Jaggernaut

33 minutes ago, lizi said:

ICT are good at automatic emails - another received regarding renewal of season ticket.  I’ve already renewed. I wish they were as quick to respond to fans emails and queries.  

Yea, I just got one just now, I've already renewed, but it's nice to know that they have my best interests at heart! 

I have,  over several seasons, given my tuppence halfpennies worth of suggestions on the forum and other platforms, and at the time you hear the right noises coming from above, and that's where it ends. Small things, easily achievable things that the club could quickly implement, but nothing. So I can relate to the 'banging your head against a brick wall ' scenario. I've got to the point where I just come to all the home games, and go home after. If I didn't have all my health issues I might have more inclination to get involved, but those times are sadly gone.

I really can't believe that ICT would let, not only a proven goalscorer, but a marvelous link player, leave the club due to the length of contract, unless they have some phenomenal stiker waiting in the wings to sign, which I doubt. Surely, with our atrocious injury record, even giving Billy the deal he wants, would make good sense?

3 minutes ago, Robert said:

That’s what made me ask if anyone knew about when tickets were being posted. I didn’t get an e-mail either (and I’ve checked my spam). 

Yea, you can always rely on some informative comments from superior beings regarding legitimate concerns.

I ordered my and my son's season tickets over the phone last week. Everything went well, but the club usually send a confirmation email right away to my address to say that it's all sorted, and I've not had one yet, is this normal?

I think it is total mismanagement of our club to let our best players leave, season after season, for nothing. If a player is on a two or three year contract, and you want him to stay, you offer him a new contract before he goes into his final year, and if he doesn't want to sign a new contract then, you put him up for sale, that way we get some financial compensation for him, and have some sought after money the club can I'll afford not to have.

As someone said on hear, we used to be a selling club, but now we are the giving away for free club. 

4 hours ago, The Mantis said:

Same here, hit or a miss any time I try them. Eventually got through the other day when I thought it might be lunch break. Got Emma but wondering if they just let it go to voicemail when they’re busy.

I've phoned several times everyday since they went on sale, eventually I left a voice message, but still nothing. 

Is there anyone employed at the club to answer the telephones? When I phoned to get information about tickets for the cup final, it rang day after day with no answer, I had to eventually go down to the stadium to get tickets, and now it seems to be the same for the season tickets. 

12 minutes ago, Robert said:

Unclear whether his contract expires this year or next. Hopefully next!!

Well, according to the list of players and when their contracts were up, that was posted earlier in this thread, Nathan Shaw's contract was up in May 2023, and his name has been missing from kept lists and released list, very strange!

No word of Nathan Shaw?

If it's correct that Billy Mckay has been offered reduced wages in a new contract, they are playing a dangerous game, we can't afford to let a quality player like Billy leave, unless they have someone better to come in and replace him. We need all the proven goalscorers we can get.

57 minutes ago, Fraz said:

TBH I'm not surprised we didn't offer Shane another contract, I thought it was pretty good of us to offer another year given he would, in best case only have 2/3 months of game time available. Unfortunate it wasn't to be but to release players via email is just pathetic. 

Reminds me of hearing about Tokley being released via text message back in the day. 

If my memory serves me well, did we not do something similar when Duncan Shearer was relieved of his coaching duties?

Not surprised that they gave him a deal ( the cup run saved his job), but two years!!! We will be in the same position of not being able to afford to sack him, if we are struggling by Christmas. 

Let's hope he goes on a tactics course before next season, and recruits the correct players to play Hoofball, although I hope that that style of football is done with, most of what was on show last season was brutal.

Now that we know the makeup of the 2023/24 Scottish Championship, I think we can agree, what was already known, that last season was one of our best chances to get promoted back to the Premier league. The lineup from last season certainly gave us a fighting chance, but one that failed to reach the predictions of a lot of posters on this forum, me included. Not only did we fail to make the playoffs, it was the style of play that was disappointing, I really can't remember being really excited and entertained by many games, probably only the Scottish Cup win against Kilmarnock being the exception, as I only attended home matches.

As we now look to the next season, it makes me wonder how we are going to fair with the likes of Dundee United, Dunfermline, Partick, Ayr, Queens Park and Morton, all going well, and a lot of them have had money pumped into them, and all of them have the luxury, in football recruiting terms, of being in the right place to pick up new players. Then add in Airdrie, Arbroath and Raith, and the league does look a lot harder to win next season.

My hope now, that it looks like we are going to lose some of our best players for nothing, is that our younger players from our youth set up can step up and stake places in the first team. It's time to get back to a settled squad, instead of continually having to rebuild every season. It wasn't always like this, when we had the likes of the Shinnies, Warren, Draper, Raven, Meekings and Foran, we had a settled team with one or two added every season, now, it seems like a major overhaul every year. It would also be good if we could sell a player now and again, instead of letting our best talent leave for nothing.

Our hope now is for an injury free season, with the likes of Macgregor, Harper, Hyde, Nicolson and others, consolidating a first team berth, and if they impress, and are sought by other teams, we get a fee for them. Let's be a selling team, if we have to, and not a 'leaving for nothing team', that we have been for several seasons. 

Overall, we did better than most folk, and me, feared. The first half was a hard watch, as it was played mostly in our half, and it just showed the gulf in class between the players of both teams. Celtic made so much space for themselves with some accurate passing and confidence on the ball, even when bringing the ball out of their half, while anytime we had possession of the ball near our goal it was a bit like a hot potato, just get it away instead of having that calmness to look up and pick a pass, and who could blame them, we all now the quality that Celtic possess and how they can hurt you if you hesitate on the ball. The second half was much better, and I thought if we had played that way from the start, we might have given them more to think about. We gave their back four far too much time in the first half to stroll out into our half without much resistance.

