Caley Jags show their mettle

Keeping John Robertson at Caley Thistle could well be the club’s best bit of business this summer.

Robbo yesterday signed a new two-year deal to keep him at Caledonian Stadium until the summer of 2023 and his decision to put pen to paper on a new contract is some welcome good news for Inverness.

He had been linked with the manager’s job at St Johnstone but Robbo has shown his commitment to the cause by signing a new deal. It means if any club does want Robbo they are going to have to compensate Caley Thistle properly for the privilege of taking the manager away from Inverness.

Caley Thistle need their manager more than ever right now. The club faces a huge challenge in the next few months in trying to rebuild a team which finished second in the Championship and it will not be easy during a time when every club is having to cut back budgets due to the financial fallout of the pandemic.

Robbo has taken on a huge task in leading the rebuilding efforts but I know how much he loves living in the Highlands and he has clearly built a strong bond with Caley Thistle in his two spells with the club.

I wish him well as the

job is even tougher now than it was when he returned to the club three years ago.

The Championship season is not due to start until October and with only three rounds of fixtures that’s more valuable income being lost by every club in the second tier. Coming on the back of last season

being cut short, it all adds up to a significant sum of money heading out each club’s door.

The players who are still at the club are on furlough while the club will also have to plan for how they intend to meet the regulations around coronavirus testing when the squad eventually does return to training.

Roy MacGregor has offered the use of the testing facility at Ross County but I don’t expect for one minute that offer will be a charitable donation – and nor should it be.

With doubts about how much longer the club will be able to use Fort George as their training ground now surfacing it is clear

there have been precious little nuggets of good news for fans to savour in recent weeks.

Caley Jags have a lease agreement for the use of the pitches for another decade at least but they would be left with a major issue to contend with if Fort George was no longer available.

There have been some

pre-season sessions carried out at Charleston Academy before but I don’t know if that would be a possible permanent solution. The only other area I can think of is Highland Rugby Club’s home at Canal Park but again I’m not sure whether training on an artificial surface every day would be appealing.

STAYING: John Robertson, pictured with Willie Finlayson in 2017 when he rejoined the club, has signed a new two-year deal with Caley Thistle