Highland Derby

[Cinejag]

I agree it was their big day out,don't forget though in the Highland league they were probably the main rivals of Inverness teams,would their have been such a low home support if it had been County who haven't exactly been in the same league as us a lot over the years.

More of an effort should have been made,no SPL team should be getting outnumbered by lower league opposition fans,there maybe apathy for the cup throughout all the other SPL teams but i bet none were outnumbered by away fans at their home ground

Highland League days were nearly 17 years ago which means pretty much anyone under the age of 25 has no recollection of those times and certainly not of the rivalry. Elgin have been an irrelevance to us since 1994 and that was reflected yesterday. I wonder how many of the ICT fans there yesterday were ever regulars at Telford Street or Kingsmills? Not opening a merger fans argument, just trying to illustrate how far the club and the support has moved on since the Highland League days.

Not sure what the attendance for a County game would have been, I'd like to think significantly higher, but I'm pretty sure it wouldn't have been a sell out either.

I was there yesterday and only being 29, I have some early childhood memories. Mainly of hearing the Elginers being called words I'd never heard before then but soon realised why they got so called. I tend to agree, not that many of the younger group of fans would see what all the fuss was about. Still a wins a win as they say

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Many of the central belters and southerners simply wouldnt have bothered making the effort - so many reasons not to go and watch a once proud but now a truly "diddy" outfit. The olde rivalry is simply a piece of history but most of the Hellgin fans are brought up to be bittera and twisted about ICT - most of it borne of envy. I would have expected their support to attend en masse as this was their biggest day out probably since they got in to the SFL. I shure enjoyed the banter but that was about it - but can you imagine the craic if the tie was at Hellgin - I would have been up fer shure and a lot more to boot.

[Tug]

ok im going to bite

firstly :- i wasnt there because i had to work

secondly :- i have an agreement with my wife that i get a season ticket and go to league games, outwith that it is an extra expense we cant afford

thirdly :- weekends are pretty much the only time i get to see my kids as they are usually going to bed when i get back from work

fourthly :- what gives you the right to come on here and lecture others about them being a disgrace for not attending a game?

fifthly :- get a life and realise that there is a whole big wide world out there and many people are getting fed up of your constant fishing trips on here

[Council Juice]

This game yesterday was being built up on here like it was going to be similar to some of the great football derbies on the planet!!!!!

What a complete and utter damp squib it turned out to be, there is seriously something wrong when the away fans outnumber and outsing the home support

To be fair to the Elgin fans they generated a good atmosphere and if it wasn't for them the game would have passed by like a training exercise

Only ?10 to get in yet ICT cannot muster 1500 fans WTF? Don't think sitting in the main stand that i have ever seen the North Stand so empty and so quiet

Spoke to some older Elgin fans in the pub after the game and they couldn't believe how poor an atmosphere there was and how there was so few ICT fans, i must admit i had to agree with them sadly

They sang at the game what a sh***y home support and SPL yer having a laugh and they were completely justified on yesterdays debacle

Things can only get better i suppose so onwards and upwards lets hope we get an away tie in the netx round

dougal

I've never said anything before but others have picked up on it. Why is every comment you make some sort of dig at the club, players or (supposedly fellow) fans? Im not sure whether your trying to get a rise out of people (for usually no real reason) or because you just dont really know all that much or maybe your just new to all this supporting thing.

We are not a huge club. We can't include some of the facilities larger clubs have. All SPL teams generally have poor turn outs against lower league opposition and are often outsung by the swollen, exuberant, diddy team lot. It is noticable when fans don't turn up especially for a smaller top flight team like ourselves. But these days people pick and choose games, especially addition cup games as watching football is pretty expensive nowadays.

So really why so negative? County fan?

[reefinweedallday]

This game yesterday was being built up on here like it was going to be similar to some of the great football derbies on the planet!!!!!

What a complete and utter damp squib it turned out to be, there is seriously something wrong when the away fans outnumber and outsing the home support

To be fair to the Elgin fans they generated a good atmosphere and if it wasn't for them the game would have passed by like a training exercise

Only ?10 to get in yet ICT cannot muster 1500 fans WTF? Don't think sitting in the main stand that i have ever seen the North Stand so empty and so quiet

Spoke to some older Elgin fans in the pub after the game and they couldn't believe how poor an atmosphere there was and how there was so few ICT fans, i must admit i had to agree with them sadly

They sang at the game what a sh***y home support and SPL yer having a laugh and they were completely justified on yesterdays debacle

Things can only get better i suppose so onwards and upwards lets hope we get an away tie in the netx round

dougal

I've never said anything before but others have picked up on it. Why is every comment you make some sort of dig at the club, players or (supposedly fellow) fans? Im not sure whether your trying to get a rise out of people (for usually no real reason) or because you just dont really know all that much or maybe your just new to all this supporting thing.

