Shinty Grounds (A-B)

Aberdeen University Camanachd

Balgownie, Bridge of Don

Aberdour Shinty Club
Silver Sands, Aberdour

Aberdour Shinty Club are relatively newcomers to the scene, having been formed in the Fife coastal village in 2001, the club taking it's place in the senior leagues five years later.

No trophy wins for the club (as of 2024), the closest the club have come being a Bulloch Cup Final defeat in 2011.

What a messy bunch shinty folks can be.

Both clubs this afternoon went for experience in goal.

I am not sure, but teams visiting Aberdour may change at the nearby football ground.

Ardnamurchan Camanachd
Ardnamurchan High School, Strontian

Another recent addition to the shinty senior leagues, having been founded in 2005.  The club have frequently found themselves having to drop out of the league due to player shortages.  However, Ardnamurchan Camanachd are, as of 2024, competing in the South Division 1 (tier 3).

I think this is a Hooded Crow - I frequently saw them hopping about on shinty pitches.
(Not ones in use, obviously).

Ballachulish Shinty Club

Jubilee Park, Ballachulish

Most shinty grounds in the Highland tend to be found on the outskirts of the town, probably due to the size of playing surface required.  So, it was rather jarring to fund Ballachulish Shinty Club's ground slap bang in the middle of a housing scheme.

Beauly Shinty Club
Braeview Park, Beauly

Beauly is one of a cluster of towns to the south-west of Inverness which hosts shinty - clearly this area being a hotbed of the sport.

Beauly Shinty Club trace their roots back to 1892, and are three-time winners of the Camanachd Cup (the game's national competition) - but not since 1913.

Boleskine Camanachd
Smith Park, Inverarnie

For many if us the word Boleskine is inextricable associated with that old nut-job Aleister Crowley.  I had hoped Boleskine Camanachd Club's pitch was in grounds of Crowley's old haunt Boleskine House.  But the club are actually based in the village of Inverarnie, some 25 miles away. 

Bute Shinty Club
The Meadows, Rothesay

Given the relatively large size of Rothesay, I was slightly surprised at the rather minimalist facilities available at The Meadows.  But the ground is, as the name suggests, in a meadow - so what was I expecting?  Something like Dunoon, perhaps?