135 for 2 (20 overs)

Rory Simpson 55*, William Brown 52*

99 all out

Iain Martin 2 for 13, Chayank Gosain 2 for 18

The Carlton side got their 2010 campaign off to a fine start in retaining the East League Cup in a match held over from last season.

Kyle and Craig opened, and both made some aggressive shots before falling to catches as they tried to force the pace. But with the main strike force bowlers seen off, Rory & William played finely judged chance-free innings on their way to half centuries. Their fast running between the wickets was eye-catching.

135 was a large total to defend, but although under-strength, this SMRH side did contain some big hitters. In his first match as captain, Kyle was eager to ensure as many of the Carlton side as possible got involved. Whilst some wickets were taken, several crucial catches were spilled and with 6 overs to go, opener Alex Clayton was still there (having made a fine 50). At this point SMRH were looking comfortable in making the 8 runs an over required, so Kyle turned to man of the match Rory Simpson, and he promptly clean bowled the danger man.

Iain returned to take the final wicket thanks to a spectacular one handed catch by Haris. Cheeky, Fraser and Haris took wickets and it was good to see our Australian amateur Tobyn turn his fingers for a couple of overs.   Well done lads, but we're under no illusions that our fielding and catching needs to improve.

Scorecard

51 for 1 (8.1 overs)

Will Brown 30

50 for 8 (20 overs)

Gair Currie 2 for 7

A strong Carlton XI proved too good for their Corstorphine counterparts in this East League opener.

It was good to see our premier bowling attack in action and Neil & Gair looked a fine combination of fast and swing. Couple of wickets for Gair, with Tobyn, Gavin and Cheeky also striking. But the highlight was the ground fielding with no less than 3 direct hit run outs, 2 from Will and 1 from our 2009 hero in that respect, Fraser.

Not much resistance from the Corstorphine batsmen meant a low total for Carlton to chase but with Lothian rules allowing a full 20 overs to maximise involvement, a reasonable innings ensued. Will made a swift 30 before holing out to a splendid catch at mid-off, Fraser enjoyed a lengthy spell at the crease for 20, but Kyle picked up the batting honours with a fine half century. Rory & Matthew give a hint of the power in our middle order with late cameo roles - a huge 6 in dying light from Wellsy was a fine finish to the match with Carlton on 127 for 2.

Scorecard

126 for 2

Kyle Macpherson 60 not out, Gair Currie 44

57 all out

Gair Currie 4 for 13, Iain Martin 2 for 6

159 for 3

Will Brown 51 ret, Tobyn Fitch-Rabbit 50 ret, Matthew Wells 20 not out

110 for 6

134 for 3

Matthew Wells 70, Will Brown 49 not out

81 for 2 (15.1 overs)

Craig Everett 44 not out

80 for 5 (20 overs)

Ruari Macpherson 2 for 6, Chayank Gosain 2 for 10

We're not having much luck with the toss, and again our opposition chose to bat. All 5 pace bowlers unavailable, so Kyle employed a mixture of seam and spin from the outset. Still, the variations provided by Fraser's left arm over, and Haris' leg spin had the desired effect of keeping the runs down. Frustration got the better of opener Harrison as he charged Haris, and Craig whipped the bails off in quick time. All in all, an impressive 4 over spell from our U13 star Haris.

Cheeky & Wellsy ( a rare chance to bowl seam up) kept the bowling tight, with Cheeky snapping up a couple of wickets in a tight 4 over spell. Penicuik's innings eas completed with Tobyn bowling his best spell for us, getting a fair rip off the pitch with his off-spin and was unlucky not to take a wicket, while Ruari picked up a couple (fine catches by Kyle & Gavin) in the last over.

