Fort William Ladies developed into a league winning team
IT MIGHT have taken Fort William Shinty Club more than a century to start a women’s team, but the ladies made up for lost time, winning the league in their first attempt. After starting up in spring, the girls entered two teams into the development league and their first team managed to win the league and gain promotion in the process.
Player and co- coach Katherine Ann Gall said: ‘ We started because Fort William Shinty Club didn’t have a ladies team and we wanted to see if there was any interest.
‘At first only five people came, but after a couple of weeks it started to grow.
‘Six weeks later we had 15-20 people coming and now we have 26 players on the books.
‘The first season went great. Because we had so many players we put two teams in to a development league and one of the teams won the league. The other came last.
‘The team that won the league will play in South Division 2 next year and the other team will stay in the development league.
‘Being involved in the team is great. It’s a good atmosphere and it gives you something to get out there and train for.’
For the up and coming season, Fort William has appointed a new manager for the ladies team – Elaine Wink.
Elaine has played shinty since she was little and last year she played with the Glengarry’s ladies side.
Wink will coach alongside Gall with help from the development team coach Ashleigh Fraser.
Wink said: ‘I won’t be playing this year. I want to focus on one thing, so I’m going to focus on coaching.
‘The main thing this year will be making sure the girls have fun, learn and improve.
‘Any big wins will be a bonus. I don’t think we’ll win the league this year, but you never know.’
The girls do, however, have a secret weapon among their ranks – Zoe Smith.
Smith, 16, boasts a world record. She was the first female to play in a senior men’s shinty team at a premier league level.
Wink said: ‘Zoe will most definitely be playing for the ladies this year. She is a vital player and is helping a lot of the new players develop.
‘Zoe and Ashleigh Fraser were both unable to play in the development league last year due to the experience they both had in the game, however, they were also a vital part of the coaching and training team.
‘They both plan on playing for the 10 aside team that will enter the South Division 2 league.’
Shinty training for the Fort William Ladies will be in the Nevis Centre on January 11 from 5.30pm to 6.30pm.
The first training session is free for new players and then £2 per session thereafter.