ymip

Great post above from Achfary. It seems to me that Ross is suffering from a severe case of Stockholm Syndrome in relation to our "abrasive"* CEO (*talk about understatement of the century). His biggest problem is staring him in the face and yet he steadfastly deflects, excuses and point-blank refuses to recognise that Gardiner is the root of the vast majority of the problems we're facing. I also have to take issue with the Chairman's statements regarding the Academy. Unless I missed it he never explicitly said it was closing, only that it would be in jeopardy. Then he blames us for not getting the pitchforks out in relation to a general remark which was quickly overtaken by more dramatic revelations. I don't think anyone was happy with the thought of axing the Academy and to suggest that we were is entirely disingenuous on his part. The other point that enrages me is his assertion that 90% of the people that he's spoken to outwith Inverness thinks this is a great idea. I don't know about anyone else but I live outwith Inverness and have colleagues/mates at home and abroad who have all voiced an opinion on Gardiner's hare-brained scheme and not one person has suggested it's a good idea. Probably because they're generally football fans who understand that football is not simply a business venture and fans are inextricably connected to their club/city. A frankly delusional statement which undermines his credibility. Prior to the Kelty statement I had a fair degree of sympathy towards Gardiner who's clearly a fan and has put his hand in his pocket to keep things going. However, his blind faith in Gardiner, in the face of overwhelming evidence of his ineptitude and unbridled hostility from all and sundry simply defies logic and suggest that it's time for a change. Finally, a very interesting update from the Supporters Trust this morning advising that trust members have confirmed their intention to withhold ca. £200k of revenues for the season ahead. Surely this has to force a serious rethink?

This would seem to represent an excellent opportunity to get out of the disastrous "six figure deal" the club claims to have entered into. It would appear that Kelty Hearts may well have misrepresented that they're entitled to enter into the contractual agreement which the club purports to have signed. One might have expected the club to engage the services of a competent external legal counsel to advise over a fairly fundamental and legally binding agreement of this nature. The fact that such a glaring omission has been missed would suggest that the CEO has added club lawyer to his vast array of skills.

Good to see Scott's made a pig's ear of yet another hare-brained business venture. Another abject failure from our hapless CEO.

Read the Morrison Q&A on P&B (thanks Chris) and as ymip Jr pointed out he came across as defensive and more aggressive than he needed to be. Absolutely no attempt to strike a conciliatory tone or concede in any way to the tidal wave of rage and bad press ge's brought upon hmself. His defence of Gardiner is as infuriating as it is baffling. He clearly wants out but he wants to recoup his money. I woukd suggest that ship sailed some time ago. A good start in terms of filling the financial void would surely be to jettison Messrs Gardiner and Ferguson. It's hardly rocket science.

Surely it can't be more than £150k we're spending on accommodation. Given the fact we've inked a six figure deal with Kelty the numbers don't seem to add up, particularly when you factor in the loss of season ticket income.

Thanks for sharing Scotty. Truly mindboggling that Gardiner looked this potential gift horse in the mouth. It just illustrates the jaw dropping ineptitude and narcissistic nature of our feckless CEO. If he didn't dream up the scheme then it clearly isn't worth consideration. He's demonstrated such a prodigious track record of successful money making ventures over the past five years that it would seem pointless investigating the opportunity to access the networks of others, as opposed to his own rolodex of fellow grifters, shysters and snake oil salesmen. Never in the history of mankind has there been a more terrifying example of the tail wagging the dog than the free reign this utter charlatan has been afforded by our clueless board of directors. Kelty today, Broadwood (or similar) tomorrow - mark my words. Sack the board!

I have to doff my cap to the board in their ability to deliver a situation so utterly tone deaf and absurd that I find myself in violent agreement with Mr Bannerman for the first time in 30 years. Quite an achievement.

Yngwie - you're in a minority of one here - read the room FFS.

This cannot be allowed to happen. Time to empty the club of these clowns and start again. If that means part-time in the Highland League then so be it. Sack the board.

That's me done with this sh1tshow. 30 years following this club home and away and we end up a franchise club with zero link to Inverness. Get this in the fcking sea. Sack the board.

Staying full-time is a hugely positive first step. We now need to hear what the restructuring looks like but it absolutely must involve a new manager and the exit of the CEO.

Whilst I appreciate that the local media don't want to completely burn bridges with the club surely we could expect them to be calling out the board for the communications omnisambles they're presiding over here. Three days on and not even a holding statement - absolutely pitiful.

