Teenagers Chayank Gosain, Ruari Macpherson, Haris Aslam and Kyle Stirling all bowled lengthy spells with Ruari and Kyle picking up a wicket apiece. There was also a wicket for Sean Olivier and a runout courtesy of a diving stop from skipper Watts as the visitors closed on 140 for 4 off their 40 overs.

In reply Fraser and Hamish took the score past 60 before retiring. Sandy Scotland got in some practice by sending the coach and Gordon Drummond back to the pavilion, before Kyle also retired after a solid knock and a Jamie Kerr boundary took Carlton past the target.

Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsor: Alan Murray

Kyle S reports ...

Carlton took on Corstorphine in the first group match of the Scottish Cup at Grange Loan.

Carlton fielded a side which had an even mix of youth as well as experience, and with two Carlton 1st team debutants in Hamish Gardiner and Kyle Stirling (below) there were a bit of nerves flying around as well!

Carlton took to the field first and got off to a great start with Corstorphine being held to only 11 runs in the first 10 overs due to some patient work by the bowlers and some good work in the field, with Gordon Drummond picking up two wickets in his first spell to put Carlton well on top.

Good captaincy by Preston Mommsen saw a bowling change with Chayank (below) and Omar applying more pressure which saw Corstorphine on 43-2 after 25 overs.  Preston brought himself on, and this proved to be pivotal as he managed to get two wickets including the Corstorphine professional, who was looking dangerous and proving to be a tough task to handle as he played a very aggressive innings which gave the Corstorphine innings a touch of momentum heading into the final 10 overs.

Sean Olivier then came on at the death to pick up a wicket, with Haris Aslam keeping his nerve bowling at the death to pick up the final wicket with the penultimate ball of the innings, ending Corstorphine's innings on 126 all out.

Carlton's innings got off to a good start with Fraser Watts and Hamish Gardner putting on a good partnership of 36 for the first wicket before Fraser was trapped LBW. That brought captain Preston Mommsen to the crease and he managed to keep the forward momentum going with Hamish as the two looked to build another partnership but this was then broken as Preston was also trapped LBW with the score on 61.

In walked Scotland Captain Gordon Drummond, who rotated the strike nicely at the beginning of his innings allowing his partner to play the expansive and aggressive shots, enabling Hamish to bring up his maiden Carlton 1st XI half century! The match was wrapped up shortly thereafter when Hamish hit a cover drive for six over the wall just as the Lothian 24 bus service drove along Grange Loan ...

Hamish ended a good knock on 65* having been well supported as he and Gordon put on a well worked 66 run partnership.

Carlton with an 8 wicket victory to start off what we hope will be a good season!

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Kyle S reports ...

The Carlton 1st XI travelled west to Prestwick to play the second round of fixtures in the Scottish Cup.

After losing the toss and being asked to bowl first on a very wet and sticky pitch, the Carlton opening bowlers carried on from where they left off last week with Gordon Drummond and Ahmed Shah bowling good lines and lengths, not giving anything away before Gordon got the breakthrough with the batsman edging the ball to second slip.

From that point on Carlton were the only team in the game as all the bowlers managed to get among the wickets, with Captain Preston Mommsen picking up 3 wickets in 2 overs with his offspinners. Youngster Chayank also got two 2 wickets, which saw Prestwick only managing 60 all out.

A change in the batting lineup saw Hamish Gardiner and Kyle Macpherson opening the batting and both batsmen seemed to adjust very quickly to the pace of the wicket as Carlton raced to 50-0 in 11 overs before Kyle was caught with the score on 57.

A cheeky reverse sweep by Jamie Kerr saw him get 2 off his first ball and Hamish finished with another not out on 28*.

Carlton won the match by 9 wickets.

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Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsor: Archie Gray

Our Aussie/Scot Hamish reports …

 

It was a typical freezing cold day at Grange Loan for the much anticipated clash between Carlton and SMRH.  The state of the weather induced many puzzled expressions around the ground.  It was only with a 180° rotation of the newly erected weathervane, into a correct cardinal point orientation, that people finally accepted the fact it was ultimately far too cold and wet to set about playing a summer sport in this kind of glacial environment. 

Nevertheless the men of Carlton, in the knowledge that summer only comes around once a year, set about a much needed warm-up headed by a mandatory game of Old vs Young Fraggleball.  Only shortly after kick-off the rain set in once more forcing the banter indoors.  It was a welcome sight for those who may have played a raincard the night before and members of the ‘Young’ Fraggleball team, who were being comprehensively outclassed in the opening stanza of the contest. No one had the foggiest idea of what would become of the afternoon as the radar continued to change its mind with every stroke of the “refresh” button.   

Thankfully the rain cleared and we drew closer to some cricket action but not before Jamie Kerr registered a magnificent Fraggleball hat-trick.  The Old team exhibited a superior structure of play and understanding of the rules.  However, credit goes to Ali from the Young team for not succumbing to repeated attempts to convince him that there ARE actually boundaries to the playing area.

SMRH batted first and were promptly pinned down in an economical bowling partnership between Ahmad and Drummo.  In his return to Grange Loan, after being called through for a quick single, Cedric English suffered a hamstring injury forcing him to bat with a runner.  Cedric (32) held the innings together with strapping tape while his runner and batting partner did their best to end his defiant knock, the only explanation being that they had turned blind at some point during the innings. 

The Carlton fielders were unable to make the most of a couple of good opportunities, as Omar continued to build the pressure from the clubhouse end aided by the sense of composure Rob Thornton brought to the game.  Cheeky did the damage again with the ball removing English on his way to picking up 4/38; once again his jaffas remained unrewarded.  SMRH limped to 7/159 in their 50 overs

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In reply Fraggle and Kyle MacPherson put together another solid start for Carlton before Watts was trapped lbw.  There was some outstanding hospitality shown towards some of the elder statesmen by a member of the Carlton community shouting approximately 1 x black coffee (no sugar), 1x black coffee (one sugar), 1 x flat white (no sugar), 1 x flat white (one sugar) and, would you believe it, 4 x lucky bags.  Kyle was joined by captain Mommsen who demonstrated an immaculate technique on his way to a classy 66 not out.  His bat and front pad were so close together all innings it may actually have been watertight.  The result of the match was pretty much a foregone conclusion when Kyle registered his maiden 1st XI 50.  It was a mature and positive innings from Kyle, the first of many more to come.  Kyle Stirling came to the crease with Preston and swept the bowling hard.  He swept with great technique and great regularity that it could have been argued that he was trying to make some inroads into the groundwork for the coming week. Together the pair saw Carlton home to a comfortable 8 wicket win.

While it was another good win for Carlton the group know that there is plenty of work to be done in the coming week, ahead of our first T20 on Thursday and Grange on Saturday.

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Hamish reports ...

Carlton travelled out to Linlithgow to face West Lothian in their first T20 of the year. The team for this game resembled a Russian doll arrangement as the side welcomed the talents of some younger players in the absence of several cricketers on international duties. Jamie Kerr won the toss and had no hesitation in batting first considering seven members of the team had only just broken out of Edinburgh peak hour traffic and were still hurtling down the M9. Kerr and Sean Oliver were just about to walk out to open the innings as the team assembled in the dressing rooms.

