Weekend roundup – 30th/31st May

The 1s entertained near neighbours Watsonians at Grange Loan in round 5 of the EPL.  Having been inserted by the visitors the Arrows batting woes continued and they were reduced to 84 for 6 in the 19th over.  Only Chris McBride found any real fluency and when he fell for 64 to leave the home side 161 for 8 things good for the visitors.  A fine 50 run 10th wicket partnership from Ben Stronach (39) and Shreyas Tekale (15*) took Carlton to at total of 221, which still looked well below par.  Watsonians looked in full control at 173 for 3 in the 31st over but a flurry of wickets gave the Arrows hope.  Arun Pillai (sponsored by Umair Mohammed Cosmetic & Sports Dentistry) then took 3 wickets in 2 overs to leave the visitors reeling at 199 for 9, before Shovik Chakraborty got the final wicket for a 15 run win for the Arrows.

The 2s were down in the Borders taking on Gala at Meigle Park.  Batting first they set the home side a total of 259 to chase thanks to Pete Gill’s 93*, 50 from Tom Simpson and a quick fire 40 from Rory Ledginham.  Charles Stronach got an early wicket but the home side moved on 77 before Ledingham got into the action, bowling the home side’s No 3.  Aadi Khadse then picked up 3 wickets to leave Gala on the ropes at 101 for 5.   Ledginham then proceeded to rattle through the remaining batters to complete his best every figures for the Arrows with 6 for 22 as the 2s continued their winning ways bowling Gala out for 116.

The 3s travelled to Barnton to take on their counterparts at RHC.  Batting first there were lots of starts but only Robbie Murray (54) really pushed on.  A clatter of wickets at the back end left the Arrows with an under par total of 227 to defend having been bowled out in the 35th over.  A strong start from the home side was eventually curtailed as skipper Brad McKay picked up 2 wickets, both caught behind by stand in keeper Murray.  Pavan Yaradi also claimed 2 wickets but the home side ran out winners with 6 wickets and 6.5 overs to spare.

The 4s made the short journey to Kirkhill to play Penicuik 2s, who were sitting one place above them in ESCA Division 5.  With the threat of weather about the Arrows won the toss and chose to bowl.  Openers Jake Heller & Taha Khan each picked up a wicket and then Kyle Burgess struck when he came on for Heller.  Harley Cox, making his Arrows debut, got a wicket with his 4th ball and then 2 for Abhi Mehta reduced the home side to 90 for 6.  Skipper Al Murray brought himself on and burgled a couple before Burgess came back to pick up the final 2 wickets to bowl out Penicuik for 124.  After a good first over Murray and David Simpson made a watchful start in the face of some accurate bowling but took the score to 91 at drinks.  The 100 partnership came up in the 22nd over and with the winning line in sight Murray skied one to fall for 53.  Simpson (50*) and Alex Fedenczuk then saw the Arrows home with 9 wickets in hand in the 25th over.

The final game on Saturday saw the 5s host Edinburgh South 4s at Merchiston Castle School.  The visitors batted first and the Arrows did well to restrict South to 164 for 6 from their 40 overs.  Arjun Shelke produced a sharp bit of work for the first wicket with a runout, before wickets for Tom Sweet, Rahul Khadse, Aaradhy Khadse and George Barry with the final wicket to fall also being a runout.  A solid start with the bat was undone when both openers were gone with 36 on the board.  Vijay Raghavan (37) got the scoreboard moving but wickets continued to fall.  Young George Barry (27*) kept the game alive but in the end there was too much to do and the 5s fell 23 runs short, finishing on 141 for 7 from their 40 overs.

On Sunday the Women’s 2s travelled to Falkirk to take on Westquarter & Redding in the first round of the Challenger Cup.  The home side won the toss and chose to bat first.  Mathilda Ellis picked up the first wicket in the 2nd over and then claimed 2 more in the 4th to leave the home side in trouble at 7 for 3.  Ajitha Rajan then struck and Holly Sladen also had a catch held to leave the West Lothian side 10 for 5 after 6 overs. Rajan claimed another and Varsha Suresh also struck to make it 14 for 7 after 9 overs.  A runout in the 10th over further hampered the home side and then Ellis returned in the 12th over to take the last 2 wickets and complete her 5-for, bowling Westquarter out for 19.  In reply, Di Blood fell early but Ameilia Beattie (11*) and Ashley Robertson (6*) saw the Arrows safely through to the next round in the 6th over.

Back at Grange Loan the Junior 6s was in full swing in a riot of colour, noise and occasional outbreaks for cricket.  43 players aged 10-16 and drawn from all our junior hardball squads were divided into 6 teams and played a tournament of quick-fire games.  This year’s event featured an all-girls team for the first time, showcasing the depth of talent in our Women’s and Girls’ section.  Spectators were entertained by over 1000 runs at 9 an over, including some spectacular batting, bowling and fielding.  Congratulations to Team Yellow who were crowned Junior 6s champions having won all their games.