Camanachd Association
Encyclopedia
The Camanachd Association (in Scottish Gaelic, Comann na Camanachd) is the World governing body
of the Scottish
sport of shinty
. The body is based in Inverness
, Highland
, and is in charge of the rules of the game. Its main competitions are the Camanachd Association Challenge Cup
and the Scottish Hydro Premier Division
.
in order to formalize a set of rules for the many shinty clubs across the British Isles.
The Camanachd Association maintained its initial structure for much of its first century but the ‘Future of Shinty' Report published in 1981 led to a compete restructuring of the way in which shinty was organised and managed. That, in turn, led to the move away from a dependence on volunteers to govern the sport, to the Association's first salaried employees being employed. http://www.shinty.com/index.php?page=history This also resulted in the other myriad associations which organised shinty coming under the Association. Other associations which still have a strong role in organising shinty are the Glasgow Celtic Society, the Macaulay Association
and the Schools Camanachd Association
.
In 2005, the Camanachd Association took the decision to change its structure again and moved to being a company limited by guarantee with no share capital. The company is overseen by a board of directors, most of whom are volunteers who are chosen by the members at the AGM.
The membership of the association consists of shinty clubs and related associations, such as the Glasgow Celtic Society. The membership appoints non-salaried office-bearers through the Annual General Meeting, which is also the only medium through which the playing rules of shinty can be altered.
The Association was dogged by severe criticism of its ability http://bounci.tv/forums/5.aspx to administer the game in 2007, with a fixture list which ran into December, partly due to a lack of rescheduling of fixtures which were delayed earlier in the year amongst the complaints.
The Association's lack of communication with the grassroots of the sport also came under fire. http://www.theherald.co.uk/sport/headlines/display.var.1873869.0.0.php
Duncan Cameron
was appointed President of the association for the second time in 2007. His presidency has been marked by controversy due to resignations and an ongoing debate about reducing the game to 9 a-side with plastic pitches.http://news.scotsman.com/shinty/Shinty-Director-quits-to-highlight.4958510.jphttp://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1071405?UserKey= http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.2501789.0.Shinty_in_crisis_as_another_director_resigns.php
In February 2008, the Association came under investigation by the Northern Constabulary
over alleged financial irregularities. http://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/5125/Shinty_organisation_inquiries_continue.html In May 2008, a man was charged in connection with these financial irregularities. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/7391931.stm A former employee of the Association was convicted of fraud linked to the association's funds in August 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/7561283.stm
In March 2009, the Association aimed to change its structure by having sub-committees for different sectors of the game,http://www.shinty.com/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=244&cntnt01returnid=15 this development was one of the factors in the spate of resignations in early 2009. http://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/8902/President_breaks_silence_on_association_in_turmoil.html
In November 2009, the Association approved the use of astroturf
for senior fixtures, however, there is presently no astroturf park in Scotland large enough to accommodate a full size shinty park.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/8387122.stm Plans are afoot to develop such a facility in Fort William.http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/2024865?UserKey=
In January 2010, they announced that Torquil MacLeod would become the third permanent Chief Executive as of April 2010.http://www.strathspey-herald.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/5027/Shinty_s_new_chief_operator.html
The presidential election of 2010 was a hotly competed affair between Donald Stewart and the popular Archie Robertson
.http://www.shinty.com/news/camanachd-association-presidential-election/ Robertson won the election resoundingly and will became President at the 2011 A.G.M..http://www.shinty.com/news/camanachd-association-president-elect/ http://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/14037/New_supremo_aims_for_united_approach.htmlhttp://www.shinty.com/news/archie-robertson-confirmed-as-camanachd-association-president/
The Association permitted the use of rolling substitutions as of the 2011 season.http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/9401475.stm The Association also decided to admit Lewis Camanachd
to the league setup on a trial basis for 2011. The Association came under pressure to admit the club due to their claim to be a national sport of Scotland.http://www.skyecamanachd.com/Default.aspx.LocID-087new2go.RefLocID-087001001.Lang-EN.htm
which plays against Ireland in Composite Rules Shinty/Hurling annually.
Sport governing body
A sport governing body is a sports organization that has a regulatory or sanctioning function. Sport governing bodies come in various forms, and have a variety of regulatory functions. Examples of this can include disciplinary action for rule infractions and deciding on rule changes in the sport...
of the Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
sport of shinty
Shinty
Shinty is a team game played with sticks and a ball. Shinty is now played mainly in the Scottish Highlands, and amongst Highland migrants to the big cities of Scotland, but it was formerly more widespread, being once competitively played on a widespread basis in England and other areas in the...
. The body is based in Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
, Highland
Highland (council area)
Highland is a council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in both Scotland and the United Kingdom as a whole. It shares borders with the council areas of Moray, Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross, and Argyll and Bute. Their councils, and those of Angus and...
, and is in charge of the rules of the game. Its main competitions are the Camanachd Association Challenge Cup
Camanachd Cup
The Camanachd Association Challenge Cup AKA the Camanachd Cup or Scottish Cup is the premier prize in the sport of shinty...
and the Scottish Hydro Premier Division
Premier Division (shinty)
The Premier Division is a league for shinty teams. It is the primary league competition in shinty and top tier of the Shinty league system. The Premier Division was formed in 1996 in order to create a Scotland-wide league set-up for the first time...
.
Structure
The Camanachd Association was founded in 1893 after a meeting in KingussieKingussie
Kingussie is a small town in the Highland region of Scotland. It is one settlement in the Highland Council ward of Badenoch and Strathspey, and is the capital of the district of Badenoch. It lies beside the A9 road, although the old route of the A9 serves as the town's main street...
in order to formalize a set of rules for the many shinty clubs across the British Isles.
