Player's Guide to Camanachd Association Shinty All Ages (U12 to Adult) 2025

Q: How many players are in a shinty team, and how do substitutions work?

Under Byelaw 1.2 for the adult game: Each team has no more than 12 players, one of whom is the goalkeeper. A competitive match is not valid if either team has fewer than 8 players. Up to 5 substitutes can be named in the team lines, and any 3 may be used in a match (4 in representative matches). A player who has been replaced can come back on later as a substitute. Substitutes enter at the midpoint of either sideline, during a stoppage, after the referee signals. On a player's first substitution, they hand the referee a completed substitution card. If an outfield player swaps with the goalkeeper without telling the referee and then handles the ball in the Ten Yard Area, a penalty-hit is awarded. Age: adult players must be 16 when registering for the season. A club can field a younger player, from a minimum age of 13, if a parent or guardian consent form is completed and countersigned by the club. Youth competitions use rolling substitutions and their own team sizes.

Q: Who has to wear a helmet and faceguard?

Under Byelaw 1.4.4 and Byelaw 4.2.1 (2025): Everyone under 25 playing in, or training for, Camanachd Association competitions must wear a compliant helmet and faceguard. Youth players (up to and including Under 17) must wear one in all youth competitions, and also when they play for a team in a senior competition. A referee must bar a youth-eligible player who is not wearing a helmet and faceguard. Players 25 and over may opt out by signing a Liability Waiver before the start of the season. They may still wear any protective headgear they are used to, as long as it has a chin strap and no sharp edges or projections (including helmets without visors or with wide-gap guards). Players who have come up through the youth game are expected to keep wearing a helmet and faceguard. First Shinty, played with plastic and rubber camans and balls designed for beginners, is the one exception: helmets are encouraged but not mandatory. From 1 January 2030, an approved helmet and faceguard will be mandatory for all players in shinty. A player who breaches the rule will not be allowed to play by the match officials until they have compliant headgear.

Q: How does offside work in shinty?

Under Byelaw 1.15, an attacking player is offside if they are inside the opposition's Ten Yard Area (Nine Metre Area) when the ball enters that area, on the ground or in the air. The Ten Yard Area includes the goal area between the goal line and the nets. A player is offside if any part of their body or stick is in the area before the ball enters it. A player who steps over the byeline to avoid being offside may not come back onto the field while the ball is inside the Ten Yard Area. Penalty: a free-hit to the defending side from where the offence happened.

Question 1

Which rules govern shinty in Scotland?

Accepted Answer

Shinty is governed by the Camanachd Association, and its rules are set out in the Byelaws of the Camanachd Association. The answers in this FAQ come from the 2025 Byelaws. Byelaw 1: Rules of Play covers the pitch, players, ball, equipment, fouls, cautions, sendings-off, offside and restarts. Byelaws 2 and 3 cover the cup and league competitions and their regulations. Byelaw 4: Competition for Children and Young People sets the youth rules. It overrides the other byelaws wherever they conflict. Discipline after cautions and sendings-off is handled under the Association's Disciplinary Procedures. The senior pitch is rectangular, 140 to 170 yards (128 to 155 m) long and 70 to 80 yards (64 to 73 m) wide, and the Association recommends smaller pitches for age-group shinty and for 9-a-side and 6-a-side games. Women's shinty is run by the Women's Camanachd Association.

Question 2

How many players are in a shinty team, and how do substitutions work?

Accepted Answer

Under Byelaw 1.2 for the adult game:

Each team has no more than 12 players, one of whom is the goalkeeper.
A competitive match is not valid if either team has fewer than 8 players.
Up to 5 substitutes can be named in the team lines, and any 3 may be used in a match (4 in representative matches).
A player who has been replaced can come back on later as a substitute.
Substitutes enter at the midpoint of either sideline, during a stoppage, after the referee signals. On a player's first substitution, they hand the referee a completed substitution card.
If an outfield player swaps with the goalkeeper without telling the referee and then handles the ball in the Ten Yard Area, a penalty-hit is awarded.

