Oban Camanachd

Oban
Full name	Oban Camanachd
Gaelic name	Comann Camanachd an Obain
Nickname	The Camancheroes
Founded	1889
Ground	Mossfield Park, Oban
Manager	Diarmaid MacMillan, Andrew Pearson
League	Premier Division
2011	9th
Reserve Manager	David MacInnes, Tony Howlett
League	South Division One
2011	3rd
Home colours Away colours

Oban Camanachd is one of the oldest Camanachd clubs playing in the Shinty leagues of Scotland. As of 2011^[update] they were relegated from the Premier League. They have a reserve team called Lochside Rovers.

History

Established in Oban, Argyll in 1889, the club has always enjoyed competition against its great local rival, Oban Celtic.

The Club have enjoyed regular success in the regional and national leagues and cups. Possibly the best Camanachd team was the 1970-80's team with quality players such internationalists Bobby Galbraith, Dougie Macintyre, Neil MacDougal and Chukie Clark, and were widely expected to lift the Camanachd Cup but succumbed to a rampant Kyles Athletic on four occasions. Chukie Clark also has the unique distinction of being attacked and bitten by a dog during a game at Strachur. This Camanachd side failed to live up to their true potential and the club went through a lean patch until Chukie Clark restructured the second team, Lochside Rovers, producing quality players for the senior team like Nonnie MacInnes, Ally MacInnes, Andrew Inglis and Damian Laird.

Oban Camanachd won the Camanachd Cup most recently with victory over Kingussie in the 1996 final. Nonnie Macinnes was Captain on the day, but the game was most notable for the performance of Gordon MacIntyre who had made a miraculous recovery from the loss of an eye that year to score the winning goal.

The club is proactive in trying to maintain shinty as the main sport in Oban. In 2008 the club made attempts to alter the structure of youth shinty to allow their youths to compete against 'North' teams. This was turned down at the Camanachd Association AGM but in late October 2008, secretary Daniel MacIntyre made his fears known to the press, stating that "If we get Camanachd Association support, in the next three to five years we could potentially grow into a club with three senior teams. If we don’t, in the next three to five years we will be a one-team club".[1]

In 2009, Lochside Rovers won South Division One, defeating several first teams. Their reserve status meant that they cannot be promoted to the Premier Division, where Oban Camanachd firsts play. This caused confusion regarding the ramifications for promotion and relegation to and from the Premier League, Glasgow Mid-Argyll were awarded the South's place in the Premier Division.

Recent years have seen the club suffer terrible discipline problems and internal strife.[2] In particular, Liam MacIntyre was banned for the entire second half of the 2009 season.[3] He has now left the club and plays for Fort William.[4]

In 2006, Fraser Inglis, one of the club's greatest players was forced out of the club and joined Kingussie.[5] he is now involved with local rivals Taynuilt.

In 2010, the club president Nigel Evans slammed Argyll and Bute Council for their "unacceptable" increases in facility hire.[6] The club again started to hit the headlines in late 2010 as relegation to South Division One loomed, meaning a double relegation as Lochside Rovers would need to be relegated to South Division Two. Daniel Macintyre slammed the level of play in this league, painting a bleak picture for his own club.[7]

Salvation from relegation came on the last day of the 2010 season when a 2-1 win over Bute saw the island team relegated instead.[8]

Again in 2011, Oban were involved in the relegation battle and yet again the status of Lochside Rovers, despite another successful season which included the Bullough Cup, was unsure due to the implications of the first team's relegation. This was confirmed on 19th November 2011 when the club won their last game against Kilmallie but not by the required number of goals to overhaul Inveraray.[9] Oban had been ever presents in the Premier Division since its creation.[10]

External links

• Oban Camanachd Home Page
• The Oban Times, Local Newspaper with Match Reports
• Oban Camanachd
• Gordon MacIntyre Profile
• Oban rebuild