Charlie Christie: Inverness Caledonian Thistle on ‘the edge of a precipice’
There is little doubt that the past month has been the worst in my long association with Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club.
Relegation to League One, the much-maligned Kelty training plan, the club chairman’s resignation, cancelled revenue stream contracts, lack of information for staff and supporters alike and now the very real threat of administration has made going into work at the stadium lately extremely disheartening.
The recent ICT Supporters Trust meeting which I attended saw large numbers of our fans suggest that administration may be the way to go to get the club back on track.
But I can assure them that administration should be the very last resort given the potential repercussions it may entail and the long-term damage it could do to the club.
A small group of the current board spoke with stadium staff on Wednesday to update them about how serious the predicament is at the club.
The meeting, along with the concise statement they put out thereafter, showed all of us the stark reality of where we are and that is, quite simply, on the edge of a precipice.
The resignation of Ross Morrison as chairman has left a void that requires to be filled but more than anything the club requires significant investment, and the club needs it now.
The formation of a new board of directors may well follow on from any investment but it is imperative that we all do what we can to ensure the continuation of a football club that has brought so much to the city of Inverness and to the Highlands.
On a more positive note, it was nice to see son Ryan score for Scotland in Portugal in what was an underwhelming performance from Steve Clarke’s men against European minnows Gibraltar and our profligacy in front of goal was concerning given that goal scoring opportunities will likely be at a premium when the real business starts in Germany in a week’s time.
Injuries to Lyndon Dykes and Ben Doaks have not helped with our attacking options but there was little likelihood that Clarke would start with two strikers in any of our three group matches and heading out with Lawrence Shankland, Che Adams and newbie Tommy Conway should hopefully give us sufficient cover.
Steve will almost certainly deploy one-man up top with two forward thinking midfielders trying to support him as this is the system that has brought us most success in recent times and we should have several excellent options for those midfield berths in all three group games.
Scotland play a final friendly match this evening at Hampden prior to heading out to Germany and I’m hoping that Ryan will figure at some point in the game. Not because I am desperate to see him at Hampden, but it would give him the chance to gain his 50th cap in Munich at the opening match of the 2024 European Championships – a quite superb achievement for a young man from the north and one which would be richly deserved.
Since making his debut for ICT in December 2013 he has been a proud ambassador for the Highlands and has done both himself and his family proud.
To think that he is so close to joining an elite group of Scottish footballing greats who have reached that 50-cap threshold gives me goosebumps and I’m not sure when or even if we will see a born and bred Inverness lad reach such heights in the game again.