Cricket update from week 11 of East Premier League

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1st XI v STONEYWOOD-DYCE at People’s Park

Saturday 13th July
Stewart’s Melville CC  122 all out (41 overs);  Stoneywood Dyce 124 for 1 (23.4 overs)
Lost by 9 wickets.     Ball sponsor – Matt Coyle

Stoneywood continued their recent good run with a 9 wicket win over our 1st X1. The margin of victory was vast but local umpire Peter Redhead stated after the match that the toss was vital. Our lads were put in on an average wicket in dull, overcast conditions whereas the home side batted later on when the sun had arrived.

That said the home side were worthy winners and bowled us out for 122 in 41 overs. Hayden Sweet batted very well for 49 and his partnership of 45 with Steven Parker briefly threatened to get us back in the game. Our final total would have been lower but for an excellent last wicket stand of 26 between James Gordon and Asdaq Raja who hit four boundaries in his 18.

Stoneywood knocked off the runs in the 24th over with Lindsay 64 and Stander 34 unbeaten at the end. One final note from today’s game at Dyce was that 15 year old Ailsa Lister made her East Premier Debut for Stoneywood. Ailsa kept wicket,  took 3 catches and is a member of the Scotland girls U17 squad. And all this after Kathryn Bryce scored 24 for Watsonians last week against believe it or not Stoneywood Dyce. How long before Stewart’s Melville have a young lady in the 1st X1 ? 

Your reporter was staying in Aberdeen overnight with school pal John Forrest and actually had time to watch the last hour of the Aberdeenshire v Arbroath match. In an exciting finish Arbroath

prevailed by 15 runs which was the one bright spot of the day as we remain 2 wins ahead of Aberdeenshire with 6 games left.

View scorecard  http://www.stewartsmelvillecricket.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Scorecard-Stoneywood-Dyce-v-SMCC-13.07.19.pdf

Lawrance Reilly

Weekend Sport – Sat 22nd June. Cricket – 1st XI at League Leaders Forfarshire

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Saturday 22nd June

Stewart’s Melville CC   208 for 8 (50 overs);   Forfarshire  211 for 3 (41.3 overs).  Forfarshire won by 7 wickets. Ball sponsor – Dr Ian Adam.

The 1st XI took on unbeaten league leaders Forfarshire at Broughty Ferry on a day when the sun shone and in front of a noisy crowd of about 300 enjoying the home club’s Food and Drink garden party with a musical accompaniment from the large marquee imported for the occasion.

In the end Forfarshire won comfortably but Stew Mel performed commendably with three batsmen posting half centuries batting first after captain Steven Parker won the toss.  Kyle McCallum (55) 9 fours, Ben Wilkinson (51) 4 fours, 2 sixes, and Shaylen Pillay (65) 2 fours, 1 six, took the game to the opposition despite aggressive bowling from Forfarshire’s opening bowlers Bryce Allchin and  Scott Cameron and 28 overs of disciplined spin bowling  maintaining a scoring rate of about four runs an over throughout on an excellent surface.

Kyle McCallum

Ben Wilkinson

Given Forfarshire’s previous batting exploits this season the final total of 208, good as it was, was not enough to frighten the home side and after Shaylen removed young opener Jack Hogarth with the score at 37, Craig Wallace, younger brother of our Andy Wallace, and a current Scotland regular and their captain Umar Mohammed took control of the game going along at about five runs an over without ever looking anything less than assured at the crease until a sharp throw from Shaylen  took out the middle stump at the far end with a direct hit running out Wallace going for a second run.

Having taken the score onto 183 by that time it had become a question of when the Stew Mel total would be passed.  There was a further success of sorts when Forfarshire’s other current Scotland player Michael Leask was caught on the boundary by Callum Steel from Hayden Sweet’s off spin.   That encouraged brief hopes that we might extend the match beyond 45 overs and into bonus point territory but that was not to be as Forfarshire finished things off in the 42nd over with Mohammed still there on 73 not out.

