absent friend

What a wonderful problem!! This is one scenario we did not dream off even a few weeks ago! My solution? Start with the old heads and if there is any hint of bad timing in tackles, lack of understanding in play, or indeed just tiredness - whip the culprit off immediately and on comes the young Duff. Simple!

Hi Absent Friend - I didn't get your direct message! My email address is - jockwatt@homemail.com.au Please try again? Jock I don't trust this new fangled bloody things - Gosh knows where the message ended up - I have given Peter your email address so he will contact you direct. I am quite excited going up home, from Aberdeen, for the 27/28th Dinner/Church Parade and meeting all the 'old' boys. Peter went through your photo with me and as can be seen from my reply to Charles, above, I could not put a name to the faces until Peter helped me, so I could end up rather embarrassed due to not recognising my fellow diners!

I don't see that his rant was against families following their team - I think he was referring to the 'one off, tourist wonders' (No, we don't have them at ICT!) that as part of their UK holiday will take in a game but understand little of the passion for the club, hence the 'taking photos of all around them' within his text. I feel that he captures much of what is happening here at the our stadium and this must be addressed sooner rather than later, to retain the traditional support, as unlike the big English clubs we do not have the 'tourist support' to make up for ANY loss of supporter. Hoards of freebie corporate hangers on fly to Man Utd games from up here, spend the weekend down there and fly back home, but they are not fans - they are supporting by way of cash input only and I feel, that is also covered in his above statement - the passionate supporting heart of the club is slowly being eroded.

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The Jags Park always enjoyed a good number of medically qualified people in their support - doctors, staff nurses etc, so the above is not surprising! They would have, however, treated you well, I'm sure.

Now look here, we don't need any of this adolescent nonsense - leave us to reminisce in peace. I can imagine you, now that you have read that, hands in pockets - playing billiards - hair in eyes, saying 'Whatever'! Nothing worse than a grumphy old teenager!

I don't think the Aluko case was a straight forward signing. The young lad was unhappy with his current position and had been very happy at Pittodrie, shared this by phone with Calderwood, who no doubt offered big Eck a way out. ?50,000 and then off back to Pittodrie BUT, I bet, big Eck will get the largest slice of any future move for the lad. He was a superb signing from what we have seen of him last season, just let's hope Rossco will stand on his toes, when we meet and we can then collectively state 'What a waste of ?50,000 - Thank God we did not sign him'!!

Frustrated you may be but you saw more shots on goal on Saturday than the total for the other 3 games. We either did something right in the front line or their defence was p... poor on the day - however, no other club, so far this year, Rangers, Celtic or Hibs have had as many shots on goal as ICT, against Falkirk! In fact we more than doubled Rangers total! Maybe the dressing room final direction, from Brew, is 'shoot on sight'

I feel that the ICT Cowies will always move on, we need the money to balance the books BUT I hope the club are able to maximise the return we get for them. We also seem to have overcome the loss of the talented players and are playing as a team and getting the results(Oh, I know it is early days yet!) We will always have a problem holding onto class, long term, due to our wage structure, geographic location and a degree of apathy re support. The lack of atmosphere must be seen by other clubs when they visit and be remarked on within the fooball fraternity, making a move here more of a challenge to any player who requires a degree of encouragement when on the park.(or indeed if reading this site offerings) We will attract the Barrowmans, Rooneys etc, hopefully moving on up and showcasing themselves in the SPL but we will always struggle to recruit, other than that. I would still have liked however, a signed defender from DUFC, at say 11.45pm last night!

Hi Charles Peter was able to recall much of your offering on the BB site when I spoke to him yesterday and it brought back super memories, more to him I must say, as he knew most of the people you mentioned from the other companies, I suppose due to his giving back more of his time to the BB whilst I discovered other directions and distractions! He also pointed out, to me, the people in Jock's top picture and surprise surprise - many came from Culcabock, joined the following year by my goodself and, I would estimate, another six from the village which would bring the Culcabock involvement up to circa 50% of the 4th Company. We also had, as new recruits that year, Frank and Willie Allan and Peter, his brother Jock was already there as can be seen from the picture, just above Jock Watt's right shoulder. This must have been a healthy infusion of new bodies but, no doubt, the rest of the movement was experiencing a similar uptake in the youth of that day. Changed days indeed!!

