Ardnamurchan Camanachd is a

shinty Shinty ( gd, camanachd, iomain) is a team game played with sticks and a ball. Shinty is now played mainly in the Scottish Highlands and amongst Highland migrants to the big cities of Scotland, but it was formerly more widespread in Scotland, an ...

club based in

Strontian Strontian (; gd, Sròn an t-Sìthein) is the main village in Sunart, an area in western Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, on the A861 road. Prior to 1975 it was part of Argyllshire. It lies on the north shore of Loch Sunart, close to the head of the ...

Ardnamurchan Ardnamurchan (, gd, Àird nam Murchan: headland of the great seas) is a peninsula in the ward management area of Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, noted for being very unspoiled and undisturbed. Its remoteness is accentuated by the main access ...

. The club covers a wide but sparsely populated area taking in Strontian,

Ardgour Ardgour () (, meaning ''Height of the goats'') is an area of the Scottish Highlands on the western shore of Loch Linnhe. It lies north of the district of Morvern and east of the district of Sunart. Administratively it is now part of the ward ...

Morvern Morvern, historically also spelt Morven, is a peninsula and traditional district in the Highlands, on the west coast of Scotland. It lies south of the districts of Ardgour and Sunart, and is bounded on the north by Loch Sunart and Glen Tarbert, ...

Acharacle Acharacle (, gd, text=Àth Tharracail) is a village in Ardnamurchan, Lochaber, within the county of Argyll. It is in the Highland Council area of Scotland. The place name is rendered ''Àth Tharracail'' in Scottish Gaelic, and means "Tarracal's ...

and

Moidart Moidart ( ; ) is part of the remote and isolated area of Scotland, west of Fort William, known as the Rough Bounds. Moidart itself is almost surrounded by bodies of water. Loch Shiel cuts off the eastern boundary of the district (along a south ...

: all in

Lochaber Lochaber ( ; gd, Loch Abar) is a name applied to a part of the Scottish Highlands. Historically, it was a provincial lordship consisting of the parishes of Kilmallie and Kilmonivaig, as they were before being reduced in extent by the creation ...

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. It was established in 2005. It competed in

Marine Harvest Mowi ASA, formerly known as Marine Harvest ASA (until January 1, 2019), (Pan Fish prior to February 6, 2007), is a Norwegian seafood company with operations in a number of countries around the world. The company's primary interest is fish farmi ...

North Division 3 but withdrew for the 2012 season. seeking to return in 2013. However, in a radical step the club then applied to join South Division Two at a late juncture, becoming the first club ever to switch districts. The club's catchment area includes part of

, which is south of the

Ballachulish The village of Ballachulish ( or , from Scottish Gaelic ) in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, is centred on former slate quarries. The name Ballachulish (Ballecheles, 1522 – Straits town) was more correctly applied to the area now called No ...

divide. The club has not competed in the senior leagues since 2013, but maintains a youth and women's presence in the sport, as well as supporting irregular friendly games by a select team in

Glenfinnan Glenfinnan ( gd, Gleann Fhionnain ) is a hamlet in Lochaber area of the Highlands of Scotland. In 1745 the Jacobite rising began here when Prince Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie") raised his standard on the shores of Loch Shiel. S ...

History

Shinty in Ardnamurchan and surrounding areas

Historically, shinty has been played in Morvern and the Ardnamurchan area, but this was the traditional New Year's game and there is no history of clubs in the area. Latterly Morvern played an annual game against Kilmallie. The club's colours were taken from the coats of arms of two of the main ruling clans of the area: The MacIains who were a branch of Clan Donald, and the Camerons. The colours are red, gold and black.

New school 2005 and early success

Ardnamurchan High School Ardnamurchan (, gd, Àird nam Murchan: headland of the great seas) is a peninsula in the ward management area of Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, noted for being very unspoiled and undisturbed. Its remoteness is accentuated by the main access ...

was built with shinty in mind, having a good shinty pitch. A team was started in October 2005. The Ardnamurchan junior team was affiliated to

Kilmallie Kilmallie ( gd, Cill Mhàilidh) is a civil parish in Lochaber, in the west highlands of Scotland. It is centered on the village of Caol, near Fort William and extends to Banavie and Corpach. It gives its name to the local shinty club, Kilmallie Sh ...

. Soon old shinty hands in the area started their own training, and it was decided to form a senior team and enter North Division 3 for the 2006 season. With limited experience and low numbers, the team struggled throughout the season. Success came early for the U14s when the high school team reached the final of the MacPherson Cup. This team then went on to win the North of Scotland League Shield, beating Inverness in the final — despite the club being new to shinty. In 2007 Ardnamurchan amalgamated their small primary schools to form one team at this level. The senior team was strengthened by more experienced players joining their ranks and new home grown talent emerging. The club hosted the 2007

Mod Cup The Mod Cup (Scottish Gaelic Cupa a' Mhòid), also known as the Aviemore Cup'is a trophy in the sport of shinty first competed for in 1969, traditionally played for by the two teams who are based closest to the host venue of the Royal National Mo ...

on 13 September 2007 at their ground. Stuart Carmichael stepped down as manager at the end of 2008. The club proactively sought a new manager but the club is at present managerless. Shaun Olsen took on the role of player/manager and continued with this into the 2010 season.

Team raising difficulties, move South, league withdrawal 2011-

In 2011, but also in previous years, Ardnamurchan often struggled to put together a team as many young players emigrated to Glasgow as well as the long trips to places such as

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

and

Ullapool Ullapool (; gd, Ulapul ) is a village and port located in Northern Scotland. Ullapool has a population of around 1,500 inhabitants. It is located around northwest of Inverness in Ross and Cromarty, Scottish Highlands. Despite its modest size, ...

. These team-raising difficulties resulted in the club taking a step back from senior level in 2012, with the intention of reapplying to North Division Three in 2013. However, the club then decided to apply to join South Division Two in January 2012. The club was a South club for 2012. The club competed reasonably well in South Two but they did not compete in 2013 due to no manager. Again in 2014 Ardnamurchan did not compete at senior level, with many of their younger players joining the ranks of the Ballachulish 2nd team.

Ladies Team

As of 2013, the only Ardnamurchan team competing at senior level was the Ladies branch of the club. This team, like the men's side, grew out of the efforts in Ardnamurchan High School. The Ardnalassies have developed as a team, having originally started in school competitions and then competing in the North, then National league setups.

Honours

''School Competitions'' U14 - MacPherson Cup, runners up (2006). U14 - MacPherson Cup, third place (2007). U13 - MacBean Cup, runners up (2007). U14 - MacRae & Dick 6s, Winners (2012) U16 - Donella Crawford Cup, runners up (2011/2012) (''girls competition'') U16 - Wade Cup, runners up (2013) (''Ardnamurchan High/Kinlochleven High'') ''Camanachd Association Competitions'' U14 - North Division two champions (2006). U14 - Feill Chaluim Cille (shinty/hurling) third place (2007). U14 - North Division Three champions (2008) U17 - WJ Cameron Cup (Ardnamurchan/Ballchulish team) (2013)

References

External links

Coverage of 2007 Mod CupArdnmurchan Camanachd Case Study
{{Shinty teams Sports clubs and teams established in 2005 Ardnamurchan Shinty teams Sport in Highland (council area) 2005 establishments in Scotland