It was a fight to the finish for these Badenoch giants of shinty and the fact that Newtonmore pushed them so hard, means that it has to be one of Kingussie's best title successes in a 23 year period where they have won the title each season except for one..

Kingussie and Newtonmore each only suffered one league defeat all season. The Kings went down 4-3 to Kyles Athletic, who would also knock them out of the Camanachd Cup, while Newtonmore lost to Kingussie at the Dell in a crunch league meeting near the end of the season. Both sides drew 4 of their 18 matches..

The title race started on March 7, and both sides secured maximum points. Champions Kingussie negotiated a tricky opener when they beat Lochaber 6-2 on a heavy, wet Spean Bridge surface, while.

Newtonmore had a comprehensive 5-0 win at the Eilan over Premier Division new boys, Glenurquhart..

Newtonmore's second game of the season was to be against Glenorchy but was postponed as Dalmally was unplayable. However, Kingussie failed to take advantage as they went down to a last gasp 4-3 defeat to Kyles Athletic at the Dell. Any thoughts that Kingussie might run away with the title were quickly dispersed when they turned in a below standard performance..

The first Badenoch derby of the season took place on March 21, when Newtonmore and Kingussie met at the Eilan. The match finished 1-1 although the home side had the better chances, so the teams were still all square in the table but with 'More having a game in hand..

Neither side was in league action again until April 11. Kyles Athletic showed that they were not fazed by a trip to Badenoch when they followed up their win over Kingussie with a point from the Eilan in a 2-2 draw thanks to a Tom Whyte strike in the last minute of the game..

Kingussie traveled to Blairbeg and returned with both points following a 3-1 win over Glenurquhart..

This meant that Kingussie led Newtonmore by a single point but the latter still had a game in hand.

The sides were again in action on April 18 and both dropped a point. Newtonmore drew 1-1 against Oban Camanachd at Mossfield while Kingussie drew 2-2 with Fort William at the Dell in the match of the day..

Kingussie were not fixtured for a match on May 2, but Newtonmore were unable to take advantage as their trip to Bute fell foul of an unplayable pitch.

Kings were back in action on May 16 when they beat Inveraray 4-2 at Winterton. This win gave Kingussie a three point lead over their rivals, who now had two games in hand..

Newtonmore played one of their games in hand on June 6, beating Glenorchy 5-0 at Dalmally..

Kingussie returned to league action on June 27 and enjoyed a comprehensive 11-0 win over Lochaber at the Dell, restoring their three point advantage but they had played two games more than the men from the Eilan.

Again Newtonmore fulfilled one of their games in hand on July 4 when they had a hard fought 4-3 victory at Bute, reducing Kingussie's lead to a point with a game more played.

Kingussie extended their advantage on July 11, when they did the double over Glenurquhart with a 5-1 win at the Dell..

Newtonmore remained the league's only unbeaten side, however, they dropped their second league point of the season to Kyles Athletic when the sides drew 3-3 at Tighnabruaich. .

Both sides were on home turf on July 18, and both won. Kingussie defeating Oban Camanachd 3-0 at the Dell thanks to a Ronald Ross hat-trick, and Newtonmore demolished Glenorchy 9-1 at the Eilan..

Newtonmore played their game in hand on July 25, overcoming Fort William 4-1 at the Eilan..

The teams were now all square with 14 points each after nine games - the half-way point in the championship race. It could scarcely have been closer as they were only separated by three goals. Kingussie scored 38 goals while conceding 13 to give a goal difference of +25. Newtonmore scored 34, conceding 12 to give a goal difference of +22.

On August 1, Kingussie beat a stuffy Glenorchy side 3-1 at Dalmally, which meant a familiar theme was developing - Kingussie led by two points but Newtonmore had a game in hand..

Newtonmore returned to action a week later, beating Glenurquhart 5-1 at Blairbeg. This win not only left the squads all square on points but also reduced Kingussie's goal difference advantage to a single goal..

Newtonmore took a points lead over Kingussie for the first time in the season on August 22 when they beat Fort William 3-0 at An Aird, and, on August 29, had a 5-1 win over Lochaber at the Eilan. Newtonmore extended their lead to four points, but Kingussie held two games in hand.

Kingussie returned to league action on September 5 but slipped up following a 4-4 draw with Fort William..

Newtonmore were in action three miles down the road where they beat Bute 2-0. 'More now led by five points with Kings having two games in hand.

Both sides were again in action at home on September 12. Newtonmore continued their good run with a 4-0 win over Oban Camanachd at the Eilan while Kingussie gave Glenorchy a 13-0 thumping at the Dell. The league position remained the same.

