Inverness Caledonian Thistle’s administrators say they have received 20 expressions of interest to buy the League One club.

BDO said potential buyers of the 2015 Scottish Cup winners would be sent details outlining the investment opportunity in the coming days.

The firm thanked the local community for their support for the financially stricken club while the process is ongoing.

Caley Thistle drew 1-1 draw with Kelty Hearts on Saturday, but remain rooted to the foot of the third tier table after receiving a 15-point deduction for entering administration on 22 October.

The club, formed in 1994, was forced to sack manager Duncan Ferguson and lay off four first-team players in an effort to cut costs late last month.

BDO, which previously took over the running of Heart of Midlothian and Rangers when they too entered administration more than a decade ago, is now handling the sale of the club.

A spokesman for the firm said there had been considerable interest, but that some had questioned how any money invested would be spent.

They said: “We have had many inquiries from people wanting to help and support the club financially, ranging from on-site restaurant opportunities to advertising and so on.

“Understandably, some have questioned where the funds will go.

“I’d like to stress that all funds raised will be used towards the running costs of the club and will not be expended on professional fees or to pay historical creditors.”

The names of potential buyers have not been disclosed.

Businessman and former chairman Alan Savage has stepped in to fund the club for the remainder of the season.

Caley Thistle lost £1.2m last season when they were relegated from the Scottish Championship following a two-leg defeat to Hamilton Academical.

That came just a few weeks short of nine years on from their Scottish Cup win at Hampden against Falkirk on 30 May 2015.

The club is projected to lose a similar amount this year, but that does not account for restructuring following relegation from the second tier.

Robert Sanchez brought down Rasmus Hojlund with 20 minutes remaining and Bruno Fernandes rolled in what looked to be a decisive spot kick.

But Chelsea hit back swiftly as Moises Caicedo’s sweet strike flew into the bottom corner.

Here is how SunSport’s Lloyd Canfield saw the performances of the Chelsea players in the 1-1 draw…

Robert Sanchez – 3
Made a few really good saves in the first half, and was much improved after a poor performance last time out against Newcastle.

That was until he gave away a reckless penalty on Rasmus Hojlund, which was easily dispatched by Bruno Fernandes.

His mistakes are starting to cost Chelsea time after time.

Malo Gusto – 2
Got in good positions in the first half, but was often wasteful when he got there.

Was booked for a late challenge on Manuel Ugarte, before being hooked for Cucurella at half-time after an awful overall showing.

Wesley Fofana – 6
A strong performance at the back was marred only by the Frenchman letting Rasmus Hojlund escape him before winning a penalty for his side.

Showed brilliant recovery pace throughout the game, and made some crucial challenges too.

Levi Colwill – 6
That was a strong defensive showing from the Chelsea number 6.

For a player with a passing range as impressive as his is, it would’ve been nice to see him use it more as Chelsea looked for a goal.

Reece James – 5
Improved this week, but still showed signs of rustiness as he gave the ball away in dangerous positions a few times.

More effective on the right side in Malo Gusto’s position, and more comfortable there as expected with Marc Cucurella on the left.

Another 90 minutes in the tank is fantastic news for Chelsea fans.

Moises Caicedo – 9
Scored a certain contender for goal of the month with a sensational volley from the edge of the box to level the scoring for his side.

Effective in breaking up play for the Blues once more, and showed why he is worthy of the £100m price tag Chelsea paid for him.

Romeo Lavia – 8
Another impressive midfield performance from the Belgian, who shows prowess beyond his years on and off the ball.

Seems the perfect pivot partner for Moises Caicedo, and people need to start talking about how Manchester City let him go for peanuts.

Noni Madueke – 6
Unfortunate to hit the post in the 13th minute with a header following a corner.

Worked hard defensively throughout the game too, but was unable to really put his creative abilities to the test.

Cole Palmer – 7
In the first half, his signature ‘Palmer touch’ got the away supporters off their feet, and he was Chelsea’s most creative outlet on the day.

Unable to add another goal or assist to his impressive tally this season, but still had a solid showing.

Pedro Neto – 5
Showed flashes of brilliance on the left-hand side, and came close with a shot across goal in the second half.

Was moved to the right-hand side in the second half, but it was much of the same from there.

Nicolas Jackson – 5
Pretty invisible up front for Chelsea today.

Worked hard and tracked back well when required to, but fans were left confused as to why Christopher Nkunku was left on the bench.

In fairness to him, could’ve had an assist if Enzo Fernandez could finish his dinner.

Subs
Marc Cucurella (for Gusto, 46 mins) – 5
A solid showing on the left-hand side. Chelsea look a better team with him in the 11.

Mykhailo Mudryk (for Madueke, 70 mins) – 4
Tried to light things up on the left hand side, but his spark wasn’t enough to win the game for his side.

Enzo Fernandez (for Lavia, 70 mins) – 2
Missed an absolute sitter which would have won his team the game after coming on. Looks very short on confidence.

Click here to read more Chelsea stories.

While Hull was surging to a mighty impressive 18 under par for her 54 holes in the Saudi capital, the PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and leading colleagues were attending the nearby Future Investment Initiative conference.

This financial talking shop is run by the Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) which was also the presenting partner for the women’s tournament where Hull pocketed her £60,000 first prize.

Figures were considerably higher when The Sun reported last Saturday that a $1bn (£770m) deal has, at last, been struck between Monahan’s organisation and the PIF.

While the agreement has not been confirmed by either party, the cursory details reported make a semblance of sense.

It is well known that since the announcement on 6 June, 2023 of a “framework agreement”, there has been a desire on both sides for ratification.