Consolation came early with the news that bottom of the league Aberdeenshire (one win to date) had been bowled out for 45 by Carlton who required only 12 overs to complete the win.  Aberdeenshire come to Inverleith next Saturday which becomes a season defining match for the 1st XI.

Weekend Sport – Sat 25th May. Cricket – Second 1st XI loss to Corstorphine

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Saturday 25th May

Stewart’s Melville CC 69 all out (33.3 overs); RH Corstorphine 72 for 3 (20.5 overs). RHC won by 7 wickets.

Match Ball sponsor – Steve Kerr

 

The 1st XI lost to RH Corstorphine for the second time in a week again being bowled out for a low score.

On this occasion they will feel there were some mitigating factors given the less than perfect batting conditions the side batting first would face. The start was delayed by half an hour to allow a very damp and soft pitch, particularly so at one end, to dry out somewhat.

Unfortunately on this occasion captain Steven Parker made the wrong call and we were put in to bat. Calum Whitefoord, an exceptionally quick bowler and professional Mohammed Saad provided a formidable opening pair and Whitefoord in particular wreaked havoc bowling a fairly full length and capturing the wickets of Kris Steel (caught behind), Shaylen Pillay (lbw), Hayden Sweet (bowled) and Greg Bissett (bowled) scoring only 4 runs between them. At the other end Kyle McCallum (9) and Ben Wilkinson (0) went to Saad and all that left us 15 for six. For the remaining bats the object of the exercise was simply to accumulate a respectable total knowing that former Scotland off spinning star Majid Haq had still to come on. Ultimately a total of 69 was achieved with Mikey Miller top scoring with a patient 19 runs.

Without achieving an early breakthrough with our bowling the result was never in doubt as RHC picked their way through 21 overs for the loss of three wickets.

View scorecard http://www.stewartsmelvillecricket.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Cscorecard-SMCC-v-RHC-18.06.19-1.pdf

Weekend Sport – Sat/Sun 8th/9th June – Cricket. Wet Saturday, Scottish Cup Loss on Sunday

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Saturday – EPL. Watsonians 34 for 3 (14 overs) v SMCC (Match abandoned)

Sunday – Scottish Cup. RH Corstorphine 142 for 8 (50 overs); SMCC 40 all out. (21.1 overs) Lost by 102 runs.

Hayden Sweet dives to save a run v Corstorphine

Following recent wins against Heriot’s CC and Grange there was disappointment on Saturday when having removed Watsonians three main run scorers Place, Carson and Chalmers for 13 the rain came in leading to the abandonment of play after 14 overs with Watsonians in the process of a mini recovery.

Sunday’s match at Inverleith started out in similar fashion. Having won the toss captain Steven Parker inserted RHC on the inevitably slow pitch and Stew Mel captured the first three wickets for 15 runs. Thereafter RHC set about the recovery process and their numbers 4 and 5 professional Mohammed Saad who played for Pakistan A against the England Lions team during the winter and Australian Sam Flett, took the score to 88 before Flett was out for 39.   RHC grafted on eventually taking the score to 142 in their full quota of 50 overs with Saad getting 55.  In amongst this a notable event occurred with Stew Mel’s Callum Steel taking a hattrick before finishing with four for 30 from his seven overs.

It was accepted that 142 would be a challenging total in the conditions and after opener Patrick Ritchie was an early run out in a misunderstanding with his partner Greg Bissett the batting continued on a downward cycle with only Andy Wallace 12 not out and Hayden Sweet 10 reaching double figures.  So no Scottish Cup run this year.

On Saturday, league business brings us Corstorphine again, this time at Barnton (12 noon).

Weekend Sport – 1st June 2019. Cricket – 1st XI defeat Heriot’s … another rare win over local rival team

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Cricket:    Heriot’s CC    152 all out (46.4 overs);    Stewart’s Melville CC    153 for 5 (48 overs).     Win by 5 wickets.

