Dumfries Sports Club

Davidsons were to the fore at the recent Dumfries Cricket Club Awards night for the 2015 season.

Alan Davidson claimed the McKerrow Trophy for the 1st XI Player of the Year as well as the Player’s Player of the Year, as voted for by his teammates during the season. Davie Davidson was the 2nd XI Player of the Year and took the Jimmy Steele Bowling award.

Davie and Al clutch their Awards

Alan Davidson earned the plaudits after his all-round performances in the Western Premier League.

He was the top wicket taker for Stafforce Dumfries with twenty seven wickets, including one match winning performance of 7 wickets for 40 against Ayr.

Opening the batting the left-hander was also the side’s second top run taker in a productive season as his side finished fifth.

Davie Davidson was the batting stalwart for the 2nd XI as Nunholm’s top run scorer in Western Premier Reserve League as they finished sixth. He achieved a batting average of just under fifty, and was also the second top scorer in the league as a whole.

Sue and Katy – the Female Players of the Year

That contribution was added to by his bowling efforts, which included figures of 8 wickets for 20 at Bothwell.

That day’s performance won him the Club’s bowling award, on the same day as two Dumfries league centuries, one from Scott Beveridge at home against Uddingston and one by Russell Johnston in the Bothwell match.

The Women’s Player of the Year was Sue Strachan, and the award for Most Improved Female Player, The Strachan Cup, went to one of the Club’s juniors, Katy Anderson.

Ronan was Young Player of the Year

Ronan Dunbar was the Young Player of the Year after he appeared regularly for the firsts and finished as one of the Western Premier’s top fielders with five run-outs. That plus his catches meant he helped to take the vital wickets of several professionals over the course of the season.

He, along with other youth players from the Dumfries Colts, Callum Reynolds-Lewis, Rory Thornely-Kyle, Cammy Walker, William Black, Chris McBride and Jack, Matthew and Tom Currie, were awarded Runners-Up medals for their efforts in reaching the Midweek Cup Final, as was Josh Forsyth for setting the example for his fellow Colts.

The AGM for Dumfries Cricket Club takes place this Friday, the 13th November, at Nunholm, commencing at 6:30pm.

For more information about Dumfries Cricket Club, see www.dumfriescricketclub.co.uk, Facebook(/dumfriescricketclub), Twitter(@dumfriescricket) or contact the Club on dumfriescricketclub@gmail.com, 07799 856094.

Stafforce Recruitment Dumfries lost their final Western Premier match by five wickets away at Clydesdale, who were crowned league winners last week, to finish fifth in the table.

Asked to bat first, Dumfries got off to a great start at 93 for no wicket thanks to a fine innings of 60 from Stuart Corbett-Byers and 25 from Drew Dawson. However a match winning performance by Scotland off-spinner, and Clydesdale skipper, Majid Haq then brought Dumfries down to 156 all out as he bowled an excellent spell to take 8 wickets for just 20 runs off 15 overs.

In reply Clydesdale were 64 for 3 thanks to two wickets from spinner Scott Beveridge and an lbw from Alan Davidson. However opener Haq, again, contributed 48, until run out by a brilliant direct hit from Chris Bellwood, and then Page with 60 not out saw the home side through to a five wicket win. The Nunholm players voted keeper Stuart Corbett-Byers as the Dumfries Lakeland Fluid Power Man of the Match for his top score effort but Haq was definitely the game’s Man of the Match on the day he lifted the league trophy for his side.

Saturday’s Nunholm team versus Titwood

In the parallel match in the Western Premier Reserve League the home side Nunholm gave Clydesdale 2nds, Titwood, a fright with the visitors needing a win to claim the Reserve league title also. That was despite a below par Nunholm total of 87 with Davie Davidson the top scorer with 38. A good bowling and fielding effort in the field by Nunholm then had their opponents 7 wickets down for 66. However the eighth wicket pair edged Titwood over the line with the WEB Engineering Nunholm Man of the Match, Stuart Alexander, taking four of the wickets to fall.

With no league fixtures this weekend it is only sixteen year old Chris McBride of the Dumfries players who still has league commitments, for Durham Cricket Academy in the North-East Premier League, after he shared in a 63 run opening partnership in their match last Saturday.

During the week Dumfries U12s won a well contested match against a Carlisle U11 side with Aiden Goodin and Sean Thornely-Kyle picking up two wickets before the side successfully chased their total of 77 to win.

For information about Dumfries Cricket Club see www.dumfriescricketclub.co.uk, Facebook(/dumfriescricketclub), Twitter(@dumfriescricket) or contact the Club on dumfriescricketclub@gmail.com, 07799 856094.

In the Western Premier League on Saturday, Stafforce Recruitment Dumfries claimed a convincing win as they hosted West of Scotland at Nunholm in their last home league game.

An Alan Davidson boundary on his way to 46 for Stafforce Dumfries

The match was interrupted early by rain after just six overs when Dumfries were 12 for no wicket. After the resumption, and with the match now reduced from 50 to 40 overs a side, the Dumfries openers, Drew Dawson and Alan Davidson, upped the pace to pass eighty at the 20 over mark with Davidson in particular going on to hit six boundaries on a now slow outfield. However the West change bowlers bowled effectively, and both openers were dismissed with the score on 83. Davidson was out for 46 and Dawson for 29.

Marcus Richardson, Robert McBride, and Stuart Corbett-Byers then provided useful partnerships with number five Josh Forsyth as the latter went on to accelerate in the closing overs. Over fifty came in the last five overs as Forsyth went aerial over the slow outfield by hitting six sixes. He was run out with two balls left for an Annandale Insurance Man of the Match top score of 76 in just 49 balls.

