Northern California Camanachd To Join Marine Harvest North Division 3. | |
01 April 2012 Northern California Camanachd have been granted permission by the Camanachd Association to join Marine Harvest North Division 3 from the start of the 2013 shinty season. NCC has been encouraged by the strides taken by new shinty clubs such as Lewis Camanachd and Strathspey Camanachd over the last couple of years and they would like to see their own club progress in the same way. They believe joining shinty’s senior leagues is the way to make that happen. Camanachd Association Operations Manager Astie Cameron said, “They are a really enthusiastic bunch and I have no doubt that they will fulfil all their fixtures. They have good facilities and a beach to play on should there be any problems with their pitch. It might cost clubs a bit extra to travel there but the Californians are committed to travelling to Scotland every fortnight.” The response from other Marine Harvest North Division 3 clubs has also been enthusiastic with Caberfeidh already looking into hiring a supporters’ plane for their journey to the west coast. Technically the Californians should join Marine Harvest South Division 2 but they have asked to join the North leagues as they have such close links with North clubs such as Skye Camanachd, Lewis Camanachd and Lovat. NCC’s Michael Bentley, a regular face at Camanachd Cup Finals, said his side could be boosted by the inclusion of some Scots based players. He said, “Players like Skye’s AB Connor and Lewis Camanachd’s Eoghan Stewart are nearing the end of their playing careers with their respective clubs. Therefore we hope they might help us out by playing in some of our away matches in Scotland if we are short of players.” Camanachd Association President Archie Robertson is also excited by the development. “I will be heading to California for the months of June, July and August to visit the Californians and sample their hospitality for myself,” he said. Asked if any other Board members would be joining him, he replied, “No chance!” NCC made contact with then Skye Camanachd Chairman Donnie Martin in 1989 to find out more about shinty and in particular the rules of the game. Martin provided them with a Camanachd Association rule book and the club was officially formed in 2001. Since then they have played in Scotland on several occasions including a tour last September which saw them take on Skye Camanachd, Lewis Camanachd and Lovat. |