Weekend roundup – 22nd/23rd May
Competitive action got underway across the club this weekend with the first round of league fixtures. On Saturday the 1st XI welcomed Grange to Grange Loan and the visitors won the toss and opted to bat first. An inconsistent performance in the field saw Grange bowled out for 184 in the 41st over with 3 wickets each for Umair Mohammed & Arun Pillai. It could have been a much lower total however as the home side bowled 32 wides. In reply Carlton never really recovered from the loss of 3 early wickets and despite some resistance from Hugo Southwell (31) and Adeel Raza (32) the home side was bowled out for 134 in the 43rd over.
The 2nd XI travelled to Alloa to take on newly promoted Clackmannan County. Skipper Pete Deakin won the toss and opted to bat first and things didn’t quite go according to plan with Carlton struggling to 80 for 5 at the halfway stage. Things got a bit easier after drinks and the middle order, led by Ben D’Ulisse (69), put the 2s in a strong position. Fireworks from Calum Everett (40) and Ru McIntyre (39*) at the back end helped propel Carlton to an imposing 269 for 8 from their 50 overs. The reply from the home side never really got going with wickets falling at regular intervals. McIntyre tooke 4-21 and Ruari Macpherson 3-8 as the 2s bundled Clack out for 56 in the 25th over.
The 3rd XI travelled across the city to take on Leith FAB on the Links and Brad McKay called incorrectly and was inserted. The visitors were unable to capitalise on a good opening stand from Ben Thurman (37) and Zaki Yusaf (29) but some good late order hitting from Paul Kentish (43*) took Carlton to a useful looking 171 for 7 from their 40 overs. In reply the home side offered up plenty of chances but the 3s were unable to take the majority of them and Leith passed the Carlton total in the 31st over for the loss of 5 wickets.
The 4th XI made the short journey to Peffermill to take on Edinburgh University Staff. On a damp wicket the home side opted to bat first made slow progress in the face of some accurate Carlton bowling. The 4s chipped away with regular wickets and the Staff side posted what looked a below par score of 95 for 9 from their 40 overs. Max D’Ulisse was the most successful of the bowlers with 4-10, but Hannah Rainey also deserves a mention for her figures of (5-3-6-1). In reply the 4s lost wickets regularly as the batters struggled to come to terms with the two-paced nature of the wicket. Only Rory Ledingham (43) was able to impose himself on the game but in the end Carlton came up 19 runs short.
The 5th XI entertained Edinburgh South 2s at Cavalry Park 2. Skipper Keith Murray won the toss and invited South to bat first. A couple of early wickets put the home side on top but they were unable to press home their advantage against a strong South side. The 5s stuck to their task, however, and bowled the visitors out for 136 in the 38th over. Kyle Burgess picked up 3 wickets and there were 2 each for Robert Rowlands; Oli Stones & Lewis King. In reply Carlton struggled in the face of accurate bowling from the visitors and wickets fell at regular intervals. Some good late order hitting from Stones (25*) helped claim a couple of batting points but the 5s ultimately fell 44 runs short.
On Sunday the Women travelled to Myreside to take on the newly formed combination Watsonian/Grange side. The home side won the toss and invited Carlton to bat first. Skipper Annette Aitken-Drummond (65) and Sarah Beith (37) put on 118 for the first wicket and Charis Scott (97*) and Massie Maceira (35) had a 112 run partnership for the 4th wicket to help the Women post 330 for 4 from their 30 overs. Scott carried her form with the bat into the bowling innings, claiming 4-12, as Carlton ran out winners by 308 runs.
