DoofersDad

Many thanks to those who turned up to the Caley Club and to those we managed a chat with in the Sports Bar afterwards. Below is a brief summary report which we have included in our latest newsletter to members. Prior to the game on Saturday, Trust Board members met with supporters in an open meeting at the Caley Club and in the Sports Bar at the stadium. It was good to meet with members and potential members and to learn where they felt the club could improve its relationship with the fans. We must apologise to members looking for the Supporters Trust desk in the Sports Bar. Unfortunately it wasn’t there! Despite assurances that it would be back in its usual place at the far end of the bar, it was still sitting in an adjacent storage room and it was not safe to manhandle it through the busy bar. Hopefully it will be back home in time for the Morton game. There was a general feedback of a disconnect between club and supporters, with fans feeling they were being taken for granted. Common themes raised were the state of the toilets, poor facilities for disabled supporters, long waits for poor fare at the serveries, and the cost of hospitality – especially for young families. These are all issues we will be taking up with the club. Of, course, this was only a small snapshot of opinion and we are exploring how we might reach out to a much wider range of opinion through a structured survey. More about that another time. There is quite a lot going on in the Trust at the moment, and as a lot of that will be of interest to non-members, we have placed the latest Newsletter on our website. You can catch up with our activities here.

It was a bit nervy for much of the 2nd half but a good striker's goal from the excellent Samuels got us back on track for a well deserved win. With Devine, Duffy, Carson and Welsh all missing, we do look a little vulnerable defensively at times but Harper and Hyde are developing well and Delaney looks to be a useful signing. If we look a little bit vulnerable defensively, we are more than making up for it with our attacking play. At times we displayed some really good short passing moves with excellent movement. At times it came to nothing, but as players get to know each others games better, our cutting edge will only get sharper and we should be a really exciting team to watch. In a good all round performance, Austin Samuels was a clear MOTM. His goals were both well taken, but he was also very effective in receiving the ball a bit deeper, turning his man and finding a team mate ahead of him to get an attack going. Aaron Doran had another excellent game and seems to be playing better than at any time since his lengthy injury. Billy Mckay may not have been on the score sheet but it was another really good performance from him. His work rate, link-up play and movement causes real problems for defences and creates space for his team mates. We somehow seem to expect Billy to score but it is clear that we have several players who are capable of scoring. We may have several players out but there is still real competition for places. Today's performance shows great promise for the season ahead. Well done, lads!

HT. 0-0 FT. 2-0 ICT. Dan MacKay Opp. Vigurs Crowd 2004

STFU, I note you say that was your last post on the matter and therefore I will not prolong this debate further. What I would say, is that we do appreciate thoughtful contributions such as yours. Even when we disagree with the content, it gives us food for thought about what our strategy to build the Trust up should be and how we communicate it. I thank you for your contribution and hope that progress in the coming months may provide initiatives you feel you can support.

Many thanks to those of you who have responded positively to the Club's recent statement and have joined the Trust. It is a positive start for the rejuvenated Trust and a growing membership will increasingly help the Trust Board to make the fans' voice heard. The Trust Board met last night and we will be putting out a newsletter to members old and new sometime next week to update them on progress following the events of a very busy and important weak for the Trust. For those who remain sceptical about the Club's support for the Trust, the need for a major increase in Trust membership and the reasons why they should join, I would make the following points:- The club is supporting the Trust by putting the statement out and saying publicly that an active Trust is good for the club. Issuing such a statement is in sharp contrast to pulling the plug on the Fans Focus Group without explanation and is a reflection of work gone on behind the scenes. The statement is a recognition from the Club Board both that working with the Trust will be useful to the club and that the current Trust Board consists of people the Club can work constructively with. Short, medium and long term goals are detailed on the Trust's website and they are what we are asking the supporters to buy into. The detail of what projects the Trust will get involved with in the future will be influenced by what the Club wants to do and what our members want the club to do. It is not an excuse to say we need more members in order to be more representative and to do the work. It is a harsh reality. Why should the Club choose to engage with a group who might be seen as an unrepresentative clique pushing their own personal agenda? It is absolutely vital that the Trust Board is seen to be as representative as possible and accountable to the members who voted for them. It is also vital that more members get actively involved because the level of input required to make meaningful progress on our goals and to successfully engage in joint projects with the club is far more than the small number of current volunteers can possibly achieve. The open meeting at the Caley Club at 12.00 this coming Saturday is an opportunity to meet the Trust Board members and to raise issues that may be of concern to you. There is also the opportunity to come and raise issues with us and to discuss how you can get involved at the Trust's desk in the Sports Bar prior to home games. Together we can make the fans' voice heard. You can join us on this journey here.

