Lovat secured their Scottish Hydro Premier Division status with a 3-2 win over Kilmallie on Saturday 12 November 2011.
Kilmallie 2 Lovat 3
Lovat will play Scottish Hydro Premier Division shinty next season following their 3-2 win against Kilmallie at the Canal Parks. Lovat went into the game knowing anything less than a victory would see them return to Marine Harvest North Division 1 after a two year absence.
Kilmallie’s top flight future is secure but they will have a major say in who is relegated as they follow up this game with a meeting with Oban Camanachd, who currently sit in the relegation zone, next weekend.
Kilmallie were without the suspended Michael Rodger and defender Euan Stoddart was working off-shore. Lovat were minus long term absentees Fraser Gallacher and James Grieve who were ruled out because of illness and injury.
Kilmallie started with the wind at their backs but it was Scotland U17 captain Greg Matheson who settled Lovat nerves when he fired them into the lead after just 2 minutes. However Kilmallie started to show better hitting and they gradually took control of the centre line and Ross Lavin in particular was in dominant form. Although Kilmallie edged the game at this stage, the more clear-cut chances fell to Lovat and had it not been for some fine goalkeeping from Kevin Toye, the Balgate men would surely have been further ahead at the break.
Lovat also made an explosive start to the second half and Euan Ferguson made it 2-0 just 60 seconds after the restart. This goal seemed to settle the visitors and with the wind at their backs, they played some good possession shinty. Jamie Matheson made it 3-0 on 55 minutes and he probably didn’t realise at the time just how important a goal this would be. His strike had an element of good fortune though as his shot took a wicked deflection before nestling past Toye in the back of the net. Lovat seemed to take control but a snap-shot from the edge of the box from Kilmallie’s Scottish international John Stewart changed all that as he pulled a goal back on 74 minutes. We now saw a more nervous Lovat performance and the game swung from end to end. It seemed a case of when rather than if Kilmallie would score again and fortunately for the visitors the game was into injury time before a Ross Lavin goal made it 3-2. But time was almost up and Lovat held on to celebrate the most crucial of victories when referee Ted MacDonald sounded the final whistle.
This win means that Lovat bosses James Gallacher and John MacRitchie step down from their management role on a high as they hand over the reins to Allan MacRae and their supporters can look forward to Scottish Hydro Premier Division shinty at Balgate once again next season.