When I heard that Dodds was going to spring a surprise in his formation or tactics, I thought he might play Carson in the hole, to back up Billy Mckay and have Henderson wide right and Shaw wide left, but Shaw in a central roll just doesn't do it for me. I did think Carson had a good game, even though he picked up a booking and walked a fine line for the rest of the game. Dan scored another great header, this time from a sublime cross from the ever improving Duffy.

So on the whole, it was the result everyone expected, but not the thumping that some had predicted. The whole squad should be satisfied that they gave it their best shot, and hopefully it will stand them (those who are staying with the club) in good stead for next season, as they will now have gained that big game experience. 

We really need to use our wingers, and cut into the box, run with the ball and make their defenders think about tackling them. It's something we haven't done enough of during the season, the wingers cross balls into the box and nine times out of ten they are headed away, on the odd occasion that we actually run with the ball into the box, a penalty is always a possibility, but we must run into the box. We also need to be touch tight with them in midfield, if we let their midfield dominate, they will destroy us. Please please please please please, no Hoofball, it will just keep coming back at us, and we can't just defend for 90 minutes. Our best chance is for a set piece goal, and we need to be ruthless with any glimpse of their goal.

As various coaches and managers have said over many years, all the players have to give their all and leave nothing out on pitch, no regrets. I might just have a wee bet on an ICT win!

6 hours ago, Robert said:

Two of the winners, Cameron Harper and Nathan Shaw, are at the start of their career. Imagine the boost their confidence would have got receiving their awards on the pitch at the end of the Ayr game.

Whilst Billy Mckay is an experienced pro, he also deserved to receive his awards on the pitch in front of the fans.

Whilst that match had a disappointing outcome, it was also our chance to applaud the full squad and let them know they have our backing for the final.

It may also be the difference between some deciding to stay and deciding to move on.

Not the club’s finest hour!

 

This is what you get when a club is leaderless and completely out of touch with its fanbase. Pathetic.

1 hour ago, bdu98196 said:

Are you suggesting funny handshakes maybe are part of the nepotism we have become accustomed........

I would never suggest such a thing, I am just a humble supporter, the bottom of the food chain in today's football world, what do I know!

22 minutes ago, lizi said:

As a Season Ticket holder from the inception of ICT, and a Caley fan since primary school days before that, this isn’t the way to encourage fans.  I would have loved to applaud our players at the Awards.    I’m so sad and disappointed.   This isn’t the way forward ICT.     Please have a major rethink for next season. 

It's just what I expect from ICT now. The people who voted for the awards, in most case the supporters, don't get to attend and show our appreciation. It's almost like a secret society, and the supporters are not allowed into the inner sanctum!

1 hour ago, lizi said:

On Twitter, awards being made tomorrow evening at the Stadium.  To win 5  x 2 tickets to attend, fans must re-tweet before 10am tomorrow.   Does this mean only 10 people allowed to attend?   Can ICT get even more strange?   Unbelievable 

You couldn't make this stuff up if you tried. It seems that if there's a wrong way to do it, or how to alienate the supporters, ICT will find a way.

2 hours ago, old caley girl said:

Apparently the player of the year awards are to be presented at the stadium tomorrow night? The club are running a competition on FB and Twitter (posted this evening) to win 5 sets of tickets 

Yes, I saw this on Facebook. It's just another example of the club being totally oblivious to what the supporters want. They want to see the awards take place on the field on the last home match of the season, not some competition for the lucky few to attend the ceremony. I just can't comprehend why something that seems so easy to do, to accommodate all the supporters, can't be decided like it used to be, after the final game.

I really think it must be the clubs default position, that they continue to get the easy things wrong.

4 minutes ago, bdu98196 said:

Been saying this since 2015 failings but usually find it followed by red dots and accusations of negativity

Yes, you're right, I always say take care of the small things, things that can be managed, and it goes a long way to tackling the bigger things. Look at the player of the year awards, most clubs have already had theirs on the last home game of the season, and when we get round to ours, probably the first home game next season, the majority of players may have moved on.

1 hour ago, STFU said:

Agree with what you say about the club's lack of self promotion, but I'm pretty sure all these pensioners flooding in off the cruise ships don't give a toss about ICTFC.

While I agree with you that there is a significant influx of people of a more mature nature, I'm a pensioner, and when I used to visit other city's in other countries, I was always interested in their local teams, and while i might not buy a football shirt, I would buy a football related souvenir rather than a replica leaning tower or Eiffel tower, I have bottle openers, wallets and other paraphernalia. A lot of shoppers I saw in Bridge Street yesterday were all quite young, they don't all come from cruise ships, and if the club don't try, nothing is gained, every pound is a prisoner, and I just see glaring opportunities missed.

As we drove through the very busy tourist strewn streets of Inverness today, I was thinking, I wonder if the club has capitalised on the increased footfall by having a pop up store, to take advantage of our friendly visitors? What if we had a little section in one of the touristy shops, how many shirts or club souvenirs would we sell? I can't see many tourists going all the way out to the stadium to have a look, but they might if it was in one of the shops in town.

We always seem to miss a beat when it comes to self promotion, while other clubs have their finger on the pulse. There doesn't seem to be enough hype surrounding the final. Celtic are a worldwide name in football, and we are playing them! Every man woman and child that visits our town should know that, and maybe they would take a little souvenir from our club back to their part of the world if they were readily available. The only thing of interest regarding ICT that surprised me today, was I found a little poster inside my copy of the Inverness Courier. So that will be put up tomorrow, and maybe a passing tourist will see it and think, oh the local Inverness team is playing the giant Celtic, I wonder where I can buy their football strip!

On 5/20/2023 at 1:42 AM, RednBlackComeback said:

I understand you so well, you are out of touch with the electorate, just like I'm out of touch with the ICT fan base.