After the loss of both Sean and Rory McCann early Carlton made slow progress on what was possibly the slowest wicket ever produced. Jamie (91) and Rob Thornton (49) then combined to wreak havoc on the West Lothian bowling, dispatching them to all parts. Rail commuters between Edinburgh and Glasgow were quaking as each shot Kerr played seemed to land closer to the tracks. There was even a slim chance that the West Lothian fielders would suffer minor sunburn to the roofs of their mouths as the bombs continued to rain down. Rob showed how tough Aussie blokes are as he appeared to attempt a record of receiving four falcons in the same innings without a helmet, courtesy of wayward returns from the fielders and the occasional ramp shot. The feature of the innings was simply the quality of the ball striking from the pair which lifted Carlton to a mammoth 5/183 off 20. While it was a brutal display of batting there were plenty of genuine cricket shots for the more traditional cricket fan to savour.

In reply West Lothian capitulated to 9/91 off their 20 overs. All of the bowlers bowled tidily and the catching was top notch, however there was little resistance offered by the batsmen. It was particularly pleasing to see how the young lads led the bowling performance and how well they acquitted themselves in the field. Unfortunately Jamie was unable to singlehandedly win the match off his own bat, having to settle for a tie this time around.

RAINED OFF

Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsor: Angus Mair

Hamish reports ...

Carlton made the long trip up to Aberdeen on a perfect summer day! Heya! 

Aberdeen won the toss and had no hesitation in batting on a pitch which they knew would become tougher to score on as the afternoon progressed. The wicket was slower and lower than a 1980 California Corvette, even though it may not have been in a school zone littered with speed humps. Carlton made a positive start through tight spells of bowling from Drummo, Cheeky and Omar. Preston also bowled well and picked up two important wickets.

The bowling was tighter than the lid of a jar of Douwe Egbert's Pure Gold Coffee which results in approximately 2 tablespoons of coffee being scattered all over the recently cleaned kitchen bench, cleaned with the application of  Dettol Spray Power And Pure Kitchen 750mL variety. The bowlers were backed up in the field through a much improved fielding performance in soggy conditions, soggier than the conditions on a plate of sloppy joe. Thus Aberdeen were restricted to 8/159 off their 50 overs.

Hardly fortified by both sandwiches at tea the Carlton batsmen were hungry to knock off the runs quickly and make their way to Tesco on the corner, in search of a value pack of Yorkie bars which were on special.  Despite losing an early wicket Carlton were on track at 1/70. However a couple of soft dismissals later we found ourselves in a bit of a bun fight. Unfortunately we ended up being bowled out for a disappointing 113 in under 38 overs.

Moving forward we will be looking for a couple of our batsmen in the top order to go on and make big scores in order to support the good bowling and fielding effort up front. 

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Kyle Mac reports ...

It was a lovely sunny and warm start to Saturday promising a good match against local rivals Watsonians. Missing a couple of our international stars and other experienced campaigners the young brigade were called into action. Step forward young guns Ruari, Haris, Ahmad and Coach Matt. Earlier in the season the 1st XI side v West of Scotland became what was believed to be the youngest 1st XI side ever to be fielded by Carlton in its 150 years but with an average age of about 24 Saturday's side went one stage further. 8 of the side on Saturday were aged 22 or younger, scary but exciting stuff! JK must have felt very old indeed!

Prior to the game there had been a tense atmosphere with the young guns preparing themselves mentally for revenge for early season defeats at 'Fraggleball'. However, the old guys feeling a change in the air opted to 'forget' to bring a football bringing great disappointment to the youngsters. It was therefore over to Coach Matt to inspire the team with an exuberant warm up.

Following some truly inspirational fielding drills by the young Carlton side, putting the fear of God into the heart of Watsonians, the toss took place which was lost by Captain Fraggle. Watsonians elected to bat first on what looked like a good batting strip. Ahmed and Ruari opened the bowling and soon Ahmad picked up the first wicket when Hislop edged a drive to Jamie who took a good catch. The young opening bowlers struggled a bit with the left hand right hand combination and a good partnership was formed between Learmonth and Fraser-Harris, who went along quite nicely despite Carlton remaining disciplined in the field. Both players ticked along until 'Big' Kyle anticipated a pull shot from a 'short of a length' delivery from Cheeky which saw Fraser-Harris dismissed for 42.

Carlton continued to fight hard in the field with Omar bowling a very tight accurate spell of 13 excellent overs which brought some control back for Carlton, ably backed up by the reliable Cheeky. Haris too bowled well frustrating the established Learmonth who batted well to score 96 before Jamie pulled off an excellent stumping off Ruari, whose second spell was much tighter as he relaxed a bit and hit good areas and was rewarded with three wickets. His eight overs in the match were double the total number of competitive overs he had bowled all season prior to this match! A good effort little brother!

At the half way stage of the Watsonians innings the young Carlton outfit were staring a big total to chase but they all stuck in well, applying pressure back onto the batsmen who started to panic and lost wickets. A useful partnership involving Wrighty got Watsonians up to a reasonable but gettable 229 for 6 in their 50 overs. Roll on the second innings!

The interval saw both teams getting stuck into some lovely pasta which we hoped would energise the Carlton batters. There was a determination in the camp after our collapse the week before against Aberdeenshire and Captain Fraggle and 'Hot Shot Hamish' (an old Scottish football comic character according to my ancient Dad!) in particular looked focused on the job ahead.

Hamish and Big Kyle set off to the middle whilst the rest of the team assembled in the new players hut. The early overs were tense with Mike Leggett and Stuart Chalmers bowling a nagging length and line. It took until the forth over for the Carlton total to click into action but soon Hamish and Kyle were looking quite comfortable and a few boundaries started to flow across the quick outfield. However after Kyle took 10 off an over with a couple of good boundaries he drove early and was caught at cover for 20 with the score at 43. In walked a focused Fraggle who soon began to rotate the strike quickly with Hamish, both batsmen giving an exhibition of playing with soft hands into gaps for good singles. Both batsmen continued to score consistently, never seeming in any great danger, pinching excellent singles from good deliveries and punishing any loose balls to the boundary. Great viewing for the young Carlton kids back in the hut! However a mix up between the pair saw Hamish run out for an excellent composed 73. Carlton were now 159 for 2.

In strolled the Saffa himself, Kyle Stirling, a young man of many talents from preparing sublime GL wickets with perfect white lines to coaching the club's women's team and then reorganising the Sibcas to a state of order never previously seen! Both Kyle and Fraggle kept scoring at a good rate with Kyle in particular hitting lovely drives through the covers as well as hitting an exquisite 6 over square leg with no effort whatsoever, and all with a Harrow sized bat! Impressive stuff indeed! Fraggle and Kyle continued to put away the bad ball and work the good ball into gaps for singles and they raced through 200 and finished the game with over 6 overs left for an 8 wicket win for the team. Fraggle finished undefeated with an excellently composed 74 and Kyle showed his full range of talents with and excellent and rapid 43 not out.

It was an excellent allround win by the very young team and a good response to the disappointment of Aberdeen with everyone contributing to the team effort particularly in the second half of the Watsonians innings when the team dug deep and stuck in well together. We look forward to next week when we play a tough Heriots side at Grange Loan.

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Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsor: Alastair Ritchie

Omar reports ...

Finally a beautiful day in Scotland, so obviously all the boys were up for a good game against Heriot's. I unfortunately was working and couldn't make the warm up but I heard the old boys won Fraggleball, which is pretty much the only reason Fraggle plays cricket. I hear the boys had a good warm up, the game began ... and I still hadn't arrived as I was having to work late.

Fraggle, really needing some consistent bowling, was getting angry at my late arrival. So I rocked up at 12.20 rushing from work already kitted out to play, I then had to wait a further 20 minutes before I was allowed to bowl as those are the rules, so Cheeky continued his average spell #chinaman.

