1970s
In the early 1970s Mrs Pat Maclean, head teacher at Cannich Bridge Primary School initiated the playing of shinty in the school and Pat along with the shinty experience and enthusiasm of Jimmac MacKintosh got a school team up and running. The influence of these two to the future of Strathglass Shinty Club was massive and can never be overstated. This type of support is so vital for all shinty communities and soon the young players started to flow into the teams that the Strath fielded.
Strathglass Shinty Club Early – Mid 1970s
Back L to R: Donnie Stirling, Billy MacLennan, George Fraser, Ian MacLean, John Gordon, Jock Johansen and Jimmy Johansen
Front: Donald Fraser, Duncan MacDonald, Alec McIlree, Leslie Nairne, David Simpson and Derek Nairne
The Strath lifted the MacDonald Cup again in 1973, and the club looked forward to marking its centenary. This was a fruitful time for Strathglass and the MacDonald Cup was won again in 1979 through a 3 – 1 win with 16 year old Roy MacKenzie scoring two of the goals, the other being netted by his brother Colin. In this season the club fielded two teams in North Division 2 and North Division 3. The under-12s won the Strathspey Cup at the Aviemore Indoor Sixes in 1979.
The Centenary of the Club was marked by a Glenurquhart and Strathglass combination facing the giants of Newtonmore. Strath’s Colin MacKenzie was the man of the match in a 4-3 victory to the Badenoch side. Also published was “A History of Strathglass Shinty Club” by John Willie Campbell and Hugh Barron from which much of this material was drawn.
From the centenary celebrations, Strathglass kicked on as the generation of children of the men and women who had moved to the Strath for work, combined with native talent with long histories in the area, matured into a strong and competitive unit.
The 1979-80 season was notable not just for the Centenary but also the first senior goals of Robert Geddes. Robert would go on to become one of the most feared goalscorers in the game, whose skill was acknowledged across the sport. It is believed Robert would end his career behind only Ronald Ross and Kevin Thain in terms of career goals scored.
The club’s all time top goalscorer Robert Geddes in action against Kinlochshiel in 1986