Hi Jock I tried to contact you direct, within this system, yesterday but maybe it did not work. Peter Home, who is organising the reunion I mentioned, was interested in your 4th BB memories and would like to get in touch. If you have received my direct message, that's ok because I have included his direct contact - if not - let me know and I will see what I can do.

I don't know what the problem is at home BUT at Pittodrie I was in the midst of the most superb atmosphere - yes, I know we were on a high due to the score - but the pi.. taking of the red ultras, by our wee support, was something to experience. I also experienced something similar at Easter Road, last year, when a relatively small following out sang and upstaged a larger Hibs, quieter, support. I think we should just bottle this type of away atmosphere and release it at ICT to wake up the slumbering brigade!

The accounting year date I do not know and it is not mentioned in the above offerings(someone mentioned an April date but I assume that is just to coincide with the tax year) but it must have been pre the big transfer. Assuming our big sale took place after the year end, how can it be referred to, as mentioned above, in the accounts? I do accept that the purchases referred to, did take place after the date but I feel they are used to suger the pill. Negativity breeds negativity and this site, I feel, reflects the Highland way of thinking, think the worst and your expectations may be exceeded! However, there is no doubt that this negativity feeds itself and can result in the loss of supporters - the old dripping tap situation, do it often enough and it will wear away the recipient. I do not see this negativity on other sites, to this extent, they appear proud to be supporters and they do not occupy our current standing in the league! Cut out all this back snapping, get some more positivity and watch more bums appear on seats! Yes the club can do more, yes they could be more PR aware, yes they take us for granted and, I would submit, they sometimes treat us as if we do not have a collective brain between us BUT it is our club. However, the evidence is there in the accounts - they need all the revenue they can get to allow us to put on a show each week. This means more bums on seats, prudent purchases, some selling(unfortunately), all to balance the books and maybe, just maybe, the way going of players in the last season can be seen, by some, as not a reason for booing their return to the ICT park but accepting that their sale was an necessary evil! Whilst our loss was not a huge figure, however, for a club with our limited resources, it could have had a large impact with our top assets being on the move, resulting in a much poorer team on the park each week. Thank God for the Romanian!!

Well, here we go again!! Negative, negative!! Stats say - so far - Expense 40%....Football on park 27%....Shop/facilities 27%...A N Other 6% We are above Hibs,Dons,D.Utd,M/well,St Midden,and Falkirk - we are in sixth place and I bet the clubs below would swap their shops for a portacabin, to enjoy our position in the league.(especially Falkirk) We have scored goals, have a key player injured, lost our true international striker, blooded new players and are producing results we did not manage last season, at this time. Yes I know it is early in the season to draw any strong conclusions BUT it is also too early to talk down our performances. CaleyD/Scotty - both their contributions are disappointing to me. Don, I accept, has an ongoing gripe with higher management at the club but I do believe it is the first time I have read Scotty being so down about the club. I do feel that we cannot change the economic climate and if the pockets of the quickest growing city in Scotland(Britain?) cannot accommodate the gate money at our ground - God help Hamilton, St Mirren etc!! Lastly, I do feel that the stewards create the wrong atmosphere at games - they appear to want to be confrontational to the home crowd and appear afraid of the visitors fans. For the record I do not think that this is only an ICT problem, I was at a game at Pittodrie and witnessed circa 5000+ Gers fans ALL standing for the full 90 minutes, no problem and yet two weeks ago any standing by us, was followed by a policeman walking down the aisle and showing, by his presence that we were obliged to sit. So much for the equality of stewarding in ours and other grounds when the OF are playing but this is the type of thing that sours fans and can create negativity and steal the feel good factor from spectating. I feel that it is this lack of feel good factor that makes so many fans long for the 'old' lower division days, with crappy facilities!!

Jock This brought back memories of Willie McLeod, sitting there with his thick glasses on!! I was there from about 1953 and the oldest guy then was Addies(?)McLennan, he had a problem with his hearing - a butcher with Riggs on Eastgate. He may have bridged the gap between you being there and my arrival as he was quite a bit older than me. Have you had your invite to the Fourth's week/weekend get together next month? It promises to be very nostalgic - culminating in a Church Parade on the Sunday. I can hear Bannerman now -'Auld mannies wi pill-box hats on, hadding up a' the traffic!' Jealousy is an awful thing Jock, isn't it!