Age: adult players must be 16 when registering for the season. A club can field a younger player, from a minimum age of 13, if a parent or guardian consent form is completed and countersigned by the club.

Youth competitions use rolling substitutions and their own team sizes.

Question 3

Who has to wear a helmet and faceguard?

Accepted Answer

Under Byelaw 1.4.4 and Byelaw 4.2.1 (2025):

Everyone under 25 playing in, or training for, Camanachd Association competitions must wear a compliant helmet and faceguard.
Youth players (up to and including Under 17) must wear one in all youth competitions, and also when they play for a team in a senior competition. A referee must bar a youth-eligible player who is not wearing a helmet and faceguard.
Players 25 and over may opt out by signing a Liability Waiver before the start of the season. They may still wear any protective headgear they are used to, as long as it has a chin strap and no sharp edges or projections (including helmets without visors or with wide-gap guards).
Players who have come up through the youth game are expected to keep wearing a helmet and faceguard.
First Shinty, played with plastic and rubber camans and balls designed for beginners, is the one exception: helmets are encouraged but not mandatory.

From 1 January 2030, an approved helmet and faceguard will be mandatory for all players in shinty.

A player who breaches the rule will not be allowed to play by the match officials until they have compliant headgear.

Question 4

What helmet and faceguard standard is required?

Accepted Answer

Under Byelaws 1.4.4 and 4.2.1, a compliant helmet and faceguard must:

be certified fit for purpose and meet the Personal Protective Equipment Regulation (EU) 2016/425
conform to one of these safety standards: I.S. 355:2006, ISO 10256-2:2016 or ASTM F1045-16
stop a struck shinty ball or a swung standard caman passing through the guard: a maximum grid size of 60 mm horizontal by 28 mm vertical (a Bauer IMS 5.0 helmet, faceguard or visor is also accepted for adult players)
be secured by a chin strap
be free from sharp edges and projections

It is the player's and the club's responsibility to make sure the kit is compliant, and it is a specific disciplinary offence to claim, directly or indirectly, to be wearing a compliant helmet and faceguard when you are not. A player without compliant kit will not be allowed to play until it is provided.

Question 5

What are the rules for camans, boots and other kit?

Accepted Answer

Under Byelaw 1.4 (and 4.2 for youth): Caman: the head must pass through a ring 2½ inches (6.3 cm) in diameter, and no plates, screws or metal of any kind may be attached to it or form part of it. A caman in a condition dangerous to other players may not be used. Boots: studs must be solid (leather, rubber, plastic, aluminium or similar). Metal-tipped studs are allowed if they are not pointed and have no sharp or ragged edges; any metal seat for screw-in studs must not be visible. Moulded studs are fine. Nothing dangerous: players must not wear anything dangerous to another player. Shirts: teams wear distinguishing colours, goalkeepers wear colours different from outfield players and the referee, and shirts are numbered to match the team lines. Shin guards: compulsory in all youth training, games and competitions, made of suitable material and secured in place. Coaches should encourage guards that protect both shins and ankles. Helmet and faceguard: compulsory for anyone under 25; players 25 and over may opt out by signing a liability waiver before the season. The ball has a cork and worsted (or approved) core and a leather or leather-like cover, 19 to 20 cm in circumference and 70 to 85 g at the start of the game.

Question 6

How do youth shinty formats differ from the adult game?

Accepted Answer

Byelaw 4 sets the rules for youth shinty, and it overrides the other byelaws where they conflict.

Who is a youth: anyone under 17 on 1 January of the year the season starts. Under 14 and Under 17 grades are also based on age on 1 January of the competition year.

