How shinty's underdogs hope to bite back

Cowal neighbours Kyles Athletic and Strachur clash in the first open Camanachd Cup final in 1983

As shinty prepares for its first full season since the beginning of the pandemic, an old name is set to make a return under a new guise. BBC Naidheachdan's Donald Pollock recalls the highs and lows of Strachur's history - and its future as Strachur-Dunoon.

In 1983 the distinctive tones of the late BBC Scotland sports commentator David Francey crackled over the airwaves from Fort William as underdogs Strachur threatened to cause an upset in an all-Argyll Camanachd Cup final.

"Can we see before our very eyes here at Claggan Park shinty history in the making?" enthused Francey, as Strachur took a 2-1 lead against their more celebrated Cowal peninsula neighbours - Kyles Athletic.

Alas for Strachur there was no fairy tale. Two goals in the final three minutes would instead send the trophy to Tighnabruaich once more, though Strachur teenager Ewan Paterson did have the consolation of being named the final's man of the match.

Strachur would never again get so close to shinty's greatest prize. Francey's catchphrase "Oh dear, oh dear" was rarely so apt.

An aerial battle between Kyles and Strachur at Claggan Park, Fort William, in 1983

"It still hurts," says Strachur chairman Colin Cameron, who was 15 in 1983 and played in the club's semi-final win over Newtonmore that year.

But there is lasting pride to go with the lingering pain - nobody beyond the shores of Loch Fyne had expected to see Strachur in the first open Camanachd Cup final.

"It wasn't just an all south final which many folk didn't expect, it was an all Argyll final, and beyond that it was an all Cowal final. I think that's something that's unlikely to be repeated," says Colin.

Strachur teenager Ewan Paterson was the final's man of the match

While they might have lost in 1983, Strachur can point to Glasgow Celtic Society Cup triumphs in 1982 and 1985, high points in the history of a club which goes all the way back to 1879.

But tradition and pride alone cannot sustain communities. The village of Strachur is almost a microcosm for the wider region in the challenges that it faces.

Ongoing issues with landslides on the A83 at the Rest and Be Thankful provide a recurring infrastructure problem, with Cowal not entirely safe from the growing ferry crisis on Scotland's west coast either.

More fundamentally, a lack of affordable housing has made it increasingly difficult for local youngsters to stay in the area.

The history of organised shinty in Strachur goes back to 1879. This team represented the village in 1908

Colin says: "Property prices over the past 20 or 30 years have been ridiculous and it's priced most local folk out of the market.

"Anybody who wanted to stay on their home patch wasn't necessarily able to and any affordable housing that came up, it's scarce and it's debatable if it's affordable too.

"It's accelerated changes that might have happened anyway but what we're left with is a big population of retired folk and holiday homes.

"You can't blame any of the folk who were either selling and buying properties but it does have knock on effects on communities".

From the glory days of the 80's Strachur found themselves struggling to field a team. The new pitch at Strachurmore which the community had fought tirelessly for opened in 2012.

Soon there was no team to play on it.

Veteran Highland journalist Roger Hutchinson has written of the ability to sustain a shinty or football club as a barometer for the relative health of a community, a test that Strachur has failed in recent times.

Strachur shinty players of the past in action on the old pitch at Strachur House

But when men's shinty begins its first full season since March 2020 this Saturday, the name of Strachur will be back on the fixture list, albeit under a new guise.

Strachur have come together with neighbours Dunoon, a much younger club but one which has also struggled to field a team.

Strachur - Dunoon will alternate fixtures between the communities and aim to provide a path to senior shinty for youngsters from both.

If the clubs can eventually de-couple and go it alone once more, all the better. For now though, Colin sees the arrangement as a pragmatic solution to bring shinty back.

He says: "We've got the tradition and not the numbers and Dunoon has the numbers but not the tradition."

There is tentative support too for the suggestion of future co-operation with Cowal and Bute Ladies Camanachd, who are back in training but who have not played any competitive shinty since the beginning of the pandemic.

Strachur have one of the finest facilities in shinty at Strachurmore but in recent years have struggled to raise a team to play on it

Almost 40 years since the Camanachd Cup heartbreak of 1983, there will be renewed pride when Strachur - Dunoon take to the field at Strachurmore this season, albeit there will be a slight delay to their return and the opening day fixture against Uddingston now postponed due to an unplayable field.

The off-field challenges remain but the move is seen as a welcome step forward and boost for both communities.

"Folk miss it," says Colin. "To me a Saturday isn't a Saturday without the shinty."

All the information about the shinty season ahead for both the men's and women's game can be found here.