Caley Thistle fans are doing their part to help the cause by digging deep to find funds for their club.
But it remains hard to shake the impression the clock is now ticking at Caledonian Stadium.
There have been more twists and turns than the A9 when it comes to Caley Thistle’s off-field problems in 2024 and there are now genuine fears among the support there won’t be a happy ending to this particular tale.
The boardroom has become a game of musical chairs with Scott Young having the honour of being the third chairman at the club in the last four months.
Months of speculation about the club has seen the outlook for the club swing from being hopeful of finding a way out of the financial hole to now openly considering the very real prospect of administration.
The latest outlook from former chairman and club consultant Alan Savage makes for grim reading.
The club needs £200,000 by October 16 and £1.6 million by the end of the season just to cover operating costs.
As a consequence manager Duncan Ferguson is now working for free to try to help.
A crowdfunding campaign, featuring more than 1200 donations at the time of writing and one anonymous donation of £20,000, passed the £63,000 mark on Sunday.
Anyone with any ideas on how they can help the club financially have been asked to come forward and further discussions are planned tonight at a meeting of shareholders and supporters at the stadium tonight.
Caley Thistle are back to square one with investors
To cap it all, the enigma that is Ketan Makwana, who tabled an offer totalling £2.5 million for 50% of the shares in the summer, is back in the picture.
With other investors have seemingly shied away from investing, Makwana has been asked to provide proof of funds so the club can conduct due diligence.
Quite where it will all end is anyone’s guess at this point but it does feel as if the firefighting going on at the club is in danger of being overwhelmed.
Administration, if it does come to pass, would be devastating for the club, which is second bottom of League One on nine points, three points ahead of bottom club Dumbarton.
A 15 point deduction would leave the club with it all to do to avoid playing League Two football next season.
Could Elgin City leapfrog Inverness?
It is in League Two where another team from the north, Elgin City, seem to be writing a new chapter in their own story.
Allan Hale’s side moved second in the table on Saturday thanks to hard-earned 1-0 win at Peterhead.
The Black and Whites are the only unbeaten side in the division and their strong start has got fans believing this could be the year they win promotion.
Elgin have never been promoted nor relegated since joining the SFL in 2000.
They’ve just been where they are, with the odd flirtation with the play-offs balanced against a fight to avoid a play-off at the other end of the table.
But this season feels different. Resilient with a good mixture of youth and experience, not to mention a goal threat and a miserly defence, Hale has built a side which got teams taking notice.
Dick Campbell’s East Fife have moved four points clear in the space of the last two games, but Elgin are well placed to have a real push for the title or at the least a promotion place this term.
In Inverness, promotion is way down the agenda on the list of importance. Survival is the word on everyone’s lips.
But even if Inverness can find their way out of the mire the damage could be significant.
The notion of Elgin City playing at a higher level than Scottish Cup winners and European qualifiers Caley Thistle, which seemed fanciful not that long ago, could become reality.
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