Formats (2025 youth competition programme):

Grade	Formats
Under 12	6-a-side
Under 14	6-a-side championships (6 players plus up to 2 subs); 9-a-side National Development Trophy; 12-a-side Kenneth MacMaster Cup and North and South area leagues (12 plus up to 3 subs)
Under 17	6-a-side championships (6 plus up to 2 subs); 12-a-side MacQuiston Cup, MacTavish Juvenile Cup and London Shield; 9-a-side W J Cameron Development Competition

Other differences:

Smaller pitches for younger grades. For example, Under 12 6-a-side is 55 to 73 m long and 37 to 46 m wide, against 128 to 155 m long for the adult game.
Rolling substitutions are allowed in all youth competitions (players taken off can go back on), entering at the halfway line during a stoppage with the referee's signal.
Helmets with faceguards are compulsory up to Under 17, and shin guards must be worn in all youth training and games.
First Shinty, the beginners' game, uses plastic and rubber camans and balls, so helmets are encouraged but not mandatory.
The adult game has 12 players a side, and players must be 16 (or 13 with parental consent).

Question 7

How does offside work in shinty?

Accepted Answer

Under Byelaw 1.15, an attacking player is offside if they are inside the opposition's Ten Yard Area (Nine Metre Area) when the ball enters that area, on the ground or in the air.

The Ten Yard Area includes the goal area between the goal line and the nets.
A player is offside if any part of their body or stick is in the area before the ball enters it.
A player who steps over the byeline to avoid being offside may not come back onto the field while the ball is inside the Ten Yard Area.

Penalty: a free-hit to the defending side from where the offence happened.

Question 8

What gets a player cautioned in shinty?

Accepted Answer

Under Byelaw 1.13, a player is cautioned for: reckless or dangerous swinging of the caman obstruction, or charging an opponent violently with dangerous bodily contact adopting a threatening attitude feigning injury deliberate tripping deliberate handball undermining the referee's authority through dissent, by word or action persistent infringement after a verbal warning, including shirt pulling, time wasting and encroaching swearing or foul language (even directed at yourself) after a verbal warning deliberately preventing a clear goal-scoring opportunity through foul play How warnings work: for persistent fouling, the referee gives a warning specific to the player after at least three fouls, making clear a caution will follow; general warnings to a whole team are not appropriate. For swearing, the referee warns first, cautions if it is repeated, and dismisses on a second caution. Aggressive or abusive swearing, or swearing aimed at the referee or a goal judge, can mean immediate dismissal. A second caution in the same match means the player is sent off.

Question 9

What gets a player sent off, and how do suspensions work for youth players?

Accepted Answer

Sending-off offences (Byelaw 1.14): violent conduct abusive or offensive language spitting at an opponent or an official a second cautionable offence after already being cautioned A dismissed player or team official must go from the field to the dressing room, and their club must make sure they leave the touchline. The referee reports every caution and dismissal to the Camanachd Association's Chief Executive within five days, under the Association's Disciplinary Procedures. Cards shown in a match that is later abandoned are dealt with as if the match had been completed. Youth suspensions (Byelaw 4.5.2): A suspended Under 14 player serves the ban in all Under 14 competitions. If they age out before finishing it, the rest carries forward to Under 17. A suspended Under 17 player serves the ban in all Under 17 competitions; any remainder carries forward to adult shinty. A suspended player cannot play for any youth team until the suspension is served at the right age group.

Player's Guide to Camanachd Association Shinty All Ages (U12 to Adult) 2025

Which rules govern shinty in Scotland?Rule

Player's Guide to Camanachd Association Shinty All Ages (U12 to Adult) 2025

Which rules govern shinty in Scotland?Rule

How many players are in a shinty team, and how do substitutions work?Rule

Who has to wear a helmet and faceguard?Rule

What helmet and faceguard standard is required?Rule

What are the rules for camans, boots and other kit?Rule

How do youth shinty formats differ from the adult game?Rule

How does offside work in shinty?Rule

What gets a player cautioned in shinty?Rule

What gets a player sent off, and how do suspensions work for youth players?Rule