Inverness 3 Skye Camanachd 3 | |
29 April 2019 The Skye seconds drew 3-3 with the Inverness first team in their Mowi North Division 1 match at the Bught Park, Inverness on Saturday 27 April 2019. Inverness included some good experience throughout their team for this 2.30pm throw up with Drew MacNeil at full back and Scotland U21 cap Charlie MacDonald leading the line up front. Skye Camanachd second team co-managers David MacInnes and Daniel Morrison were able to call on Iain Nicolson, who was unable to travel with the first team, but Iain Murray and Sam MacPhee both remained on the injury list. Ruaraidh MacLeod and Ewen MacKinnon were included for the first time this season. Skye started brightly, playing with a slight breeze in their favour. Their centre line of Marcus Scott, David MacInnes and Ian MacPherson battled well, supplying some good balls to the forward line. Skye threatened early on with Ruaraidh MacLeod seeing a couple of good strikes saved by the keeper. The Islanders eventually broke the deadlock on 8 minutes when a ball was played wide to Archie MacDonald on the Skye right. MacDonald managed to turn his man nicely, giving himself time to pick out Ruaraidh MacLeod, who got away from Drew MacNeil, and he got onto MacDonald’s lovely ball to the edge of the D, taking the ball on the volley around shoulder height, and his shot first hit the ground before bouncing up off the surface and going into the top right corner of the keeper’s net. Skye kept attacking with Iain Nicolson pulling the strings in attack. Daniel Morrison had two decent chances; one after he took a ball in from the centre line and his touch took the ball over the head of Drew MacNeil and the other was from out to the right where he sent a shot just over the top left corner of the goal. Next, some more good work from Nicolson found Ruaraidh MacLeod on the Skye right and he made a driving run to the bye-line before cutting the ball back to Daniel Morrison on the edge of the D but his shot was well saved by the keeper. Morrison managed to get on the rebound but put that just wide of goal. Inverness had a few breaks up front but found the Skye back-line in no mood to concede. Skye went 2-0 up on 35 minutes. A hit-in from the left found Ruaraidh MacLeod on the bye-line and he held off Drew MacNeil before getting past him and playing a neat ball to the front edge of the D where Daniel Morrison took a touch before sending a back-hand strike above the keeper’s head and into the net. Skye looked settled and confident against their more experienced opponents but, immediately before half-time, Inverness pulled a goal back. There was a goal-line scramble during which the Skye defence claimed that Jamie MacKay had managed to clear the ball before it crossed the line. However, with no goal judge on hand, and Inverness claiming a goal, the referee ruled in the hosts’ favour. Skye made a slow start to the second half and Inverness took advantage, pulling level with a second goal from Charlie MacDonald on 49 minutes with Skye claiming MacDonald had kicked the ball in the build-up to the goal. Skye looked shocked and in some disarray with the Inverness centre line and buckshee forward now starting to dominate play. Skye took time to get back in the game but, with 10 minutes to go, the visitors went back in front through Ruaraidh MacLeod, with a strike from the left that deceived the Inverness keeper. However, just a couple of minutes later, Charlie MacDonald completed his hat-trick, punishing some poor Skye defending. Both teams created chances to win with Iain Nicolson unable to get onto a Daniel Morrison ball from the left in the final moments. Skye felt they should have taken both points, especially after dominating most of the first half, but they found the Inverness keeper in good form. However they will reflect on a good point away from home against a team that has played national shinty over recent seasons. Skye Camanachd from: Murphy Henderson: John Angus MacInnes, Jamie MacKay, Calumn MacKay, Calum Robertson: David MacInnes, Marcus Scott (captain), Iain MacPherson: Iain Nicolson, Archie MacDonald, Daniel Morrison, Ruaraidh MacLeod: subs Cameron MacKay, Keith MacKenzie, Ewen MacKinnon Match Referee – Iain Kennedy Scorers Inverness Charlie MacDonald (45, 49, 82) Skye Camanachd Ruaraidh MacLeod (8, 80) Daniel Morrison (35) |