The Supporters Trust will be holding an open meeting at the Caley Club on this coming Saturday at 12 noon. There is no agenda for this meeting, it is simply an opportunity for members and non-members alike to find out a bit more about the Trust, get to know who the Trust Board members are and to have a chat about whatever issues you think the Trust should be discussing with the Club. The Trust is keen to understand the concerns of all sections of the Club's support and to represent those concerns to the club. Trust Board members will also be present at the Trust's desk in the Sports Bar prior to the Cove game. We hope to be present at the desk for the majority, if not all of the homes games this season. This is an opportunity to discuss any issue you have a view about or just to come up and say "hello". Or perhaps to discuss something on an individual basis if you would rather not raise the issue in a meeting setting. We look forward to meeting as many of you as possible on Saturday. If you haven't yet visited our new website, please take a look at www.ictsupporterstrust.org which will give you some useful background about the Trust.

It is great news that the Club's Board is stating publicly that a strong and active Supporters Trust is good for the club, and that they are supporting the Trust's Board in its campaign to increase membership numbers in order to better support both the Club and its supporters. For ease of reference, I have copied the Club's statement below. Please note that the Trust are holding an open meeting at the Caley Club at 12noon this coming Saturday. Board members will be present and will be happy to answer any questions you may have about the Trust as well as listen to your views of what you think the Trust should be discussing with the Club. We expect the meeting will go on for about an hour giving folk plenty of time to get something to eat and drink before heading off to the Cove game. Representatives of the Trust will also be at the Supporters Trust desk in the Sports Bar prior to the game, so please come along and say hello. We hope to have a regular presence at the desk prior to games in the future. The Board of Directors of Inverness Caledonian Thistle are happy to support a fresh bid by the Supporters’ Trust to increase its membership and play a key role in enhancing the match day experience of fans, through fund-raising activities. Gordon Fyfe, a club director and Supporters’ Liaison Officer, said: “The Board of Directors recognise fully the importance of our loyal support. The Supporters’ Trust has a 10 per cent voting stake in the club and therefore has a ready-made platform for representing the voice of fans. “To play a more meaningful role in the development of the club and become truly representative of our fans, the Trust needs to engage with the wide base of our support, including our enthusiastic and growing band of younger supporters and those who provide terrific vocal support at away games. “We are happy to support the Supporters’ Trust in their efforts to boost not only their Board but the wider membership and wish them well in their campaign. A strong and active Trust can only be good for the club.” New Trust Chair Jennifer Aitchison said: “An active Supporters’ Trust can do so much to help the Club in providing a better matchday experience for fans and in raising funds for specific projects. We want fans to join the Trust to help us support the Club and to better represent the views of you, the supporters, of our great club.” Anyone wishing to join the Trust should visit www.ictsupporterstrust.org. Annual membership is just £5 for adults and £1 for U16s.

Our unbeaten start to the season continues!

HT. 0-1 FT. 1-2 ICT. Billy Mckay Opp. Craigen Crowd 1812

Thanks Don.. That's very helpful.

Having worked in the NHS all my working life, I am no expert on how corporate businesses operate so, I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong, but but my understanding is this. The Board of directors have the power to invite people onto the Board if they feel they have something to enhance the workings of the Board to the benefit of the club. But ultimately the power lies with the shareholders. Directors serve on the Board for a term of office and at the AGM there are always resolutions proposing that one or more of the Directors be re-elected to serve on the Board. Many, but not all of the Directors have a significant shareholding in the Club. They will be on the Board not just because they have demonstrated a willingness to "invest" in the club, but because of their business acumen. I think we have been fortunate in this club that virtually all of the Directors we have had have always had the best interests of the club at heart. We are also fortunate that no shareholder, or group of 2 or 3 shareholders have a majority shareholding and therefore the club is largely protected from going down a path that benefits those directors rather than the Club. It is all hypothetical at the moment, and whilst there are no guarantees here, I see no reason why the current Board of Directors would not welcome an elected representative of the fans onto the Board. Indeed I seem to recall that the current Chairman, Ross Morrison, said as much a while back when he was interviewed on the Wyness Shuffle. But whilst the usual route onto the Board is by invitation, I don't think there is anything to stop any shareholder putting forward a resolution at the AGM proposing that a supporter representative be elected onto the Board. In practice, I think the current Board would welcome the idea provided the Trust could be seen to be genuinely representative and actively working in the best interests of the Club. If supporters think that having a supporters' representative on the Club Board would be a good thing, then they need to join the Trust in numbers, several people need to volunteer to help out with the work and a few people need to put themselves forward to join the Board of the Trust. Collectively as supporters, we have a lot of power to make our voice heard. The question is, do you want the supporters' voice to be heard?

