AS the shinty season approaches its conclusion, the most important game of the day for the second weekend running takes place at Oban’s Mossfield Park.
The town’s less fashionable club, Oban Celtic, meet Marine Harvest South Division One league leaders Bute in what is the final fixture of the year for both sides.
If the islanders win, they lift the title and with it, if the club feel ready to accept it, the opportunity of promotion to National Division shinty.
Any slip-ups, though, opens up the possibility of the title going to Oban’s town rivals Lochside Rovers who are due to play Glenorchy away in what will also be their final fixture of the season.
For Bute manager Ted McDonald, who led a year of rebuilding after finishing bottom of the sport’s National Division at the end of a miserable 2014 season, with just one win and one draw to show for their league efforts, the resilience of his side is without question.
“We opted to drop out of the National Division last season and rebuild even though league reconstruction meant we could have kept our place,” he said.
“The long hours of travelling north and ferry timings meant it was difficult for players to commit – and they are amateurs after all.
It has proved to be the right decision.
“Shinty is picking up on the island and our youth section is moving ahead. In the senior side, we added Duncan Davidson who moved to us from Lovat and he has got
15 goals this year.
“Switching former international Iain Macdonald to half-back helps us not only defend, his long hitting up from the back is a bonus. We have started getting results and people are coming back to watch games.
“Our focus is fully on winning this league but any decision on the direction of the club afterwards is a matter for our AGM.”
McDonald’s side, even without James Craig, suspended after a recent sending off, have the edge on Celtic, having already beaten them 3-0 in a league clash earlier this season thanks to two goals from youngster Craig Mackay and a single from David Whitelaw, both of whom will be in today’s squad.
However, the manager will know that anything less than a victory risks his side losing out at the final hurdle on a prize they have worked so hard for all season.
Meanwhile, Oban Camanachd’s Aidan MacIntyre, who so memorably saved his side from relegation last weekend when his late goal clinched the win over Kingussie, misses out on his side’s trip to Tighnabruaich to face Kyles Athletic in the Marine Harvest Premier League.
Oban manager Ian Hay is also without defender Iain MacMillan and youngster Connor Howe who are both unavailable. Last weekend’s other scorer Malcolm Clark is also a doubt.
Naturally, Hay is keen for his team to keep up the momentum of their recent winning streak,but they will find it difficult going against a Kyles side who have added both Roberto and David Zavaroni to the squad which lost out last weekend to Newtonmore.
Kyles, who are playing their final game of the season, will certainly wish to put up a strong performance in front of their own spectators to bring the curtain down on a season that promised so much and ended so frustratingly with defeat in the Camanachd Cup final and second spot in the Premier League championship.
In the event of Kyles’ Tighnabruaich ground being unplayable, the Camanachd Association have arranged for the fixture to be switched at short notice to Glasgow
Mid Argyll’s pitch at Yoker.
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