Scotland’s shinty team’s game against Ireland in New York next year has been postponed – but the Irish have proposed the teams meet in South America.
Planning problems have delayed construction of a new Gaelic Athletic Association venue in New York which would have housed the shinty-hurling international so the game is now pencilled in for 2015.
But during discussions at Inverness at the weekend, the Irish disclosed that they had sent the new unified shinty-hurling sticks to Argentina and suggested Scotland could play Ireland in Buenos Aires under the new experimental iomain version to popularise the game there.
The Camanachd Association is in no rush to agree to this until clearer proposals are researched.
Meanwhile, Camanachd chiefs are set to advertise the Scotland team manager’s post – without ruling out reappointing Drew MacNeil whose second two-year contract has come to an end and who is also greatly respected by the players.
Ireland carried the international trophy home with them once more yesterday, but GAA officials felt their 18-14 win at Inverness to be a close-run thing.
The Irish hierarchy said that the last two games produced some of the best shinty-hurling of recent years. But the Camanachd Association would do well to argue for the fixtures to be played earlier in the year as some Scots had not played a club match for six weeks as their season was over.
On a damp, murky afternoon at Bught Park, Beauly’s 22-year-old Conor Cormack, first capped at Croke Park the week before, thrilled the crowd with an outstanding display in midfield.
The son of Beauly stalwart Roger, has cemented his place in the Scotland side for years to come as did Shaun Nicholson, the 27-year-old Lochaber midfielder, who also had the blend of quickness and power to more than compete with the darting men in green.
Finlay MacRae, of Kinlochshiel, has been a Scotland automatic choice for five years and he was another superb performer. Kevin Bartlett’s dead ball shooting accuracy has been notable in the past couple of years but he excelled himself this time, rattling 12 of the home points over the bar. Cormack also contributed one with Newtonmore’s Glen Mackintosh hitting the other.
Scotland delighted the crowd as they built up a 11-10 at half time. But early in the second half Ireland grabbed the only goal of the game with a neat move ending with Patrick Maher, of Tipperary, flicking the ball smartly into the net.
The home side did pull level but the Irish running with the ball wore the Scots down and the visitors built a winning lead. Captain Neil McManus, of Antrim, was their leading-scorer with seven points.
Drew MacNeil said: “After hitting points from distance in the first half, Ireland changed tactics and ran at us with the ball on their stick and in the end we couldn’t cope.
“But I was very pleased with our performance. Conor Cormack is a young lad who’s virtually come from nowhere in shinty terms and now he can go back to his club and his team-mates can be spurred on to follow his example.”