The Macaulay Association South World Cup 15th of September 2024.  

On the 15th September 2024, Mossfield Stadium in Oban was host to the ‘Macaulay Association Shinty World Cup’ South.

As ever this competition was for primary school kids in the South of Scotland, there were 2 entry categories;

Primary 6/7 section

Primary 5 & Under section

There were 18 teams there on the day and 160 young people taking part. 3 pitches were set up and were manned by excellent volunteers and referees.

For the P6/7 section there were 2 league groups with the top 2 teams in each group progressing to the semi-final stage. In the P5 & Under section the top two from the round robin went straight to a final.

P6/7 Section

In the P6/7 section 4 teams came out on top. In section 1 Kyle’s Athletic topped the group with 6 points and Glasgow Gaels came a very close second with 5 points. In section 2 Inveraray came out on top again with 7 points, with Rockfield Whites finishing second with an impressive 6 points in the group stages.

This set up our two semi-finals for the P6/7 section, Kyles Athletic V Rockfield Whites & Inveraray v Glasgow Gaels. Kyles v Rockfield was first up with Rockfield taking early control. A quick fire two goals in the first half were unanswered by Kyles as the half time whistle went. Kyles came out in the second half on the front foot winning second balls and driving the ball up the park. They got their reward with 4 minutes to go with a deflected effort flew into Rockfield’s net making the score 2-1. Rockfield never let this affect them, replying almost instantly to put the game to bed scoring their 3rd goal and ending the game Kyles 1 Rockfield 3.

Inveraray v Glasgow Gaels was up next to see who would join Rockfield whites in the final. The Gaels looked threatening from the get-go, with chance after chance narrowly missing the Inveraray goal. They finally got their breakthrough midway through the first half with a well worked goal from midfield giving them the advantage in this semi-final. Inveraray did well to stay within distance, defending with their bodies on the line. Then somewhat against the run of play they equalised just on the stroke of half time to put them right back into the game.

The second half started and similarly to the first the Gaels were on the front foot from the start. They were taking the game to Inveraray and within the space of a minute they were back in control with two quick fire goals, making the game 3-1. Inveraray tried their best to get back into the game but with only seconds to go the Gaels put the game to bed with a long-range effort beating the Inveraray keeper and putting them into the final with Rockfield.

The final saw both teams starting at a fast pace. Rockfield though begun to win the midfield battle which allowed them to create chances at will. Gaels were defending well until a well worked Rockfield goal saw the Oban side take the lead midway through the first half. Gaels fought back and began to create some chances of their own, and just as the first half was coming to an end captain Fin Anderson stepped up and rifled a shot past the Rockfield keeper to tie the game, 1-1 at the break.

The second half was wide open with both teams pushing for a goal. Rockfield started to assert their dominance and two goals within a minute put them in the driving seat. As Gaels pushed for a way back into the game, they were leaving space in behind, space that Rockfield exploited as they grabbed their 4th of the game to finish Gaels off and to clinch the cup. A great final to watch.

P5 & Under Section

After the round robin group stage two teams were at the top. Aberdour Blacks winning all their games in commanding fashion & Rockfield just a few points behind clinching 2nd place.

The final was set with both teams looking to be crowned this year’s winners. The game didn’t take long to spring into action with tackles flying in and great shinty being played, both teams determined not to lose. Nothing was separating the teams, that was until Aberdour hit Rockfield with a ball over the top, the Aberdour forward slotting the ball past the Rockfield keeper giving the Silversands outfit a lead coming into the half time break.

After a halftime team talk Rockfield flew out of the gates in the second. They began to pepper the Aberdour goal looking for an equaliser, with the Dour defence holding strong there looked to be no way through. Eventually though, the Rockfield forwards proved too hot to handle working the ball well, cutting it back and firing a bullet from the penalty spot past the Dour goalkeeper. Game on 1-1.

The game look destined for extra time, until Aberdour Captain Murdo MacColl received the ball with seconds to go and swivelled and hit a low shot into the middle of the goals to clinch the win for Aberdour crowing them 2024 P5 & Under South World Cup winners!

President of the Macaulay Association & Camanachd Association Director Roddy McCuish was in attendance for the presentation.  All finalists received a medal from Roddy and winning Captains Murdo MacColl (Aberdour Black) & Callan Cakebread (Rockfield) received the P5 @ Under and the P6/7 South World Cup trophies to end what was a fantastic day for South Shinty!

A massive thank you to The Macaulay Association for sponsoring the event, to the team at Mossfield Stadium for the amazing facilities and to the young volunteers helping on the day!