You can find a full list of 541 shareholders and their share holding on the Filings page on Companies House website here. It is the latest Confirmation Statement. It lists the Supporters Trust as having 13658 Ordinary shares. That may sound a lot but the nominal price of each share is £1 and the Club accounts identify £4.9million of called up share capital, so the Trust's holding is probably substantially less than 1% of the total. The Trust's shareholding should not be confused with its 10% voting right. This voting right stems from voting rights granted on behalf of supporters which were incorporated into the Memorandum and Articles of Association when the club was formed. I'm not sure what you mean about having a voice. We have a voice at the club, but how loud that voice is and how effective it is, has got little to do with our shareholding or voting right. What matters most is how representative the Trust is. Whilst membership is growing, it is still a small minority of the supporters of the club who are members of the Trust. The simple message is that if you want the Supporters Trust to have a louder voice - join it! If you mean why does the Trust not have a voice on the Club Board, the answer is simply that we have never been invited to have a representative of the fans on the Club Board. Several clubs do, and we believe that having a democratically elected representative of the fans on the Board can only be a good thing. But for that ever to happen, we would need to be seen to be truly representative with a membership in the region of the number of season ticket holders at least. We are a long way from that.

We could easily have been 2 up after 5 minutes but then Queens took control and were the better side for the bulk of the 1st half. We were better in the 2nd. Whilst we do need to be stronger in 50/50 tackles, the positive thing is that with both MacKay and MacGregor in the side we created several clear cut chances. Unfortunately, our finishing let us down and we need to improve on that. Queens look to be a strong addition to the Championship and look to be capable of taking points off anyone. Our defence will be more solid when the Devine/Deas pairing is restored. It was disappointing not to start the campaign with a win, but there are signs that we have every chance of being there or thereabouts at the end of the season.

HT. 1-0 FT 2-1 ICT. Billy Mckay Opp. Murray Crowd. 2081

Funnily enough, being a born and bred Invernessian is not a requirement for being on the Board of the Supporters Trust. What is a requirement is a willingness to work with the Club for the mutual benefit of the Club and its fan base. None of the Board Members are anonymous. There are just the 5 of us. We would dearly like there to be more so that we could do much more for the club and its fans, but nobody else in a position to help has come forward. For supporters who do have a genuine interest in ICTFC and being involved in collaborative working between between the Club and its representative supporters body, nomination papers for election to the Trust Board will be sent out to members early in October prior to the AGM in December. There is therefore time for anyone who is not currently a member of the Trust but who would like to do something constructive to help the Club and our fellow supporters, to join the Trust prior to the issue of nomination papers. Of course the success or otherwise of the Trust is dependent not just on active members but on the size of the membership. Imagine what a powerful voice for the supporters body the Trust would be if its membership was similar in numbers to the number of season ticket holders. You can help make the Trust's voice more effective by joining here.

I didn't say it in my post but I absolutely agree with you that the Directors who took the risk in setting up the Concert Company should be applauded. But I don't understand why you disagreed with my post as in your post you seem to be agreeing with what I said. You say "If losses are as big as is suggested it is highly unlikely that the directors would take the risk again." Again, I agree with you, but the consequence of that is as I stated, that the club would not then benefit from the income streams the Concert Company was set up to provide. I also don't understand why you say this thread has nothing to do with the club when you yourself acknowledge that the Concert Company was set up to generate income for the Club. I agree that the original post with its unsubstantiated, speculative claim is not helpful, but topic of the success or otherwise of the concerts is an important one and is very much relevant to the club.

