Weekend roundup – 20th/21st April
The season finally got underway with an early start for the Women as they welcomed Watsonians to Grange Loan for a morning T20 friendly. The visitors won the toss and asked Carlton to bat first. Charis Scott & Sarah Beith added 93 for the first wicket before Scott fell for 63. 2 more wickets fell as the home side finished on 155 with Beith unbeaten on 40 as well as a handy 20 from Eva Lloyd. Watsonians had a good opening partnership which was eventually broken by Scott with 63 on the board. Wickets then fell regularly as the visitors were restricted to 109 for 9 from their 20 overs. Agnes Foley took 3 wickets and there were 2 each for Scott, Masie Maceira & Keira Ansell.
The 2nd XI were next up at GL as they took on Watsonians 2s. Skipper Charles Stronach won the toss and chose to bat first. Ru Main (35) & Gav Murray (31) put on 63 for the first wicket but last year’s batting frailties were evident once more as only one more batter made it to double figures. In the end the 2s were bowled out for 99 in the 25th over. That total proved well short as the visitors made the target in the 22nd over, 6 down. Kyle Burgess returned the best figures picking up 4 wickets for 6 runs in 4 overs.
The 4th XI were playing Watsonians 3s at Myreside Arti. Captain Al Murray called correctly and opted to bat first. Tom Hathorn & Marc Dweck put on 42 for the first wicket before Hathorn holed out for 17. Shreyas Tekale joined Dweck and added 28 before both were run out in quick succession. Dougie Scott’s stay was brief but did include a big 6 to the long boundary. Chris Sale & Murray rebuilt things and took the score to 125 before Sale picked out a fielder for 21. 2 more wickets fell, including the skipper for 37, but some good late order hitting saw the 4s finish on 188 for 7 from their 40 overs. Abhi Mehta picked up an early wicket but a good second wicket partnership kept the home side up with the rate. It was eventually broken by John Gill thanks to a fine catch from Sale at midwicket. 2 quick wickets from Tekale had Watsonians in trouble at 65 for 4 but once again the home side rebuilt. Although there were more wickets for Gill, Josh Cully (2) & Mehta the home side got over the line with 10 balls and 2 wickets to spare.
The final game of Saturday was at Craiglockhart saw the 5th XI take on Watsonians 4s. Skipper for the day Euan Murray lost the toss and the home side opted to bat first. A fine all round display with the ball restricted the home side to 133 all out in the 34th over. Wickets were spread around with 3 for Finlay Thompson, 2 for Aadi Khadse & Benji Risi and one each for Tomos Hunt, Noah Moncur & Murray. In reply Khadse fell early but Risi came in and blasted 33 before retiring. Moncur (11) joined opener John Beattie (18) and both fell in the 20th over with 90 on the board. A flurry of wickets fell but the experience pair of Martin Robertson (18) & Ian Thompson (11) steadied the ship and got the 5s within sight of the finish. Skipper Murray saw the 5s home in the 32nd over for a 2 wicket win.
On Sunday the 3rd XI entertained touring side Chesham at Grange Loan. More unwelcome rain shortened the game to a T20 contest. Captain Brad McKay lost the toss and the home side were invited to bat first. Despite the early loss of Calum Robertson, Anish Amin (18) and Cam Moore (30) gave the innings some momentum. Rory Ledingham (30) also got the scoreboard moving and although wickets fell regularly there were useful contributions down the order including 19 from Hamish Foley as the 3s posted 142 for 8 from their 20 overs. In reply the visitors made a watchful start and Dougie Firth claimed 2 wickets in the 5th over to leave Chesham 13 for 2. McKay chopped and changed his bowlers and the asking rate climbed. There were wickets for Hector Murray, Ledingham, McKay & Robertson as well as a 3rd for Firth as the 3s restricted the visitors to 122 for 7 to set up a 20 run win.
The final game of the weekend saw the 5th XI entertain Stew Mel Trojans at Cavalry Park 2s. Traffic chaos around Cameron Toll meant that the visitors were understaffed at the start so it was agreed that they would bat first. A tight start from Atreya & Katic Subr put the pressure on the batting team and Aadi Khadse produced a fine run out for the first wicket. There were further wickets for Stu Dawson, Scott Fraser (3), Noah Moncur (2) and Rahul Khadse (3) as the visitors were bowled out for 97 in the 34th over. In reply Khadse jnr got some of his own medicine as the victim of a run out but Murray and Benji Risi kept the scoreboard ticking over. There were retirals for Risi on 30 and the skipper (15) and although Alan Ansell fell cheaply Dawson (12) and Fraser (23*) saw the 5s home in the 23rd over for a 6 wicket win.