It was home fixtures for the sides for the third week in a row on September 26, and they were again victorious. Newtonmore had an impressive 8-0 win over Inveraray and Kingussie defeated Bute 4-1 at the Dell.

Newtonmore continued to lead by five points but Kingussie had two crucial games in hand.

Kings played one of their games in hand on October 10 when they beat Inveraray 8-4 in their fourth consecutive match at the Dell. This reduced the gap to three points, and Kingussie were set to play their game in hand the following weekend.

Kingussie travelled to Bute on October 17 to play their second game in hand and secured a priceless two points following a narrow 2-1 win. This reduced Newtonmore's advantage to a single point with each having played 15 matches. There were just three games to go!

Kingussie were in action again on October 24, and a 1-1 scoreline meant sharing the points. The teams were now level on 26 points, but Newtonmore held a game in ha nd.

One of the most anticipated Badenoch derbies in years took place on November 7. A Newtonmore win would see them only needing only a point from their two remaining games. Even a point would still leave them in the driving seat. However, they had not played for six weeks while their neighbours had been in action the three previous Saturdays..

Kingussie simply had to win, but Danny MacRae opened the scoring to the delight of the Newtonmore end of the ground. Ronnie Ross, however, had other ideas and cracked in a hat trick to make it 3-1. Kingussie now held a two point advantage but Newtonmore had a game in hand.

Newtonmore played their game in hand on November 14 against Lochaber at Spean Bridge, where a single strike from Danny MacRae was the difference between the two teams..

With one match for each club remaining after this weekend, goal difference was clearly going to make a huge difference. Kingussie had scored 77 goals and conceded 27, giving them a goal difference of +50 with one match remaining. Newtonmore scored 62 goals and conceded 17, giving them a goal difference of +45 with two matches remaining..

Kingussie were fixtured to play their last match of the season against Kyles Athletic, but a bereavement in Tighnabruaich led to Kyles asking for the match to be postponed. The sides were once again level on points - 28 each - with Kingussie holding a 4 goal advantage.

All focus then switched to November 21. Kingussie were to travel to Tighnabruaich to play Kyles Athletic and Newtonmore were on the road to play Inveraray at the Winterton. The clash between Kyles Athletic and Kingussie was switched to Dunoon after the pitch at Tighnabruaich was deemed unplayable. The Dunoon pitch also proved unavailable so the Camanachd Association switched the venue to Beauly's Braeview Park, but Kyles refused to travel north and the Camanachd Association docked them two points and rescheduled the fixture for December 5..

The match between Inveraray and Newtonmore was also subject to a venue changes and eventually took place at Lovat's Balgate pitch. This exciting tussle was a throw back to the days of winter shinty. The match was played on a cold, crisp afternoon with a blast of heavy rain thrown in during the last 15 minutes and finished with 'More coming out 5-3 winners..

Newtonmore went two points clear at the top, but Kingussie had a two goal advantage with a game in hand. The permutations were now quite simple. If Kingussie beat Kyles Athletic in their final match, they would be champions once again. Any other result would take the title and the mother of all parties to the Eilan..

The match between Kyles Athletic and Kingussie was originally scheduled for Tighnabruaich on November 21, however, the pitch was deemed unplayable. Dunoon was investigated as an alternative venue but it had been booked by the local football club so the match went ahead at Oban Camanachd's Mossfield Park.

Kingussie needed a win to ensure first team manager Jimmy Gow's tenure ended on a high. Any other outcome would have left Newtonmore as champions. Kingussie had not played since they beat Newtonmore on October 7, and they were without the suspended Ally MacLeod in defence.

Kyles came into the game on the back of a 5-2 win over Bute. If there were any Kingussie nerves then they were settled after just 12 minutes when Ronald Ross found the back of the net to give his side the lead. Kyles had no real answer to Ross and the Kingussie talisman took advantage of the wide open spaces on the Mossfield pitch to rack up four first half goals to give the King's an unassailable 4-0 interval lead.

He scored his second on 33 minutes and completed his hat-trick two minutes later. Ross notched his fourth on the stroke of half time to ensure Kingussie had one hand firmly on the championship. The goals dried up in the second period with Kingussie knowing that the game was won and Kyles showing nothing like the form which saw them beat the Badenoch men on two occasions earlier in the season. Ryan Borthwick made it 5-0 on 78 minutes and although David Martin's goal in the last minute was a quality strike, it was little more than a consolation for Kyles..

A delighted Kingussie celebrated their success and avoided ending the season trophy-less. It's to Newtonmore's credit that they ran them so close and losing three out of four points in the head to head battles between the team's made 'More's task all the more difficult.

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