1st XI v Heriot’s CC 1 June 2019

Following their recent win over Watsonians in the T20 Masterton Trophy the 1st XI cricket team secured another rare win against local rivals, this time in the Prenier League against Heriot’s CC at Inverleith giving the club a two out four record for the season so far in the league.    On this occasion the Stew Mel bowlers restricted the usually free scoring opposition to around three runs an over while taking wickets throughout.

Taking a line through our batting in chasing down 169 against Stoneywood Dyce at Inverleith three weeks earlier there were hopes that we could do so again. Patrick Ritchie and Kris Steel had to face the difficult fairly quick opening period against our former player Elliot Ruthven and Joe Kinghorn-Gray who moved from RH Corstorphine for this season. Steel was out in the 10th over to Kinghorn-Gray and Ritchie in the 15th to the first change Michael Shean. Ben Wilkinson (42) and Shaylen Pillay (28) set up our response. There was some concern among home supporters when Elliot Ruthven removed both in close proximity during his second spell but after a slow period between overs 30 and 40 Hayden Sweet (21 no) and Greg Ruthven (26 no) stepped up the pace and stayed together to achieve a win in the 47th over which most East cricket observers would have deemed unlikely. All in all a great performance and well done.

This week matches are scheduled against Grange on Thursday evening in the T20 (6.15pm) and against Watsonians at Myreside in the league on Saturday (1pm) with a Scottish Cup 1st round match on Sunday at Inverleith v RH Corstorphine (12 noon start).

Weekend Sport – Cricket. 1st XI lose in rain at Arbroath

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Saturday 25th May

Cricket:    Stewart’s Melville CC    103 all out (37 overs);    Arbroath     105 for 2  (17.2 overs).     Lost by 8 wickets

The week’s good weather did not carry into the weekend and Saturday’s match was played throughout in light rain or worse at times.    The miserable weather seemed to affect our batsmen with the loss of two early wickets setting the tone for the innings.    On the contrary Arbroath with a low total to chase were concerned more about the weather and whether it would allow the match to be completed and so set out targeting a win or winning position by the end of twenty overs when the DLS scoring system kicks in.    This they achieved with relative comfort although they did have a scare when the umpires took the players off for a time just before they reached the winning target.   Shaylen Pillay maintained his good bowling form, his six overs costing only 13 runs.

Scoreline:    SMCC   103   (Shaylen Pillay 27; Kris Steel 24 not out; Kyle McCallum 16;  Euan Small 5 for 19.)   Arbroath 105 for 2 (Hayden Laing 42; Matthew Parker 37 not out).

Ball sponsor – Mark Coyle, currently living in Australia.

Note – The photograph above was taken during last season’s match which took place during the extended period of good weather.

This week’s matches – Tuesday:  T20 – Heriot’s CC at Goldenacre (6.15 pm);  Saturday: League – Heriot’s CC at Inverleith (1 pm).

Weekend Sport – Sat 18th May. Cricket – Grange EPL match falls to rain

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Stewart’s Melville CC  v   Grange – no play due to rain

Waiting for play to startHeavy overnight rain and persistent drizzle resulted in the cancellation of Saturday’s match v Grange with the final decision to cancel just after 2pm.

Ball sponsor for the day was Ron Scobie, stalwart and former captain of Stewart’s FP sides of the late 1960s and early 1970s. A great supporter of the club despite living in London Ron has family connections with Grange sides of the past.

This week’s matches are against Watsonians at Myreside in the Masterton Trophy on Thursday evening (6pm) and at Arbroath in the EPL on Saturday (12 noon).

