Orkney’s footballers will compete in the island games for
the third time this July, and after picking up their first victory
in 2003, the team are hopeful of progressing further in Shetland.
A difficult draw is unavoidable in the island games’ football
event and this year Orkney will once again have to face Guernsey
— overall winners in both 2001 and 2003.
As well as the Channel Islands side, Orkney will play Ynys Mon,
Greenland, and island games’ new boys, the Western Isles.
Although Orkney finished eighth overall in 2003, their performance
showed steady progress when they recorded their first ever victory.
Putting aside a 10-0 rout at the hands of Guernsey, Orkney did well
to beat Alderney 3-1 in the following game.
This was followed by a disappointing 6-0 defeat handed out by Shetland
in the seventh and eighth place play off.
With football being one of the most popular sports in the island
games, the standard is extraordinarily high.
The divide between the strong sides and the rest is massive. With
Guernsey and the Isle of Man in different groups it is most likely
that this year’s winners will come from either of the sides.
Shetland, with home support, will be in with a chance of glory
but the Isle of Man and Guernsey are undoubtedly the teams that
will start as favourites.
For Orkney, the aim is simply to win as many games as possible.
The victory over Alderney in 2003 was a big step in the right direction
for the county’s side, and according to Mike Berston, secretary
of the Orkney Amateur Football Association, a repeat performance
would be ideal.
Mike said: “Our aim is honestly just to win as many as we
can from the games against Greenland and the Western Isles.
“Realistically, with Guernsey, it is damage limitation. Some
people might think it is wrong to say that, but unfortunately it
is true. If we can keep the score down and limit the goal difference
deficit then we will be pleased.
“With Ynys Mon, it really depends on who they have travelling.
If they can’t field their first choice guys, it is all the
better for us because they are also a really strong side. Ynys Mon
are second seeds in the group so, for us, it may be damage limitation
again.
“We are much more optimistic about the two other games in
our group. Greenland will be tough but we think we can compete in
this game and hopefully get something out of it. We are especially
looking to get something from the game against the Western Isles,
who are playing for the first time.
“They will be a big physical and strong team, we probably
know most about them and we know it will be tough. The bulk of the
Highlands and Islands team that represented Scotland last season
were from there so we can’t underestimate them as a team.”
Team manager, Graeme Hamilton, is equally aware of the talent that
will be on display in Shetland and echoed Mike’s ambitions
to win at least one game.
He said: “Basically, our aim is to win a game, we want to
go out there and compete as much as we can. We know we will be up
against some top opposition but there are definitely teams that
we can beat.
“The team are really starting to focus on the games now. We
have started our training and we meet collectively once a week.
This will, hopefully, put us in a good position for when we go north.”
Unlike most other Orkney teams taking part, the island games falls
at a time when the domestic season is at its peak. Players and background
staff alike will be juggling internal league and cup matches with
inter-county commitments as well as the island games.
Demanding as it is, Mike said the island games team has started
to come together.
Mike continued: “We have started our training programme for
the island games. Unfortunately, we don’t quite have our full
squad at the moment as we have some minor injuries and are still
waiting for about four students to return home.
“We are working on the fitness side of things as well as our
game plan which will be a big factor in Shetland.
“Unfortunately, the island games takes place at one of the
busiest times in our football season. It is probably the worst possible
time for us to have a competition like this as most of the guys
are deeply involved with football in Orkney. It is not the best
preparation for it but it is a big tournament and we’re pleased
to be involved.”
Graeme said: “Football is different to a lot of other sports.
For most of them, their season is over and they can focus fully
on the island games. For us, it is really busy at the moment, some
of the guys are playing two games a week and then having to train
with us once a week.
“It is a big commitment for them all, but I think it is certainly
one they are prepared to make.
“We started training collectively a couple of weeks ago. We
will be training every week from now on and, hopefully, we will
be as sharp as possible when we get to Shetland.
“Playing four group matches will be fairly tough for the players
I think. It is unfortunate that we are not playing any games in
Lerwick, that is just how the draw works out sometimes, but hopefully
we have the players who can raise themselves each game. We have
a squad of 20 so I’m optimistic that we’ll deal with the
pressures, it is the same for everyone else after all so we will
do our best.”
Team selection was a straightforward process and according to Mike,
a system of squad rotation may be required to cope with the busy
schedule.
He said: “For our team selection, we approached all the clubs
and the competitors who have been involved in county matches or
travelled to the games before and it was purely a case of who could
go.
“We have 20 guys going to the games. We only had 17 in Guernsey
when we were there in 2003. We ended up getting a suspension and
three injuries. This meant our squad was down to 13, so we don’t
want to be in that position again. It is a long campaign when you
get out there so we want to have the option of fresh legs when we
need it.
“Obviously, if we are going to have squad rotation that will
purely be up to our manager Graeme, he calls the shots on that front
but hopefully we have a squad this year which will be able to cover
injuries or suspensions.”
An optimistic club secretary said that he is pleased with the attitude
shown by the players so far and insisted that they’re looking
forward to the challenges ahead.
Mike concluded: “The guys are really looking forward to getting
up to Shetland. Obviously it will be better when all 20 of them
are here so we can start training as a group but so far everything
seems to be going well.
“They are showing great determination to play in two games
a week and train once a week with us, a lot of them are using their
summer holidays to go up to Shetland so they are fully committed.
“Hopefully, this attitude will help us up there as we are
looking forward to the challenge and hope to do the best we can.”
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