But it has been considerably harder to achieve than initially anticipated by Monahan and the PIF’s golf-mad governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who would reportedly become chairman of the PGA Tour as part of this peace treaty.

PGA Tour players initially railed against the plan because it meant jumping into bed with the body that supplied billions of dollars to finance the breakaway LIV tour.

Why should there be a pathway back to the establishment for those golfers who disrupted the sport’s eco-system and took millions to defect to the upstarts?

Opinions have softened and it would appear this rumoured agreement makes provision for some of the Saudi investment to financially compensate those players who remained loyal to the PGA Tour.

Also, it potentially means that by 2026 the landscape of men’s professional golf may have significantly altered.

Could there be a pathway back to the PGA Tour’s biggest events for LIV stars such as reigning US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau and former world number ones Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka?

Might PGA Tour players be able to form teams that could compete in LIV’s lucrative tournaments?

Could LIV benefit from existing PGA Tour television deals? That is particularly pertinent given their commissioner Greg Norman has admitted that the absence of a big network contract has provided considerable “headwinds” against LIV’s development.

Who knows?

More certain is that by 2026 the established American circuit will be a slimmed down version of itself. Proposals are due to be ratified by its policy board on 18 November to limit full PGA Tour membership and tournament field sizes.

Only the top 100 rather than the leading 125 on the FedEx Cup standings will retain full cards. Tournament fields will reduce from 156 to 144 and smaller events will reduce from 132 to 120.

The idea is to accommodate slow play after more than a quarter of PGA Tour events were unable to complete a round before darkness because play was tardy.

“I think the direction that they’re going is towards magnifying the value of having a PGA Tour card,” board member Peter Malnati told PGA Tour Radio.

Significantly, the quota of PGA Tour cards going to the leading 10 DP World Tour players, not already exempt, will be unaltered under the plans revealed last week.

Protection of this incentive suggests relations between the Florida-based circuit and Europe’s leading tour remain robust.

This is despite the DP World Tour failing to attract many leading US stars to its autumnal run of bigger tournaments. This expected benefit from the “strategic alliance” between the two leading transatlantic circuits has not materialised.

The European tour is now in the Middle East for its new instituted play-offs to conclude the 2024 Race to Dubai. This week, the top 70 in the standings compete in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

Such is his points advantage, leader Rory McIlroy could claim his sixth Harry Vardon Trophy for winning the money list before they even get to Dubai for the following week’s DP World Tour Championship, where the field will be whittled down to the leading 50.

The more fascinating contest is likely to be the race for the 10 US cards, which is being led by McIlroy’s closest rivals in the order of merit, Thriston Lawrence of South Africa and Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard.

Bath’s Jordan Smith, eighth on the list, is the only UK player currently among the leading 10 candidates, but Northern Ireland’s Tom McKibbin is only one place behind Frenchman Romain Langasque, who occupies the last qualifying berth.

So for several of Europe’s leading figures there is plenty of consequential action ahead in the coming fortnight in the Middle East.

Indeed, both on and off the course, plenty is already happening in that part of the world – it would seem – to influence the sport’s future.

DARTS fans are being spoilt once again as the Grand Slam of Darts returns THIS week – and Luke Littler will be hoping he can get back to winning ways.

The teenage sensation failed to make it out of the first round of the recent European Championship courtesy of 53-year-old Andrew Gilding.

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And it means that Littler has been dumped out at the beginning stage for a third successive time – World Matchplay and the World Grand Prix being the others.

However, the Nuke quickly has the chance to right some wrongs in this unique nine-day marathon.

But he’ll have to dethrone reigning champion and World No 1 Luke Humphries who beat Rob Cross 16-8 in the 2023 final.

Three-time winner Michael van Gerwen will also feature along with English duo Michael Smith and Dave Chisnall.

When is the Grand Slam of Darts 2024?

• The 2024 Grand Slam of Darts will get underway on Saturday, November 9 before concluding on Sunday, November 17.
• Afternoon sessions are scheduled to start from 1pm GMT while the evening matches take place from 7pm GMT.
• WV Active Aldersley in Wolverhampton will host this nine-day extravaganza.
• Luke Humphries slayed Rob Cross in last year’s mouthwatering final.

What TV channel is the Grand Slam of Darts 2024 on and can it be live streamed?

• The 2024 Grand Slam of Darts will be broadcast LIVE on Sky Sports in the UK.
• Fans can stream the entire action on NOW TV.
• Matches are also available to watch on PDCTV or their worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay.
• SunSport will have a rolling blog that will cover the whole tournament.

What is the format?

It is set to be an action-packed nine days with eight group stages matches kicking off on Saturday, November 9.

This will run through to Tuesday, November 12 which fans will then witness the highly anticipated knockout rounds.

One of the Grand Slam’s most exciting elements is the potential for a nine-dart shootout.

If players in a group finish tied on points and leg difference after the round-robin group phase, they’ll face off in a nine-dart battle for a place in the last 16.

Grand Slam of Darts 2024 schedule

• November 9-12: Group Stage Matches
• November 13-14: Second Round Knockouts
• November 15-16: Quarter-Finals
• November 17: Semi-Finals and Grand Final

Knight’s Choice has won Australia’s famous Melbourne Cup, in a dramatically close race which went down to the final few metres.

It was Irish jockey Robbie Dolan’s first time in the event, but the second win for New Zealand horse trainer Sheila Laxon.

Second in the two-mile contest was Warp Speed and third was Okita Soushi, ridden by Jamie Kah – one of a record four female jockeys in the field.

Buckaroo was the favourite to win the race, with Knight’s Choice an outside chance but storming home to take the lead seconds before the finish.