Weekend Sport – Cricket. 1st XI end Stoneywood Dyce’s 100% record in East Premier League

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Saturday 11th May

Stoneywood Dyce CC     169 for 9 (50 overs – innings closed)    Stewart’s Melville Cricket Club    172 for 3  (42.1 overs).     Win by 7 wickets

The 1st XI gave themselves a lift when they decisively defeated previously unbeaten Stoneywood Dyce by seven wickets with time to spare at Inverleith on Saturday.  S-D won the toss and elected to bat, a decision they must have been regretting when Stew Mel had reduced them to 50 for seven in the sixteenth over.   Professional Shaylen Pillay and Ben Wilkinson, a recruit this year did the damage taking three wickets each with their seem bowling plus a run out mix up between batsmen.   Thereafter S-D set about mitigating the situation against the four spin bowlers they faced in the remaining time eventually reaching 169 thanks mainly to no 9 bat Garreth Wolmarans who made 67 not out from 105 balls.  What seemed a demanding total to achieve was ultimately reached quite easily by Stew Mel with Shaylen Pillay top scoring with 56 not out, Kris Steel making 40, Ben Wilkinson 27 and Hayden Sweet 21 not out.

The win took the 1sts halfway up the league table to 50% from two completed matches and merited a leading feature in the Scotsman’s Monday sports supplement.

The match ball was sponsored by former player from the sixties, David Anderson.

On Thursday the 1st XI open their T20 Masterton Trophy programme with a game against Carlton at Inverleith (6.15pm) and on Saturday face Grange in the EPL at Inverleith (1pm).   It is hoped that a few spectators might attend each game in the knowledge that the clubhouse and bar will open.

For the scorecard click on the following link

http://www.stewartsmelvillecricket.com/11-05-19-scorecard-stewarts-melville-v-stoneywood/

 

Weekend Sport – Sat 4th May. Cricket – First loss for 1st XI

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Carlton 284 for 7 (50 overs); Stewart’s Melville CC 98 all out (39.2 overs)

After last week’s abandonment the 1st XI’s 2019 league campaign got underway against Carlton at Grange Loan. Unfortunately our attempts to secure an early win were undone by a raft of bank holiday withdrawals and Scotland quick bowler Ali Evans. Stew Mel won the toss and chose to bowl in dry but very cold conditions. Professional Shaylen Pillay and Hayden Sweet captured the wicket of Carlton opener Kyle Macpherson and restricted Carlton to two runs an over in their opening spell but after they were removed from the attack Carlton’s batsmen settled down to building a significant score aided by no less than 57 extras including 46 wides which will have Alan Veitch searching his books to see if this is some kind of unwanted record.

In the Stew Mel reply Greg Bissett was an early dismissal and the first of four Evans’ wickets caught at slip via a rebound. Thereafter Ben Wilkinson played a cameo innings of 15 with some exquisite shots and Hayden Sweet stuck around for a while for 12. No one else made double figures and the best that can be taken from this performance is that we were missing some important players who might add to the all round capability of the side.

Next Saturday sees our first home league match of the season against promoted Stoneywood Dyce who have surprised most by winning their first two matches.

Thanks to Malcolm Rennie the day’s match ball sponsor who was present to offer his support to the team.

View scorecard – click on link below

Scorecard – Carlton v SMCC 

 

FP News Online NOW

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FP News – Editor’s Position Vacant 

Have you enjoyed the 2018 edition of the FP News? / Have you ever wondered how the articles are sourced and how the magazine is brought together? / Now is the time to find out!

Our current Editor, Bob Young, is retiring after 5 years and we are therefore looking for someone to continue the ongoing development of the magazine on a voluntary basis – the job, unfortunately, doesn’t command the salary of a Fleet Street Editor.

The ideal candidate should be a self-starter, possess a keen eye (preferably two) for detail and bring a positive outlook and fresh ideas to the role.

The brief is wide–ranging – the travel not so far ranging – and will source material and news stories; through contact with other FPs and friends; various SMC & ESMS websites and social media; the school archivist; newspaper articles; 3rd party contributors.  Liaison – in the best possible taste, of course – with the Club Secretary, Treasurer and the ESMS Development Office will be both productive and beneficial.

Overall, our new Editor should be motivated by the personal satisfaction of getting things done to a high standard while managing the end of year deadlines to enable the magazine to go to print for issue in January each year.

If you are interested in this voluntary position, please contact Charles Wilson on email; charles_s_wilson@btinternet.com

Check out WHAT’S ON 2019