After the 20 minutes were over I was then allowed to bowl but by that time Cheeky and Drummond had done a very good job in not only keeping the run rate down but taking wickets too. Fraggle was really excited to have me bowl as the last time I played against Heriot's at home I got a 7 for #legend. I had a typical Omar spell, as Cheeky says, bowling 8 overs for 12 runs and 1 wicket. #itsallaboutme.

There was an excellent piece of keeping from JK: Drummond bowls a leg side Yorker making the batsman fall over in his shot from which JK picks it up clean to take a stumping #bestkeeperinscotland. Also a mention for Mr Allardice, as he had a wonderful debut spell for Carlton's 1st Team taking 3 very important wickets. We eventually got them to 140 for 7 with some good tight bowling.

Our batsmen then went out with a lot of confidence as they only had 141 to get, Kyle Mac was very good as usual and Hamish also, but as it happens wickets began to fall, then comes Fraggle who has been in good form and had seen us home at Watsons but typically he gets out nicked to deep mid-on #hittheballharderchamp!

Kyle Stirling and Drummond saw us home with some big hitting and overall it was a good performance by Carlton. #skyblues

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With the rain that had been forecast for most of the week nowhere to be seen, the barbecue was fired up and a healthy crowd poured in to Grange Loan for our 150th anniversary T20 challenge match with our old friends from Grange.

Carlton, batting first, soon lost Kyle Stirling, but a rapid second wicket partnership between the in-from Hamish Gardiner and Jamie Kerr got the innings off to a flyer before Jamie was out for an attractive 27. New boy Rory McCann was making a rare outing for Carlton and he entertained the crowd with an array of attacking shots before he perished on 32. Hamish eventually holed out after making a fine 57, which had held the innings together.  The Grange bowling was disciplined in the second half of the innings with Maiden and Routray impressing and Carlton might have been a little disappointed with their final total of 135 for 6.

The total looked well in reach after a first over which saw 15 runs posted, 12 of them coming from three crashing Gordon Goudie boundaries. However, the introduction of Cheeky turned the game on after he bowled a hugely impressive first over. First, a beautifully flighted delivery caused Munsey to miscue and then he beat the bat of the advancing Goudie, leaving Jamie with plenty of time to take the bails off. Cheeky returned to dismiss Simon Smith in identical fashion, while at the other end skipper Mommsen was getting some dramatic turn on his way to three wickets himself. Jamie picked up a third stumping to dismiss Gregor Maiden and Toby showed he’s not quite over the hill yet with a stunning one handed catch at slip as Grange subsided to 57 all out.

A successful evening on and off the field for Carlton. Many thanks to all our volunteers for their hard work, especially the barbecue team, and to Bobby Frazer and all at Grange for their part in a great evening.

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Kyle S reports ...

Saturday the 15th of June saw Carlton taking on arguably the league's toughest opponents in a top of the table clash against a very strong Arbroath team.

8:30 (8:40 for Omar) was the meeting time at Grange Loan ahead of our 2 hour journey which turned into 2.5 hours as Kyle Stirling's google maps decided to take us on the scenic and rather long route before being released of its task to the much preferred directions from the reliable Cheeky! Before long we were on our way, speeding down the A90 on our way to Arbroath with Preston who had just over half the team in his van which proves just how young the Carlton 1st team is this season as we fielded a team that had 5 players under the age of 20.

The day started with the 'oldies' once again pulling off a resounding 3-0 win over the 'youngies' in a rather one sided affair of Fraggleball. Carlton were put in the field first and after some good aggressive bowling from our openers it was Omar who managed to get the first wicke, drawing an edge from the batsman that carried comfortably to slip. Arbroath went about their job with a rather aggressive approach to the young Carlton bowling line-up but having lost wickets at regular intervals saw themselves posting 236-6 in their 50 overs.

Carlton Openers Kyle M and Hamish got us off to yet another good start with the first wicket partnership lasting 36 runs before Kyle M was unfortunate enough to lose his wicket. In came Preston who showed his fighting spirit and together with Hamish managed to put on a brilliant 2nd wicket partnership in which Hamish managed to reach his first Century of the year with a superb knock of 101 before getting out trying to knock the runs off quickly. Fraggle and Kyle S made quick work of the remaining runs earning Carlton another victory by 6 wickets with Preston scoring 71* and bagging 4-40 with the ball.

A great all round performance from the lads!

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Frallardice reports ...

The 1sts set off from a damp Grange Loan in search of sunnier climates, so what better place to look than Stoneywood-Dyce, Aberdeenshire?  On the way up, the bus stopped to pick up a hitch-hiker outside Forfar in the shape of Drummo.  Arriving at the ground, the team were struck by the barbed wire fencing on one side and expanse of Aberdeen Airport on the other.  A day of aviation-related puns was on the cards. 

The customary young-versus-old Fraggleball warm-up held the first surprise of the day: a win for the youngies (come on lads!).  The attack from the oldies never really took off and the youngies scraped through with a 2-1 win, despite the considerable disadvantage of having Stirlo on the team.

Having lost the toss and been put into bat, the Firsts knew that it would be far from ‘plane’ sailing, given the potentially treacherous wicket.  As feared, the top order experienced some turbulence, with openers Kyle and Hamish going cheaply.  From there, Preston at 3 made a good effort of piloting the team through the rebuilding process, getting a start but falling to star bowler A Gill (13-4-37-4).

Now the hitch-hiker, batting at 6, stepped into the cockpit of the innings to navigate the team through.  Drummo accumulated well, supported by a cameo from No. 7, to be referred to only as JK (because his mother reads these reports).  Drummo got himself in and got hold of the bowling, sending a six high over the wall and onto the airfield.  This caused panic in the air traffic control room at Aberdeen Airport, as the ball had shown up on radar and was thought to be a small aircraft which had come from nowhere and was going to crash-land on the runway.

Drummo departed for a crucial 65, which left specialist 10 and 11 Cheeky and Ahmed ‘Chinstrap’ Shah, to see us through the 50 overs.  Kyle Stirling’s disappointment at his failure with the bat was then compounded as he was out-scored by Cheeky; a truly emasculating experience for any batsman.  Cheeky, of course, displayed kind sensitivity and did not rub in the humiliation…

Being bowled out on the last delivery of the innings, Carlton finished with 184 – a very competitive score on the unpredictable wicket –  giving Stoneywood a required cruising altitude of 3.7 runs per over.  At tea, JK gave the team a lesson in changing room etiquette which would not be forgotten in a hurry, nor would it be shared with readers of the match report (because his mother reads them).

Opening bowlers Drummo and Chinstrap got the defence off to a flyer, taking 2 and 3 wickets respectively in their first spells.  After his third wicket, Ahmed allowed his testosterone to boil over with a full-blooded, Dale Steyn-esque fist pump.  The entertaining celebration later cause him some discomfort, as the strain of throwing his entire body into it meant that he got cramp on the bus ride back, which was hilarious to everybody but himself and provided great in-flight entertainment for the return journey.

With Dyce faltering at 26-5, young spinners Frallardice and Cheeky took it upon themselves to make things more interesting and let the batting side back into the match, allowing the Conradie twins to put together a partnership of 80 (we knew that they were twins because they used to play rugby with Stirlo’s cousin).  Eventually it was decided that the game was now interesting enough, and team Drummond/Gosain saw to the demise of both brothers, leaving the required rate poised at just under fours.  The match was still very much up in the air.

The pressure was on in the final overs, especially with Stoneywood-Dyce CC sledging the fielders via Twitter.  Their ball-by-ball updates mentioned that Kyle Stirling (who shall remain nameless) dropped an “absolute dolly at square leg.” He probably went to school with the batsman or something.

