SCOTS Camanachd is the only shinty team in the British Armed Forces.

History

It was established in 1994 by Fraser MacKenzie and the club originally played under the name of the

Queen's Own Highlanders The Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons), officially abbreviated "QO HLDRS," was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. It was in existence from 1961 to 1994. History 1961–1970 The regiment was f ...

. They continued as the Highlanders Shinty Club representing

the Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons) The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (4 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. Prior to 28 March 2006, the Highlanders was an infantry regiment in its own right; The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordon ...

regiment which in 2006 was amalgamated into the

Royal Regiment of Scotland The Royal Regiment of Scotland is the senior and only Scottish line infantry regiment of the British Army Infantry. It consists of three regular (formerly five) and two reserve battalions, plus an incremental company, each formerly an indiv ...

as the 4th Battalion is an infantry battalion of the British Army. The club narrowly lost out in 2003 in South Division 2 to

Glasgow University Shinty Club Glasgow University Shinty Club is a shinty club from Glasgow, Scotland. Although formally a University Shinty team, representing the University of Glasgow, it has a long history of competition in national competition. History Founded in 1901 ...

. Due to the 4th Battalion's regular placements abroad, the team at present only plays in cup matches and friendlies. In 2006, the club played the first competitive Shinty game outside Scotland for 80 years, losing to

London Camanachd London Camanachd is a shinty club in England. They have historically been attached to the South District. They went into abeyance in 1992 but were reconstituted in 2005. They played the first officially recognised Shinty match outside Scotlan ...

1-0 in the Bullough Cup, although they won the tie 9-1 on aggregate. They then progressed to the final where they defeated Lochside Rovers 3-1 to win their first ever national trophy of the competition on 23 September 2006, two months after returning from

Basra Basra ( ar, ٱلْبَصْرَة, al-Baṣrah) is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. It had an estimated population of 1.4 million in 2018. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is han ...

. The club did not enter competition in 2007 or 2008 due to operational reasons and re-emerged under the name, the SCOTS Shinty Club in 2009. The SCOTS is an abbreviation of the

. The club re-entered competition in 2009 under its new name and competed in the Sutherland and Bullough Cups once again. The team lost 2-1 to Kinlochshiel in the Sutherland Cup in 2009. The club was hit by tragedy when player Scott Bain died in a tragic accident whilst on leave on 20 July 2009. The club undertook a tour of the

Hebrides The Hebrides (; gd, Innse Gall, ; non, Suðreyjar, "southern isles") are an archipelago off the west coast of the Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner and Outer Hebr ...

in 2009. In January 2010, they started marketing themselves to servicemen throughout the British Armed Forces and to veterans. Whilst the club draws many of its players from Shinty playing parts of the Highlands, in particular the 4th Battalion (The Highlanders) but also the 5th Battalion ( Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders), the club also look to encourage the sport throughout the British armed forces. With an increasingly wide range of armed forces personnel a rebranding exercise was undertaken and the club renamed SCOTS Camanachd for 2012. Thanks to a deal struck between the Camanachd Association and British Forces Broadcasting Service, the players of the SCOTS had the opportunity to watch the Camanachd Cup Final broadcast live across the World on their bases. The Scots played the

Irish Defence Force The Defence Forces ( ga, Fórsaí Cosanta, officially styled ) derives its origins from the Irish Volunteers. Whilst the Irish for ''Defence Forces'' is , as Ó Cearúil (1999) points out, the Defence Forces are officially styled . is used in ...

Hurling team in the first ever international between the two countries. They were outclassed by a team with many inter-county players but it was a very successful occasion and may be repeated. The Scots also played in several sixes in 2012 including the St. Andrew's Sixes and the first ever London shinty festival, which they won, defeating

and Cornwall Shinty Club. The Scots celebrated the start of their 20th anniversary season with an appearance in the final of the St. Andrew's Sixes in 2014. They were defeated by Inverness-shire Camanachd. The Scots continue to enter competitions as of 2018, although they withdrew from the Bullough Cup in the second round giving a walkover to Kyles, having defeated Aberdour in the first round. They took part in the Blue Flash Challenge against Caberfeidh in a friendly match.

References

External links

Official WebsiteMOD article on Highlanders' success
{{Shinty teams Shinty teams Royal Regiment of Scotland Sport in the British Army Organisations based in East Lothian 1994 establishments in Scotland Sports clubs established in 1994 Sport in East Lothian