The Ferguson Transport and Shipping National finals brought together over 150 of the best young players from across Scotland all vying for the coveted National P5 and P7 titles.
The P7 & Under tournament was played at the Nevis centre, Fort William. The standard of play throughout the day was of the highest order with all the 11 teams giving a great account of themselves.
Section A saw the talented Caol Primary School driven on by Harry Stewart top the group on 8 points, conceding one goal to Alvie in the process. The classy Aberdour team clinched second spot on 6 points. Their group game against Alive Primary will go down as game of the day with Aberdour edging a 9-goal thriller.
Section B was equally competitive, with the classy Glenurquhart Primary School topping the group on maximum points from the skilful and determined Inverness Gaelic School.
The first semi-final saw Caol Primary School take on Inverness Gaelic School, with Caol Primary proving too strong in the end winning 6.0 to book their place in the final.
The second semi-final saw Section B winners Glenurquhart Primary take on Aberdour Primary in what was a classic encounter. Aberdour raced to a two lead only for Glenurquhart to respond with two quick goals before half-time. With play raging from end-to-end Aberdour got their noses in front again only for Glenurquhart to respond with two late goals to prevail 4.3 to reach the final.
The final between group winners Caol and Glenurquhart Primary Schools started at a frantic pace with play raging from end to end, with the standard of play of the highest order. Caol however, driven on by the outstanding Harry Stewart, raced to a three-goal half-time lead. The second half saw another two goals from Caol who run out deserved winners 5.0. winners, to win the P7 & Under National First Shinty Championships 2024. Caol Primary scored an impressive 40 goals throughout the tournament, conceding just 1 goal, with is a great achievement.
Michael Oliver of tournament sponsors Ferguson Transport and Shipping presented the trophy and medals to all the players.
The P5 & Under competition took place at Lochaber High School and the large crowd, filled with travelling parents and family members was entertained with an afternoon of fantastic shinty.
Hilton Primary and Rockfield Primary qualified from the competitive Group A pooling, the game between themselves saw both schools chasing the top spot in the group with Hilton edging the group game 2-1 after some excellent play from both sets of players.
The strong Tighnabruaich school team came out firmly on top of group B scoring 20 goals across their 4 group games. The runners up were left until the last Group B game of the day between North End and Strathpeffer. Some fantastic shinty from both sets of young players saw North End Primaries edge the game 2-1 and this was enough to see them through to the Semi Finals.
The first P5/4 Semi Final was between Hilton and North End. Some skilful play was on show with all players showing their impressive shinty talent. It was Hilton however, led by the fantastic Lewis MacPherson who rocketed into the final with a 3-1 victory.
The second Semi Final was a classic back and forth between two powerful school teams. Tighnabruaich had the better of the first half and led 2-1 at the turnaround. Rockfield never let their heads drop however and pushed back bringing the score quickly back to 2-2 after the restart and continuing that momentum by scoring 2 more before the final whistle, claiming a 4-2 victory and their spot against Hilton in the final.
The Final was one for the history books, Rockfield, wanting to avenge their group stage defeat came out of the blocks flying, nailing their tactics and scoring 3 goals in quick succession. Hilton looked taken aback but Daniel Beaton managed to edge them closer scoring before the break making the score 3-1. Hilton still had it all to do in the second half but captain Lewis MacPherson who had been excellent all day then started to dominate the game with his close control and silky skills. It was Lewis himself who scored the next 2 goals bringing the game to 3-3 with one minute left to play. Hilton had the momentum and a nice passage of play by their defenders then gave the ball to MacPherson once again who drilled the ball past the Rockfield keeper to secure the victory for his team and win the P5 & Under National First Shinty Championships 2024 as well as Hilton Primary Schools first ever National Shinty Trophy.
Kevin Ferguson of tournament sponsors Ferguson Transport and Shipping presented the trophy and medals to all the players.