A96

Dear Charles Christie Esq., You have my full vote of confidence as manager of Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (unless of course you really mess things up big-time - in which case I may change my mind)!!! My confidence in you is based on the following:- 1. You are an Inverness lad with undivided loyalties (except, perhaps, if offered the Parkheid job). 2. You have a passion for our club. 3. Since appointed, your record has been no bad. You gave us a string of 5 straight victories at the end of last season. 4. We have been clear of the relegation zone since you took over. 5. We have come within sniffing distance of dizzy new heights (were on the point of sharing second spot with a few minutes to go against Aberdeen). 6. You are a human being and therefore capable of making mistakes as a manager - as indeed do all managers at some stage in their careers (including even Alex Ferguson, Paul Le Guen & Kenny Dalgleish). 7. Unlike our last two managers, you know how much it means for us to be up there with the 'big boys' playing SPL footie in Sneck (a stark contrast from when you played the likes of Rothes, Deveronvale et al on a wet Wednesday night at Telford Street/Kingsmills in front a tiny handful of fans). 8. You have only begun your trade as manager of a football club so things (I hope) can only get better as you gain experience. 9. We don't have to pay you a big inflated salary like other managers might expect. I for one give you my full support and would ask you to ignore anyone who might say anything as STOOPID as "Charlie Isn't The Man For The Job". So, next Saturday Charles - Wyness and Dargo up front for the full 90 minutes, Richie Hart on from the start, wee Zander Sutherland on for the last 30 minutes and Caff in central defence. There's your instructions - now go and get us some goals and another 3 points!!!!! Yours sincerely, A96 :003:

Atrocious tackle - should have been red carded. Pretty appalled by some of our supporters chanting his name after the event. his tackle was a cause for shame not celebration.

Where are you Juanjo? Looking for a game? :001:

I mentioned earlier in this thread about that wonderful attacking 20 minutes at the end of the Falkirk game where our team really showed what they were able to do attack-wise. On that occasion we had a front line of Wyness and Dargo with Richie Hart in midfield. I personally think all 3 of these guys have to feature at the same time if we are to have our most attacking selection. I also fancy the idea of wee Zander on the wing - he is nippy and will get behind defences. What I saw on the park today were players who were shot-shy and when they did shoot, they were knocking down spectators in the North and South stands. Perhaps if they aimed at the keeper they would stand some chance of scoring? I also noticed Barry getting a pain-killing spray during a break in play and can only assume that he was carrying an injury. Normally he plays a lot better than he did today. Rankin, I reckon, will come on yet as a player but we can't wait forever for him to produce the goods. He is shot-shy and (like others) will make an extra pass rather than have a dig. We were playing a pretty mediocre Motherwell today and this - of all games - was the time to go all out in attack. In the end we were cautious - and still got beat 1-0!! I'd far rather we'd been beaten 3-2. At least we'd have seen that rarest of collectors' items at the Caledonian Stadium - GOALS!!!

News update. That's two home defeats this season. Against St Midden on the first day of the season and today against Muggerwell. :007: Oh, and I forgot the home defeat in the CIS Cup v Falkirk.

Four letter word for today's game? How about garb..., rubb...., path...? Nah, they're too long. Let's just stick with DIRE!!! As a season ticket holder I have watched ICT show some fairly competent defending, some good ball skills and some good passing this season. It's just that I'm totally scunnered at not seeing many goals!! I would happily trade everything else I've seen all season at home for those last 20 minutes againt Falkirk when we scored 3 goals having been 2 down. The difference there was that we had to attack and - by throwing the kitchen sink at Falkirk - we showed that we can attack when we want to.

That's dedication tig. Quite some journey from Glasgow for a Monday night match in Inverness. Hope you got down OK!! :022:

Hey what's all this critcism of A96. I've got feelings you know. :018: :004: But seriously, I was impressed with the number of Aberdeen fans there were at the game tonight. Must have been close on 2,000. Although I wonder just how many of them were from sneck? :024:

Gutted for the lads. Thought they did well against an Aberdeen team with an over-fondness for the long ball. Aberdeen have some quality players but they deserved nothing out of this match. Our lads put everything into the game, were keen to pass the ball and Barry - as usual - ran his heart out. And Baynie - yer goal was a cracker. Could see it coming just like it was in slowmo. Seems to have a liking for scoring against the Dons. BTW, for a moment I thought Scott Higgins of Falkirk was playing in goal for them. He a decent run of blunders in the second half. Thought our luck might be in with the opposition goalie again. On another theme, for a Monday night I thought the atmosphere in the North Stand was good. I suspected that there would be very few there and that the atmosphere would be like a graveyard but not so IMHO. Perhaps this suits a lot of locally-based supporters as it will free up Saturdays for a shot on the golf course :022:, catching up on some DIY :024: or wandering round the shops with the wife :020: .

It was right at the time of writing Kencar. Besides we're gonna beat them next Monday and they'll be down below us in the league once again!! And anyway - Dundee Yenited are still bottom (and Levein will be sacked by the end of the season. :019:).

But if we say nothing and do nothing - what do we get? Nothing. As the ancient philosopher once said (or was it the Immortal Howden Ender?) - "Better to have to have tried and failed than never to have tried at all."

