BBC Alba Cover Lewis Camanachd’s Debut Season. | |
24 August 2011 BBC Alba will be in attendance as Lewis Camanachd play their final Marine Harvest North Division 3 match of the season when they face Boleskine at Smith Park, Inverarnie on Saturday 27 August 2011. This game marks the finale of an historic first season of Camanachd Leòdhais in the national leagues. The islanders were permitted entry to the Marine Harvest North Division Three for the 2011 season after making a passionate case to the Camanachd Association which overcame doubts about the cost to other clubs in terms of money and time in travelling to the island as well as doubts about the club’s own readiness for league entry. In doing so they became the first team from the Western Isles to compete at this level of shinty. In the eyes of many, the club has succeeded greatly this season by ensuring that visiting teams are made welcome at their high-quality park in Shawbost and also in having a full squad at all games home and away, including an epic trip to Ardnamurchan. However, the club must wait until the Camanachd Association Board of Directors meets after the season is over to learn their fate. Independent media company MacTV have been following the club’s endeavours all season for the Gaelic Digital Channel and they have captured the ups and downs of a successful debut for a new club, which despite Lewis ending the year at the bottom of the table, has shown the Hebridean side to be no pushovers, securing their first points and victory as well as attracting large crowds to their home games. Manager Paul Duke, originally from Newtonmore, has more reason than most to celebrate this historic season as his son Seumas was born only days before the club’s first ever home game in May. He has enjoyed the first season and hopes that the Association allows his young child to grow up on an island with its own local shinty club. “This season has been an exhilarating experience, we’ve learned a lot and we are hungry for more. We’re hopeful that the Board of Directors will decide in our favour because it would be the death knell of the club if they don’t.” “The club had reached a crossroads last year and needed to take that next step or people would have lost interest. Playing each week and playing at home has allowed us to improve quickly and also attract a lot of support that was not there before. Shinty is the talk of Stornoway on a Saturday and that’s a big difference from before when you had to explain what the sport was. The opportunities for shinty in the islands are massive and we just hope that we can continue to exploit them.” The match between Boleskine and Lewis Camanachd will throw up at 1pm and the referee is Innes Wood. |