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The Saturday Shinty Snapshot – Saturday 22 September 2012 | |
23 September 2012 Newtonmore retained the Orion Group Premiership trophy and Lochaber took a huge step towards the Marine Harvest North Division 1 title on Saturday 22 September 2012.
Orion Group Premiership Glenurquhart 0 Newtonmore 2 Newtonmore clinched their third successive Orion Group Premiership title following a 2-0 win over Glenurquhart at Blairbeg. The Glen were without James MacPherson whilst Evan Menzies was an injury absentee for ‘More. Ace marksman Danny MacRae put Newtonmore ahead after 11 minutes and Chris Sellar made it 2-0 on 20 minutes. The early lead settled Newtonmore and they could have added to their tally had it not been for some good saves from home keeper Stuart MacKintosh. This was Newtonmore boss Norman MacArthur’s final match in charge and he steps down after five years in the hot seat, as do assistants Willie Menzies and Eddy Harrigan. The highlight of their tenure was last year’s Scottish Hydro Camanachd Cup success but their side have shown remarkable consistency in the league, winning the title three times whilst losing out on goal difference and by a point on the other two occasions. Lovat 2 Inveraray 0 Lovat finish an impressive third in the Orion Group Premiership following their 2-0 win over Scottish Hydro Camanachd Cup runners-up Inveraray at Balgate. Lorne MacKay gave Lovat and 8 minute lead and Ryan Ferguson added a second 10 minutes into the second half.
Marine Harvest North Division 1 Lochaber 3 Skye Camanachd 0 League leaders Lochaber are closing in on the Marine Harvest North Division 1 title following their 3-0 win over second place Skye Camanachd at Spean Bridge. Skye manager Willie MacRae had horrendous team raising difficulties ahead of the game with more than a dozen players unavailable for selection for various reasons. The absentees list included Gilleasbuig MacDonald, Iain Morrison, Chris Rose, Jordan Murchison, Jamie Gannon, Michael Nicolson, John MacLeod, John Moir, Shaun Hedley, Allan MacKinnon, Iain Nicolson, Aonghas MacDonald and Ally MacDonald. MacRae’s side didn’t get off to the best of starts when they fell a goal behind to a Shaun Nicolson strike on 2 minutes. Matters got worse for the Islanders on 14 minutes when referee Robert Baxter red carded Skye wing centre Jamie MacDonald to the fury of the Skye bench and the surprise of both sets of players. Skye rallied though and made a real contest of it although Scott Paterson added a second for the home side 7 minutes before the break. Shaun Nicolson got his second on 67 minutes to make it 3-0 and edge his side closer to promotion to shinty’s top flight but the under-strength Skye side can take great heart from their performance. Lochaber host Strathglass next weekend and whilst two points are required to be certain of the title, Lochaber’s goal difference is such that a draw will surely suffice. Beauly 3 Inverness 2 Fourth place Beauly eventually ran out 3-2 winners against fifth place Inverness at Braeview Park. Beauly raced into a 3-0 lead when Martin MacFadyen, Jack MacDonald and Barrie MacDonald all scored within the first half hour. Davie Glass pulled a goal back 4 minutes before the break and James Cameron made it 3-2 on 76 minutes to set up a tense finish but Beauly held on to take the points.
Marine Harvest South Division 2 Ballachulish 0 Aberdour 0 Aberdour travelled to Jubilee Park to play their final league match of the season against Ballachulish and they returned home with a point following a scoreless draw. Third place Ballachulish still have another game to play after this one. Bute W/0 v Tayforth Tayforth were unable to raise a team for their trip to the Meadows to play Bute so the points have been awarded to the Islanders.
Marine Harvest North Division 3 Kilmallie 5 Beauly 5 Fourth place Kilmallie and champions Beauly shared the points and 10 goals at the Canal Parks. This was the side’s first meeting in the league as Kilmallie were unable to raise a team for their trip to Braeview Park earlier in the season. Martin Davidson continued his good scoring run with a brace for the visitors whilst Jordan Keil, Scott MacLean and Willie MacGillvray got the others. However North U14 player Craig MacIsaac was a four goal hero for Kilmallie whilst Brian MacKinnon was also on target. Picture courtesy of Neil G Paterson Click on the link to see more action shots |