Lovat Cup

The Lovat Cup is a trophy in the sport of shinty contested annually at New Year by Beauly Shinty Club and Lovat Shinty Club.

The Lovat Cup Shinty Trophy

The trophy was first played for in 1904 and is very popular , attracting the second largest crowd for a shinty fixture in Scotland, outwith the Camanachd Cup Final. The fixture alternates annually between Balgate, Kiltarlity and Braeview Park, Beauly. The two clubs' strong rivalry contributes to an entertaining game. This rivalry was once described as so keen that "a cold stream ran between them".

Lovat Cup 2017
Lovat Cup 2019

Lovat retained the title in 2009. The 2010 fixture was cancelled due to heavy snow. The rules of the competition mean that the competition cannot be rescheduled and so Lovat again retained the trophy. Lovat historically has a win ratio of two-to-one in the series.

Under the competition's rules, the need for a draw to retain the cup means that matters are settled in the regulation 90 minutes without the need for extra-time or penalties. This was the case with the 2011 fixture, where a 2-2 draw saw Lovat retain the cup.

Beauly regained the cup in 2015 but Lovat won in 2016 on home soil. Lovat won the next 3 years in a row, all away from home with the 2018 tie being reversed due to a frozen pitch in Kiltarlity, Greg Matheson scoring all 4 in a 4-0 win, in 2019 Lovat won 3-1 without the aid of Matheson who was injured to extend the period of dominance over their lower league rivals.

Results
Date Venue Winner Score Notes
2007 Beauly 2 – 0
2008 Balgate Park Lovat 3 – 2 [1]
2009 Braeview Park Lovat 2 – 1
2 January 2010 Cancelled due to snow [2]
3 January 2011 Braeview Park Draw 2 – 2 [3]
2 January 2012 Balgate Park Lovat 3 – 1 [4]
2013 Braeview Park Beauly 2 – 1 [5]
2014 Balgate Park Lovat 4 – 1 [6]
2015 Braeview Park Beauly 3 – 1 [7]
2016 Balgate Park Lovat 3 – 2 [8]
2 January 2017 Braeview Park Lovat 5 – 2 [9]
2018 Braeview Park Lovat 4 – 0
2019 Braeview Park Lovat 3 – 1
2 January 2020 Balgate Park Lovat 3 – 1 [10]
2 January 2021 Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
3 January 2022 Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic [11]
2 January 2023 Cancelled due to frozen pitch [12]

References
  1. "Own goal turns tide in thrilling cup tie". Inverness Courier. 4 January 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  2. "Cup clash in cold storage". Inverness Courier. 5 January 2010. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  3. "Lovat battle back to retain trophy". Highland News. 8 January 2011. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  4. "Four-in-row joy for Lovat". Highland News. 5 January 2012. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  5. "Beauly end long wait for Lovat Cup success". Inverness Courier. 4 January 2013. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  6. "Lovat ease to cup victory over rivals Beauly". Inverness Courier. 7 January 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  7. "Beauly triumph could spark magical year". Highland News. 8 January 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  8. "Lovat battle to the brink for cup glory". Highland News. 7 January 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  9. Mackenzie, Fraser (3 January 2017). "Shinty: Battling Beauly outgunned by Lovat's experienced strikeforce in New Year derby". The National.
  10. "Lovat Cup 2020". Shinty.com. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  11. Clark, Will (28 December 2021). "Annual new year shinty clash between rivals called off due to Government restrictions". Inverness Courier. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  12. Clark, Will (2 January 2023). "SHINTY - Disappointment as cup competition is cancelled". Inverness Courier. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
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