Shinty

[Lamh Dhearg Alba]

It's on BBC Alba (Channel 168 on Sky) at the moment and is repeated again tonight at 1030 I think. I'm enjoying the game but the long grass isn't doing the shinty boys any favours!

[LondonCamanachd]

Good game to watch today. Interesting to see the different skill sets involved.  Its a lovely striking action the Scottish lads have but can sometimes take a while to execute.  And the control the Irish lads have without using the hand is great to watch.  Good game on a pishy day in Kildare.

In shinty players can be tackled from behind by having the travel of their swing knocked off course by an opponent's caman (known as cleeking).  The Scottish lads probably had more time for their swings in this game than they would in shinty match.

Question for the lads who know more of Shinty than I would, is the pitch the same size or would ours be bigger? I know there are only 12 players on a shinty team so would the pitch size be reduced for this or does the length they can get on the ball cancel this out?

It varies from pitch to pitch, but a shinty pitch is 70-80 x 140-170yds.

[Magicsponge]

In shinty players can be tackled from behind by having the travel of their swing knocked off course by an opponent's caman (known as cleeking).  The Scottish lads probably had more time for their swings in this game than they would in shinty match.

Isn't this just like hooking in hurling? Where a player use his stick from behind to knock the.... well I'm not gonna describe it anymore as, from your description and you image (www.flickr.com/photos/ufopilot/4891571776/ I only link it because it doesn't seem to appear on my screen) it does seem as if 'cleeking' is offaly(sorry) similar to hooking. Anyway the shinty caman seems more suited to this than a hurl as it is more curved and heavier, which I would assume would make it easier to knock an opponents strike off course.

[Antrim Coaster]

In parts of North Antrim 'hooking' is also known as 'cleeking' so its the same.

[LondonCamanachd]

In shinty players can be tackled from behind by having the travel of their swing knocked off course by an opponent's caman (known as cleeking).  The Scottish lads probably had more time for their swings in this game than they would in shinty match.

Isn't this just like hooking in hurling? Where a player use his stick from behind to knock the.... well I'm not gonna describe it anymore as, from your description and you image (www.flickr.com/photos/ufopilot/4891571776/ I only link it because it doesn't seem to appear on my screen) it does seem as if 'cleeking' is offaly(sorry) similar to hooking. Anyway the shinty caman seems more suited to this than a hurl as it is more curved and heavier, which I would assume would make it easier to knock an opponents strike off course.

@Antrim Coaster - thanks for clearing that up.

I'e played shinty against a few irish boys that had come over to Scotland to study, they preferred to use shorter camans and seemed to keep their swing very tight to their body, i found it much harder to get a cleek in on them than the Scottish players.

@Magic sponge - the other key thing is that our camans are a lot more durable!  Winning the ball in shinty is all about stick tackling, either the cleek from behind or the block from infront:-
http://www.mnetv.tv/newsroom/newsstory.aspx?id=82

Actually, there's a couple more videos along those lines if you're interested in seeing the basic skills of our game:-
http://www.mnetv.tv/newsroom/newsstory.aspx?id=538
http://www.mnetv.tv/newsroom/newsstory.aspx?id=543
http://www.mnetv.tv/newsroom/newsstory.aspx?id=88

And one about a Scottish based camogie team that switched codes because they had no-one else to play against!
http://www.mnetv.tv/newsroom/newsstory.aspx?id=147

[Magicsponge]

A few new players called up to the Ireland Panel due to injuries:

• Rory Hanniffy (Offaly) replaces Eoin Kelly (Tipperary).
• Craig Doyle (Carlow) replaces Andy O'Brien (Wicklow).
• Paul Dermody (Kildare) replaces Paddy Mullane (Laois).

Taken from the Hoganstand website

[LondonCamanachd]

btw, if there's any London based hurling fans reading this - there'll be a couple of shinty players trying to persuade the Alexandra by Clapham Common to put it on.

Throw up/in at 2pm, BBC 2 Scotland

[emmetryan]

Full live audio of the Under 21 and Senior games is now up here http://action81.com/blog/?p=5307

Cóilín Duffy on commentary in Inverness.

[Rossfan]

I see Ireland won by a point today 2-9 to 1-11 and obviously won the series this year being ahead from last week.

[emmetryan]

Yes and the Under 21s won 5-2 to 1-5.

[Lamh Dhearg Alba]

Absolute howler from Stuart McIntosh in the Scotland goal in the closing stages with an Irish effort for a point that dropped short going past him into the net. As ever you could see it was two different sports and it was a bit of a stramash at times but the atmosphere picked up near the end as Ireland got that crucial second goal and Scotland then chased a winner. Played in a very good spirit throughout.

I really think they should just go back to 1 annual match rather than playing it over 2 legs, there really is no need for it. There are crucial Premier League games to be played and they could have gone ahead today rather than devoting a second weekend to what is in the end a bit of a gimmick. If they must continue with the two game format then just make it an aggregate score - for the second year in a row the crowd were bemused by what was going on and the vast majority of the media reports this week in Ireland and Scotland didn't understand the scoring system. Even the GAA website thought it was an aggregate score that decided it.

[Man Marker]

Ireland missed some chances in the last 15 minutes

[Lar Naparka]

I watched the game today on TG4 and I must say I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was surprised that the goal structure had been altered and point scoring was allowed. This, plus the fact that the ball could be lifted and struck in the air, gave the Irish lads a considerable advantage.
I guess that's why I found myself hoping for a Scottish win as the game drew to a close.
Ah, the game brought back many happy memories for me.

[Eamonnca1]

So what is this mysterious scoring system? Is it aggregate or what?

[Lamh Dhearg Alba]

Camanachd Cup Final is live on BBC 2 Scotland tomorrow (available through SKY) from 2.30 if anybody is interested. Interesting pairing this year as great Argyll rivals Kyles Athletic and Inveraray meet at Mossfield Park in Oban. First all South final since 1983 and indeed only the second time it's ever happened. The two teams know each other very well - and are not that fond of each other - which will probably mean it's niggly at times.  They both however play the traditional open attacking south style so fingers crossed there is plenty of good shinty on show. Two real shinty legends in the goals also - Kenny MacDonald of Kyles who believe it or not is 50 and whose son Roddy will be playing up front, and Graeme 'Toad' MacPherson of Inveraray who is 40, and who is known for tearing out of his goal to win possession and start moves from the back. Kenny MacDonald apart, Kyles are a really young team and have been the coming force in shinty for the past 2 or 3 years. They have won the cup 20 times, but not since 1994. This Inveraray team on the other hand have mainly been around for a decade or so and should really have won more than just the 1 Camanachd Cup (2004). Has the makings of a great occasion - hope it comes somewhere near last Sunday's game in Croke Park for excitement and drama.