Oblivious to the online sledging taking place, Cheeky (12.5-0-43-3) and debutant Mo Ahmed Wheels (9-0-32-1) bowled very tightly at the death, building pressure which led to the vital wicket of Willemse for 33.  The pair then finished off the tail, leaving Stoneywood six runs short. 

On the coach journey back some of the players (Fraggle) enjoyed the victory to its fullest extent, and were advised not to speak to their parents when they got home.  It was an exciting win and good to see the youngsters holding their nerve in the clutch, backed up by another excellent performance from Drummo.  Carlton are now flying high at second in the table.

 

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Cheeky reports ...

Pink ball cricket was back and the Ones were away at inverlieth against RH Corstorphine as their ground was unavailable due to some drainage work being done.

Pre game the youngies were dominating Fraggleball for the first time. The change in the team lineups meant that Stirlo was now classed as an oldie. The youngies camp was now fired up and eager to go as they were now the favorites to win. The boys were merciless as they added another injury to Hamish's already long list thus crippling him for the day. The final score was 2-1 to the youngies.

Carlton took the field with a gentle breeze across the pitch. Momo wheels opened up with moon man Ahmad. Corstorphine started off well as the bowlers struggled to control the lines. However, two quick wickets, which included a smart catch from Allardice who decided to show boat and run past the ball to make the catch harder for himself, meant that the Pro and the coach were now at the crease. Haris, Wheels and McCann bowled satisfactorily. However, the hard hitting pro reached his hundred off the last over from only 87 balls! Not quite as entertaining as Chayank's 35 during the week, which he will tell you all about over some lucky bags. (only if you are buying)

Corstorphine ended up on 239 for 7 and it was our turn to bat. The chase began solidly as per. The famous DJ Ru MaCs brother Kyle (moon man 2) and the crippled Aussie boy smashed it up front. Mention to moon man 2 for using his iniative and asking Hamish if it was a free hit or not when the umpire had just signaled a free hit.

After a rain interruption, the revised chase was 210 off 41. With wickets in hand the chase was on. However, after the loss of Kyle and Hamish the required run rate began to pick up slowly as the batters struggled to keep the scoreboard ticking over and lost wickets at crucial times. Despite a slogging 42 from Sir Fraser Watts (it was either Sir or Tiger) and a fine 6 runs with a 100% strike rate from Chayank, the run rate required was just too much. Carlton ended up on 176 all out.

Shout out for Gavin Rittoo for his birthday coming up and he has managed to avoid doing the match report for another year. Top effort.

P.S. “Someone” dropped another dolly again.

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Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsor: Jill Millar

The 1s welcomed Prestwick to Grange Loan on a scorching Saturday of cricket in an attempt to bounce back from the previous week's disappointment in the Cup. Upon return from International Duty and school, young guns Drummo and Stevie Gilmour added much needed strength and depth to the "Oldies" withering side in "Fraggleball." The "Youngies" continued on from last weeks convincing 2-1 win with an early 2-0 lead courtesy of Psycho Kyle Mac and new found prodigy, Stirlo. Reminiscent of Mark Fish in his prime Stirlo was running riot. However some big and very questionable calls from corrupt referee and player Fraggle caused confusion in the "Youngies" defence which as a result leaked in 3 below average goals. Ji Sung Park Ahmad Shah's attempts to maul the treacherous referee were in vain as another 2 goals were trickled in. A great performance from the "Youngies" no less as they were a man down throughout the duration of the match. 

Finally finding some form in the coin toss our captain put us into bat with Kyle and Hamish getting things underway. With 50 runs coming from the first 5 overs things were looking very promising. With a first wicket stand of 143 and both players reaching their 50's in quick succession, Hamish was the first to fall on 79 bringing Stevie G to the crease. A cameo 45 from Stevie and Kyle continuing to play effortless drives through the covers, a big score looked to be set. It did not take Kyle too long after this to reach his first career 100 after a fine innings. Kyle must remember for future games to have throwdowns at 11:59 more often. Kyle S and Haris finished off the innings and brought the score past 300 with some big hitting and defaults shot to leave a very formidable score of 340. 

During the innings break, Chayank Gosain graced us with his presence and quick wit as he was unable to play due to a broken fingernail. 

With the early breakthrough coming for Drummo in his first over and searing boomerangs from Mo Ahmed, Carlton were off to the perfect start in the 2nd innings. This was followed up by space cadet Ahmad Shah who picked up a fine 4 wicket haul in quick succession. 1 wicket from Haribo Aslam at the other end left the tail for Omar Ahmad to hoover up as he does best with 3 wickets (leg stump...leg stump...leg stump probably missing) in 1.4 overs. 

A great effort from the entire team and a congratulations to Kyle Mac for his first century of many to come over the years ahead. A special mention goes to Sam Marchbank who performed 12th man and water boy duties in a professional manner. 

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With both teams locked on 8 points this was a winner take all match with a Scottish Cup Quarter Final place at stake. With the team Fraggleless, the match report can happily go directly to a description of the game without an in-depth discussion of the pre-match Fraggleball.

Also missing for Carlton was Cheeky, rested for the second week in a row. Rumours that he has been dropped following his disappointing match report on the Corstorphine game have not been denied by Carlton directors.

Mo Ahmed opened the bowling downhill and made an early breakthrough in the 6th over with a successful lbw shout before Omar induced a poor shot in the very next over to give Drummo a simple catch at gully to leave West on 17 for 2.

Another couple of wickets from a typically miserly Omar, had West toiling before skipper Mommsen contributed three quick wickets, including a trademark c&b to put West in deep trouble at 75 for 7. A rally from the experienced duo of Blain and McNulty did at least take the home side over 100 before Preston, Haris & Drummo each picked up a wicket to dismiss West for just 126 in the final over.

Kyle Mac cracked a couple of stylish boundaries before edging one behind from McNulty. With West’s young opener injuring himself after a fall, veteran Blain took up the duties from the pavilion end and he had immediate success when Preston got a taste of his own medicine as the bowler stuck out a hand to grab one hit straight back at him. 26 for 2 as Stirlo swaggered his way to the wicket to join Hamish.

With McNulty also doing himself an injury, the West attack became a tale of dramatic contrasts. Blain, bowling a fiery spell down the hlll, with the v--e--r--y    s----l---o---w lobs of Gilchrist at the other. There was no doubt which end Stirlo preferred – happy to take on the testosterone charged Blain rather than wait impatiently for the ball to travel 22 yards from the hand of Gilchrist. More than once he lived a little dangerously but stuck it out in true grit fashion to build a steady partnership with Hamish who, as usual, looked quite unperturbed and was batting confidently against both bowlers.

Eventually, Kyle was undone by a smart piece of thinking and bowling from Blain. An extra slip put in and then a delivery fired in short at the body, which Stirlo could only glove to the keeper. Ali also succumbed to Blain before JK found himself narrowly run out by 20 yards following a mix up.

Hamish passed his 50 and Drummo pulled a couple to the boundary in the last of Blain’s 13 overs – bowled unchanged in the atypically searing Glasgow heat – to see Carlton home by 5 wickets.

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Cheeky reports ...

Another sunny day and Carlton were away at SMRH for the second time this season. Reports suggest it could be the coldest ground in the history of cricket. 

Carlton found themselves in the field and got off to a great start as ex Carlton player and prize wicket Cedric was caught by a genuine Jaffa down the leg side off Rob’s bowling. After this genuine delivery came a genuine run out thanks to the Aussie boy.

