James "Big Jim" Clark http://www.spanglefish.com/fortwilliamshintyclub/index.asp?pageid=141206 (b.1973)http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/shinty/Shinty-Clark-hints-his-time.6787119.jp is a shinty

Shinty

Shinty is a team game played with sticks and a ball. Shinty is now played mainly in the Scottish Highlands, and amongst Highland migrants to the big cities of Scotland, but it was formerly more widespread, being once competitively played on a widespread basis in England and other areas in the...

 player from Invergarry

Invergarry

Invergarry is a village in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Great Glen, near where the River Garry flows into Loch Oich.Near the centre of the village is the junction between the A82 road and the A87 road which branches off to the west towards Skye.The ruined Invergarry Castle is situated...

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

. He gained fame from his last minute goals which secured a succession of Camanachd Cup

Camanachd Cup

The Camanachd Association Challenge Cup AKA the Camanachd Cup or Scottish Cup is the premier prize in the sport of shinty...

 triumphs for Fort William Shinty Club

Fort William Shinty Club

Fort William Shinty Club is a shinty club from Fort William, Lochaber, Scotland. The first team were Camanachd Cup holders four times in succession, between 2007 and 2010 but were knocked out in the second round in 2011...

.http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/shinty/Shinty-Clark-hints-his-time.6787119.jp

Playing Career

He was a half-back early in his career, when he started out playing for Glengarry

Glengarry Shinty Club

Glengarry Shinty Club is a shinty team from Invergarry, Inverness-shire, Scotland. The club has played in its present form since 1976. There is one senior team, competing in North Division Two. The club also runs a highly successful women's team.-History:...

 but soon moved to the Fort in 1993.http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/shinty/Shinty-Clark-hints-his-time.6787119.jp He was capped by Scotland

Scotland national shinty team

The Scotland national shinty team is the team selected to represent Scotland and the sport of shinty in the annual composite rules international with the Ireland national hurling team. The team represents the Camanachd Association....

 at under-21 level and also graduated to the senior side. He once scored four goals in a MacTavish Cup

MacTavish Cup

The MacTavish Cup is a knock-out cup competition in the sport of shinty. It is competed for by senior teams from the North of Scotland district...

 final but still ended up on the losing side.http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/rugby-news/2006/06/24/clark-has-a-single-goal-86908-17284750/

He won the Albert Smith Medal

Albert Smith Medal

The Albert Smith Memorial Medal is the award given to the Man of the Match in the final of the Camanachd Cup, the blue riband trophy of the sport of shinty. It has been presented every year since 1972 by the Smith family of Fort William in honour of Albert Smith Sr. The widow of his only son,...

 twice for his matchwinning performances in the Camanachd Cup

Camanachd Cup

The Camanachd Association Challenge Cup AKA the Camanachd Cup or Scottish Cup is the premier prize in the sport of shinty...

final in 2007 and 2008. He is famed for going up to receive his medals with his children in his arms.http://www.heraldscotland.com/fort-william-3-1-inverary-1.865754

In the 2011 season, Clark switched back to his original position in defence, as Fort played out a trophyless season for the first time since 2003. There was mounting speculation, fuelled by the player himself, that Clark might hang up his boots at the end of the season.http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/shinty/Shinty-Clark-hints-his-time.6787119.jp

External Links

• Fort William Shinty Club