NEWTONMORE had the Macaulay Cup snatched from their clutches when Kyles grabbed two last minute goals to lift the silverware.
Substitute John Mackenzie had been on the park for less than five minutes when he took advantage of a bad clearance in Kyles Athletic's defence with just two minutes left before the interval.
He punished them by lashing home an unstoppable rocket high above legendary Kyles' keeper Kenny MacDonald's head.
It seemed that Newtonmore had finally found the way to win the Macaulay Cup.
MacDonald had already made a superb double save earlier in the half, and a couple of other good saves as Newtonmore showed real intent.
Goal scorer Mackenzie leapt high, punching the air as he raced to receive the accolade of his team-mates and the Blue and White contingent celebrated.
Newtonmore had definitely shaded the first half, and would have the breeze at their backs for the second.
The pipe band's stirring strains as the two teams took a hard earned break seemed to the large Badenoch support to presage the glories to come at the end of the game.
But reality was to return to give euphoria a sharp kick in the pants as Kyles came out for the second half fired up and ready to battle on.
The opening exchanges were even but there were to be noticeably fewer chances in front of goal for the Eilan forwards, as Kyles took more control of the midfield.
Newtonmore had a golden opportunity to seal the cup win with just ten minutes left when the ball fell at the feet of Cameron Binnie with a clear run on goal.
Only five minutes earlier he had been switched to full forward in place of Glen Mackintosh. Binnie had room to spare and only MacDonald to beat.
But just as he lined up to slide his effort home, a cruel bounce left him ruefully looking at a ball that had gone nowhere, along with the chance to go two up.
Kyles, though, for all the tireless efforts of their midfield, where Robbie MacLeod was to be named man of the match, really did not look to be mounting much of an effective threat at the sharp end either.
But team captain, Dunkie Kerr, who had made little impact on the game generally, was to prove the ace in the hole.
With just four minutes left, he rattled home a shot from a tight angle.
Newtonmore resigned themselves to another half hour of extra time - just like the week before, and promptly forgot that it's never over until the fat lady sings.
They allowed Roddy MacDonald to outpace the defence and slot a 90th minute winner into the net.
And so, Kyles proved, with their second trophy of the season, that they are at last once again a real force in shinty.
Don't miss the complete shinty round-up in this week's 'Strathy'