Omar was the surprise call up for this game as statistics show he has been short of wickets this season. Once again he was satisfactory, picking up 2 wickets. Frallardice went hoovering about once more and picked up 3 wickets, all nicked off on the boundary. Top effort from him. 

At teas, I did not expect to put on my pads let alone have a bat as the chase was 121 to win.

We started off with Hamo and Kylo batting - very test match as usual. After the loss of the two Carlton were 33 for 2.

Now what happened next I cannot describe as we were soon 42 for 5 as Preston, Stirlo and Drummo were out cheaply thus leaving it to Fraggle and JK to build a partnership. After some crucial runs Fraggle dragged one onto his stumps. Score now 88 for 6.

Still haven't got my pads on as I have faith in JK and Rob ...

Score now 109 for 7 and Rob has also played on.

Still have faith in Frallardice and JK to get 12 runs ...

10 runs later I find myself going into bat after Frallardice had missed a straight one.

It’s 2 to win and I’m with boom boom Omar. We clearly knew our options … which was to wait for the bowler to bowl a wide.

After 4 maidens the tension was building but we stuck to our plan and it finally paid off. A great relief for the team as we had just avoided a crisis for the second time this season. 

Special mention to Omar for managing to stick in with me in that tense situation after playing and missing at 5 in a row. 

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Drummo reports ...

Game 2 of the weekend and the boys were looking forward to a Scottish Cup quarter final visit from Dumpellier. Everyone was hoping for a clearer cut victory than the previous day, which was won heroically by Cheeky Gosain’s legendary tactics of ‘waiting for the wide’.

It was another gloriously sunny day in Auld Reekie and the wicket looked good and the outfield brown due to the inclement weather we had been having. The day started with the usual game of Fraggle ball, once again won by the oldies.  The vision, maturity and ability to deal with pressure was evident in abundance during the game; the fact that Stirlo plays for them helps us too.

Back to the cricket. Preston won the toss and elected to bat first which turned out to be a sensible decision and the view of most of the team apart from Omar who didn’t really care.  Hamish and Kyle started the innings at pace and continued the form they have shown all season in what has been a fantastic new partnership for the club.

 Kyle was first to depart bringing Preston (I’m in red ink mood) Mommsen to the crease.  Preston set about boring the crowd to tears (below) for 20 overs and inviting Hamish to step up the pace.  Hamish departed for his usual jug avoiding 70 odd leaving a straight one.   A contributing factor to this - which we found out later – was that he was late for his 3rd instalment of Skype with his missus for the day. 

The job was left to everyone else bar Preston to step up the pace, the innings finally closed on 249 which was felt by the home side as being defendable.  Preston meanwhile was distraught at giving his wicket away in the last over playing an overly aggressive chip to mid-on.

After tea it was up to the bowlers to pile the pressure on the confident Coatbridge crew.  Drummond (that’s me) charged in from the nets end bowling a quick spell of 65mph seamers, deceiving the batsmen (below) with seam and swing snapping up 4 vital wickets, one of which a deceptively easy looking caught and bowled that in the end required a solid dive.  At the other end MoMo kept things tight bowling to a plan of being cut up the hill but it not going for 4.

After a quiet spell and signs of fatigue in Drummond, P decided a change was in order, bringing on Frallardice who is a canny wee bowler bamboozling batsmen by bowling straight spinners.  Fraser grabbed his first wicket to a stunning catch at short 3rd man; this led to a procession of wickets for the young spinner who ended up with figures of 5-54. Each of these cheered loudly by Cheeky and the Primark crew who were there to support the 2nd innings after an afternoon shopping on Princes Street.

After a late flurry from 10 and 11 Drumpellier finished on 145 all out.  It was another good performance and weekend for the 1st team in which they showed character to come away with 2 victories.  With results going our way in the league the guys are now looking forward to a trip to Stagpark at the weekend to continue the good form.

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Fraggle reports ...

Our day, very much like the weather, started brightly but finished badly.

The pre match game of Fraggleball was marked by an exceptional performance from the usually inept Stirling who kept out a number of rasping shot from oldies' frontman and all round good player Watts. Watts did score what is already being described as goal of the season by some pundits but it wasn't enough to stop the youngies winning their first Fraggleball match of the season. It reminds me of the story I was once told about the blind squirrel finding the chestnut......

We bowled first on what was a greenish deck that did enough if you stuck it in the right areas. After a bright start from Jamie Kerr behind the stumps, leaping and diving like a fresh salmon, Grange hit a few boundaries amongst swings and misses with some good bowling from Drummo and Mo going unrewarded until Mo swung one back into Munsey who forgot to swing and let the ball hit his pads much to the delight of the brilliant Kerr behind the stumps. Kerr was instrumental in the wicket and should be given all the plaudits.

The wicket slowed the Grangemen down with Omar and Drummo stemming the flow of boundaries and picking up the odd wicket along the way. Omar is still looking for his first proper wicket of the year after once again having someone caught at cow. Roarsie McCann took a wicket and dedicated it G Mac who was watching in the crowd. Watts was reprimanded for giving passing spectators (Bailey and Big Ec) some advice and autographs on the boundary before shelling a catch that, had it been taken, would have been catch of the century.

Watts: reprimanded for ignoring autograph hunters

Allardice once again came on and took three for, which is becoming quite boring for the rest of us. He bowled well during the middle overs and towards the end when the slog was on. Then we had tea which was super duper, I had fruit salad for starters, some sandwiches and sausages for the middle course and some more fruit salad and ice cream for pudding. That was followed up with a few cakes to wash down the ice cream.

The batting started brightly with Jamie Kerr doing a good supporting role from the sidelines with dart in hand. He applauded, hollered and gave a good dose of appreciation to the two batters at the crease which I am sure would have made them feel much better. We started off quite well but lost wickets in clusters as the run rate stagnated a bit. Hamish got out pulling to Raj Roundtree, his landlord, which he wasn't too happy about. Raj was a sight to behold and didn't bowl too badly either. Drummo came in and smoked a few but then armageddon arrived and denied both Drummo and me certain centuries, Drummo stranded on 20 and me on 12. Heartbreak for both of us. Cricket can be a cruel game.

The rain arrives to cruelly deny Watts, just 88 short of his century

After the rain break the wicket and ground was a bit wet so, despite Preston's arguing with everyone who was there that we should go back on, the umpires called the game off and Grange won. But that's the way it goes sometimes and if we are honest we didn't really play well enough to justify winning the game so, although we can say the rain stuffed us, it didn't really, we did that.

We then had a few beers and chatted about the game before Man of the Match Jamie Kerr went home as he had a skateboard competition to compete in the next morning. He came second with a double olley backflip.

 

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Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsor: Colin Campbell

Rob reports ...

THe Carlton boys took on a confident Aberdeen line up in the first of three crucial matches in four days that would test the teams strength in depth and character,

With run machines the Skipper and the Champ en route to the Oval to take on Tremlett and co and Cheeky and Stirlo away with Scotland U19s there were big jobs for Ali Shah, Irish international McCann, a couple of teenagers and an ancient Aussie.

Stand in skipper Frag won the toss and took first use of a good deck and started well with Kyle Mac, particularly against the teenage young Aussie wheels merchant, until Kyle fended one off his face to slip.

McCann took an easy single to get off the mark and looked good for 13 then Ali Shah tried to put the pro over the wall and missed. This brought our super mega legends together (below) and, not for the last time over the weekend, they settled in for a quality partnership. Frag serenely passed 50, and the rest of the batting line up began to take their pads off and order some drinks and enjoy the master-class. Then out of nowhere DFW had one of those bat-pad-stumps numbers off their leggie, Drum top edged trying to put the rapid bloke over the wall, Fraz was still on his backlift when his middle stump went and JK went LB reverse sweeping the pro having been more out normal sweeping him the ball before. 163-7 - trouble, and the chaps on the boundary who had seen it all before remarked 'we'll take 200 here'.

