Another shinty win for Newtonmore
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Newtonmore's shinty future is clearly in safe hands.
The village's primary school aged players are a force to be reckoned with and have just landed another title to follow-up a clean sweep in the Williamson Trophy sixes competition last Wednesday at the Eilan in their home village.
Around 180 youngsters took part in the Fraser MacPhee Primary Schools Shinty Tournament at An Aird in Fort William on Sunday.
A total of 18 teams took to the field throughout the day in what organisers and coaches agreed was the best day in the tournament’s history yet. Teams came from as far and wide as Aberdour, Kyles, Strachur, Oban, Glasgow, Beauly, Ardnamurchan, Kingussie and Newtonmore as well as from across Lochaber.
Kind weather prevailed with not a drop of rain and glimpses of sunshine.
All the players showed fantastic ability both during the matches and in the skills competitions.
Forty-six group matches were played.
Two thrilling semi-final matches were closely contested in the P7 category, with Oban edging out Newtonmore and Inverlochy getting the better of Aberdour.
The P5 & under category final then took place which displayed a fantastic combination of competitiveness, determination and skill with Newtonmore winning the match 2-0 against Beauly.
The P7 & under category matched the excitement of the previous final and the score was 2-2 upon the final whistle.
Extra time ensued and Inverlochy scored twice to round off a terrific day of shinty.
Throughout the day the youngsters all took to the skills corner to battle for top spot in the skills and shooting competitions.
The top scorers and award winners on the day were James Muir (Oban), Angus MacKinnon (Inverlochy), Hector MacLennan (Beauly) and Sean McKenzie (Beauly).
A competition spokeswoman said: "A huge thank you must be given to the coaches and parents of all the players, as well as the Camanachd Association, for donating prizes such which included an international strip and a Hurley sports jumper amongst other things for the raffle.
"Thanks also to all the volunteers who make the tournament happen every year. More than £750 was raised between the snack bar and raffle ticket sales, which will be donated to the National First Disability Shinty Festival."
The winners in each category were as follows:
P7 & unders winners – Inverlochy; P7 & unders runner-up – Oban; P7 player of the tournament - Ben Corner, Inverlochy; P7 skills competition winner - James Muir, Oban; P7 shooting competition winner - Angus MacKinnon, Inverlochy
P5 & unders winners – Newtonmore; P5 & unders runner-up – Beauly; P5 player of the tournament - Joe Coyle, Newtonmore; P5 skills competition winner - Hector MacLennan, Beauly; P5 shooting competition winner - Sean McKenzie, Beauly.