We are not a huge club. We can't include some of the facilities larger clubs have. All SPL teams generally have poor turn outs against lower league opposition and are often outsung by the swollen, exuberant, diddy team lot. It is noticable when fans don't turn up especially for a smaller top flight team like ourselves. But these days people pick and choose games, especially addition cup games as watching football is pretty expensive nowadays.

So really why so negative? County fan?

Maybe he's a little pissed off that we get outnumbered at a home game by a 3rd division support!! Tha apathy for football in Inverness unreal

[DALNEIGHCALEY]

Pre merger if a mob was coming to Inverness to play any of the teams a "welcoming committee" would have been on hand to greet them , the committe would have been made up of fans of all 3 Inverness sides . No way would Elgin have been allowed to swagger about our town taking the p!ss at will .

[Sean93]

This game yesterday was being built up on here like it was going to be similar to some of the great football derbies on the planet!!!!!

What a complete and utter damp squib it turned out to be, there is seriously something wrong when the away fans outnumber and outsing the home support

To be fair to the Elgin fans they generated a good atmosphere and if it wasn't for them the game would have passed by like a training exercise

Only ?10 to get in yet ICT cannot muster 1500 fans WTF? Don't think sitting in the main stand that i have ever seen the North Stand so empty and so quiet

Spoke to some older Elgin fans in the pub after the game and they couldn't believe how poor an atmosphere there was and how there was so few ICT fans, i must admit i had to agree with them sadly

They sang at the game what a sh***y home support and SPL yer having a laugh and they were completely justified on yesterdays debacle

Things can only get better i suppose so onwards and upwards lets hope we get an away tie in the netx round

dougal

I've never said anything before but others have picked up on it. Why is every comment you make some sort of dig at the club, players or (supposedly fellow) fans? Im not sure whether your trying to get a rise out of people (for usually no real reason) or because you just dont really know all that much or maybe your just new to all this supporting thing.

We are not a huge club. We can't include some of the facilities larger clubs have. All SPL teams generally have poor turn outs against lower league opposition and are often outsung by the swollen, exuberant, diddy team lot. It is noticable when fans don't turn up especially for a smaller top flight team like ourselves. But these days people pick and choose games, especially addition cup games as watching football is pretty expensive nowadays.

So really why so negative? County fan?

Maybe he's a little pissed off that we get outnumbered at a home game by a 3rd division support!! Tha apathy for football in Inverness unreal

Sorry but since when does being a 3rd divison side mean the fans need to be worse than us?

[reefinweedallday]

This game yesterday was being built up on here like it was going to be similar to some of the great football derbies on the planet!!!!!

What a complete and utter damp squib it turned out to be, there is seriously something wrong when the away fans outnumber and outsing the home support

To be fair to the Elgin fans they generated a good atmosphere and if it wasn't for them the game would have passed by like a training exercise

Only ?10 to get in yet ICT cannot muster 1500 fans WTF? Don't think sitting in the main stand that i have ever seen the North Stand so empty and so quiet

Spoke to some older Elgin fans in the pub after the game and they couldn't believe how poor an atmosphere there was and how there was so few ICT fans, i must admit i had to agree with them sadly

They sang at the game what a sh***y home support and SPL yer having a laugh and they were completely justified on yesterdays debacle

Things can only get better i suppose so onwards and upwards lets hope we get an away tie in the netx round

dougal

I've never said anything before but others have picked up on it. Why is every comment you make some sort of dig at the club, players or (supposedly fellow) fans? Im not sure whether your trying to get a rise out of people (for usually no real reason) or because you just dont really know all that much or maybe your just new to all this supporting thing.

We are not a huge club. We can't include some of the facilities larger clubs have. All SPL teams generally have poor turn outs against lower league opposition and are often outsung by the swollen, exuberant, diddy team lot. It is noticable when fans don't turn up especially for a smaller top flight team like ourselves. But these days people pick and choose games, especially addition cup games as watching football is pretty expensive nowadays.

So really why so negative? County fan?

