Camanachd Cup

The Camanachd Association Challenge Cup, usually known as the Camanachd Cup or, less commonly, the Scottish Cup, is an annual knockout competition in shinty. First contested in 1896, it is considered the premier competition in the sport.^[1][2] Organised by the Camanachd Association, the cup is one of the trophies considered to be part of the Grand Slam in the sport.^[3]

The tournament was first played in 1896, with Kingussie Camanachd beating Glasgow Cowal 2–0 at Needlefield Park in Inverness.^[4][5]

Four teams have won the trophy three times in a row, Newtonmore, Kingussie, Kyles Athletic and Fort William.

The highest margin of victory was in 1997 when Kingussie hammered Newtonmore 12–1. The highest scoring final, and the previous largest margin of victory, was held by Newtonmore themselves, having beaten Furnace 11–3 in 1907.

Only Furnace (1923) and Newtonmore (2013) have gone through the competition without conceding a goal.

In 2006, the Cup had its first ever televised draw on BBC Scotland sports programme Spòrs, with the final also being broadcast live.

In 2019 the Camanachd Association named former Fort William and Scotland captain, Gary Innes as the competition's first ambassador.

Between the years of 1990 (when Skye defeated Newtonmore) and 2012 (When Kyles Athletic defeated Inveraray) there was not a final which did not feature either Kingussie or Fort William.^[6]

Kyles Athletic won the Cup in 1994, the match refereed by John Henderson of Caol. Captain David Taylor received the trophy from Peter Cullen of sponsor Glenmorangie Distillery Co. Cullen died on 7 December 2011 in Edinburgh.

Oban Camanachd won the trophy in 1996, The Centennial Final, under the management of Colin MacDonald. Ron Millican (Kiltarlity) refereed. BBC Radio Scotland provided live coverage with commentary by Iain Anderson. This was a repeat of the 1993 final.

The 2009 final was held at Mossfield Park, Oban between Kyles Athletic and holders Fort William on 19 September. An exciting final saw Fort William take a 3–0 lead before being pegged back to 3–3 by a Kyles comeback with 10 minutes to go. Fort William achieved a three-in-a-row streak, however, thanks to a late goal by Jim Clark and won the game 4–3. The match was shown live on BBC 2 and BBC Alba. Ronnie Campbell refereed.

The 2010 final was played at the Bught Park on 18 September 2010^[7] between holders Fort William and Kingussie, who had not won the trophy since 2006. Fort William won 3–2 with a goal in the last 15 seconds from Gary Innes. Billy Wotherspoon refereed.

The 2011 final was played at the Bught yet again as An Aird was undergoing repair work.^[8] Newtonmore won the game 4–3 with an extra time goal. Derek Cameron refereed.

The 2012 final was played on 15 September at Mossfield Park, Oban. Kyles Athletic defeated Inveraray.^[9] The match was televised on BBC Two with commentary from Gary Innes.

In 2013, Newtonmore lifted the trophy for the 30th time, without conceding a goal the whole tournament.

The 2014 Camanachd Cup Final saw Kingussie win it for the 23rd time. This win also marked 100 years since the team won 6–1 against Kyles at Possil Park in Glasgow. Four-months after this final Britain declared war on Germany. By the end of 1918, six players of the winning team were dead; two had been shot and wounded and one had been badly gassed. To commemorate this, the 2014 winning team wore specially-made shirts which included a remembrance poppy and the names of the 1914 players, including those who gave their lives.

In the 2015 final Lovat's goalkeeper Stuart MacDonald was the winner of the Albert Smith Medal as his side went on to win 2–1.

The 2016 final saw Oban return to the show-piece occasion but in an uneventful game, Newtonmore reclaimed the trophy for their 31st win.

The 2017 final saw both 2015 and 2016 Camanachd Cup champions face-off with Newtonmore retaining the title against a spirited Lovat side.

In 2021 Kinlochshiel defeated Lovat 3–1 in the Final held at Mossfield Park in Oban. A hat-trick from captain Keith MacRae ensured the Camanachd Cup would reside in Wester Ross for the first time in its 125-year history.

In 2022, the final was held in Kingussie (having been scheduled for play there in 2020, but being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic). It was a win for Kingussie the home-side, winning 3–1 against Lovat.

At present the tournament is competed for by teams playing in the Premier Division, National Division, and the first teams on some sides playing in North Division One and South Division One. Premiership teams join the competition at the second round stage. There was formerly a qualifying competition.

Traditionally, the trophy was competed for on a north–south basis with the best team from the northern area facing the best team from the south in the final. An open draw was introduced in 1983 which resulted in the first, and until 2012, only all-south final, between Kyles Athletic and Inveraray. The following year saw the first all-north final with two of the most successful clubs in the sport, Kingussie and Newtonmore, meeting in the final for the first time.^[1][10]

The final is usually played on a rotation system, with An Aird in Fort William, Bught Park in Inverness, and Mossfield Park in Oban regularly selected as venues. In recent years the final has also been held at The Dell in Kingussie, at Dunoon Stadium, and at Old Anniesland in Glasgow.^[1][11][12] The 2022 final was played at The Dell for the first time since 1999.^[13]

The 2011 final was the first ever to go to extra time; no final has ever required penalties.

The player of the match has been awarded the Albert Smith Medal since 1972.^[1]

The cup was funded by public donation in 1896 and was cast in silver by Edinburgh jewellers Hamilton & Inches.^[14][15] The player on the lid was modelled after Kingussie's Jock Dallas.^[1][16] The trophy was not completed in time for the inaugural final in April 1896, and was not presented to the winning Kingussie side until November.^[4]

In 2006, the trophy made its way to New York City for the Tartan Day celebrations, the first time it had left Scotland.

Celebrations of victorious teams have sometimes left the trophy in a fragile state, and after Skye Camanachd's 1990 win it was left unattended in a Portree square before being recovered by the local police.^[14] By 2013 the Camanachd Association had become concerned for the fragility of the cup and considered replacing it with a replica. They decided against the plan,^[17] but by 2023 has become convinced that a new trophy was required and a replica was ordered.^[18] The new trophy was made by Hamilton & Inches, the makers of the original cup. It came into service in 2024, with the original being put on display at Inverness Castle.^{[14][15][19][20]}

Glenmorangie and SSE plc have both sponsored the Camanachd Cup. In 2017 the cup was first sponsored by Tulloch Homes.

The final has been broadcast on BBC Scotland since 1958, with the 1976 final shown by the BBC's United Kingdom-wide Grandstand programme.^[1] BBC Alba has also broadcast the match in with Scottish Gaelic commentary, and in recent years highlights have been made available on BBC iPlayer with live online coverage of the final.^[21][22]

Radio commentary on the final has been broadcast by BBC Radio Scotland since 1937. BBC Radio nan Gàidheal provides commentary in gaelic.^[23]

Apart from during the two world wars and the COVID-19 pandemic,^[24] the final has been played each year since 1896. The details of finals are shown in the list below.^[1][25]

• David Borthwick, the most decorated player in the history of the shinty, having won 15 Camanachd Cup winner's medals

• Latest fixtures