Shinty: McNeil's men aim to put on a show

Sunday 14 October 2012

T HE first leg of the cross-code international takes place at Inverness's Bught Park on Saturday, with Scotland's shinty boss Drew McNeil still smarting from last year's defeat to Ireland.

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Fraser Mackenzie

"We simply got careless, just when we were in with a real chance of clinching the series in the second game," he said, referring to a late strike by Ireland's Joe Bergin. "This year, for the health of the fixture, we have to do better."

McNeil has little time for the critics who question the value of the two-leg series in these straitened times, but knows it is imperative that Scotland put on a show for the fans against the Irish."Not everyone agrees, but for me these contests are a great vehicle to bring shinty forward," McNeil said. "The high tempo of hurling has given shinty a wake-up call as far as fitness is concerned. Awareness of this has spread in the shinty world and has a lot to do with the Premier League success of teams such as Kinlochshiel, Lovat and Glenurquhart, who all have players in the international squad."It works both ways, too. Ireland's ground skills have dramatically improved. That has come directly from shinty, as has the fact that in their domestic game recent scoring changes show they have come to realise that working a goal is more exciting than popping a long-range point over the bar. It's a compliment to shinty really."That sense of Irish indebtedness does not, however, translate into lying down before their blue-shirted opponents. Ever since Scotland's memorable win at Croke Park in the first leg of the 2009 series, results have gone Ireland's way.A quick glance at the visitors' squad for the 2012 series indicates they intend to keep it that way. Bergin might not be in the pool, but Kilkenny's high-profile all-star Tommy Walsh is in the side along with Offaly's Shane Dooley who hit five of Ireland's seven goals in the 2010 series.For Scotland, the absence of two of the country's best-known players, Ronald Ross and Gary Innes, is a blow, but the appearance of new faces, such as Newtonmore's Steven MacDonald and Kingussie's Louis Munro, alongside proven players such as Finlay MacRae and Shaun Nicolson, convinces McNeil that his side possess enough guile and craft to win the series."Ireland are playing at a higher level than they were a few years ago, but we are clear that to succeed we need to play modern shinty, keeping the ball low, running with it and aiming to score goals. "To do that we need the right conditions; we know the grass will be short in Inverness but what we will face on the other side of the Irish Sea is another matter. "We also need refereeing that protects my players and allows them the scope to be creative. If we can get all that, plus a big home crowd behind us, then we can certainly do it."

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Shinty: McNeil's men aim to put on a show

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