The total of 208 for 6 was tweaked to 213 to adjust for the interruption and Pat Druce and Alan Davidson made that target more difficult as each took two wickets to have the visitors 38 for 4. McNulty responded with an innings of 43 but Niall Alexander dismissed the last four wickets to fall as West of Scotland were all out for 127 with five overs left.

That Dumfries win meant West of Scotland were relegated on a day when Clydesdale claimed the league title with their victory at Renfrew who also became the other side to drop into the Western Union First Division. Despite the win Stafforce Dumfries remain in fifth place just behind the two sides above them.

Niall Alexander also opened the bowling during the week for the Scottish Reivers in their 50 over match against the Highlanders in Glasgow taking two wickets in a Reivers loss which meant the Pro50 title went to the Highlanders.

In the Western Premier Reserve League, in their away game against Partick, Nunholm were were well beaten by nine wickets. This Saturday, in the final league matches of the season, Stafforce Dumfries are away at newly crowned league winners Clydesdale in the Western Premier League and Nunholm host Titwood, who also sit top, in the league’s Reserve competition.

In the Western Premier League on Saturday, Stafforce Dumfries beat Drumpellier at home and moved into the top half of the table after posting an imposing total of 261 for 7. Josh Forsyth top scored with a hard hitting 76 aided by 57 not out from Scott Beveridge as the pair revitalised the innings from 5 down for 128.

The Stafforce Dumfries team on Saturday

A century opening stand put Drumpellier on the right track but a match-changing five wicket burst from the ETP Electrical Man of the Match Chris McCutcheon set them back to 153 for 6. However the lower order hit out and although the home side win looked safe during the final few overs their efforts still took the visitors to 252 for 7 off the fifty overs, ten runs short, on a day of runs at Nunholm.

With the other day’s results Clydesdale are the West Champions-Elect for 2015 as they require a mere one point, or one wicket, from the remaining two matches.

Stafforce Dumfries lost out in the Murgitroyd Scottish Twenty20 Semi-Final in Glasgow on Sunday. The host club Poloc set a total of 128 for 6 after Dumfries fought back from a half way score of 66 for no wicket. Dumfries then lost two early wickets but were challenging at 67 for 3 at the half way stage. However they ended up needing sixteen off the last over and lost the one remaining wicket to a catch on the boundary. The Stafforce Recruitment Man of the Match for Dumfries was Scott Beveridge for his all-round contribution including a brilliant run out. Having beaten Watsonians in the other semi-final, Forfarshire were later crowned the T20 Scottish Champions after a convincing win over Poloc in the final.

In the Western Premier Reserve League, Nunholm were away at Langloan, Drumpellier 2nds, and they dismissed the home side for 180 with APD Ltd. Dumfries Man of the Match Stuart Alexander and Gurupal Singh taking three wickets each. However Nunholm were defeated as they could only manage fifty three in the second innings.

Dumfries juniors won yet another close game away against Galloway U12s by nine runs with Tom Currie the Player of the Match for Dumfries, and sixteen year old Chris McBride continued his appearances for Durham Academy in the North East Premier League last Saturday. McBride shared a fifty run partnership with Scotland A, and Durham 2^nd XI, player Dylan Budge with Budge scoring the bulk of the runs on his way to a not out ton.

On Saturday, in the Western Premier League, Stafforce Dumfries take on West of Scotland at home at Nunholm, with Wests fighting relegation having moving to last spot with two sides to go down. Dumfries 2nds, Nunholm, are away at Partick in the Premier Reserve League.

In the Western Premier League on Saturday, Stafforce Recruitment Dumfries lost their away match at third placed Ferguslie by 38 runs. Batting first the home side scored 215 for 9 with Ferguslie’s Zimbabwean professional, Dabengwa, the top scorer with 81. Niall Alexander took three wickets, and Chris Bellwood and Drew Dawson each took two, but the Ryedale Remedials Man of the Match for Dumfries was Stuart Alexander for his probing opening spell which was rewarded with just one wicket.

In the Dumfries reply, opener Drew Dawson scored 30 and a good sixth wicket partnership between Chris McBride (28) and Stuart Corbett-Byers (30) took Dumfries to 146 for 5. However both were dismissed soon afterwards and Dumfries then fell short with a final tally of 177.

Gei was Man of the Match for Nunholm

In the Western Premier Reserve league, Nunholm had their opportunities against Ferguslie 2nds, Meikleriggs, but lost by 45 runs. A crucial last wicket partnership took the visitors from 101 for 9 up to 150 all out. The FM Associates Nunholm Man of the Match, Gurupal Singh, and Jerry Goodin both took three wickets and Chris McCutcheon and Aidan Collingwood took two each.

Then, despite an innings of 32 from opener Patrick Corkery, and twenties from Goodin (22) and McCutcheon (20 not out) the home side were all out for 105 with 12 overs still remaining.

Junior Cricket: Dumfries juniors won another last over finish against Galloway U12s by just three runs at Nunholm last week and an U17 side also competed well to win their match at Moffat by 39 runs.

In the Western Premier next Saturday, mid-table Stafforce Dumfries play at home against Drumpellier who sit two places below them in the league, and Nunholm play away at Langloan, Drumpellier 2nds, in the Premier Reserve League. On Sunday, Dumfries compete at the postponed Murgitroyd Scottish Twenty20 Finals day in Glasgow where they take on Poloc, on their home turf, in the morning semi-final.