But Ru Mac and the veteran Aussie used their combined 55 years of experience to get it to 200 before the slightly more experienced one who had been scoring in all areas from third man, all the way round to backward point tried to play straight and paid the price. Not to worry, Ru Mac and Mo, despite his 'dodgy contact lens' got us to 222.

Momentum was with us, even more so with two early run outs from Omes and Fraz. Their big opener played an 'entertaining' cameo before finding Ali off Omes.

The pro nicked one and I am not going to say who dropped it, or that it was a 'turning point' because (a) we all drop 'em sometimes - the same bloke caught an identical one 24 hours later, (b) I am scared of him and (c) no-one can fault the effort and energy he put in all weekend carrying our bowling attack on his massive shoulders - the Scottish Siddle.

As usual Omes (below) gave nothing away, but the pro played some awesome shots off Fraz and the geriatric Aussie served up some pies (they would work the next day), so our big rampant lion came back on and hauled us back into the contest. Running in to the soundtrack of Flower of Scotland being played on the pipes he knocked two over and a couple more run outs helped.

Their pro passed a hundred then skied Omes to KyleMac, the king of the hill - 221-9, one over to go! It was made even more exciting when we realised the Aussie pensioner couldn't bowl last so to young Fraz we turned.

I am sure thousands of you will remember a couple of weeks ago Cheeky and Omes waited about five overs for a wide to win us the game? Well, what goes around comes around and they only had to wait one ball as Fraz went for the arm-ball to No11 - it grazed leg stump, but these days, I'm afraid, that's a wide and after poking at a couple he lobbed one over mid-wicket and we'd blown it.

Shoulda, woulda, coulda. However, you learn from your mistakes, live to fight another day, and we all went home to our beds determined that the next day's Scottish Cup semi would be COMPLETELY different...

 

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Fraggle reports ...

I think this game was quite a coming of age for Carlton as a club. Not because we won a cup semi final against a good Clydesdale team but because every man in our largely inexperienced side made a significant contribution and stood up to be counted when required.

We gave Ali Shah a defined role [lesson learned by skipper] which was to open the batting and get us off to a quick start, which he did. He took on the might of Safyaan Sharif and Mo Afzal and took the game to them, swinging hard (sometimes a bit hard but that is a WIP) and really setting out our stall which was we are coming for you. Ali and Kyle set up a steady platform from which we could get to our eventual total of 218 which put us firmly in the game. Kyle only got 12 or so but batted for c14 overs and took the brunt of the Sharif and Afzal onslaught which, whilst ungainly at times, [who cares] was a big contributor to us winning the game. Unfazed by the ball beating the bat he just stuck to his guns and did what he could to set up the game. An opener’s job.

McCann came and went but those who know him, know he will soon be in the runs. A pure shotmaker who has nicked a couple recently, he is an exciting talent who I look forward to watching when in full swing. We all go through patches when we nick everything but the great thing about that is you then nick one that goes for 4 and you are away……. And good luck to the opposition when McCann does that.

Drummo then came to the crease and showed why he should be / have been batting at 7/ 8 for Scotland for the past however many years. He batted sensibly and pushed the score on through the middle overs with a mixture of deft touches into gaps, pure timing [over the wall into Wans car!] and some power bludgeons. His 70 formed a solid middle inning partnership with yours truly that allowed the middle / late order to come in and play with freedom.

Indeed, the mighty Kerr came in and whacked a couple before nicking off (below) to deep square to a ball that nibbled away a bit. At 137-5 we found ourselves in one of those positions where you capitulate and get 180 all out and lose or you get a gritty 218 and win. Thankfully we did the latter. Robbie T showed why his experience is invaluable in our young side by crafting a crucial 26 and guiding the other lower order batsmen to enable us to get to our total. Ruari came in and showed the brilliant composure of Saturday only to nick off to the spinner but showed why he wants to play a good level of cricket [and will]. Mo and Frallardice then pushed us from what looked like 190 to 218 with some lusty hitting and energetic running. How crucial…

Lunch was super duper but I won’t talk about it this time. I have far more interesting things to talk about……….

Drummo opened up with Fraz and showed why his is still one of the best bowlers in Scotland by nipping out the previous day’s centurion Sharif and the Dale Pro (below) in the first few overs. As a skipper there is no better feeling than to know you have Drummo in the ranks to bowl when you really need him. I am no selector but if I was skippering Scotland in a game we needed to win, his name would be the first on the teamsheet……..and batting at 7 / 8! We have discussed this already!

Fraz opened with Drummo and did a sterling job of containing the dale batters in the early overs. A perfect start. Then dale came back as I knew they would with Kaz Farid smashing some wayward bowling to all parts and building a useful partnership with youngster Scobie who looked good. Prior to this he formed a good partnership with young Luthra who looks like he could be something if he applied himself. It is good to see Clydesdale thriving with some good juniors coming through and performing on the senior stage. They are reaping the rewards of the junior seeds they have sown. Long may it continue.

But back to Fraz….with Cheeky away with the U19s Fraz took centre stage on the spinning front in this crucial match. It was a joy to have Cheeky coming through last year and the year before when he supplemented Drummo and became one of our goto bowlers (the captain’s dream – someone you can count on when the chips are down). Cheeky has become the premier spinner at the club and we are excited that he is away with the senior sides on regular occasions this year. Long may that continue too! But when Cheeky is away we are lucky to have other youngsters who can fill the void and who will indeed push him in years to come. Fraz, contrary to his waif like figure, is a fighter who was turned himself (with help from Drummo) into a really good left arm spinner in the best part of two years. Spinning competition is healthy and we have that in abundance at Carlton. Cheeky, Fraz, Haris, Ferg, Me (I’m actually a very good spinner too……….just ask people (me))!) are only a small example of what we have coming through……

Anyway, Fraz, 1-39 in 13. Just good bowling that deserved more. He was a key bowler who did what he needed to do [which is what you want in the big games]. Some might have thought his confidence could have been knocked by Aberdeen’s pro the day before who hit some magnificent shots off Fraz, but no…the little Tom Daley wannabe stood up and was counted.

The game was drifting away from us with some lacklustre bowling at times but then golden arm Robbie T came on and took wickets at the right times. Two magnificent leg cutters accounted for dangermen Farid and then Scobie who both nicked off to beautiful deliveries and were caught by Kyle at deep square up the hill……two ballsy catches when the pressure was on. [obviously when I say nicked off I was being sarcastic……..they were rank long hops that should still be travelling skywards as you read……but we will take them].

So, dale got close and looked to be cruising with only 40 to win off 10 overs with 3 wickets in hand before Fraz came back and took a brilliant one handed catch to set us on our victory march again. Scobie and Ali then whacked a couple and the equation was 17 from 4 overs…….should be an easy chase. Then Robbie nicked off Scobie (see above) to deep square and then LBW howazatted the no 11 to hysterical celebrations from the Carlton massive!!!!

Scottish Cup Final here we come! My first for Carlton………..I am very excited…….!

In Cheeky style, shout out to all the supporters who must have a lot more grey hairs than they started the day with……

And big shout out to Omy who had words with who he needed to to ensure luck was on our side..........

These are the days you remember and cherish…….the days when fruits of your labour (not my labour I should point out) ripen and bear fruit. In the cup semi final. One more game to go when I know our big players will step up to the plate … ably supported by the new breed.

