"The ICT Thread - From the Premiership to the Seaside"

[Central Belt Caley]

2 hours ago, Fraz said:

Great question. And one that most ICT fans can't seem to reconcile. If we're spending so much, where? We've made zero improvement to infrastructure or the 'match day experience' we've had no big marquee signings. All I can think of is spunking cash for gardening leave as at one point we were paying for Robbo (to do nothing), Dodds (fired 6 games after extending his contract) and Ferguson (relegation specialist on initally £3k a week.) Plus related assistants.

Fans complained repeatedly about these poor decisions and wastes of money. However the board/CEO's manta was something between shut up and know your place and to ignore any negative opinions and label outspoken fans as 'clickbait proponents'. The Supporters Trust was also sidelined by Gardiner and labelled 'not representative'. 

I'm not sure what else fans could have done as many have been concerned for quite some time. 

I agree with most of what you said but I’d argue we “went for it” so to speak in the 21/22 season. Signing Broadfoot, Gardyne and McKay won’t have been cheap and could be looked at as “Marquee” signings for a championship club. Or as good as you can get at this level. That season we also had Mcalear and Chalmers on loan who I don’t think will have been cheap either. 
 

It nearly worked out getting to the playoff final but St J bodied us in the 2nd leg. I reckon that was more of a broken clock is right twice a day type situation rather than us having a well worked thought out plan.

[Cardle is Magic]

Isn’t the problem that you don’t need to have signed marquee players on big contracts to end up in a lot of debt as a struggling full-time club in Scottish football?

I’d guess the majority of clubs in Scotland are technically insolvent or very close to it? The fans for the most part won’t give a shit about the finances until it reaches a crisis point.

Think we managed to lose £1 million while in L1 which would be laughable if it wasn’t so pathetic. In their statement, the Pars board actually complained that we won the division and therefore missed out on additional gate money from the play-offs.

I appreciate many/most clubs will better run than my own but money will be very tight everywhere and it doesn’t take much for things to go sour.

[Sir Tarmo]

1 hour ago, velo army said:

Obviously there's glee because Scottish football fans are very, very petty, but also because ICT are ahistorical upstarts who talk funny.

I'm utterly confused by Arbroath's place in all of this though. 

I’m confused by Arbroath’s existence, I think they are too.

1 hour ago, Shodwall cat said:

Yes but some clubs are willing to risk the future of the club to do it.  If smaller clubs like ICT want to get into the top flight then instead of spunking money they don't have  as I said  they either need to grow their support, increase their commercial revenue, bring through a crop of talented youngsters or get a manager in that over achieves on a break even budget.  You could increase the premiership to 16 teams but ICT would still not be guaranteed to get into it on a break even budget.  Average attendance wise last season they were about 17th I think. They will have dropped even further this season.  Sometimes expectations far outweigh realism unfortunately.

We actually have done this, but our incompetent board always fail to get anything for them. We brought through Daniel MacKay, Roddy McGregor and Cameron Harper around the same time following our relegation. The first was undersold for pennies, the second was horribly treated by ‘Big Dunc’ and released to a higher division for free, and the third was given away to Carlisle for free after Scot Gardiner told they they didn’t need to pay.

 

Even in the past, we’ve brought through some decent youngsters like Graeme Shinnie, Nick Ross, Liam Polworth etc that we’ve got nothing for. Ryan Christie was criminally undersold in comparison to the prices you see thrown about today for guys like Connor Barron and Lennon Miller, who aren’t a patch on what Christie was. And currently our best young attacker Keith Bray is being played as some sort of right back by our terrorist manager ‘Big Dunc’ and our other young talent Calum MacLeod is underused. 
 

It’s an area we have always failed to capitalise on and I’m sure if Charlie Christie is involved more heavily it will improve in future.

28 minutes ago, Tartan Dave said:

 

Can Duncan Ferguson go one week without making this entire situation about himself?

[Stephen Malkmus]

11 hours ago, lichtgilphead said:

I thought it stood for Ignorant C*nt Tarmo?