In recent seasons, Penicuik have always had good, fast opening bowlers (Ashforth, Davidsons) and Thomas Hilton is another addition to the list. In a fiery 4 over spell, he snared our forthcoming Scotland caps Kyle & Wellsy for 1 apiece, leaving Craig & Tobyn at the crease. But Craig is a tough wee cookie, and grittily saw off both Penicuik opening bowlers, before nudging and stroking the ball in a confident manner. Along with Tobyn, the bad ball was punished severely, and the winning total was reached with the minimum of fuss. Craig became our 7th individual batsman to score 40 or more this season, with four 4s in a fine, unbeaten 44, an innings full of skill and maturity.

The support provided by Tobyn (19*) should not be underestimated, a cool head on young shoulders and he impressed in the field as well to cap a very fine all round performance. Allegedly coach Al Duncan has opened negotiations with his parents for Tobyn to remain in Edinburgh while his family returns to Australia in July!

Scorecard

27 all out (16.1 overs)

Iain Martin 3 for 6

81 for 3 (12.4 overs)

Will Brown 48*

We lost the toss again, and Heriots duly chose to bat. Kyle stuck to the successful opening bowling attack from the Penicuik league game a fortnight back, and Haris & Fraser were similarly economical. 21 for 1 after 8 overs, then spin continued at one end (Cheeky & Kyle) with David & Gavin bowling slow medium at the other.

Heriots tried their best to push the score along but tight fielding restricted the visitors to 78 off their alloted 20 overs. Haris, David & Cheeky picked up a wicket each, Gavin combining with wicketkeeper Ruari for a smart run out. Dougal & Tobyn were solid in the field throughout.

Will (48 not out) and Tobyn (10) got us off to a fine start putting on 40 for the 1st wicket inside 6 overs. Tobyn, then Dougal & Wellsy got out in similar fashion (top edging the leg spinner Dutia) but Will & Kyle saw us through to victory in the 13th over. Eight 4s for Will in a fine innings.  

An important 10 days for our team coming up in the Scottish Cup & East League, so let's concentrate, play hard and continue to put into play the good practices of our coaching sessions.

Scorecard

73 for 0 (9 overs)

Kyle Macpherson 44 not out, Will Brown 27 not out

71 for 6 (20 overs)

Neil Irvine-Hess 2 for 18, Iain Martin 2 for 22

An understrength Penicuik XI proved no match for a very strong Carlton side. Kyle duly lost another toss (why does he call tails when I always give him a double headed coin?), and we took to the field again.

Penicuik ground out the runs, making 71 off 20 overs, with Neil & Iain bagging a brace of wickets apiece. But the highlight was a tremedous running catch in the deep, up the hill by Fraser, when the big hitting Hilton connected with a length delivery from Iain. Special mention to Neil's fellow opening bowler Gair (4 runs from 4 overs), and fine death bowling from Rory (2 runs from 2 overs).

In reply, our opening batsmen treated the crowd to spectacular strokemaking. Kyle hit nine 4s in his 44 not out, and Will contributed five 4s in his 27 not out as we won the match in 9 overs.  

So, onto the Scottish Cup finals day on 27 June, although we may have to do without 2 or 3 of this particular side. Nevertheless, we'll relish the occasion!

Scorecard

123 for 3

Tobyn Fitch-Rabbitt 41*, Will Brown 34

72 all out

Neil Irvine-Hess 3-12, Haris Aslam 2-17

It's always a pleasure to welcome our close neighbours and friends from Watsonians to Grange Loan, and this evening produced a fine match which was a closer contest than the final score may suggest.

We batted first for a change, and the slightly understrength Watsonians attack struck in the first over, when Craig found a top edge to square leg. Nevertheless Kyle & Tobyn moved the score along quickly, until Kyle (18) was yorked by Nimmo. Scotland cap Cash then bowled a very tight spell, and was ably supported by Nimmo & Mackay and only 15 came off the middle 5 overs. However, Carlton had wickets intact and Will & Tobyn accelerated to a 50 partnership before Will holed out to the sub fielder (er, Everett) at mid off. Matt made a quick fire 12*, to complement a very fine innings from Tobyn of 41*.

