MANRAN accordionist, BBC Take the Floor presenter and shinty legend Gary Innes will this week launch a special charity single in aid of the women’s version of the Highland game.

Feel the Power’s release is timed to launch ahead of Saturday’s Mowi Valerie Fraser Camanachd Cup Final, being contested by Skye Ladies and Badenoch Ladies.

Innes, himself a winner of the men’s Camanachd Cup, was inspired in part by the birth of his daughter Grace this year and his hope that she will have the same sporting opportunities that he once enjoyed.

“I was commissioned to write a show for Oban Live this year called the Caman Connection as it’s held at Mossfield Stadium, so I’d been exploring the connection between the sport and music throughout the years,” says Innes. “So I was going through all these connections, like [accordion legend] Fergie MacDonald being a shinty referee, myself having written the Caman Man, and I realised that there was nothing for women. And of course having had Gracie, I thought it would be nice to write a wee anthem for women’s shinty to celebrate the sport and to show how far it’s come.

“There are now more women than men starting to play shinty, so I thought it would be a nice opportunity to write a new one. We performed it at Oban Live and it went down really well so I got the idea to record it and release it as a charity single. So here we are!”

Innes was aided in the recording by lead vocalist Mischa Macpherson, with backing from celebrated singers Kim Carnie and Siobhan Miller, as well as Innes White, Rory Matheson, Manran bandmate Mark Scobbie and Breabach’s James Lindsay.

“I’d like to say a huge thank you to all of the musicians who gave up their time for free to come and record on the single and also the girls from Oban and Glasgow Mid Argyll who came along to be a part of it too – they certainly got into the spirit of it once the nerves wore off, I think the red wine did help a little!”

All proceeds from Feel the Power will be donated to the Women’s Camanachd Association to help with equipment and the general development of the game.