 

11 hours ago, glasgowlichtie23 said:

I thought it was Inbred C*nt Tarmo

 

10 hours ago, lichtgilphead said:

The result of an Incestuous Couple of Teuchters?

Has Dick Campbell poisoned the village of Arbroath's water supply or something?

[1320Lichtie]

4 minutes ago, Sir Tarmo said:

I’m confused by Arbroath’s existence

I suppose being in the position you are in as a fan of a very young and newly formed club that’s already struggling and on life support it must be quite confusing looking at a club that was formed 146 years ago still going strong 

[Sir Tarmo]

1 minute ago, 1320Lichtie said:

I suppose being in the position you are in as a fan of a very young and newly formed club that’s already struggling and on life support it must be quite confusing looking at a club that was formed 146 years ago still going strong 

Existed for 146 years and your only notable achievement is beating some pub side 36-0 in the Victorian era. Bravo.

[1320Lichtie]

2 minutes ago, Sir Tarmo said:

Existed for 146 years and your only notable achievement is beating some pub side 36-0 in the Victorian era. Bravo.

Thank you 

[Dunning1874]

41 minutes ago, Tartan Dave said:

 

I can't help being cynical with stories like this. We had similar when David Hopkin was pleading poverty and telling lies about not being able to afford a second choice goalkeeper, when he'd actually just chosen to build a 22 man squad without one. We got a story that Hopkin was paying for players' meals at training out of his own pocket and what a noble gesture that was. What he was actually doing was putting it on his own card at the time then claiming it back on expenses, the way thousands of businesses normally operate.

Obviously Ferguson's wealth will be considerable compared to the vast majority of managers in Scottish football considering his playing career, but it wouldn't surprise me if that's the case here.

40 minutes ago, Hugh Hillshaveyes said:

We did...& While you're at the whataboutery that's a significantly smaller loss than the 1 million Dunfermline lost winning the same division...we have budgeted to break even this season & with home gates where 5500-6000 will be the norm i think we will 

I don't think it's whataboutery to bring up Falkirk spending outwith their means when a Falkirk fan is claiming Falkirk have been cheated by another club because they were spending outwith their means. Both clubs were doing the same thing at the time, ICT were just doing it to a greater scale.

[RedLichtie86]

7 minutes ago, Stephen Malkmus said:

 

 

Has Dick Campbell poisoned the village of Arbroath's water supply or something?

I can assure you the water supply is perfectly fine. Helped make it for 14 years.

[Shodwall cat]

4 minutes ago, Dunning1874 said:

I can't help being cynical with stories like this. We had similar when David Hopkin was pleading poverty and telling lies about not being able to afford a second choice goalkeeper, when he'd actually just chosen to build a 22 man squad without one. We got a story that Hopkin was paying for players' meals at training out of his own pocket and what a noble gesture that was. What he was actually doing was putting it on his own card at the time then claiming it back on expenses, the way thousands of businesses normally operate.

Obviously Ferguson's wealth will be considerable compared to the vast majority of managers in Scottish football considering his playing career, but it wouldn't surprise me if that's the case here.

I don't think it's whataboutery to bring up Falkirk spending outwith their means when a Falkirk fan is claiming Falkirk have been cheated by another club because they were spending outwith their means. Both clubs were doing the same thing at the time, ICT were just doing it to a greater scale.

We unlike many others have always paid back every penny of our dues and will continue to do so. Even when we hit financial difficulty in the 90s we paid back every penny. Completely different from this overspending and then shafting creditors. The latter is cheating it's as simple as that.

Edited Saturday at 10:34 by Shodwall cat

[Shodwall cat]

1 hour ago, Dunning1874 said:

Didn't Falkirk budget a £400K loss last season?

Which we cover every season by increased commercial activity cash in bank  and bigger crowds. We don't just throw money at things with no hope of paying it back. There is always a plan in place. Completely different from icts situation.

