Skye Camanachd Saturday Shinty Shorts | |
26 September 2015 Skye Camanachd won both of this week’s fixtures and celebrated a title success. Champions Skye Camanachd rounded off their Marine Harvest National Division programme with a 6-1 win over Balliemore Cup winners Beauly in their 1pm throw up at Pairc nan Laoch, Portree. Skye Camanachd first team manager John MacLeod made two changes to the squad which clinched the Marine Harvest National Division title with a win over Kilmallie at the Canal Parks a fortnight earlier. Neil MacVicar was working and Allan MacKinnon was on holiday. However Chris Rose, David MacInnes and John Gillies were added to make up a sixteen-man squad. Rose replaced MacVicar in defence whilst MacInnes and Gillies joined Iain Nicolson and Chris MacLennan on the substitutes’ bench. This was also a final league fixture of the season for Balliemore Cup winners Beauly. Boss Roger Cormack was without Jamie MacLennan, Sean Stewart, Connor Ross, Marc MacLachlan and Sandy Elrick. Throw up was at 1pm at Beauly’s request as several of their players were looking to return early to attend the Loopalu Music Festival. There was LIVE commentary of the whole match on radio and online on Cuillin FM’s Camanachd Live show. Skye attacked from the throw up and Shockie MacLennan pounced on a loose ball to send a great backhand strike high into the net to make it 1-0 after just 4 minutes. Beauly drew level on 15 minutes when David MacLean capitalised on a slip in the Skye defence and he ran through to score. Skye lost Jordan Murchison, who picked up a bang on the nose, and his replacement Iain Nicolson caught out the Beauly defence when he turned quickly to score with just 3 first half minutes remaining. Skye held their single goal lead until 20 minutes from time, thanks in a big way to at least four great saves from home keeper Iain MacLeod. Jordan Murchison, now back on the field, made enough space to send a sweet 20 yard drive over Beauly goalie Josh Grant’s left shoulder on 73 minutes. Murchison made it 4-1 just 3 minutes later and he latched onto a rebound off the keeper to make it 5-1 on 78 minutes. Skye saved the best until last when Kenny Campbell stroked a Jordan Murchison ball home after a fine flowing move a minute later. After the final whistle, Marine Harvest Site Manager John Angus Gillies, who also refereed the game, presented the Marine Harvest National Division Trophy to Skye captain Shockie MacLennan in front of a delighted Skye support. The result was significant in that it means that John MacLeod’s Skye side has now completed the last two seasons undefeated. Indeed the only dropped points over the 24 month period were a home draw with Caberfeidh on the opening day of the 2015 season and a goalless away draw with the Beauly second team a year earlier. However Skye will have to step it up once more next season as they compete in shinty’s top flight next season for the first time since 2002. The Skye Camanachd second team did not have a fixture. The Skye Camanachd Ladies played their final Marine Harvest National Division 1 match of the season when they beat Glengarry Ladies 9-0 at Pairc nan Laoch, Portree on Tuesday 22 September 2015. Lorna MacRae was Skye’s top scorer with five goals whilst Fiona Lamond bagged a brace whilst Katherine Dibble and Holly MacLean got the others. Skye Camanachd U17 did not have a fixture. Skye Camanachd U14 did not have a fixture. |