ICT under 15s

[Charles Bannerman]

All in all I get the impression that one member of the Dutch organising committee seems to have taken the huff at ICT beating his team 5-0 earlier in the tournament and as a result has made things difficult (impossible) for us as a result.

I see little, if anything, more ICT could have done given the position they were placed in.

That is also very much the way the story grabs me.

From readng the HN, it looks to me as if Caley Thistle made their travel arrangements and as early as February 25th also came to what they thought was an agreement with the organisers that the final, if they reached it, would be brought forward to allow them to catch their ferry. This seems an eminently sensible step rather than shell out extra time and money just in case they reached the final in a situation where they had no prior indication that they would actually be streets ahead of the other teams.

However it then looks to me as if one member of the local organising committee has taken the hump at how much better the Inverness boys were than the rest of the teams and coerced his colleagues into reneging on their earlier commitment.

I also share Alex's question about what really would be quite an extreme reaction on the part of Cairngorm, even if he DID have a diect axe to grind... which he apparently doesn't even have.

[Alex MacLeod]

Now that the facts are known I expect cairngorm to come back on and publicly apologise to Charlie and his team of coaches and to acknowledge that the problems were outwith the control of those involved with ICT. Accept that you took a half story and tried your damnest to make it into a big black mark for ICT without thinking out what you were saying or puting forward the whole picture. Its the organisers of the tournament created the problem.

Remember also that these tournaments are a means of developing the kids. Getting them used to competition and to being away from home. Its about letting them experience the game outside of their own communities and about developing their skill. I'm quite sure that, even if they didn't play in the final, they will have gained a great deal from the trip and will put that to good use in their future playing careers.

[Tug]

im sorry but i dont get why you are so angry cairngorm

yes it is a shame that the under15's couldnt play the final but your soloutions (With hindsight) are massively unrealistic

in this day and age to do anything last minute often costs twice as much

you seem to think it comes down to make a couple of phone calls and everything is sorted, if things were that easy do you think the coaches wouldnt have done it?

you also seem hell bent on the idea that this was there only chance to play in a final, if the kids have any go about them then they should look at this as a stepping stone and go next year with the intention of winning the thing

lastly might i add that i dont see you making any offers to do anything to help. if you are so disgusted with the way things are being run then how about you get up of your bum and volunteer to help out in some way?

Edited April 28, 2011 by Tug

[caleyboy]

Yes a techy hitch which couldn't be avoided BUT when oh when will we STOP entering CRAP tournaments which we know we can win? This has been going on for years and we must start pitting our wits against better opposition at better tournaments! If any of you care to ask the kids who travelled I'm sure you will be told that it was far too easy! Come on Charlie, never mind the silverware, compete at tournaments which include senior clubs and you will then see if we are making any progress!

[12th Man]

Lets have an under 15 European tournament at ICT this summer and let the Europeans come to us.

[Scotty]

Charlie likes North America, and Toronto specifically, I know cause he once told me that he and Danny loved coming over here for a tournament when they were young enough to play ! perhaps a wee trip to the new $20m home of the TFC Academy when its completed next year would be in order ... The Academy is 4 years old and up till now hasnt had a permanent home but with 5 players already 'graduated' into the first team squad hopes are high that the new home will find more Canadian stars of the future with teams slated to go as young as U-10 !

http://www.torontofc.ca/news/2011/04/tfc-unveil-massive-investment

Seriously though, teams in Scotland in general and the likes of ICT in particular who are not, and never will be "rich" in comparison to others have to get it right at grass roots level so talent can be developed for the future and either form the backbone of our team or be sold on to fund even more development.

I know very little detail about the ins and outs of the current setup at ICT so cannot really comment on much of it but I do know that a lot of people do not just pay it lip service. Whether its Charlie and the coaches on the frontline or Kenny Cameron, our operations director, they all take it seriously. Kenny - previously a main board director with a focus on the first team - only came back to the club a few years ago because of his interest in working with Danny and being able to focus on youth development. He is now the man in day to day charge of the club so you have to assume that Youth Development is right up there in terms of importance.

I purposely did not comment in the early stages of this story as my 'spidey senses' were tingling about it. Something just didnt pass the sniff test. Not from the original poster, but just from the story itself.

After hearing both sides, it sounds as simple as has been stated. ICT obviously looked at timetables, dates, accommodation etc etc etc .... and when they created an itinerary they realised that should they reach the final it might be a problem. Rather than deal with booking an extra day involving additional cost to parents who were funding the trip, and also having to deal with keeping kids off school for an extra day, they asked the organisers to make a concession in the event that they reached the final.

With hindsight, the additional day and additional cost and permissions required might not have been a bad idea, and certainly not insurmountable to organise before the event, but given that the organisers of the tournament said the timetable would be moved up in the event of ICT reaching the final, they obviously decided that all would be good and timetables could be met so didnt go for the extra expense.

It definitely sounds like someone was clearly miffed at ICT reaching the final and whoever it was wielded enough power and/or influence to reverse the original agreement that ICT had with the organisers.

In that scenario, ICT are between a rock and a hard place and lacking in many options. Yes, we have internet and bookings etc can be made online in a few seconds ... I did it myself in Stockholm when I didnt like the hotel I had booked online when I saw it in person. However, thats fine for one person, but trying to get a block booking for a group and then trying to re-organise ferries not to mention contacting parents and anyone else who needs to give any new arrangement the thumbs up is no easy task and at such short notice many service providers will see the opportunity to charge extra as they have you over a barrel.

I believe ICT did the right thing, and further to this, I also believe that this particular tournament should now be off the books if that is the way organisers treat visiting teams from other countries. As someone posted, perhaps ICT should look for some better opposition or a better and more organised competition where one person going into a huff doesnt screw everything up.

I may have been joking a little bit about North America in the start of the post, but at youth level, the club could do worse than visit this continent .... In Canada, "soccer" is the #1 participation sport amongst kids. More than Baseball, Hockey, Basketball or anything else and there are dozens of thriving individual leagues in Toronto alone !! Its just when kids become young adults that the other sports tend to take more precedence.