Maybe he's a little pissed off that we get outnumbered at a home game by a 3rd division support!! Tha apathy for football in Inverness unreal

Sorry but since when does being a 3rd divison side mean the fans need to be worse than us?

Perhaps because 3rd division crowds are generally a lot lower even at cup games(look back on the history of this club you will see crowds in division 3 were usually about 1500,Although you are correct it doesn't matter what division they are in you should never get outnumbered by an away support and for anyone to try and defend this is laughable

[Alex MacLeod]

Burough Briggs average gate about 400. 1400 come to Inverness for a day out. 1000 of those came in the hope of witnessing a giant killing. I spoke with a couple of guys on the train south on saturday night. Both Elgin supporters who live and work in Edinburgh. Niether gets to more than one or two games in a season but they seen this as being a good one to make the effort for because Elgin are doing so well this season.

Personally I think there were more in the stadium than the official figures show but thats the norm for cup games. My guestimate would have been closer to 3500 total.

[reefinweedallday]

Burough Briggs average gate about 400. 1400 come to Inverness for a day out. 1000 of those came in the hope of witnessing a giant killing. I spoke with a couple of guys on the train south on saturday night. Both Elgin supporters who live and work in Edinburgh. Niether gets to more than one or two games in a season but they seen this as being a good one to make the effort for because Elgin are doing so well this season.

Personally I think there were more in the stadium than the official figures show but thats the norm for cup games. My guestimate would have been closer to 3500 total.

Crowd of 2800,definitely more than 1400 Elgin,the away stand was near full,outnumbered at home in any competition is embarrassing,to be outnumbered by a team only 40miles away with a population of far less than us is disgraceful

There has been rivalry between Inverness teams and Elgin for years,it appears that people only come out for the "big" teams now though

?10 for adults ?5 for kids yet a home support of 1000,amazes me no end

[Big G]

I agree crowd was disapointing from the home fans but bare in mind we've had two home games over the Christmas period and although tickets were cheap people only have a certain amount of spare income to spend on luxuries such as football.

For the large amount of Elgin fans that travelled this was thier cup final and having spoken to "Elgin Fans" that came off two buses for a bevvy in Nairn before and after the game only about a quarter of them actually have ever been to an Elgin game before and were made up of Moray based Old Filth fans and Highland League fans from Banff, Lossie, Forres and Rothes.

[TheKnowledge]

If Rangers or Selic have 5'000 fans who decide not to turn up for a game, no one cares, but we have 1000 - 1500 less than normal and we're a disgrace. How many fans does everybody think should have turned up? If we used to get 1500 - 1800 in the third, then Saturday was an improvement. If we were playing Clach, how many should we have then? Or if we play Inverness UTD, there should be 50'000 with casuals waiting at the away end to 'welcome' them. The Keppoch has a darts team as well which pisses me off, as they moved from the Chieftain. Maybe people stayed away because they were worried about the potential blood bath. I'm just glad the whole thing passed of peacefully.

[reefinweedallday]

If Rangers or Selic have 5'000 fans who decide not to turn up for a game, no one cares, but we have 1000 - 1500 less than normal and we're a disgrace. How many fans does everybody think should have turned up? If we used to get 1500 - 1800 in the third, then Saturday was an improvement. If we were playing Clach, how many should we have then? Or if we play Inverness UTD, there should be 50'000 with casuals waiting at the away end to 'welcome' them. The Keppoch has a darts team as well which pisses me off, as they moved from the Chieftain. Maybe people stayed away because they were worried about the potential blood bath. I'm just glad the whole thing passed of peacefully.

Are ICT as big as Rangers and Celtic?? 5,000 of any of those two would be 1/10th of their support,ICT having 1000 - 1500 less(i would say slightly more) is more than 50% of the normal attendance

For a home game against a team from only 40 miles away in the Scottish Cup who we haven't played in 17yrs,low ticket prices etc i would have expected 4000+

1500-1800 in the 3rd and you think saturday was an improvement? remembering that in the 3rd you would be lucky to get 50-100 away fans

Clach are Highland League Inverness United are amateurs bears no relevance

50,000 casuals at the away end,i'd prefer 1500 "fans" in the home end to be honest,This is football maybe you stick to darts by the sounds of your ramblings

[MabawswaRichie]

There was clearly over 3000 at the game on Saturday. All crowds would have been declared lower across the country.