No Gair or Rory to open our attack, but this spurred on Neil to an excellent performance in dismissing 3 of Watsonians' top order, with Haris trapping Cash leg before amongst his 2 wickets. Our 4 remaining bowlers picked up a wicket apiece but pride of place goes to Kyle, at cover collecting a fiercely struck drive, and fast, accurate return to Wellsy leaving the dangerous Bunker yards short.

This was a fine display by our lads, against a Watsonians side containing some very good players. This match also was played as a League Cup tie, so we progress to a semi final home tie to be played in July.

Scorecard

112 for 4

Will Brown 50 (ret), Kyle Macpherson 43

75 for 8

Chayank Gosain 3 for 14, Tobyn Fitch-Rabbit 2 for 3

Another excellent team performance by the lads.

Kyle chose to bat, and his decision was vindicated as he and Will got us off to a splendid start. After seeing off Scotland opener Chaudray, Will (left) played a faultless innings, with fine strokeplay as he made his way to 50 (retired) including six 4s. Kyle was equally effective, the highlight in an excellent 43 being a hook for 6 from a Turnbull bouncer. But Clydesdale bowling was tight throughout, and once Kyle departed, our middle order found it a bit tough to add quick runs In the last couple of overs. Still, 112 was not bad at all, just a little short of our target.

In reply, Kyle employed seam up from one end (Neil – fine opening spell as always, Fraser  - ‘mr.  economy’) and spin at the other (Haris, Cheeky) and coupled with tremendous team fielding, Clysdedale never looked comfortable. It was the skipper who struck first, being on hand when Neil uncharacteristically spilled a catch off Haris, to fire a throw to Matt to run out the opening bat. Our spinners picked up 6 of the remaining 7 wickets to fall (Fraser’s left arm over accounted for the other), so well done to Cheeky (3), Haris (1) and ‘hooverman’ Tobyn (2). Couple of stumpings for Matt to add to his run out assist, a catch for Dougal, and solid fielding from Iain and Gavin throughout, meant that Carlton won this game comfortably – though not without gritty determination and very good application of their cricketing skills.

The players wish to thank the many supporters who travelled up to Perth from Edinburgh for the day (and well wishers who couldn’t make it), and to Akeel, Ani, Fantasy Bob, Damien & Andy in assisting with preparation & scoring. And to John, as always. Much appreciated.

On the day, rain interrupted, and then put paid to, the cup final against rivals Grange, but we hope to play the match in Edinburgh very soon.

Scorecard

94 for 5

Will Brown 26, D Balfour 24 not out, Haris Aslam 21 not out

103 for 8

Matthew Wells 55, Dougal Balfour 26

Another marvellous cricket match between these 2 sides, saw 10 man Carlton just fall short of the Grange target by 12 runs.

Grange batted first, and we managed to keep them reasonably in check during Neil & Gair’s opening spell. Neil had a rare off night, with a flurry of wide and leg-side deliveries. However there were wickets for each of Gair, Fraser, Haris, Cheeky and young debutant Greg. Indeed all our 3 youngsters did well, with Blair safely pocketing a catch, and fine fielding from Rory throughout. Nevertheless, Grange posted a fair – but not unreachable total – of 115.

Fraser & Dougal were our opening partnership on this occasion, with Fraser gloving one behind in the 1st over. That brought Matt to the crease and with Dougal they embarked upon the partnership of the night. 68 was put on, with Dougal contributing a fine 26. Gair joined Matt, who was then unleashed peppering the boundary with an array of 4s & 6s. With 5 overs remaining and 30 required, we were in with a chance but when Matt fell to an excellent 55, Grange applied the pressure. Our batsmen tried in vain to make the runs required, losing wickets in due course – but whilst unsuccessful this time, the spirit and ability is there.

So, another evening in July, another loss to Grange, but our patchwork side came mighty close. Maybe next time.........

Scorecard

111 for 4

Gair Currie 50 not out

55 all out

Matthew Wells 3 for 6, Haris Aslam 3 for 8 (inc hat-trick)

61 for 2

Ruari Macpherson 31 not out, Craog Everett 20 not out