for me is not the fact he's gone, or to where he has departed to. It's the fact that it essentially accepts that we don't have the drive to get promoted. We're content with slipping into obscurity and years in the wilderness. We've lost big players in the past, players better than Draper, and done alright, but this time there's just an accepting that the dream is over. So far, the only player I've seen rumoured to be coming in as his replacement is Ivor Lawton - a guy who's been crocked for the best part of two years and at the age of 21 has only played three first team games ever....for Nuneaton. This is after we've been knocked back earlier this season by a player from Buckie Thistle, a player from Cove Rangers and others (according to Robbo) from the lower leagues. As mentioned, in the past we've found ways to get by, but this time I've no faith in the management team or the board in order to find someone who can plug that gap. I heard from quite a good source a few weeks back that behind the scenes, John Robertson had been telling people that one of his new signings would reach the top - not just the top of the Championship, but the very top of Scottish football. The player's name......Felitciano Zschusschen. Oh.

TOGETHERNESS!!!!

TOGETHER WE BELIEVE! TOGETHER WE ACHIEVE! ARRGGHH!

Am I not right in saying that Ben Greenhalgh is now a pro-golfer?

There seems to be a couple of posters who'd try and paint administration or being relegated every season until we finished bottom of the Highland League below Fort William and Strathspey Thistle as some kind of positive. Perhaps this kind of intellect should be expected though from people who's username seems to have been coined by their hand slapping the keyboard...

I've said it before and I'll say it again, one of the main reasons crowds have fallen and people have drifted away is that they just didn't feel wanted. Look how often the club plug hospitality and look at the state of the shop, the state of the toilets, the state of the tannoy, the state of the bar, the state of North Stand and it's facilities. The club believe that appalling bad facilities is what we deserve. We are the little people and all we are are walking chequebooks for the old boys club in the boardroom. People don't come at all or have drifted away because they didn't feel wanted and they didn't feel welcome. The chickens have come home to roost.

Sorry folks, but I care little for this 'it's a good deal for him and his family' attitude. Masks over the fact that the guy was making a pretty good living already.

Ach as long of the old boys club have a job, that's all the matters...

Christie wasn't found by Butcher. He came through the youth system and preceded Butcher by a few years.

Indeed. A match last season was nearly postponed when the tannoy went down before kick off, surely it would have to be a decent standard in case of an emergency. The current one is a disgrace.

The first thing I'd do is bring in a tannoy system that was at least audible and didn't crackle constantly. Perhaps if the board made their way down from their cosy boxes and nice padded seats and sat with the regular fans in the North Stand for once, they'd see what the 'little people' have to deal with on a fortnightly basis.

I was in quite a good position to see the Mulraney penalty shout and there was nothing in it - he fell over the ball. I don't know if anyone else saw it, but while Toshney and Calder were down on the ground, Craig Thompson seemed to find the whole episode funny. Standing over them while they received treatment with a big smile on his face. I have wondered this pre-season, that none of our strikers look like proper finishers. We haven't seen much of Bell yet and Zschusschen looks a dud, but Baird and Oakley look more to be of the Gregory Tade/Graham Bayne breed - good players and hard workers, undoubtedly dangerous players but neither are out and out goalscorers. I wouldn't expect either to get more than ten goals in the league this season. In fact, I've thought already that Oakley might actually be more effective as a number ten.

It's absolutely imperative we keep Draper. Absolutely no way we'll be promoted if he's sold as I can't see us being able to sign anyone half as good. No doubt the money will just be squandered as well.

Plus points - Vigurs had one of the best games he's had in months. Calder had a cracker until he came off. Raven put in a solid display. The majority of possession and some good passages of play. Negative points - We've signed an absolute dud in Joe Chalmers. Ridgers' kicking is appalling. The poorest I've seen from an ICT keeper since Zibi Malkowski. Polworth is simply not a winger. He looked far better in the second half when he was sitting narrower. None of our four strikers look like finishers. Our crossing and especially corners were atrocious. Every single one was to the back post and thus straight at the keeper.

There's a video on YouTube of the last Caley v Thistle game and I'm sure someone (I think it's the Thistle manager) says that the new club planned to enter a reserve team in the East of Scotland League. I assume that would the kind of league the likes of Lochee United are in.

Indeed. Why should we (and/or Ross County and/or Aberdeen etc) be allowed to enter a Colts teams into (what I presume would be) an expanded Highland League, when there are junior sides who have already expressed an interest in filling that void - Banks O'Dee and Halkirk to name but two (while there are probably a few others who, with some developments to their infrastructure could also enter, such as Culter and Golspie Sutherland). I'd say they have a far more legitimate case than we do, especially after our decision to withdraw from the SPFL Development League. Think I'm right in saying we couldn't enter a reserve team in the HL just now anyway under the current legislation and a return to the North Caledonian League would be the highest league we could enter a reserve side.

This is pie in the sky stuff. The Highland League are never going to allow a Caley Thistle Colts team in. It's a complete non-starter.