wynthank15

RIG I didn't know we had an unofficial signing section in the north stand does the board know about this?

I have no idea what the facebook like system is but as someone who has collected lots of red dots ( I think I got 7 + for suggesting we didn't need stokes and his IRA baggage, astonishing, even Celtic were embarassed by his behaviour) it would be more helpful to know who and why they issued them and then have an opportunity to engage them in a conversation as to why a comment was made or the rational behind it ie back it up, as a relative newcomer to the site over a couple of years but a much older supporter of the club, my opinion is that too many follow the herd, that is, the comments of those with lots of greenies next to their name rather than thinking for themselves, then again, that's just the human condition, after all, why do they issue the results of opinion poles which they know to be untrue and unrepresentative of the majority? because some people always want to be with the majority and will change their vote, it's much safer there. Go on give me some reds I have broad shoulders.

Old Caley Girl and Davie I am not being judgemental I expressed sympathy for anyone with health issues if you read my post, I just think there are more deserving unheralded people in society who need help who do not have the resources of footballers nor the time to seek professional help themselves nor do the majority fall into the various addictions of footballers due to outlandish salaries (to quote IHE) and spare time on their hands. If you think lying on a couch for hours on end to have a mural imprinted on your back at considerable cost is a good use of time and money then I disagree. The outlandish salaries are due to one Mr Bosman, did his fellow pros contribute to "thank you Jean Marc Bosman" fund, not a chance, only two players thanked him personally, which speaks volumes for the self centred football fraternity around which the world revolves, for now.

Whenever I see a footballer covered in tattoos I think there is someone who neither values his time nor money, same goes for the addictions mentioned above. Top footballers live in a gilded cage and I was pleased to see Matta of Man Utd speak out recently on that very subject saying that they did not live in the real world. Whilst having sympathy for anyone who is ill, mentally or otherwise, the people living under real pressure are those single parents who through death, divorce or illness find themselves having to bring up a young family whilst holding down a job to put food on the table, the majority just don't have the money or time to indulge in addictions. Perhaps those self centred, self loving footballers could contribute their tattoo money to these heroes for whom each day is a struggle. If you think I'm being harsh on footballers how many contributed to the " Thank you Jean Marc Bosman" fund after his trade union wrote to the players of the top 400 clubs asking them to donate their bonus money from ONE match, which was going to be used to help young footballers who failed to make the grade and ended up on the street. Answers on a very small postcard.

Standing has rarely been unsafe, the benefits I believe are larger crowds, better atmosphere, lower price, good camaraderie/banter, better blood flow to joints, no bouncing up and down when a chance is created, no sun in your eyes in the winter (I used to take sunglasses to the main stand). I remember there used to be a big farmer laddie who regularly stood at the front of the west terracing and would give dogs abuse to the linesman, full backs and wingers.On the night ICT defeated Martin ONeal's Celtic in the SC, Jim White and Charlie Nick were crossing the pitch to the commentary box. The big lad shouts Charlie, Charlie what's the score gonna be? to which Charlie responds 5-0 Aye but who to Charlie says he.Nicholas just laughed. That's the kind of banter that seems to be lost these days. Bring back standing.

Hislopsoffsideagain Anyone watching that fiasco could make the mistake of thinking that we had a rookie manager who was way out of his depth... 0 Quote I think you nailed it and this was always the worry appointing a manager with no experience especially on a four year contract. As each loss mounts up the players lose confidence if they don't believe the Manager can sort it, eventually you lose the dressing room entirely. Many were calling for JH to be replaced with Foran forgetting that JH had 20 years experience in the game and could set up a team to earn points even when the squad was ravaged by injuries,it may not have been pretty but sometimes pragmatism is called for. As I said on a previous thread, the players we have should be good enough for a mid table position but the longer they go without a win the greater the pressure on the manager which is then relayed to the players. It becomes a destructive cycle.

Thanks Alex

The old ones are the best

What size of crowd is there?

