Cornwall Shinty Club
2014
CSM Shinty 8 - CSM Mining Games 2 (Shinty Match) 17/05/2014
With CSM Captain (and Cornish Vice-Captain), Carlin sunning himself in the Caribbean, Andow took the helm with the Miners out for revenge. Big hitting and another powerful performance from Astbury in the centre allowed Leggett to break twice to put them ahead against the run of play. The first was countered almost immediately by Harrell, then 3 shocking penalties by CSM- only a fourth finally allowed England player Josh Chant to restore parity. 2-2 half-time, CSM were looking distinctly nervous as a needlessly embarrassing defeat to the rookies looked feasible. The second half was a different game with CSM pressing home their speedy ground play as the Miners ran out of steam. With a first CSM goal for Claire Seymour, Harrell added 5 more, crushing any hopes of an upset. Josh Chant, Matt Ellis and Jacob Harrell- all had fine performances ahead of their England clash at Ballachulish in Scotland. Player of the match Mary Walsh, didn't put a foot wrong in defence.
CSM Shinty 8 (Harrell x6, Chant, Seymour) - 2 CSM Mining Games (Leggett x2)
2012
CSC 2 - CSM Hockey 1 (Shinty Match)
An historic occasion for shinty, a milestone for Cornish sport- the first senior shinty match in Cornwall for probably the best part of a century. Camborne School of Mines challenged the Duchy for the first 11-a-side fixture at Cunningham Park in Mabe, marking the return of the ancient game to one of its traditional heartlands here in Cornwall. Setting up against seemingly overwhelming odds, the Pasties have travelled over 4000 miles to breathe life into the game and put smiles on faces across England, Scotland and Ireland- a feat recently recognised by their nomination for World of Shinty’s England Club 2012. Just seven months ago, the closest registered club was a 1000 mile round trip to Edinburgh. As the year draws to a close plans are afoot for an English Shinty Association and an English tour to the Western Isles. As the youngest club quite literally in the world, CSM were game indeed to step up to the challenge. As the nets went up, a crash course in shinty safety focussed the students on the very real dangers of the clash of the ash...Four foot of timber takes on a different aspect when its hurtling towards your face.
The patience of spectators was rewarded when Paul Rutter of Unique Eco-Fuelsprinciple sponsor of the Duchy Team- threw up the ball for the start of the historic clash.
Disappointingly without their World of Shinty England Player 2012 nominee, the Cornwall Skipper, Matt Mossop plugged the goal leaving Vice Captain Annan Birkett to organise the midfield flanked by Tremough students Katie Riddoch and Gary Smith, both in their first game.
A tentative start saw CSM clearly struggling to believe assurances that cramp really was likely to be the most serious concern. As the teams edged closer, the stick skills of both teams began to show and CSM ladies, Kate Hendry and Georgie Aldridge were especially effective linking up in midfield, though rarely troubling an assured Cornish backline. Mabe Youth and Community Chair, Richard Scrase was nonchalant in his jeans and school cap for his first game and the hit-outs began to pick out the forwards 60 yards up the park, bypassing the flooded midfield.
As the sun dipped below the tree line, the second 45mins saw a flowing, organised CSM with simple passing and increasingly courageous challenges. Michael Andow, the Duchy full-back, was faultless as ever, dispatching everything in the final third, though poor organisation and bunching in the centre prevented any meaningful counterattacks from the Pasties. As confidence grew, both teams began to play some fine shinty with weighty body checks and skilful control. CSM’s general advantage was finally realised on 74 minutes as Captain Ben Acton finally broke the deadlock catching his counterpart napping in the goal. But his efficient pass into the net kick-started the Cornish from their reverie. As Mossop rang the changes, Acton looked like he had just kicked a hornet’s nest. CSC’s Parish Councillor, Mark Smith covered the goal allowing more Duchy pressure, though it was arguably one of the Cornish youngsters that turned the game. Bored out-field, 16 year old Lewis Tamblyn finally wandered back to take over in the goals- recently stopping a strike from Shinty’s most prolific striker of all time- this was not untimely, finally allowing the pasties to play their more natural positions. Councillor Smith pushed forward to Buckshee, the Skipper in the centre and Birkett at centre forward, effectively putting all the big hitters well in range of the CSM goal.
As the tempo shifted through the gears, the hits started to pepper the Miner’s ‘D’, worrying the defence- unsure just how much damage a shinty ball can do at 70mph and opening–up gaps in the massed defence as the Cornish wingers finally got some ball. Coulston-Jenkins was dauntless in goal for the Miners, with superb nerve she snuffed-out countless goal-line scrambles as Chris Harry and Hayley Goacher combined well to pile the pressure. Numerous shots were palmed away to keep the visitors millimetres ahead, but they were on borrowed time. A through ball to Birkett, brilliantly anticipated, he turned his markers 40 yards out and there was only really going to be one result. A trademark 40 yard scorcher hammered past the debutant keeper to level the scores just 4 minutes on. Relentless Duchy pressure was rewarded with two penalties though the young forwards couldn’t capitalise. Countless Cornish surges were repelled, but as the pressure boiled, Goacher forced the winner in a characteristically dogged display from one of the Duchy’s leading goal scorers, keeping her in contention for the Caman D’Or with just 2 matches to go.