Edited Saturday at 10:44 by Shodwall cat

[Central Belt Caley]

13 minutes ago, Dunning1874 said:

I can't help being cynical with stories like this. We had similar when David Hopkin was pleading poverty and telling lies about not being able to afford a second choice goalkeeper, when he'd actually just chosen to build a 22 man squad without one. We got a story that Hopkin was paying for players' meals at training out of his own pocket and what a noble gesture that was. What he was actually doing was putting it on his own card at the time then claiming it back on expenses, the way thousands of businesses normally operate.

Obviously Ferguson's wealth will be considerable compared to the vast majority of managers in Scottish football considering his playing career, but it wouldn't surprise me if that's the case here.

I don't think it's whataboutery to bring up Falkirk spending outwith their means when a Falkirk fan is claiming Falkirk have been cheated by another club because they were spending outwith their means. Both clubs were doing the same thing at the time, ICT were just doing it to a greater scale.

I’m led to believe Duncan “Big Dunc” Ferguson has previously been declared bankrupt, so not as loaded as folk might think he is 

Edited Saturday at 10:44 by Central Belt Caley

[DA Baracus]

Inverness fans, you now get to enjoy the screeching shouts of "CHEATS!" in certain match threads, every single time, even years after things were settled and no one cares. You'll also get the extra bonus of snide insinuations that as a fan of CHEATS you fully endorsed it all and were even somehow responsible to an extent and definitely cheered it on. It will even be, from the more hysterical ones, made out that you're a bad person of questionable character for so wildly cheering on all the CHEATING.

It's definitely never comically transparent and bitter mewling when your team wins and an opposition fan brings it up to try and make out that your win is hollow and meaningless.

 

[Sir Tarmo]

 

[ExiledLichtie]

2 hours ago, velo army said:

I'm utterly confused by Arbroath's place in all of this though. 

Well according to ICT's manager, we put them in administration.  Its apparently our fault because we "downed tools" according to their manager, which is why they ended up relegated.  

Their fans seem to have a bit of a sensitive spot with regard to us.  Not sure what it is.  Possibly the fact that we spend a fraction of their budget and yet they rarely seemed to do much better than us.  They seem to see us as some sort of rivals and react very badly to any observations we make, no matter how factual.  Very odd.

[RedLichtie86]

1 minute ago, DA Baracus said:

Inverness fans, you now get to enjoy the screeching shouts of "CHEATS!" in certain match threads, every single time, even years after things were settled and no one cares. You'll also get the extra bonus of snide insinuations that as a fan of CHEATS you fully endorsed it all and were even somehow responsible to an extent and definitely cheered it on. It will even be, from the more hysterical ones, made out that you're a bad person of questionable character for so wildly cheering on all the CHEATING.

It's definitely never comically transparent and bitter mewling when your team wins and an opposition fan brings it up to try and make out that your win is hollow and meaningless.

 

Only if they dont get liquidated.

[DA Baracus]

Just now, RedLichtie86 said:

Only if they dont get liquidated.

True

[Sir Tarmo]

Just now, ExiledLichtie said:

Well according to ICT's manager, we put them in administration. 

He has never said this. Your fanbase threw a tantrum because he made a throwaway comment intended to wind you up, and that is has done. 

[ExiledLichtie]

3 minutes ago, DA Baracus said:

Inverness fans, you now get to enjoy the screeching shouts of "CHEATS!" in certain match threads, every single time, even years after things were settled and no one cares. You'll also get the extra bonus of snide insinuations that as a fan of CHEATS you fully endorsed it all and were even somehow responsible to an extent and definitely cheered it on. It will even be, from the more hysterical ones, made out that you're a bad person of questionable character for so wildly cheering on all the CHEATING.

It's definitely never comically transparent and bitter mewling when your team wins and an opposition fan brings it up to try and make out that your win is hollow and meaningless.

 

Ah well, never mind.  You can always rob some more money from local businesses to make yourself feel better.

[DA Baracus]

Just now, ExiledLichtie said:

Ah well, never mind.  You can always rob some more money from local businesses to make yourself feel better.