Did anyone see "North Tonight" on Grampian/STV tonight (Monday 30 Oct)? Not a single mention of ICT or reference to their incredible achivement of rising to fourth place - yet plenty to say about bottom-six Aberdeen and hopeless non-achievers Dundee United sacking their fifth manager in four years (yawn). Why not let them have your views on their anti-ICT bias by posting on http://www.STV.TV/sport/fanzone/ ? The more complaints the merrier. My message to them read:- " “NORTH TONIGHT” (30/10/06) - North Tonight sports feature tonight had absolutely nothing to report on the Inverness Caley Thistle game against St Mirren at the weekend - even though ICT are 4th in the SPL! A lengthy section of your report was spent on Dundee United sacking yet another manager (hardly shock news from a place like Tannadice – 5 managers in 4 years). They are in 12th spot in the league so why all the attention to such poor performers? The rest of the sports feature was devoted to your beloved Aberdeen FC - a bottom six club in the SPL!! The absence of any mention of ICT just proves the pro-North East, anti-Highland bias of this Aberdeen-based sports report. Absoultely shocking!! Your exclusion of ICT simply mirrors the Central Belt bias we have come to expect from other programmes like Scotsport. Any school child wishing to see a clip of the ICT match will (as usual) have to stay up until well past midnight in the hope of catching something on Scotsport!! Why not be honest and re-name your programme "North-East Tonight"? Just to remind your North Tonight sports programmers - and to allow a little perspective – Inverness Caley Thistle have climbed to fourth place in the SPL (just one point behind Rangers) after an unbeaten run of seven games, Dundee United are pathetic non-achieving, prime relegation candidates and bottom-six Aberdeen didn’t even play at the weekend. And still ICT get absolutely no mention on your sports report at all!! Must do better!!!"

Discounted gate prices seemed to work v Falkirk, last game of last season. There was a good crowd, good atmosphere .................and....er....what seemed like a huge discount when it came to counting the attendance (Ross County style perhaps?)!! Slash gate gate prices v Aberdoomed? Definitely!! :022:

Pele, Robbo and Brew might have taken their knowledge, enthusiasm and coaching skills to their new dream teams but what they couldn't take with them was the deeply ingrained Highland fighting spirit that our Club has been blessed with. :brave:

You only get luck in football if you are prepared to have a go at the opposition. If we hadn't had a go at Foolkirk on Saturday we wouldn't have found out that they had a crummy keeper.

That last 20 minutes was just what the fans want. Up and at 'em attacking football. We've had so much grim stuff to watch this season (and often a shortage of goals - especially at the home end) that it was just a complete breath of fresh air. We need more of that football. It was just great to watch!!

When the Dundee United hoodlums invaded our pitch (last game, season before last), they came up to our end taunted us and invited us to 'have a go'. We all stayed put and didn't respond to them. After that game I asked a polisman how many of the United thugs were arrested. He said "none - just one ICT fan"!!! Where is the consistency from the polis and the stewards then?

I reckon Livi are better than Livorno. After all they got beaten by the team we humiliated last week!

Reckon we should give him the benefit of the doubt. Personally, I think that is what he intended. Scoring the first free kick must have given him a real confidence boost to have a go second time around.

If this is the way ICT play when they go 2 down then let's give the lead away more often!! :005: The last 20 minutes was like the swashbuckling ICT of old when we used to put 6 goals past teams in the lower divisions. Charlie's change of tactics after going two down were simply a master-stroke. He called it exactly right. It seemed rash to throw everything into attack by subbing Hastings and McBain for Wyness and Hart - especially when playing against Latapy and Stokes - but it was the only sensible option and his timing was spot-on. Compare this with Brewster's practice of subbing with 5 minutes to go when it was already too late!! Charlie threw the kitchen sink at them and it was the most exciting 20 minutes of football I have ever seen from ICT. Well done Charlie. And well done John Rankin. I have been screeming at him to have a dig himself for some weeks now - seems a bit shot-shy at times. But today's goals were of the highest order. He fully deserves the Man-Of-The-Match award. :clapping04:

Nah MIDGE55 - add all the Rangers fans travelling from Inverness and you'll be nearer thr 3,000 mark!!! :004:

No budding Brahan Seers on this forum then? :006:

Heilandee - what were you doing on an Arab United web site? Bit of a screamer of a goal though - the sort of goal we used to concede in internationals (e.g. Willie Donnachie o.g. + blooper versus Brazil in World Cup '98).

As a fairly regular Tartan Army footsoldier - and one who was there to bathe in the glory of Saturday's momentous victory at Hampden - I must admit to having mixed views about the England support. When you meet the really nice ordinary England fan (like I did on the way to Hampden on Saturday) I often part company by wishing their team well. That is only until you meet the shaven headed, England-top-wearing thugs who love to slag our national team........and then the mood changes. By the time you've switched on the TV and watched a BBC Sports pro-England/anti-Scotland propaganda programme the mood has totally changed!!

Good pics EWS! :clapping04: Took my two nephews along for their first ever Scotland game - and what a start. Makes up for all those long, sad trips up the A9 during the dark years.