When I was in full time employment I was a season ticket holder. Now that I am retired on a very small pension decisions have to be made, do you renew your GC membership, your fishing ticket or a season ticket, my choice was the latter had to go, with the first two I can choose my times and weather, not the case with the football. Ideally, I would like to turn up to individual games pay at the gate and stand throughout the match at a barrier, being forced to sit in the cold for 90 minutes is not pleasant for anyone with joint problems. I found the experience of watching ICT in the lower leagues when you could stand very enjoyable and reasonably priced I also enjoyed having a chat with the regulars who turned up at the same spot each week, the experience in the stands was not the same and you can't choose you neighbours. I appreciate the club must balance their books but I would rather pay £25 for a days fishing or a days golf. If the club introduced a standing area at a reasonable price I would be interested.Currently I pick and choose matches usually away and weather dependent.I also agree with previous posters that the standard of the Scottish game is incredibly poor, anyone who shows some ability is off to the English lower leagues before you can spell ICT.

Foran is not Hughes, about 20 years of management experience separates them. Your badges are what you get when learning the rudiments of your profession, just like a lawyer or accountant, real life experience as we all know is different. I made this point previously when a majority appeared to be constantly slagging Hughes efforts, when, despite crippling injuries he managed to garner points with an under strength side. I wish Foran every good wish in his first season, I believe the squad should be good enough for a mid table finish, it will be the making or breaking of him.

Taking your badges is like passing your exams for any other occupation it does not prepare you for the nuts and bolts of being a manager in any walk of life. I want this appointment to succeed but have grave doubts. As to RF being as long standing as Steve Patterson I hope he is, Patterson could build a team, recognized a player when he saw one and played an exciting brand of football, in fact,if Patterson had the appetite for it I would have invited him back everyone deserves a second chance and you don't lose Patterson's abilities with age. Here's wishing RF well I really hope it works out for him and the club.

I know he is a difficult individual but beast him in pre season, give him regular games and put him on a pay to play contract re the first team and I can't see what the downside is, he would be playing on the biggest stage which might just give him the motivation to screw the nut. There is no doubting his football ability slow or not many of his goals were from outside the box, he scored almost 25 goals from left midfield for Hibs when did someone last do that? I admit he is a gamble but that's the area we trade in: Storey no squad number, Brewster 1st time legs had gone could only play 30mins great target man,the Kilmarnock striker whose name escapes me was injured for two years before joining, we signed Ofere who was like Bamby on ice trying to control a ball, if we can sign someone like Ofere, Riordan is a no brainer at least he is a footballer. I'm not saying he is the answer just worth the gamble.

Dalgetty Bay, early season players are slower until they get some training and fitness under their belt, I know having played the game for years. Also, if you are quick up top in football terms you don't need to be a flyer to play up front as long as your thought processes are quicker than the opposition. Riordan still has 3 seasons left in him and we could afford him as long as we could control him which seems to be the problem. John Robertson who played for Notts Forest was washed up when Clough picked him up and what a player he turned out to be. Your mate may be correct but I would be surprised if he had lost that much pace as I think he is still only 31ish, that said he never did rely much on pace to score his goals since they were in the Matt l'etisier mould, another slow coach.

I have serious reservations but wish him all the best and Scotty, Brewsters best spell with us was when he could come onto the pitch and make a difference for 20 mins, as a manager the second time round he got us relegated.

Arghh Dave you're hurting my hand, I know Kenny just remember our deal on JH.

Sorry Elgin 1 didn't answer your main point where are the goals going to come from, in my opinion given the financial constraints there is only one answer Derek Riordan. Complete nutter, brilliant footballer it's the chance you have to take in the bargain basement bin I only wish we had JH to control him rather than Foran but that's the kind of player we are looking for and have signed in the past ie guys that have failed or been injury prone at other clubs, we are the last chance saloon for so many players at this level.

Elgin 1 here's what would make me come back more often, have standing areas where you can lean against a barrier and ease you arthritic hips instead of being shoe horned into a seat where you lock up in cold weather, in the standing area opposite the main stand you wouldn't be blinded by the sun on winters days, meet your mates each week at the same place instead of having them spread around the stadium, enjoy a smoke at half time and not have to put up with officious stewards and pay less for the privilege. I long for the days of the 1st Div before we were first promoted, these were the best of times, so many great memories and a great camaraderie amongst the support. Frankly, the fun of it has been erased by officialdom, sit down, shut up, don't offend anyone, only eat our pies, drink our drinks, don't take pictures blah blah well I would rather sit in my own backyard eat my own pies have a drink and a smoke, meet my pals, take pictures and have a laugh without some officious moron dressed in yellow telling me to sit down and shut up after having paid £20 for that privilege.