[tm4tj]

For a home game against a team from only 40 miles away in the Scottish Cup who we haven't played in 17yrs,low ticket prices etc i would have expected 4000+

You are living in a dream world then if you think we should have had 4000 at the game. Wake up son, it's 2011.

You are also splitting the argument between league and cup games, two very different occasions.

To be honest I am sick of these wind up merchants trying to undermine everything that goes on. Big deal, Elgin had a lot of fans here.

[reefinweedallday]

There was clearly over 3000 at the game on Saturday. All crowds would have been declared lower across the country.

Surely the taxman should be looking in to that

[Yngwie]

There was clearly over 3000 at the game on Saturday. All crowds would have been declared lower across the country.

I've always understood the standard formula for cup ties is to announce 80% of the actual crowd, which would put it at 3,500.

[reefinweedallday]

For a home game against a team from only 40 miles away in the Scottish Cup who we haven't played in 17yrs,low ticket prices etc i would have expected 4000+

You are living in a dream world then if you think we should have had 4000 at the game. Wake up son, it's 2011.

You are also splitting the argument between league and cup games, two very different occasions.

To be honest I am sick of these wind up merchants trying to undermine everything that goes on. Big deal, Elgin had a lot of fans here.

Not a wind up merchant and not undermining anything the club has achieved i just think that it is a sad day when little over 1000 people come out to watch a team who play 40 miles away who had an intense rivalry between both Inverness clubs before the amalgamation,shocked at the apathy to be honest but then you summ that up with big deal Elgin...Obviously not one who cares for the history of Inverness football

[TheKnowledge]

I'm pretty ropey at percentages but I think I see what your saying, however, if 5000 weegies, Dubliners or Belfastonians decide that they're not going to bother, no one minds, but if 1000 Red Coat taunters decide that actually, they would rather not, then "there's something seriously wrong". That doesn't add up.

Why should the distance between Elgin and Inverness have an influence on the amount of home fans? If your suggesting the rivalry should be more intense because of the traveling distance, then what is the mile to hatred ratio you're working with? Rather than traveling distance, try using footballing achievement as barometer.

Saturday was an improvement as we were playing a third division team, and the attendance was nearly 3000.

Elgin are closer to the Highland League and amateur football than they are to us, and for me, have the same relevance.

Your were disappointed about there being only 1500 fans in the home end earlier.

I could never get my darts to stick, that was always my problem.

[dead_ball_specialist]

I'm pretty ropey at percentages but I think I see what your saying, however, if 5000 weegies, Dubliners or Belfastonians decide that they're not going to bother, no one minds, but if 1000 Red Coat taunters decide that actually, they would rather not, then "there's something seriously wrong". That doesn't add up.

What happens in Butlins stays in Butlins.

[RiG]

There has been rivalry between Inverness teams and Elgin for years,it appears that people only come out for the "big" teams now though

But there's next to no rivalry between ICT and Elgin though. Saturdays game was only big for one set of fans and it wasn't ICTs hence the poor turnout from our side. It would have been great to see more folk along (I didn't manage myself incidentally) but the game just didn't mean as much to fans of ICT as it did to Elgin supporters.

[TopSix]

I went to the 6-0 league cup game at septic park a few months ago. The home attendance at that one was woeful - these things are all relative.

While it was a tenner to get in on Saturday, you still have the other costs - beers, taxis etc making the day out a lot more. Talking of which, I better book my train for the Hamilton home game...

[Sir C the 3rd]

What a pathetic thread....obviously we aren't going to get a big crowd for a game v Elgin. Massive game to them, should have been a routine dispatch of a lower league club for us. I'm sure the club are delighted we got Elgin as they brought a 1500 fans with them. If it was most 2nd or 3rd division teams the crowd would have been around the 1000 mark.

If we're getting angry about crowds, 500 max for mcbains testimonial was a disgrace!!

[caley100]

Its proves that we were way more important to Elgin than they were to us, end of.

Their money was welcome though.

The Elgin support was not bigger than home support.

[HumbersideDude]

I really don't see the problem with the crowd numbers. When I went to watch a 3rd division team ie; Annan,play at TCS in a warm sunny summers afternoon 2009 in the league cup, the attendance was only around 900 with about 40 Annan fans. So getting around 3000, with 1500 Elgin fans, on a cold January, in a cup game, against a 3 division team, is an improvement as far as I can see.

It is only a derby in the fact we are relatively close geographicaly, but I certainly have no feelings for Elgin as a rival football team of ICT.