Making Hay When The Sun Shines | |
25 November 2018 Oban Camanachd have a lot to thank Iain Hay for as their former first team manager looks back on almost four years in the first team hot seat. When Oban Camanachd turned to Iain Hay to replace Ian “Gussie” Campbell in July 2015, he wasn’t sure what he was letting himself in for. “I didn’t know what to expect,” he said. “I didn’t want to leave the guys in the lurch and I knew they were a capable bunch. I was doing the training for Gus at the time and we had only taken something like three points from ten games and it looked like we would go down.” Ian Campbell had worked hard with the squad so what did the management switch bring the Mossfield men? Hay said: “I suppose the change gave us a fresh start and the opportunity to draw a line in the sand. I told the players at the time that I would give the job 100% but I was looking for them to give me a 100% in return.” Things got off to a slow start. “My first game was against Inveraray in the Macaulay semi-finals and we lost 2-0 but things picked up after that.” They did indeed and the Oban side reversed their fortunes in their next outing, three weeks later, as goals from Daniel Cameron and Malcolm Clark earned a 2-0 victory over the same Inveraray side in the league. Oban Camanachd would then go on a great run, eventually finishing sixth in the Premiership. The games came thick and fast and what transpired for Iain Hay was taking on the equivalent of a part-time job. Hay explains: “Well a Saturday is match day so that’s the whole day pretty much taken up, especially if it’s an away game. There will be media calls on a Sunday and there’s always someone that will contact you about shinty on a Monday. Tuesday is training, Wednesday is making arrangements for the following Saturday’s game with the opposing team and referee, Thursday is training again and you spend time thinking about your team line-up on a Friday when we also have committee meetings. “You add in the man-management side of things and all players are different so there’s you can’t just treat them all the same. There’s no point doing that as they all react differently in different situations. So it’s all pretty full-on.” A significant improvement followed in 2016 with Oban Camanachd only behind league runners-up Kyles Athletic on goal difference at the end of the season whilst also reaching the Camanachd Cup Final, narrowly losing out 1-0 to Newtonmore. However defeats to Kyles Athletic ended ambitions in both the Macaulay and Glasgow Celtic Society Cup competitions. “Yes, we finished on the same points as second placed Kyles, only trailing them on goal difference,” recalls Hay. “In fact we were top of the league up until midway through the season only to fall away a bit but we had the Camanachd Cup run which took us all the way to the final against Newtonmore. The game itself was a battle of wills; it was very tactical but some of our players didn’t turn up on the day. In the end, we just didn’t create enough chances and Newtonmore were better on the day.” A sixth placed league finish followed at the end of the 2017 season as well as a narrow 2-1 defeat to Lovat in the Camanachd Cup semi-finals. The Oban side lost 3-1 to Kyles Athletic in the Glasgow Celtic Society Final and they exited the Macaulay Cup, again to Kyles Athletic, at the last-four stage with Kyles going on to lift the trophy. Hay reflected: “Kyles won the Macaulay that year and they proved to be a bit of a bogey team over the piece. The defeat to Lovat in the Camanachd semis was a really sore one. Scott (McKillop) hurt his knee in that game and although he tried to play on; he had to come off. Garry (Lord) was then sent off but I still felt we were the better team. However Lovat won it in injury time but it was a missed opportunity to be in our second successive final.” The season just gone saw a top half league finish although the side again didn’t get past the Macaulay semi-finals whilst Kinlochshiel halted their Camanachd Cup progress at the second round. However the highpoint of Hay’s tenure was undoubtedly the Scottish Sea Farms Glasgow Celtic Society Cup success with the trophy coming to Oban for the first time since 2005. “I was glad for the boys to win the cup as they had been there or there-abouts for so long. They got that particular monkey off their backs and they beat Kyles too, who had been so difficult opponents. So it was a good day and one we’ll remember. “In the league, we could have turned some of our draws into wins which could have given us a higher finish than fifth. We had five draws and that included two against Glenurquhart (who finished bottom of the division) and there was also a home game with Lovat that we should have won.” Going forward, Hay is adamant that there is great potential in the side but stresses that commitment is key. “The ability is there but there have been times where we’ve had four or five guys missing, whether it was injury, suspension or attending social events, and that has cost us. The clubs that regularly win things have that extra commitment. They are able to work at things at training with all players present and they have more options on a Saturday and these things make the difference. That is where Oban Camanachd needs to get to. I think we have definitely improved over the last four years but I still feel we have not fulfilled all our potential.” The