Over 48 hours on from Saturday's debacle and not so much as a peep from our illustrious board either on our own social media or via traditional media outlets. I don't think any club in British football would get away with such utter disregard for its fanbase. These guys are supposedly respected businessmen and yet they seem totally incapable of very simple communications or situation management. Utterly shambolic at every turn.

A truly shameful capitulation last night. The overall lack of pride, endeavour or passion we've seen from the majority of the players and our clueless management team over the four play-off games has been difficult to comprehend. Hopefully the board got the message loud and clear at the final whistle. A board member confirmed to me last night that Ferguson is on a 6 month rolling contract, rather than the 3 year deal he keeps referring to in interviews. Based on recent rumours it would sound like it would cost between 130-150k to pay him off. If the guy had any class at all he'd walk today but you can guarantee he'll hang on in there and pocket the pay-off he ill deserves and clearly doesn't need. His post-match comments were beyond belief. Personally, if Ferguson and/or Gardiner stay I won't be renewing my season tickets. I doubt I'll be alone in adopting this stance. Grim times indeed.

An utterly shameful performance tonight. Mortifying to be in this position but to approach the game with such little intent or urgency is unforgivable and up there with one of the most insipid performances I can recall in such a crucial game. We finished the game with 6 defenders on the park and showed little or no desire to actually win the game. The tactics are garbage, players bang out of form start and play far too long. Substitutions are predictably bizarre, negative and far too late to make an impact. Ferguson was up the tunnel almost before the final whistle. Gardiner also disappeared extremely quickly. Genuinely one of the most depressing experiences in 30 years of watching ICT. I simply cannot see us staying up with this group of players and management. Beyond grim.

Thanks Fraz. I was looking at Montrose's twitter but there was no info regarding tickets. No pay gate for away fans - advance ticket sales only on the link above.

Anyone any idea what's happening regarding tickets for Tuesday night? Good of both clubs to keep us abreast of the situation......surely a pay at the gate on the night would be a bit of a shambles.

Tremendous work Roddy. I'm sure this was a storyline in an episode of Last of the Summer Wine in 1983. You just needed Compo, Foggy and Clegg (usual ICT suspects standing in obviously...) and a handcar firing down Drumossie Brae to complete the storyline.

Forget he ifs, buts and maybes. We're where we deserve to be and the table doesn't lie. There is no fight in the team, no discernible tactical style of play, players are picked to avoid paying their wages, decent players sit on the bench irrespective of what's happening on the pitch. Ferguson signed five centre halfs and we still ship ludicrously soft goals against teams who're already on holiday and last night aside we seem completely unable to score nearly enough goals. From my perspective Ferguson's appointment has been an unmitigated disaster and whether we sink or survive he needs to go along with the clown who pushed for his appointment. How the board can sit through the barage of anti-Gardiner chants at every home game and not address the issue is beyond me. To be facing relegation to the third tier is an utter embarrassment for the club and those responsible should be held accountable. Onwards to Montrose on Tuesday I guess.

An extremely important 3 points yesterday which puts us within touching distance of Queen's and possibly even Ayr. Our game next week at Hampden is a hugely important fixture in the long term future of the club and I would implore all fans to get themselves along to Hampden next week. Irrespective of your thoughts on this stinker of a season, Ferguson, Gardiner, the board, battery farms, concert ventures and our multitude of other shortcomings we need as many fans as possible at Hampden to cheer the team on.

Get this thread in the bin

Given the binary nature of yesterday's vote surely two measured statements, addressing either scenario, should have been drafted in advance. To say nothing in the aftermath of such serious news just comes across as msssively unprofessional. Hopefully our CEO was otherwise engaged penning his long overdue letter of resignation.

STFU - How about you respond to my post of 14th February wherein I laid out my position in very clear terms. Deafening silence from our self-appointed, pre-eminent knowledge on all things battery farm related.

My mind is blown by the response to this news by alleged "fans" seemingly reveling at the imminent demise of the club. Interesting that one "fan" joined the forum about 5 minutes before he posted. Several others new to CTO in recent months who only ever seem to post about the battery farm, having absolutely nothing else to say in connection with the club - all very strange, agenda driven, behaviour. The loss of green space argument in an already massively over developed part of the city is the biggest load of bollox I've heard in my life.

Usual 3hr drive to game, 90 joylesss minutes of football, fifty quid parking ticket, 3 hr drive home. See y'all same time next week for more of the same dross.