Shinty has been played in Kingussie since the earliest days of the Town in 1800, although the first newspaper reports of a competitive match are in 1866 when Cluny Macpherson organised a New Year game on the Dell. The name Dell comes from the Gaelic word Dail meaning flatland or meadow land. To this day, Kingussie still play shinty on the Dell about half a mile from the centre of the Town.

Nowadays, shinty is a competitive amateur sport played with a wooden stick and a leather ball. There are 12 players in each team and the rules loosely resemble those of hurling and hockey. The pitch is 160 yards x 80 yards.

Kingussie had a successful spell when organised shinty first began in 1893 and they were the first winners of shinty’s premier trophy, the Camanachd Cup, in 1896. Many lean years followed for the Kingussie Club, but the most successful period in the Club’s history has been the last seventeen years.

Kingussie Shinty Club has recently set two outstanding records in the sport of shinty. Firstly, the senior team, in May 2003, won an 18th consecutive League title. This is a feat for which the Guinness Book of Records say they have no equivalent. Secondly, in June 2003, the club won shinty’s premier trophy - the Camanachd Cup - for a record 7th consecutive year.

After 113 years of playing shinty in the winter, Scotland’s National sport has made the radical decision to switch to a summer season. When organised shinty began in 1893 the ancient pastime of camanachd was played strictly between the months of January and April. However, in recent years the sport of shinty has had to move with the times, and make dramatic changes simply to compete with the attraction of other sports.

In 1996 shinty switched away from area leagues to a National set up and now a move to the summer seems a logical next step. 2004 is the first summer season and stretches from March to September. It is the first year of a two year pilot scheme.

So far, the players have enjoyed the improved weather conditions and better surfaces but have found there are some clashes with their other summer pursuits, while supporters are enjoying not suffering in a cold wind on a winter Saturday afternoon.

Only time will tell if a switch to the summer will benefit the game of shinty, but so far the signs are that the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.

For in-depth information, fixtures and teams: www.shinty.com