A plea from the heart

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

As Bill Shankly once said to me:

'Some people believe football is a matter of life and death. I'm very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that.'

At this time, and in the case of Charlie Christie, I would beg to differ with the great man. I understand that CC did not give any after match interviews yesterday and he has alluded to the fact that he found last season very stressful and it had an effect on his family and friends as well.

The pressure is as much as it ever has been and I am very reliably informed that there is bad feeling in the dressing room. We may only be three games into the season but the hounds are baying and the next three fixtures are against the in form Arabs and very difficult trips to Easter Road and Parkhead. That is a tall order indeed.

In regard to the Cometh the Hour thread I sincerely thought that we would beat St Mirren which would allow the breathing space desperately required and I was planning to extol CC. Sadly it has just increased the pressure cooker.

So I would say - personally and professionally to CC - You will always be a legend in my eyes and many others. You have helped ICT out in their hour of need but it is time to put yourself and your family first. Gracefully throw in the towel before things get any worse.

And this time I am being totally feckin serious.

[RiG]

I seem to have stumbled on an Old Firm forum.

My mistake...

[Kingsmills]

If managing ICT is genuinely damaging Charlie's health then he should resign. Football is not that important. If it's not then he should stay and prove his mettle.

[EWS]

Could this be the reason why there was the delay in the contract extension?

[SMEE]

Let us not forget that Donald Park also has to shoulder some of the blame/take the plaudits. I havent seen too much dirt thrown his way as of yet! He was brought in to keep an eye on CC i thought?

[Pele_Is_God]

I still believe that CC and DP are the men to take us to the next level. The question is does CC believe in himself?, i'm not so sure....

[SMEE]

I felt at the time that both the Club and Charlie made errors in judgement in the appointment. Sadly, i can see the day when Charlie is long since forgotten for his on field contribution but castigated for his off field contributions

[Harry Chibber]

YAWN

Come on IHE  we're only 3 games into the season have some faith eh... eh ... eh ... eh

[TSTtiger]

awww you must be having a laugh. 3 games gone and you want cc to step down.never heard such utter pish.can i suggest you visit the doctor and beg for valium  if you dont have some,  in the hope it might calm you down.

lets get behind the club not cause more problems

[EWS]

He doesn't.  There are suggestions that CC is to step down.

[Pele_Is_God]

From some guy on P+B. Very reliable that site is :023:

[tm4tj]

Strong rumours around that CC may hust have had enough :010:

It's rife on P&B

rife rumour

then again it is County fans that are offering this info, albeit more reliable ones :029:

[EWS]

I actually saw it first on here, then was asked to remove it.

[TSTtiger]

well i hope the rumours are just that. have every faith in charlie and now is way too soon for panic buttons. that said he does take things to personally and if his health is suffering and he cant adapt to the pressures of the job then fair play to him, your health should come first

[SMEE]

If this rumour is true, which wouldnt suprise me, i would rather charlie moves aside asap before real damage is done and give any new appointment time a fair crack of the whip.

[wyness_is_god]

I actually saw it first on here, then was asked to remove it.

Was there a specific reason for the removal or just an ask ?

I hope its not true and he does stay because I think if given the chance he can turn it around, on the other flip of the coin if it is down to the stress and affecting his health/family then I hope he does what is right for him and hold his head up as he leaves because he has done a good job under a big pressure.

Its alright saying he's not up to the job on here every week, but them cowards behind the keyboard/in the stands doing that are not the ones that's taken a gamble and gone from a raffle manager to an SPL manager at a club where geography is unfortunately a problem in attracting players and always will be.

Hopefully he does stay, but I do know of one thing (which I'm not commenting on) that is of nothing to do with P&B or Late to bed County Fans :sillywave:  that suggests this "resignation" is true, then again hopefully it might just be a timing coincidence. But I think we should expect it and if tomorrow comes and there is nothing in the media about resigning then we carry on as normal :003: If its been asked to be hidden for a reason then fair enough this will also be deleted and im guessing Its probably most likley true, otherwise a rumour should be able to be commented about true or untrue.

[thegoalie1976]

Hi Guys

i was the guy that made the post on P&B

it was not made to stir anything up , it was just that i got a phone call at 1015pm tonight telling me that it was going to be announced in the morning ,

i wasn't told the reasons behind it , i don't even know if it is true , just the usual story of rumours that get flung about

although i am interested in how reliable my source is , if he isn't reliable i will give him a good old fashioned kicking tomorrow

it will be a real shame if it due to the stresses of the job , no job is worth damaging your health or your family

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

I would initially wish to comment that RIG, Chibber and caleyonup are sanctimonious tawts who rarely have the ability to read the feckin bottom line. It may also surprise their limited intellect that I am more informed than they will ever be. This thread and the Cometh the Hour were designed to be feckin supportive of the man himself and feck all to do with anything else. I am not pressurisng CC to resign for any other reason than his feckin health. If he comes out and comments otherwise then that is fine.

Read my contributions to the threads again and try to look deeper at the words. I feel very angry and bitter at the moment and I would love to point the finger but I suggest that you try to read deeper into some of my other more recent posts. You can only manage when you are feckin allowed to.

Better stop now - enuff said.