Camanachd Cup defeat to Kinlochshiel this season clearly still rankles with Hay. “We knocked ‘Shiel out of the competition after a replay at the same stage the previous season and, to my mind, Camanachd Cup dates should be kept clear in everyone’s diaries as soon as they are announced at the start of the season. However we travelled to Kirkton with just eleven senior players that day and we lost. The final was in Oban which was a great opportunity. The Macaulay defeat to a depleted Kyles Athletic side was also a sore one because we just didn’t apply ourselves correctly that day.” Iain Hay’s shinty adventure began 35 years ago and he was a relative later starter to the game. It was 1983 and Hay remembers it well. “I was 18 years old and Oban Celtic had a game against Inveraray and they were short of players. I was friends with Donald MacCallum’s son Fraser and Donald asked me if I would play and that was it. I went on to become a regular in the side and I played for the South U21 side in the Grampian Cup.” Oban Camanachd had enjoyed Camanachd Cup success in 1996 and they were keen to add Hay to their squad around that time, chasing his signature for a couple of years before he made the switch in 1998. “There was actually talk of the two clubs merging in the mid-1990s, although some were dead against it,” he laughed. “But that talk all went quiet when Oban Camanachd won the Camanachd Cup in 1996.” Hay’s first team playing career continued until the ripe old age of 42 although he was tempted out of retirement during the following season. “Lochside had a cup game at Kinlochshiel and bosses Des MacMillan and Andy Pearson were short of players to travel so I went along. I had a great tussle with Neilie “Ach” MacRae that day and really enjoyed it so carried on for a few games more. We won the Bullough that year, beating Inveraray 2-1 at Mossfield in the final.” The game also marked an unusual occurrence – an Iain Hay goal. “It was a shot from around the half-way line and it must have deceived the keeper. I didn’t get many of them.” Hay finally closed the book on his playing career at the end of that season. “There were a lot of promising young players coming through and I didn’t think it was right that I blocked a place in the side so it was time to retire for good.” Well it was a retirement of sorts as Hay immediately took charge of the Oban Camanachd U14 squad, notching up two MacMaster Cup successes; against Newtonmore at Mossfield and also against Skye. He then took charge of the U17s for a season, losing out in the finals of both the MacQuiston and London Shield before taking the first team training for Gus Campbell and looking after the side if Gus was unavailable. He continued in this role until taking charge of the team in his own right. Iain Hay is in no doubt that he is leaving behind a good squad. “There are some great youngsters and the likes of Daniel Sloss and Daniel MacVicar are now established first team players. Daniel Sloss is only 16 but he is a regular starter and he featured for the Scotland U21s in their recent win over in Ireland. Daniel MacVicar has come on leaps and bounds too whilst Daniel MacCuish will have gained so much from last season’s experience and he’s another who can be a regular. I’m also impressed with Ross Campbell and Lennon Campbell who have done so well for Lochside and they could be featuring soon if they continue to work hard.” “There will be changes too as some players may decide to stop playing or move on or even be forced to stop playing through injury. We’ve had that over recent years and the likes of young Ian Campbell, James MacMillan, Gary McKerracher, Connor Howe and Ross MacMillan have all been losses for Oban Camanachd at times for one reason or another so it’s important that we have younger players ready to make the step up whenever they’re needed.” It’s now time for a break and no one would grudge Iain Hay that but don’t rule out a return in some capacity further down the line. “You never-say-never but I will definitely be having a complete break for now. I’m obviously involved with the club in relation to my day job at Mossfield and I’ll be along watching games as a supporter but that’s it. “There are times when I’m working from 7am until 7pm and trying to juggle everything between work and family commitments and although my family have been hugely supportive, I felt I just needed a break.” “In fact my wife Dee encouraged me to stay on but this will allow us more time to visit our daughter Rebecca who is in Perth Collage. “I’ve enjoyed it though; especially when we win. There are times you question why you are doing it when you lose a game, and there have been some games that I still can’t quite figure out quite how we lost, or someone pulls out of the squad late on but shinty’s been such a big part of my life for the last 35 years.” And whilst this chapter closes, “Haybo” is quick to ensure the names of those who have helped him over the last four years aren’t forgotten. “Fraser Inglis, Alex MacVicar and Chris Eccleston have been a huge help to me and I’ve needed these guys along the way. This is not a one man job by any means.” It certainly isn’t but Oban Camanachd have much to thank Iain Hay for as he takes a well-earned rest from the club he served so well and they did just that by presenting him with a silver salver to recognise his achievements at the club’s awards night. |