Aberdour and Lochaber were the winners following an exciting day’s shinty action on Women’s Cup Final Day at Strachur on Saturday 8 September 2012.
The event, hosted by Cowal and Bute Ladies, started with some well-attended junior shinty sessions. Then came the main events ….
Marine Harvest Challenge Cup Final
Strathglass 4 Lochaber 5
A late goal from Rebecca Stafford gave Lochaber the Marine Harvest Challenge Cup as they edged out Strathglass by the odd goal in nine.
The sides were level at four goals apiece after a fairly even first half. Hazel Hunter grabbed a hat-trick whilst Laura Fraser got the other for Strathglass. A Kirsty MacDonald brace and strikes from Kathleen Cameron and Laura MacIntyre countered for Lochaber.
However Lochaber dominated the second half but they found it difficult to get past an excellent Strathglass back line.
The winner came late in the game and it was Lochaber’s Rebecca Stafford, playing in only her second shinty match, who struck the fatal blow to take the trophy to Spean Bridge.
Lochaber's Missy Cameron was named player of the match.
Valerie Fraser Cup Final
Glengarry 3 Aberdour 4
Glengarry were pre-match favourites to continue their three-year winning streak however Aberdour were equally determined to avenge their 4-0 loss in the 2011 competition. This led to a hugely exciting match as a sizeable crowd gathered at the new Strachurmore sports facilities.
Underdogs Aberdour started well, putting the Glengarry defence under constant pressure from corners and free-hits.
The Fife team’s Niamh Donnelly opened the scoring on 15 minutes with a powerful shot that gave the keeper no chance to save.
Glengarry fought back to level the game before the end of the first half after a well-taken shy was picked up by Laura Gallagher and bundled into the goal along with herself, the Aberdour keeper and fullback.
With it all square at half-time, Aberdour were quick to take a second half lead when Bernie Elliott-Bowman rounded her player and slipped the ball past the 'Garry keeper.
Minutes later, Niamh Donnelly extended the lead to 3-1 with a well placed ball into the bottom corner of the goal.
Aberdour were gaining momentum at this point and it looked like they could have run away with it.
However Glengarry didn't give up easily, and managed to pull a goal back thanks to a superbly taken shot by Annie Butterworth.
With the clock in the first minute of injury time, it looked like the cup was heading eastward to Fife. However a break from Glengarry and another snapshot from Annie Butterworth levelled the game and sent the yellow and green supporters through the roof.
With the threat of extra time looming both teams knew they had to make every move count. Referee Dunkie Kerr restarted the game and Niamh Donnelly won the ball from the restart and played it up-field to Katy Smith. Smith outpaced her marker to knock the ball forward to Katie Booth. Booth kept her composure and sealed a famous victory with a superb strike to take the trophy home to Aberdour for the first time.
Aberdour’s Jenny Durkin proudly received the winning captain’s black caman and lifted the Valerie Fraser Cup in front of an ecstatic crowd of travelling supporters.
There was double joy as Aberdour’s Katy Smith was selected as player of the match after an impressive midfield performance
Glengarry were presented with the Marine Harvest National Division 1 trophy and medals to finish their season.
Glengarry’s Laura Gallagher was also presented with the Shield for National Division 1 Player of the Year 2011.