The team's trip north to face league champions Kingussie was called off on Saturday morning after heavy snow rendered the Badenoch club's pitch
unplayable.

That leaves Bute with home matches against Kyles Athletic and Fort William, and away trips to Inveraray and Kingussie, to fit into an already busy fixture list - and with little or no prospect of any 'catch-up' Saturdays until much later in the summer, it already seems likely that Bute's season will be extended well into the autumn.

The Kingussie postponement on Saturday was doubly frustrating, since Bute's own home turf at the Meadows was perfectly playable; unfortunately the call-off came too late in the day to allow the game to be switched to Rothesay.

Coach Barry Martin said: "We were a wee bit annoyed because apparently Newtonmore knew on Friday night that their game with Inveraray would be off, although nearby Kingussie told us on Friday night that everything was OK.

"Unfortunately they hadn't made provision to travel so the game couldn't be reversed."

Saturday's postponement - leaving Bute as the only Premier League team
still to play a game - could also put the team at a severe disadvantage this weekend as they start their bid to reach a fourth successive Glasgow Celtic Society Cup final with a first round tie at home to Kyles Athletic.

The Tighnabruaich men have two league games under their belt, and go into the tie in good form after thrashing Lochaber 5-0 at home on Saturday - a fixture watched closely by Barry and several Bute players, who took the opportunity to head across the water on a spying mission rather than sit at home kicking their heels.

Kyles cruised to a 4-0 half-time lead in that game thanks to double strikes from Duncan Kerr and Grant Irvine, Kerr going on to complete his hat-trick with the game's final goal early in the second period.

Said Barry: "The Kyles team looked pretty smart - it was a poor Lochaber team but that's not to take anything away from Kyles. They've got a lot of youth in their team this year, and Kerr and Irvine ran the show, so we'll need to be on our toes."

Bute's second team, meanwhile, will also see their long wait for competitive action come to an end this Saturday, March 29, when they begin their campaign in the Marine Harvest South Division Two.

Having failed in more than one attempt to play their pre-season friendly at Col-Glen for the Hamish Carmichael Trophy, this Saturday the Bute team travel to...none other than Col-Glen, for their opening league fixture.

The seniors' cup tie at home to Kyles starts at the Meadows in Rothesay at 2.30pm, while the second team's game at Glendaruel gets under way at 12 noon.