Troubling news from Scotland where League One club Inverness Caledonian Thistle has been placed into administration after running into major financial problems. The club has also been hit with a 15-point reduction, moving them to the bottom of the league with minus three points. That puts them 12 points behind the team directly above them, Dumbarton.
Manager Duncan Ferguson, former Everton, Newcastle and Scotland striker, has also been axed. He had been working for free to help the club's financial predicament.
Apart from the clear threat of relegation the club, nicknamed the "Caley Jags" faces a more serious long-term issue of whether it can survive this setback. It seems an unkind fate for a club with one of the most distinctive names in British football. Earlier in the week Ferguson told BBC Scotland "it's been really tough" but he added "I'm sure Inverness will get over this. It may take a bit of time, a wee bit of pain, but I'm sure they'll get there in the end."
The club has experienced severe financial problems in recent years. The situation is not helped by the northern location of Inverness with most away fixtures involving lengthy and expensive travel. There have been rescue talks with investors from the UK, Denmark, US and UAE but they have proved unsuccessful.
The club was formed in 1994 with the merger of Caledonian FC and Inverness Thistle FC, both of which were founded back in 1885 and had been playing in the Highland League. Not all the fans supported the merger. It was originally called Caledonian Thistle but added Inverness in 1996. And that's the way it has stayed although it is known to fans as "Caley Thistle." They play at the 7,500 capacity Caledonian Stadium near the banks of Moray Firth.
Caley Thistle climbed through the divisions and in the 2003-04 season achieved what many thought was impossible by winning promotion to the Scottish Premier League. It was a marvellous effort by a club that was playing in the Highland League only 10 years before. Their highest finish is third in the Premier League in the 2014-15 season, a huge achievement.
Another highlight was winning the Scottish Cup in 2015 when they beat Falkirk. It was the first time a club from the Scottish Highlands had won a major trophy. They also reached the Cup Final in 2023 but Celtic defeated them 3-1. The decline began with relegation to the Championship in 2018 and then dropping into third tier League One at the end of last season.
Many fans know the club for featuring in one of the most famous football headlines ever. It followed a remarkable result in 2000 when the part-timers travelled to Parkhead and defeated mighty Celtic 3-1 in a Scottish Cup encounter. In a play on words of the Mary Poppins song Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious the Sun newspaper came up with the splendid headline "Super Caley Go Ballistic Celtic Are Atrocious."
It was one of the biggest upsets in Scottish football and cost John Barnes his job as Celtic manager.
Over the years the club has featured a number of mascots. Perhaps the most eye-catching was Nessie, later to be cheekily known as "Lionel Nessie". Let's hope this iconic club can attract the funds to keep it afloat, along with Nessie.
Manager Duncan Ferguson, former Everton, Newcastle and Scotland striker, has also been axed. He had been working for free to help the club's financial predicament.
Apart from the clear threat of relegation the club, nicknamed the "Caley Jags" faces a more serious long-term issue of whether it can survive this setback. It seems an unkind fate for a club with one of the most distinctive names in British football. Earlier in the week Ferguson told BBC Scotland "it's been really tough" but he added "I'm sure Inverness will get over this. It may take a bit of time, a wee bit of pain, but I'm sure they'll get there in the end."
The club has experienced severe financial problems in recent years. The situation is not helped by the northern location of Inverness with most away fixtures involving lengthy and expensive travel. There have been rescue talks with investors from the UK, Denmark, US and UAE but they have proved unsuccessful.
The club was formed in 1994 with the merger of Caledonian FC and Inverness Thistle FC, both of which were founded back in 1885 and had been playing in the Highland League. Not all the fans supported the merger. It was originally called Caledonian Thistle but added Inverness in 1996. And that's the way it has stayed although it is known to fans as "Caley Thistle." They play at the 7,500 capacity Caledonian Stadium near the banks of Moray Firth.
Caley Thistle climbed through the divisions and in the 2003-04 season achieved what many thought was impossible by winning promotion to the Scottish Premier League. It was a marvellous effort by a club that was playing in the Highland League only 10 years before. Their highest finish is third in the Premier League in the 2014-15 season, a huge achievement.
Another highlight was winning the Scottish Cup in 2015 when they beat Falkirk. It was the first time a club from the Scottish Highlands had won a major trophy. They also reached the Cup Final in 2023 but Celtic defeated them 3-1. The decline began with relegation to the Championship in 2018 and then dropping into third tier League One at the end of last season.
Many fans know the club for featuring in one of the most famous football headlines ever. It followed a remarkable result in 2000 when the part-timers travelled to Parkhead and defeated mighty Celtic 3-1 in a Scottish Cup encounter. In a play on words of the Mary Poppins song Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious the Sun newspaper came up with the splendid headline "Super Caley Go Ballistic Celtic Are Atrocious."
It was one of the biggest upsets in Scottish football and cost John Barnes his job as Celtic manager.
Over the years the club has featured a number of mascots. Perhaps the most eye-catching was Nessie, later to be cheekily known as "Lionel Nessie". Let's hope this iconic club can attract the funds to keep it afloat, along with Nessie.