And again I beseech - You will always be a legend in my eyes and many others. You have helped ICT out in their hour of need but it is time to put yourself and your family first. Gracefully throw in the towel before things get any worse.

Does that really sound like a slagging !!!  Feck Aff.  :33:

[clacher_holiday2]

what isnt a rumor is that last year he admitted he couldnt hack the pressure, also the skepticism of his appointment has been lingering since day one, this is nothing new.

being able to handle the responsibility, stress and pressures of management were never an issue with robbo or brewster.  neither was perfect but their playing experience meant they could breeze in and take over without breaking a sweat, they had all worked and played through everything (good and bad) that could possibly be thrown at an spl team.  charlie never had that opportunity beyond a bottled spell at celtic, as i have been saying from the start his poor playing career was always going to hinder him as a top flight manager.

compare his role to an equivalent managerial position within a proper firm.  if said firm hired an operations manager with no experience, qualifications or track record there would be serious questions asked from the outset and the pressure would be sustained, at the very most they would be hired on a trial basis.  icts turnover will in the next couple of years (should spl football be maintained) creep over the ?4million a year mark, the success of the whole organisation is dependant on his ability to deliver a product.  admittedly not solely his responsibility on the day but he is the key figure in making sure the whole operation is ticking forward, if he fails then the consequences will be felt all over.

he not only has to be good at his job, comfortable, happy and aggressive in meeting the challenge; he has to be able to remain objective when picking his own performances apart as well as of those below him.  if he is none of those things and cannot handle the pressure then why the **** are we entrusting him with the stewardship of the first team?  blind loyalty for his contribution towards finishing as runner up in the second division?  ultimately the reason for him being employed was just that, his rep with the fans.  the board have done well in attracting young and promising managers to the club in the past and were (and remain) in an excellent position to attract top quality personnel still, why we dont have the guts to bring in a coach who we could one day have to defend from head hunters is a mystery to me.  we're clearly not in the position that we were in when brewster left, we dont pay the lowest wages in the league anymore and could make an excellent offer to pretty much any manager outwith the english premiership and championship.  we could actually have a first team boss who doesnt buckle under the weight of about 10 people on a website bo-ing him, who could maybe train a team to full fitness before the season starts and assign them some tactics before a match day.... that would just be a bonus!

[SMEE]

I think it takes a certain type of character to be a manager. I have never seen that quality from Charlie. No one can blame him for giving the big time a shot when presented with the opportunity, but i think his appointment was basically based on two things. First being the relative luck enjoyed by appointing the previous two rookie managers and secondly, and probably more importantly, appointing someone who wasnt going to leg it at the first opportunity.

It was bound to come undone sooner or later and maybe that time is now.

[Alex MacLeod]

First of all Charlie Christie is not employed as a manager. He is Head Coach and Donald Park is Assistant Head Coach.  Between them they are responsible for puting the team on the park. Graham Bennett, as Director of Football, is the one who does the hiring and firing. And this may be where the problems are arising at the moment.

A few questions to ponder:

Is there conflict about who should be sold on to allow us to bring in others?

Is there conflict about who CC wants to field and who he's told to field?

Is there conflict between players and coaches?

Is there conflict between the established, regular players who have had to battle to keep their positions and those who come straight into the team?

Personally I wonder is there more to our problems than just the loss of a couple of players. I can understand the frustrations of fans but until we know the truth of the problems then we shouldn't resort to being hostile towards each others opinions.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Your best feckin post in months - the feckin penny has dropped. Suspect this line may get me in deep doo-doo but The answer is YES to all yer questions but add "Were the coaches and players in agreement with the signing of a player on four times the wage? AND "Was there any external pressure on the coaches to play the aforementioned individual before he was match fit ? - To be honest I dont know the answers to those two  :017:

[CaleyD]

I can understand the frustrations of fans but until we know the truth of the problems then we shouldn't resort to being hostile towards each others opinions.

Very wise words indeed as there's a lot more to the situation at TCS than people currently know or may ever know.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

May never know fer the moment BUT may I suggest that Charlie Bannerman writes a biography on the Life and Times of Charlie Christie.  :024:

[+Wanderer]

The Hootsman claims Charlie has made his mind up...

http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/sport.cfm?id=1316662007

"CHARLIE Christie may have presided over his last match as the manager of Inverness Caledonian Thistle, after it emerged last night that he has asked to leave the Premier League club and faces talks with senior officials today.

Christie will meet with director of football Graeme Bennett and chairman Alan Savage after becoming downhearted only 19 months after replacing Craig Brewster at the Caledonian Stadium. Both Bennett and Savage are keen to retain Christie, who has won 24 of his 66 matches in charge, but privately it is understood that the manager may have made up his mind to leave.

Brewster, now playing for Aberdeen, would be a strong candidate to return to Inverness.

Matters are believed to have come to a head with Christie in the aftermath of Saturday's 2-1 reverse at St Mirren. Inverness are rooted to the bottom of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League, with no points from their opening three matches, and the manager, a former player with Inverness Thistle, Caledonian and Celtic, has taken criticisms of his side's efforts to heart.

If Christie does depart, and insiders have stressed it would be on mutual terms, Caley Thistle would be searching for only their fifth manager since entering the Scottish League in 1994."