Can I ask a simple question? ICT go to press and state that 'no ICT supporters will be at the Aberdeen game next week' How can they stop supporters from going to a match? I do realise that the OF have a strong supporters club and, no doubt, they could ask them to follow, follow their, the OF, wishes. How many will travel outwith the Supporters club and come on their own? Very many I would suggest. I would suspect that the DUFC situation has come about by Board to Board politics to fragment the unity of the other clubs. Watch out for a few 'on loan' players going from the OF to DUFC. Their higher salary's ??- that's OK the OF will fund that, pal!

Mr and Mrs Canoe being sent to prison - for 7 years EACH!! Now Smee work out the cost of that!! They stole from a Pension fund and Insurance fund worth Billions - not mugged an old grannie of her hard saved cash. Oh, no I forgot, if you do mug a grannie, you get councilling in case being caught by the big bad policeman and , of course, his dog, has upset your sleeping pattern, poor thing and then you can do a wee bit community service, when you feel up to it and we'll see you in two months time, up in court again. These grannies are a temptation to you aren't they? They should be made to stay in and do without their pension. The Canoes could be gainfully employed, not in a position of trust, earning, paying tax and repaying society by doing voluntary work of some kind at the weekend and save us all a fortune........... whereas the granny basher should have his/her name, address and photo, in the press and watch the funny way they will walk, a week later!

I have not noticed in the press reports of the recent spate of accidents, with the inherent loss of lives, any mention of older drivers being involved or at fault. I would offer the opposite thought, that younger drivers should be banned from driving a motor car that has any power, other than allowing it to achieve say, 40 mph, until they have completed their apprenticeship. That way we will keep our accident rate lower and all be safer on the roads. The car insurance premium rates for drivers are arrived at actuarially, using, in part, the claims experience by age and this figure does not reflect the point you are making here, as young drivers will know to their cost. We can all point to some idiot behind a wheel, irrespective of age or gender, but you require something more substantial to support your case.

If this is the way of it, it could therefore be the end of the OF travelling support as we know it. The Inverness OF game will be full of Invernessians wearing differing colours and this situation will be repeated all over Scotland, only blinkered locals at each OF game away end. Absolute BLISS!! We can then make them aware of our offering and maybe see some of them coming back to support us on a regular basis.

Good thinking CD. Brew also seems to contrast with his opposite number at Pittodrie who appears to take great delight in bullying the young ones, both in training and in the press.

IF we do manage to claim circa ?80,000 extra from the deal IF we do buy a good defender with it IF we therefore end up in the top six because of it IF we then make an improved income from our lofty league position If we then have an increased income from gate receipts IF we then pat the board on the head and say ''Well done!!'' - a good bit of business! OR as the majority of posters on here are implying - ''Dream on!!' - our Board are too stupid! I hope my dream is more correct and we are able to see the full picture in the future and benefit from it!

Rig, I agree with your above feelings re Falkirk but I would also add that they have a 'hands on manager' who appears to be astute at his job, good banter with both home and away fans and is possibly the cream, as far as interviewers are concerned, amongst the SPL managers. Alex, the only thing about the fan base in Falkirk is the OF problem. When the OF came calling the locals change sides and the home support is much reduced. I always felt that Falkirk, with the large population both in and around the area, should have a well established SPL team at the top end of the league. The fact that they can also enjoy the fruits of their geographic situation by accommodating the home loving weegie players or for that matter, Edinburgh based players, puts them in a much better position than ICT. Having spent some years on the terracing, watching, for a while, their 'star' forward ( and he makes a better manager than he ever did a player ), Alex Ferguson, in action, I have a wee soft spot for the Bairns BUT it disappears when they come calling to the Sneck!!

I was referring to your archived history and not thinking of your actual presence at the said game!! BCB!!

Somewhere in my memory is the quote that seems apt for this thread 'Fools and w.... criticise a job half done' Funnily enough this posting sums up my take on the matter if you exclude the bold bits. At the moment the fans and we are all fans, are desperate for some info to provide some understanding of the situation but as has already been stated above 'it can not be straight forward dealing with other clubs' especially when they are outwith our own legal system. As can be seen from the above quote, the content of a posting can be coloured by this lack of info and can be made up using suppositions but little substance. Perhaps we should all wait whilst the 'legal beagles' get their heads around the problem and come up with a solution that the Board can then consider. With the greatest respect, they, the Board, are not choosing their summer wardrobe from Markies but are involved in a complex matter that must require careful consideration, so that ICT are not going to be financially disadvantaged. Who would be a Board member? If you rush a decision you are 'incompetent' if you take your time, it is a 'total shambles' - a no win situation!!