Skye Camanachd Ladies 5 Aberdour Ladies 0 | |
07 March 2016 Skye Camanachd Ladies got their WCA Marine Harvest National Division 1 campaign off to a winning start when they beat Aberdour Ladies 5-0 at the Portree High School astro pitch on Saturday 5 March 2016. Skye Camanachd Ladies Head Coach Robbie Gordon named a strong Skye squad for what is always a difficult fixture. This noon throw up was the opening fixture of the 2016 shinty season for both sides. Skye made the brighter start but it was Aberdour who had the first shot on goal. Skye showed a bit more dominance as the game went on with the home forwards linking well with their centre line. New Skye signing Rihanna Kirk made an impressive competitive debut and she proved a good match for Aberdour’s Niamh Ni Dhonaile; a regular Scotland international. Skye broke the deadlock after 5 minutes. Some good link-up play from midfielders Ilana Paterson and Rihanna Kirk opened up the visiting defence and Lorna MacRae struck a long-range effort into the back of the Aberdour net to make it 1-0. Skye kept the pressure on the Aberdour defence with some good work from forwards Jenna Beaton and young Abby MacLean. And it was Beaton who went on to apply some serious pressure on the Aberdour goal but Taryn Neilson was on top form and she pulled off some good saves. However Lorna MacRae unlocked the visiting defence again with a run from the centre into the heart of the defence and she fired past a stranded Taryn Neilson in the Aberdour goal to make it 2-0 with 25 minutes played. The Skye defence of Catriona Gibb, Caitlin MacLean and Christina MacDonald were in full control on the rare occasion Aberdour managed to get past the Skye centre line of Rihanna Kirk, Ilana Paterson and Emma Gordon. Skye's new goalie Sarah Ferguson was called into action near the end of the first half when some good Aberdour link-up play allowed Niamh Ni Dhonaile a shot on goal. The second half started as the first had ended with Skye dominating the play. Skye increased their lead just a couple of minutes after the restart. Ilana Paterson and Jenna Beaton combined and Beaton teed-up Abby MacLean to score. Skye were in full flow with the centre line providing plenty possession for the forwards. An on-form Taryn Neilson pulled off some top drawer saves from Beaton and MacLean to save Aberdour from falling further behind. Lorna MacRae completed her hat-trick with an unstoppable 20 yard drive which gave Neilson no chance and put Skye 4-0 up. Another good passing move which started in midfield resulted in a fine Jenna Beaton shot which was saved by the Aberdour keeper but the rebound fell to Abby MacLean who slotted home from an acute angle to put Skye 5-0 in front. Skye Head Coach Robbie Gordon made changes with new signing Catriona Kirk, Kirsty Dibble and Holly MacLean replacing Emma Gordon, Abby MacLean and Jenna Beaton. Skye continued to push for more goals but the Taryn Neilson ensured there was no further scoring with some very impressive saves. Skye Head Coach Robbie Gordon, “I was very impressed with the performance of the Skye Ladies, especially as this was the first game of the season. We have some work to do but we are looking good and I think we will be a hard team to beat this season. The hard work the ladies are putting in at training is starting to pay off and we are heading in the right direction. It was also good to see a good number of supporters at the game which is always a good help!” Skye Camanachd Ladies from: Sarah Jane Ferguson; Catrina Gibb, Caitlin MacLean, Christina MacDonald; Rihanna Kirk, Ilana Paterson and Emma Gordon; Lorna MacRae, Jenna Beaton, Abby MacLean; subs Catriona Kirk, Kirsty Dibble, Holly MacLean Match Referee – Calum Girvan The match balls were sponsored by Nor-Dan |