The Long Man

Well done, that man! Now keep your heads at the back

Inverness CT: Fon-Williams, Raven, Draper, Devine, Williams, Tansey, Polworth, Horner, Christie, Mutombo, Lopez. Subs: Esson, Wedderburn, Brown, Ferguson, Sutherland. Draper in for Warren. Polworth and Horner preferred over Wedderburn. Ferguson and Sutherland on the bench. A light midfield or a day for staking your claim to first team football?

Our most successful season ever, 4 players off the wages bill since last season, and we can't afford a decent striker? Other SPL teams are finding and affording them. What baffles me about Lopez is that if he is not match fit, who at the club has ever seen him perform at full fitness, and if not how do we know he will be good for us? My preference would be to sign two strikers, one with experience and a track record, the other a young up and coming prospect. There seems to be an almost random signing policy at the moment with the emphasis on how cheaply we can get them. Not encouraging.

I thought Williams played really well at Astra. He was consistently winning the ball and looking to create chances. Of course his finest moment was that perfectly placed across the box, which Lopez should have been anticipating and already running on to, instead of waiting and watching. All it needed was a touch and it was in the back of the net. That was very frustrating to watch, as we could all see it coming. If he hadn't have done anything else in that match that was the one moment when he needed to. What also surprised me was how good Raven was at left back, so knowing Hughes penchant for mixing it up, it wouldn't surprise me to see that again.

I hope those who were saying Astra were a poor side and we should have beaten them take note. They are a well organised team with some dangerous players, and with European experience. That we came within a whisker of getting something out of the away game does us a huge amount of credit, imho.

When Draper did come against Astra in the away tie, he looked very sharp, and very committed. Unfortunately he didn't have enough time. But he has been a great player for us and it is silly to write him off on the strength of one pre-season game. Wedderburn looks handy but it is too early to tell.

Fabulous effort DBJ, also nice to know that some less fortunate Romanians will benefit from our trip. The buses were a great crack, and who knows how we all would have managed to get back to Bucharest after 11pm without your sterling efforts. So big pat on the back. The whole trip was a great experience, with a really impressive display of support. The team really put in a shift as well, for those not there I can assure you the effort and energy and focus they displayed was tremendous. They were only undone by the bit of fortune Astra got in Inverness. They were no mugs either and we should be proud we went toe to toe with them in our first European adventure, and without our best former players. The Romanians we met were friendly and always willing to help, the beer was good, the food was excellent, the place is cheap for us and they have a wonderful country, from the Danube Delta to the Carpathian Mountains. So a resounding success. Bring some more on.

That Polish antifreeze vodka is dirt cheap.

From that handy website www.pintprice.com: Lager in Romania is €1.14 EUR The beers are back on, DBJ

I'll take a carry oot, then. Are you only drinking at the Intercontinental. Alex?

You're doing a brilliant job, DBJ and Scotty too. You've made it so much easier for us, saved us a lot of hassle trying to get there and back. And it should be a good crack on the buses with the ICT army! A great turn out already. Do let us buy you a Romanian beer or two. And if we win, as many as you like.

Lovely to see that photo of Gordy, who we remembered while at Hampden. I would also like to pay tribute to all of the dear, departed Dads who introduced us to the terraces of Telford St or Kingsmills Rd, and who would have loved to see this day. I know quite a few of us thought of them last Saturday.

Some good pics here: http://www.highland-news.co.uk/News/City-celebrates-Inverness-Caley-Thistles-historic-Scottish-Cup-triumph-31052015.htm and here: https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/sport/football/inverness-caledonian-thistle/596458/party-time-inverness-caley-thistle-celebrate-scottish-cup-win/ apparently David Raven plays a mean guitar!

Excellent attendance and atmosphere, despite all the Glasgow naysayers predictions. A fair amount of neutrals who enjoyed a £5 ticket, and many of them apparently had a great day out. Fantastic to witness the lack of rancour, the Bairns have been very sporting, saying that if they were going to lose, they were happy it was to a team and support like us. Contrast that to the semi final!

Thanks, wazzow! I was very keen to know. Good for him (her?) getting it all on, even if we do pay a tiny price in terms of size of letters. A price, dare I say, we will happily settle for: our illustrious long and historic name on that cup, and not a cheap abbreviation. What happens to the cup? Do we keep it for a year? I hope the club give us a chance to take our photos with it. Well, Charles, in the grand tradition of old sporting clubs we have to be distinguished from any putative Inverness Caledonian Thistle RFC or AFC now, or for eternity!

You won't be in the Championship long if you keep playing like that. You have an extremely astute manager whose tactics were spot on in the second half, when you bossed the game. And Peter Grant was outstanding, saving goals at one end, and scoring at the other. You contributed a lot to an epic day. Impressive turn out.

How will the engraver get it all on, or will he have to abbreviate it? The Highlands wants to know!

Hearts have been an object lesson in how to regroup and rebuild a club with the help of its fans, as well as bringing on a new team. Take note, old panto queen from Glasgow. Welcome back to the SPL. Thanks!

Whaur's oor Billie noo?

"Inverness CT playmaker Ryan Christie is the target of several English Premier League clubs, including Everton and Newcastle United. However, the youngster expressed his desire to remain in his hometown for foreseeable future, and it is believed a fee of around £1 million would be required to persuade the club to part with their highly promising youngster. (The Sun)"

Who's refereeing the final? And will our defenders have to be extra careful with their arms? The SFA will be so keen to avoid any more dispute that something tells me he will be whistle happy Better strap you arms to your sides, lads

Cheers, ecojon. I think now that the raw emotion from Sunday has subsided some perspective is putting the whole thing in context. Hopefully the SFA will respond appropriately too. Yes, we have a great rivalry over the years!

Well, with the current Celtic manager saying it wasn't intentional, and the former manager saying it is impossible to prove intention, it seems nobody supports the SFA stance, and I don't see how 3 people can unanimously agree that it was a deliberate offence warranting a suspension, when they have no evidence, merely opinion.

The other notable consequence of this decision, if it stands, is to totally undermine the referee's authority during a match. If a 50-50 incident occurs, the ref will now not be just concentrating on getting it as right as possible, but will try to second guess a potential tribunal if the club doesn't like his decision. Even worse, fans, players and club officials may well see a decision they don't like and think to themselves: we will complain to the compliance officer about this. So any controversial decision during a match will now be perceived to be not the final decision, but open to appeal and change. If the SFA can't see how this will make a farce out of the results, which won't be final any more, and be a recipe for chaotic reconsideration of all manner of decisions, then they are negligent in their responsibilities. Ultimately they have to back the officials charged with officiating a game, and if they are dissatisfied with the standards then it is their job to raise them. Not shift the blame to people who they think they can punish for other's sins. BTW, isn't undermining the integrity of the game and bringing it into disrepute a chargeable offence? The SFA should be charging and fining themselves.