The Camanachd Association maintained its initial structure for much of its first century but the ‘Future of Shinty' Report published in 1981 led to a compete restructuring of the way in which shinty was organised and managed. That, in turn, led to the move away from a dependence on volunteers to govern the sport, to the Association's first salaried employees being employed. http://www.shinty.com/index.php?page=history This also resulted in the other myriad associations which organised shinty coming under the Association. Other associations which still have a strong role in organising shinty are the Glasgow Celtic Society, the Macaulay Association
Macaulay Cup
The MacAulay Association Camanachd Cup is a trophy in the sport of shinty. It is competed for by the eight highest-placed league teams from the north and south areas at the end of the previous season. The first winner of the cup, in 1947, was Newtonmore. It will be sponsored by Artemis from the...
and the Schools Camanachd Association
Schools Camanachd Association
The Schools Camanachd Association is the governing body for the sport of shinty at school level in Scotland. It is affiliated to the Camanachd Association but is an independent body.-History:...
.
In 2005, the Camanachd Association took the decision to change its structure again and moved to being a company limited by guarantee with no share capital. The company is overseen by a board of directors, most of whom are volunteers who are chosen by the members at the AGM.
The membership of the association consists of shinty clubs and related associations, such as the Glasgow Celtic Society. The membership appoints non-salaried office-bearers through the Annual General Meeting, which is also the only medium through which the playing rules of shinty can be altered.
Recent History
In 2006 the Association appointed its first Chief Executive, Richard Tulloch. He resigned within three months. The Board of Directors appointed Gill McDonald, the first woman CEO in the sport - in April 2009 she resigned from the position mere weeks before the Association's AGM.http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.2501789.0.Shinty_in_crisis_as_another_director_resigns.phpThe Association was dogged by severe criticism of its ability http://bounci.tv/forums/5.aspx to administer the game in 2007, with a fixture list which ran into December, partly due to a lack of rescheduling of fixtures which were delayed earlier in the year amongst the complaints.
The Association's lack of communication with the grassroots of the sport also came under fire. http://www.theherald.co.uk/sport/headlines/display.var.1873869.0.0.php
Duncan Cameron
Duncan Cameron (shinty player)
Duncan Cameron is an administrator and ex-player in the sport of shinty. He is a three times past president of the sport's governing body, the Camanachd Association.-Playing career:...
was appointed President of the association for the second time in 2007. His presidency has been marked by controversy due to resignations and an ongoing debate about reducing the game to 9 a-side with plastic pitches.http://news.scotsman.com/shinty/Shinty-Director-quits-to-highlight.4958510.jphttp://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1071405?UserKey= http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.2501789.0.Shinty_in_crisis_as_another_director_resigns.php
In February 2008, the Association came under investigation by the Northern Constabulary
Northern Constabulary
The Northern Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for Northern Scotland, covering the Highland council area along with the Western Isles, the Orkney Isles and the Shetland Isles, which comprise most of the Highlands and Islands area...
over alleged financial irregularities. http://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/5125/Shinty_organisation_inquiries_continue.html In May 2008, a man was charged in connection with these financial irregularities. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/7391931.stm A former employee of the Association was convicted of fraud linked to the association's funds in August 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/7561283.stm
In March 2009, the Association aimed to change its structure by having sub-committees for different sectors of the game,http://www.shinty.com/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=244&cntnt01returnid=15 this development was one of the factors in the spate of resignations in early 2009. http://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/8902/President_breaks_silence_on_association_in_turmoil.html
In November 2009, the Association approved the use of astroturf
AstroTurf
AstroTurf is a brand of artificial turf. Although the term is a registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind of artificial turf. The original AstroTurf product was a short pile synthetic turf while the current products incorporate modern features such as...
for senior fixtures, however, there is presently no astroturf park in Scotland large enough to accommodate a full size shinty park.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/8387122.stm Plans are afoot to develop such a facility in Fort William.http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/2024865?UserKey=
In January 2010, they announced that Torquil MacLeod would become the third permanent Chief Executive as of April 2010.http://www.strathspey-herald.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/5027/Shinty_s_new_chief_operator.html
The presidential election of 2010 was a hotly competed affair between Donald Stewart and the popular Archie Robertson
Archie Robertson (shinty player)
Archie Robertson is an ex-shinty player and internationalist and current President of the Camanachd Association.-Playing Career:...
.http://www.shinty.com/news/camanachd-association-presidential-election/ Robertson won the election resoundingly and will became President at the 2011 A.G.M..http://www.shinty.com/news/camanachd-association-president-elect/ http://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/14037/New_supremo_aims_for_united_approach.htmlhttp://www.shinty.com/news/archie-robertson-confirmed-as-camanachd-association-president/
The Association permitted the use of rolling substitutions as of the 2011 season.http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/9401475.stm The Association also decided to admit Lewis Camanachd
Lewis Camanachd
Lewis Camanachd AKA Comann Camanachd Leòdhais in Scots Gaelic, is the senior shinty team from the Isle of Lewis, Scotland. The club entered North Division Three for the first time in 2011. This was the first time a team from the Western Isles was allowed to compete in league shinty...
to the league setup on a trial basis for 2011. The Association came under pressure to admit the club due to their claim to be a national sport of Scotland.http://www.skyecamanachd.com/Default.aspx.LocID-087new2go.RefLocID-087001001.Lang-EN.htm
International
The Association co-ordinates the Scotland national shinty teamScotland national shinty team
The Scotland national shinty team is the team selected to represent Scotland and the sport of shinty in the annual composite rules international with the Ireland national hurling team. The team represents the Camanachd Association....
which plays against Ireland in Composite Rules Shinty/Hurling annually.