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Match Drawn

After the drama of the weekend there was the chance of a slightly more relaxed but still very competitive 'timed' fixture to mark the club's 150th anniversary. With the majority of our teenagers on regional or national duty the average age of the Carlton side was a tad higher than of late, and it was one of the 'more experienced' brigade who started the game off in style with a stunning one handed diving catch in the covers to catch a Calum MacLeod rocket. Take a bow Rob Thornton. Unfortunately, our photographer missed it so you'll just have to take our word for it.

That was as good as it got for Carlton in the morning session as Craig Wallace and Richie Berrington put together a fine partnership. Berrington was in particularly destructive mode as the lack of the normal Gosain/Allardice spin options for skipper Mommsen was exposed, racing to an exhilirating 108 off just 91 balls before retiring to enjoy a sumptuous lunch to the full.

After negotiating tables laden with food and wine reminiscent of a Tudor banquet it was no surprise that there were no seamers willing to bowl up the hill in the second session. Step forward man on a diet Toby Bailey who came charging in, proving that he has all the facial expressions of a genuine fast bowler, swinging the ball prodiguously (albeit three yards wide of off stump). Although he finished his spell wicketless, he was soon in the game, taking a sharp slip catch when a fine delivery from Mo Ahmed caught the edge of Wallace's bat on 62.

The declaration came after 48 overs with the score on 291 for 6, and Carlton openers Watts and Gardiner negotiated the remainder of the session to go into tea on 36 without loss.

After tea Fraggle took the initiative, racing to 42 before perishing going for another big shot. The loss of McCann, Mommsen and Gilmour in quick succession didn't faze Hamish as he kept pushing the score along, supported well by an excellent cameo from Jamie Kerr (40). Even when Hamish was undone by Iqbal for a classy 94, Rob Thornton also played his shots before departing for 31 and numbers 9 and 10, Mo and Omar, kept hitting right to the end as Carlton finished with a creditable draw on 263 for 8.

A fine game for a fine occasion.

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Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsor: Alan Kemp

Frallardice reports ...

An overcast day saw Carlton play host to Watsonians, who were making a late surge in the table.  Pre-match Fraggleball resulted in a crushing defeat of the young team, even with the return of key players big-time Gosain and anything-but-big Stirlo.

Despite losing the toss Carlton were able to bat first. Before the start of play, JK gave another famous lesson in changing room etiquette, this time describing to us the two things more unsociable than eating a boiled egg in a small room full of people.

Hamish, returning from Saltires duty, walked out with Kyle, returning from A&E where his brother, DJ RuMac, was being treated for an acute case of fainting in the shower and banging his face off the sink (he is fine now, otherwise the description of his accident would have been a little more sensitive).

Both openers did well against some accurate bowling, ticking the scoreboard along steadily until both fell to good balls having made promising starts.  Out went Preston to play himself in, and Stirlo to whack a few up the hill, realise they weren't going to the fence, and then scurry up and down as fast as his little legs would carry him.  Kyle's cameo ended and brought big Drummo to the crease. He and Preston built a solid partnership which set the team up for a possible 250+ score. Unfortunately, Gordon was out for a well-made 41 and Preston, having batted very well for his 69, skied one to square leg while trying to push things along  towards the end.  This left Rory and Jamie to bat with the tail to get the team to a competitive 230-8.  A highlight of the innings was Omar's 15 off 7 to end the innings - comfortably a career high score.

After tea, Preston's ploy of opening with himself against the two left-handers worked extremely well, as he took 3 quick wickets up top. Drummo tied up the other end, beating the bat time after time without reward, and contemplating taking up off-spin in search of easier wickets.  First change bowlers Cheeky and Fraser managed to keep things fairly tight, with Fraser taking the wicket of number 5 batsman, O'Connell, just as he and Easton were beginning to form a significant partnership.

At 73-4, Watsonians looked to be seriously struggling.  However, Easton was in no mood to lie down and stuck in, putting on 59 with Hislop for the 5th wicket before Drummo was finally rewarded with the LBW of Hislop.  With frustrating stubbornness, Easton formed yet another partnership, and he and Chalmers looked to have the run rate under control.  These partnerships were persistently growing back on the home side, much like weeds.  It was vital that we got rid of the root of the weed (Easton), rather than simply cutting  at the stems  (other batsmen) and waiting for a new weed (partnership) to spring up in place of the last.  With this vague horticultural metaphor in mind, Preston resolved to dismiss Easton (below) for a hard-fought 55, thereby hopefully getting rid of any dangerous partnerships/weeds from springing up on Carlton's league bid/garden.

Though the danger man was gone, the required run rate was still within reach for the Watsonians lower order.  The crowd were in no mood for the drama of the previous weekend, so luckily Cheeky and Preston closed the game out with a flurry of wickets, leaving Cheeky with 2 and Preston with a match-winning 5-35.

A good win keeps Carlton in contention for the league title, and gives us good momentum going into next week's clash with Heriot's.

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Mo reports ...

Saturday was a day to forget and later remember for the "Youngies" select. When Fraggleball commenced Chayank Gosain's return did not bring hope or joy. It brought despair as his poor touch and inability to pass a football cost the team dearly. Being a man down and receiving unsporting-like slander from the "Oldies" left Kyle and company in distress. The opposition's leading poacher and diver, Fraggle was also on hand to put this game well out of reach of the "Youngies" with some horrific tackling and studs up challenges. Stalwarts Stirlo and Frallardice played their parts as always but it just wasn't enough.

Play had been restricted by a few hours due to some heavy rain and the conditions led to a 31 over a side match. Heriots were put in to bat first and a breakthrough came in the first over with Mo Ahmed trapping Steve Knox down the leg side with frightening pace causing the batsman to crush his own stumps. However a good start was not followed by a strong middle period, which has unfortunately been the case over the past few weeks, as the middle order got Heriots to a commanding position with the scores at 90-4 after 20 overs. Cheeky may be the world's worst Fraggleball player ever seen, but he should definitely stick to cricket as his tight bowling at the death alongside the ever reliable Drummo restricted Heriots to 132 in the last 10 overs. 

A revised total of 132 was set and Kyle and Fraggle (below) got things off to a good start however a few quick wickets brought the scores to 42-3.

Once again it was left to Drummo to see us to the finish line as more wickets fell at the other end. To Omar Ahmad's dismay, his suggested tactics of leaving every ball hoping there would be some wides proved unsuitable in this situation. Instead Drummo would smoke 10 in 3 balls and then leave a wide after some support from Mo's Chinese cutting.

This win would give us momentum going into what could be the clubs biggest weekend of the Summer. With a must win home game against Arbroath on the Saturday then to Stirling on Sunday to face old foe Grange in the Scottish Cup Final.

 

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Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsor: Bill Borthwick

In a game that Carlton had to win to keep their title hopes alive, skipper Watts won the toss at an overcast Grange Loan and decided to have a bowl.

 

Openers Ford and McLean got things off to a steady start for Arbroath, reaching 71 in the 19th over before Mclean was caught at slip off the bowling of Omar Ahmad. Australian amateur Bartlett tried to add some punch to the innings, attacking from the outset before finding the safe hands of Drummo off the bowling of fellow Aussie Rob Thornton for 8. Rob then bowled Fraser Burnett with a beauty to leave Arbroath on 96 for 3 in the 26th over.

 

Calvin Burnett then joined Ford to steady the ship and the pair added 49 before Burnett was deceived by Drummo and skied one high in the air (below), allowing Cheeky to make good ground and take a safe catch. Although wickets continued to tumble, Ford was not for moving and brought up a fine 100 before being dismissed in the last over for 112 as the visitors posted 227 for 9.