This topic has a great deal to do with the Club. My understanding is that the Concert Company was set up as a separate company so that the profit from concerts would be channelled into the Club, but the Club would not be liable for any losses. If the concerts have made a loss, this impacts on the Club in 2 ways. Firstly, the Club would not receive the income boost hoped for. Secondly, unless they have taken out some hefty insurance premium to cover potential losses, the Directors of the Concert Company will be liable for any losses, and given there is overlap between the Directors of the Club and the Concert Company, these Directors would not be in a position to put the amount of money into the Club that they otherwise would. The financial outcome of the concerts is therefore of very considerable relevance to the Football Club. Whether the concerts made a profit or a loss, I don't know. What is clear is that there were a lot of empty seats on both nights and particularly for the Duran Duran concert. I think it safe to say that the concerts will not be providing the level of income the Club Board were hoping for. The Concert Company was set up with the idea of holding concerts on an annual basis. Large concerts with well known performers require long term planning; bear in mind that tickets for the recent Bocelli concert went on sale last June. Whilst the full accounts for the Concert Company won't be available for a long time yet, there will be some real urgency behind the scenes in assessing provisional figures and organisational problems before confirming plans for next year. If the outcome of this assessment is that concerts can take place next year in the expectation of making a profit, then we can reasonably expect an announcement of who will be performing within the next 2 or 3 months. We are also still awaiting a date for the Club AGM when we can expect to hear an update on the situation. Last year the AGM was in September so we should get some indication of how successful the concerts were in a financial sense before too much longer. On a more upbeat topic, it is good to see the announcement of a new sponsorship deal with Footasylum.

HT 2-0 FT. 3-2 ICT. D Mackay Opp. McDonagh Crowd 1264

Your ticket won't get you in on Friday, Robert. The game's on Saturday!

The game definitely had an early season feel to it and the scoreline flattered us somewhat. After a bright start and a good early goal it looked as though some players thought it would be easy. We were slack on and off the ball and as a result Rovers had a lot of possession and some decent chances in the first half. Better teams would have punished us for that slackness and we could have found ourselves behind at half time. As it was, we went in the break comfortable at 2-0 courtesy of a great Harper free kick following excellent work on the right by Samuels. If that didn't knock the stuffing out of Rovers, the 3rd goal just after the break surely did. A 4th followed soon after together with a number of substitutions. Plus points are the 4 well taken goals, Allardice looking sharp and commanding, Doran involved in some quality link up play and the involvement of so many Academy graduates. The negative points are the slackness at the back and a couple of players who looked like they didn't really want to be there. It is early days yet but there is no real sign that any of the new signings will be regular first team picks. It would be good to see a couple of the new signings start against Cove on Saturday to get a bit more of an idea of what they can bring to the team.

HT. 1-0 FT. 2-1 ICT. Billy Mckay Opps. Roberts Crowd. 851

Four members! That sounds great. Thanks very much. Sorry you are experiencing a problem but someone is on the case and will be in touch with you.

Thanks for the comments STFU. I can assure you, that one thing the Supporters Trust is not going to be is compliant to the wishes of the CEO! Of course, by definition, supporters support the club and the club needs its supporters and therefore the interests of club and supporters will often be the same. The relationship between club and Trust needs to be one of constructive partnership where we can ensure the views of supporters are properly taken account of when decisions affecting supporters are made. The Trust has told the club that we would be happy to lead a fundraising campaign for a covering for the West Stand, but repeated requests for a meeting to discuss this went unanswered. Initiatives like this need constructive engagement with various sections of our support so that when fundraising starts, people will know exactly what we are fundraising for and that it has the backing of the various groups of supporters impacted by it. You mention our disabled followers. This group has always been a priority for us and a few years ago colleagues put in a significant amount of work identifying external funding and making proposals to improve the facilities for disabled fans. I wasn't personally involved in this and I don't know the details, but unfortunately these proposals weren't pursued at the time. It has been suggested that a project to put a roof on the West Stand could be combined with improved facilities there for our disabled supporters. However, our soundings are that many disabled supporters would much rather be integrated with friends and family in the Main and North stands than have a separate (albeit very functional) designated area. This just illustrates how crucial it is to have engagement with the people impacted by proposals. There are lots of things the Trust would like to do, but to be effective, the Trust needs to be seen to be much more representative than we currently are. The Trust can't properly represent supporters if supporters don't join the Trust. It is only £5 a year and £1 for U16s. We are most grateful for those supporters who have recently joined the Trust but we urgently need far more to follow their lead.

HT. 0-0 FT 2-0 ICT Billy Mckay Opp.Andrew Shinnie Crowd. 712

HT. 0-1 FT. 1-2 ICT Billy Mckay Kelty. Nathan Austin Crowd. 1012