Not wishing to rain on the Foran supporters parade but I worry about his appointment whilst wishing him well, management is not something you just step into and do well it takes years of experience to become a good manager in any walk of life. Charlie Christie was one of our truly great players and filled almost every role at the club but when it came to managing the football team it was by his own admission beyond him, same goes for Brewster when he was no longer a player. Be careful what you wish for. JH was an experienced manager and knew how to set up a team even when injuries restricted his choices, his problem was that he couldn't get/keep the quality up front to top off what he was teaching our defenders and midfielders. I truly fear for Foran and the club when things start to go pear shaped he needs an experienced no 2 at a minimum. Okay you can start hitting me with red dots now.

I remember the young Barry who suffered from the wingers disease, consistently inconsistent,, beat two players then cross it behind the goal, However he became a great performer for ICT which got him his move and as someone has said a great example to young players rejected by the big clubs.

There are mutterings that Stubbs will walk away from Hibs if they lose the cup final perhaps JH sees an opportunity. Have mixed feelings about JH leaving perhaps the loss of Storey was the final straw as I know he wanted to keep him and Tansey as a priority. There is no doubt he has changed our style of play which actually gives us a fair amount of control when we are ahead in games doesn't work so well when we are behind. Whomever the next manager is I would be delighted if he used the terms we and us when talking about the club rather than the third person Inverness which was used by both Butcher and Hughes when referring to their own team suggesting somehow that they were detached from the club. My biggest concern at the moment is where do we find a striker for next season.

The budget is not the same as last years, note the wording " next seasons budget will remain similar to this seasons initial outlay" The word similar can be more or less and the reference to "initial outlay" excludes the costs of the additional emergency signings made after the start of the season. So the board and JH are correct in their assertions depending upon how you interpret them.

Since having Dennis and Steve up front for a good number of years which was a 442 we have had to scramble around with players who had no options or found themselves in difficult circumstances or were over the hill or injury prone eg Brewster (great player on his last legs but could still do it for 30mins) Dargo (injury prone usually missed at least half a season) Storey (so far out of the picture he didn't have a squad number at a club with money problems) these are the only type of opportunities we are likely to be offered, players with nowhere to go who are trying to resurrect their careers, and many have. We do not have the money to enter the market and should we uncover a guy from the lower leagues who scored 20 goals in a season you can be sure he would be gone for nothing at the end of the season.Short of a sugar daddy financing the club ( Ross County/Dundee Utd/Dundee) this will always be the nature of things. I am concerned for next season and posted previously that I would have broken the bank to keep Marley Watkins whom I believe would have got better and had pace which is a plus in a striker, of course, I don't know what kind of deal he moved for but the fact is, those who put the ball in the net are worth several times what those keeping the ball out at the other end are worth, given the number of midfielders we pay I am surprised we couldn't afford to pay him a good wage, perhaps he didn't want to stay, whilst we may like Inverness it is hardly the bright lights and before anyone says so neither is Bradford. From my perspective, the way forward for ICT is to build a rock solid defence, a robust and competitive midfield and a hit or miss striker from wherever. We haven't seen a creative midfielder like young Christie since his father and Sheerin played for ICT, think about that. As I've said previously I think there are a number of clubs who may end up going part time within the next five years and we are one of them if we are relegated. Kilmarnock who have 1,000 average support more than us have posted a £750,000 loss, that is unsustainable. Many other full time clubs are in a similar position. I don't see the predicament that Scottish Football finds itself in improving, we are amongst the poor relations of Europe and until the SFA puts in place a scheme akin to the Icelandic model we will continue to decline. Sorry for the depressing post.

Foolphysio, Bughtmaster, I was well in positive comments (having penned a song for the club) until I dared to tell the members that the war on terror and the attacks in France (charlie Hebdo) were a hoax. I stand by every word and if you want to contact me leave a message here (this subject arose regarding a bag left on a seat in the stadium), i also disagreed with Stokes joining us due to his Republican (IRA) baggage and received another storm of negative dislikes. So don't feel picked on, there are some on here who think they are clued in when in fact they are as ignorant as my cat. There are also some who think that Stoke's stance is justified. I don't happen to believe that the glorification of murderers is justified whatever their beliefs. Don't let the ignorant or bigoted wear you down. best regards Donald MacDonald

Rival, just look at the clubs that are in the lower leagues and whom have been professional longer than we have, and be thankful.