 

For most of the Carlton innings, a home win looked to be a safe outcome. Hamish and Kyle put on 52 for the first wicket before Kyle (24) cut a short ball straight to point and Hamish (22) was caught at slip off Calvin Burnett to leave Carlton at 88 for 2 after 22 overs.

 

Rory McCann then joined Fraser Watts (below) and the pair, aided by some nervous moments in the field, took Carlton to within 60 runs of victory. Fraggle, on 51, then, unaccountably, lofted Ramsay to long on. With just 40 needed from 8 overs Drummo (12) then offered a simple catch to ex-Carlton player Darren Spink.

 

The final turning point came with Carlton needing just 26 runs from 5 overs and with 6 wickets still in hand. Arbroath keeper Petrie, standing up to the wicket without a helmet, was struck in the face by a rising Ford delivery and needed lengthy treatment before recovering. The next ball McCann, on 49, was struck on the pads and had to go.

 

Sensing his chance, Calvin Burnett then bowled a superb over up the hill in the gathering gloom, finding the edge of  Kyle Stirling’s bat before enticing Jamie Kerr to steer to backward point and demolishing the stumps of Omar Ahmad to leave Carlton reeling.

 

Rob Thornton and Fraser Allardice then managed to stave off a complete collapse, but found themselves needing 14 off the last over. An audacious scoop by Rob brought hope with a four off the first ball but the pair could only muster four more off the next four balls to leave Rob needing to hit Ford for six off the last ball to pull off an improbable win. A big swing and the mighty Thornton’s bat made sweet sounding contact as the ball soared skywards. All eyes on long on but Alvin Pollard was able to take a comfortable catch three yards in from the boundary to seal the league title for the visitors.

 

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The long dry summer conjured up another fine day as the large Carlton travelling contingent arrived at Stirling for the club’s most anticipated game in many years.

Skipper Preston Mommsen won the toss and asked Grange to bat – a decision that looked vindicated early on as the ball jagged about making life difficult for the openers. Indeed, the first ball of the match from Gordon Drummond caught the edge of Munsey’s bat only to fall just short of Preston at slip. A couple of balls later Gordon Goudie mistimed a drive and the ball was brilliantly parried by Rob Thornton (below) at short mid wicket before the ball fell to the ground agonisingly short of Rob’s grasp.

Carlton didn’t have to wait long for the breakthrough though as Drummond’s second over delivered the wicket of Munsey, edging to Jamie Kerr with the score on 6. Twelve runs later Goudie, who had been living a charmed life, pulled Omar Ahmed to specialist deep square leg, Kyle Macpherson, who ran in to take a good low catch.

With the score on 33, Drummond picked up his second wicket, as Flannigan was given out lbw. A useful recovery between McCallum and Josh Edwards was broken by a brilliant piece of work by Jamie, stumping Edwards off a Cheeky Gosain leg-side wide to leave Grange in trouble at 64 for 4. Rob Thornton then had Henry Edwards caught smartly in the covers by Rory McCann to leave Grange on 83 for 5 at drinks.

The experienced Grange duo of McCallum and Maiden took control after the break and Carlton were left to rue a big moment in the game when McCallum on 44 swept a Gosain delivery directly to the fielder only to earn a reprieve as the ball went straight through his hands. Although Rob Thornton picked up his second wicket to dismiss Maiden, ex-Scotland keeper Simon Smith saw his side through to a competitive 216 for 8, ending unbeaten on 31, after McCallum had eventually departed for a fine 76.

Looking to get off to a good start, Carlton openers Hamish Gardiner and Kyle Macpherson were instead pinned down by some excellent bowling from Davidson and Goudie and both batsmen had their stumps demolished before there were 16 runs on the board. The large crowd, mainly made up of Carlton supporters, had something to shout about as Preston Mommsen crashed a couple of sumptuous cover drives to get the scoreboard moving and his partnership with Fraser Watts began to look very threatening.

However, with the score on 60 Mommsen, who had been looking untroubled, mistimed a drive and offered Josh Edwards a simple caught and bowled. Watts, though, looked determined and his partnership with Rory McCann took Carlton beyond the 100 mark without further loss. The turning point came when McCann tried to cut a Brock delivery that cramped him for room and bowled him. 112 for 4 soon became 113 for 5 as Drummond mistimed a pull off a short ball from Goudie to give Munsey a simple catch. An out of form Kyle Stirling then ran himself out in a mix up with Watts. The incident seemed to unsettle Fraggle who, shortly afterwards, offered a return catch (below) to Goudie, departing for 60 to all but end Carlton’s hopes.

Rob Thornton and Jamie Kerr attempted a recovery but there was too much to do and when Cheeky was run out Carlton were all out for just 175. All in all a hugely disappointing end to a day that had promised so much.

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Carlton are grateful for the generous support of our match sponsors: Ken Sutherland & Stuart Taylor

There was an autumnal, end-of-season feel at Grange Loan, inspired, no doubt, by a combination of a drop in the temperature and the hangover from the preceding weekend. However, relegation-threatened Stoneywood Dyce still had plenty to play for as they won the toss and put Carlton into bat.

One of the successes of the season has been the opening partnership between Hamish Gardiner and Kyle Macpherson and the duo made full use of a fine batting strip to put on 131 for the first wicket before Kyle was tempted by a short ball and pulled Conradie to Gill at midwicket for a very fine 60. Kyle #2 (Stirling) then chipped the same bowler straight to Leask without troubling Lynne in the cscorebox.

This brought the man of the day to the crease as JK, making his last appearance for the club after 19 years, took guard blinking back a few manly tears. Known for his low boredom threshold, it was no surprise to see Jamie hit out from ball one, using his trademark sweeps – orthodox and reverse - to good effect, as he galloped to 15 before misjudging one from off spinner Leask and being bowled.

Haris succumbed to an injudicious scoop (it worked better for him the following day in the U18 Scottish Cup Final) to bring Drummo in at 6. Another quickfire 20 before the big man also picked out Leask. While all this was going on, Hamish was cruising at the other end. However, perhaps feeling the pressure of a stagnating run rate while wickets tumbled, he edged Stander behind and perished for an invaluable 89.  Skipper Watts, batting at 8, contributed 20 and Mo a useful 12 but the feeling persisted that the final total of 251 for 9 was just under par.

Perhaps inevitably the Carlton effort in the field seemed to lack an edge and Gill and Ninan put on a largely untroubled 50 for the first wicket before Fraser pinned Ninan lbw. Gill added another 64 with the more aggressive Stander and the visitors were well in the game, although behind the run rate when Stander was deceived by Haris and well caught by Mo.

However, Michael Leask took a leaf out of Jamie’s book and hit out from the outset trusting his timing on the true surface. In next to no time the game was gone for Carlton as Leask smashed some listless bowling for 88 off just 42 balls. In the end a comfortable 5 wicket win for the visitors, who sealed their top league spot for next season.

The lack of penetration from the bowlers sadly meant no dismissals for the legendary Kerr to add to his 504 victims for Carlton over an incredible career. In his 19 years as 1st team 'keeper Jamie took 335 catches and 169 stumpings (plus 10 outfield catches) over 437 matches. He scored 5,656 runs at 20.27 with a highest score of 109* when he featured in a 204 run stand with Preston Mommsen in a match at Clydesdale.

Full marks to the visitors who put their celebrations on hold to form a guard of honour for Jamie as he trudged off Grange Loan for the last time as a Carlton regular.

Scorecard

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