Alex MacLeod

I know I asked this earlier, how would he have come onto ICTs radar? Could be an agent touting him. Could be help from Hearts. Could be Latviamans a scout. Who knows?

What? Two Highland teams relegated in the same season?

Even loan players need wages.

And here

It may well be that the Inverness air and nightlife will change those two. We have, in the past, taken in players who didn't perform elsewhere and turn them around. Lets look positive and hope for transformations.

Absolutely. As well as the potential financial benefits, getting past this game should also boost morale and confidence - that's a far bigger issue than fitness at the moment, IMO. I don't think we should worry too much about "fighting on two fronts" if we go further in the cup and are involved in a relegation battle. Maybe we'll even find out what our best team is... Hopefully Rooney will get a start on Saturday though. rooney may start if his number comes up in brewsters weekly game of striker lotto. i have serious misgivings about winning this one. it will mean having to string two results together if we're gonna win the 6 pointer v hamilton and the chances of that are slim to no chance And we all love an optimist Sorry John but money builds teams.......WIN THEM BOTH I SAY

All the Trust threads have been merged into this one to tidy up the site. A.M.

Disagree John. Put the strongest team out. Further we can go the more money comes back. Bet you Alex Ferguson wishes he'd started his strongest team tonignt.

We need a cup run. Since coming into the SPL we've not really done so well as we have in the lower leagues. Lets get behind the team this run and go for glory.

Yes, that's O.K. But it do'es not prevent us from be relegated Maybe so finmack but what may just prevent relegation is everybody involved in the club, from you right up to the chairman, pulling on the same oars.

I Understand where your coming from and would agree with the staetement if it concerned a player coming from another SPL side who perhaps wasn't getting a game for his club or even a promising player from the first division but in the case of Cowie he was taken from a second division side who surely were not paying him anywhere near a grand a week Pretty sure if he was ambitious enough to want to get to the SPL and showcase his talents there he would have bitten of you hand for a 3 or 4 year deal,the simple fact is we only ever give players 2 year deals even after they have proved themselves with us and we continually allow players to run their deals down It's bad mismanagement on behalf of the Director Of Football,we as a club are very slow to react in offering our best players extentions to their contracts once they have proved they are doing a job for us and as it's his job to deal with these matters he has to be held accountable,surely even YOU can see that Alex In this particular case the player HAS ambition. He needs to move from the club he's at. An SPL club, that can't pay a lot, is interested. My ambition is higher than that but I need a shop window. I'll sign for two years and burn my gut out in the first year. Bear in mind an extension offer was put on the table back in August. The press report interest from elsewhere. Stuff the offer. My agent will find better. And thats how it works with teams who are the size of ours. And for info, and before people start accusing me of seeming to support Graham Bennett, an ex player of ICT, one who's no longer in the game, pointed all that out to me.

Maybe..........just maybe..........tonight has shown that the consensus is very much split and that we should all be doing what is being asked from Sutherland (Tulloch) down to the players. That is we all pull together and get us out of the mess. The manager is well aware that he is very much in the spotlight and the DoF has publicly stated that improvements are a must. Players know they must improve if they want to profit. I would have said, had I been at the meeting, "Lets all get behind the team. Lets get back to the support we once were. And lets all get fired up for win, win, win". All hands on deck and we can save our season. And a top six is only a couple of wins away.

This meeting was never going to oust Brewster. What I would have hoped is that there would have been enough of a turnout and a unanimous outcome that would let the club board see that the fans mean business. Sounds like that isn't the case. Turnout of 60.........seen more than that in the Innes on matchday.......................mind you that was while waiting for a bus to Viccy Park

See where your coming from o stoned one but I learned something recently that changes my views somewhat on what is or isn't the right way. ICT want players but cannot pay more than, say, ?1k a week as best offer and are unable to predict whether it will be possible to increase the wage a couple of years down the line. So! The offer is a grand a week for a four year deal. Bottom wages in league. Player say's sorry I can get more at another club but I'll come to you for two years at that wage provided I'm played regular. I can do two years at peanuts and others will see me. Give me a wage on a par with the others and I'll commit to longer. Well usually its an agent saying this but you get the gist. The Director of Football gets a lot of stick but the fact is we dont pay enough for anyone to commit to longer terms.

It may well be that longer was on offer but player didn't want it.

Till he's learned some english

You cant force a player to sign if they dont want to, especially when the difference can be a grand a week plus at another club.

Hard to say. He's been doing well for QoS as part of a very good all round Div 1 team but could he make the step up to SPL?

22 appearances and 4 goals is better than he done for us latterly

If so I stand corrected

Add appearance payments and win bonuses and it can add to a good amount. Oh no! Forgot!! No win bonuses!!!

Hearts dont need defenders?? I heard a rumour that an early release of Blackie to Hearts could result in, and be dependant on, a player coming to us. This guy is still under contract at his current club (owned by Vlad) and they're prepared to release him if he secures a contract in Scotland. I wouldn't make my mind up on him unless I'd seen him in action so judgement is reserved.

At best ?50k?? Pressley's signing on fee??

I wouldn't no. Millions of people in this country would bite your hand of for that though. ?325 works out at around ?8 an hour for a 40 hour week and probably no bonuses. So in the context of what they'd earn in catering or hospitality. As a labourer or driver is a pretty good wage. Those lads are still serving an apprenticeship and, assuming they turn out to be top players, will be able to command a good deal more in not too many years.

That figure was told to me at the weekend. It could be the figure offered to him to stay though I was left with the impression we have two or three, including Ian, on that.