The Squash Club e-newsletter for October is out with the news listed below.
Support the cause – World Squash Day on 20th October and help local children through Aberlour Futures Dumfries. The Squash Club’s AGM is on Thursday 18th October at 7pm. We hope to see as many of you as possible at this meeting.
The newsletter can be downloaded here
The Junior Tennis Leagues for October/November are now on the site here or can be found in the Quick Links in the right hand site column.
The results for previous months can be found by following the same link.
The Club Tennis Leagues for October are now on the site here or can be found in the Quick Links in the right hand site column.
The results for previous months can be found by following the same link.
Coinciding with 2020 World Squash Day Dumfries Squash Club are holding a charity event to support the Aberlour Child Care Trust with a Disco and Buffet from 7pm on Saturday the 20th October. Tickets can be bought behind the bar (£5).
It costs £5 to take part and for that you can take part in the squash competition during the day and also attend the disco buffet and games at night. You can do both, or one or the other for the £5 entry.
Squash games are open to all ages and stages, and money raised goes to Aberlour Futures Dumfries. Sign your name up on the squash noticeboard if you would like to participate.
The September Tote numbers drawn on Saturday were 2 and 16.
There was no winner this month. So there is a rollover to the October draw. Tickets can be bought from behind the bar now.
Dumfries A started their national tennis league campaign with a double header at the weekend, first up was a match against Stirling Universities third team. The format would be four singles matches to start with Lister and Dan McKiddie winning their matches and Chris Topping and Richie Cunningham losing theirs.
Next up was the doubles matches with Lister and Dan winning their match but again Chris and Richie losing theirs. With the matches tied at 6-6 it came down to championship tie-breaks but unfortunately Dumfries lost both which gave Stirling the match 7-6.
On Sunday Dumfries travelled to Stirling to play last year’s Division 4 Champions Livilands 2, with a couple of changes in the line up Dumfries faired a bit better winning the singles 3 matches to 1 with Colin Dunbar, Richie Cunningham & Dan McKiddie winning their matches.
In the doubles a comfortable win for Colin & Dan completed the victory before Richie and Duncan Muir lost in the final doubles match.
This weekend see Dumfries A play Linlithgow in Dumfries and Dumfries B start their campaign by travelling to Cambuslang to play their Division 4 match against Kirkhill TC.
The club’s results in the AEGON Team Tennis Scotland Leagues can be followed here.
The Squash Club e-newsletter for the start of the new season is out with the news listed below.
The newsletter can be downloaded here
The skipper leads the fight-back
APD Dumfries lost out in a low scoring thriller by three wickets in the Premiership Grand Final in Edinburgh on Saturday for their opponents Watsonians to become Scottish Champions.
The match featured a tremendous fight-back by Dumfries to get into a position to possibly win and an outstanding innings of seventy not out from Scotland bat Ewan Chalmers to stop them.
Dumfries were asked to bat first and had a disastrous start immediately losing a wicket to a run-out and being four for two wickets and then five down for just twenty six. However Stuart Corbett-Byers played a skipper’s innings with a battling 32 as he and Alan Davidson recovered to reach sixty. Then Davie Davidson produced a belligerent 38 not out for the Benfield Dumfries Man of the Match award. His partnership with Pat Druce pushed the total up to 125, with the side all out off the last ball.
Watsonians bowled well keeping the batsmen under pressure and left arm opener Mike Legget did the early damage taking three wickets.
Even with that low total Dumfries managed to have Watsonians in trouble. Druce and Chris McCutcheon also took two early wickets and when Druce then clattered the stumps they were 21 for 3.
However number four and Scotland player Ewan Chalmers was now batting and he moved his side towards the fifty. Spinner Scott Beveridge came on and in his second over Druce took a catch at gully. Two overs later he took a further two wickets including removing former Scotland captain Wright to send shivers through the waiting batsmen.
Now it was 59 for 6 with 67 runs still to get and Dumfries threatening to pull off the most remarkable victory.
In a tense period of the game, Chalmers, with number eight Peter Legget, put together a partnership. The pair went on to add sixty runs with Legget surviving a difficult edged chance behind off Beveridge with over forty needed. His crucial innings of 22 ended lbw to Goodin with five still required.
There was still a Dumfries sting in the tail as Chalmers finally gave a chance and was dropped twice behind in one McCutcheon over with no more runs yet added.
At the end Chalmers was undefeated with a special innings of seventy to get his side home with three wickets left, and was a class apart on the day.
After the game a disappointed Dumfries Captain Corbett-Byers had the consolation of being presented with the Western Premier Trophy with APD Dumfries the League Champions of 2012.
APD Dumfries celebrate a historic win for the club
Dumfries were asked to bat in bowler friendly conditions and it required a crucial century partnership between Josh Geary and Tom McBride to fight back from a position of 34 for 3 after 17 overs. Geary went on to top score with a superb innings of 67 and Scotland U19 bat Tom McBride hit 35. That set the platform for a final overs onslaught that added eighty in the last ten overs to reach a challenging total of 196 for 7.
West were knocked back by opening bowlers Chris McCutcheon and Pat Druce to be two wickets down for just three runs. Alan Davidson took the third wicket when West were on 54 for 2 and remarkably he then went on to take a wicket in each of five consecutive overs to finish with a total of six wickets. That sank West’s title hopes and earned him the Solway Offset Man of the Match award.
He, and the other bowlers, were backed up by a series of fine catches with both Drew Dawson and Scott Beveridge taking exceptional efforts to put the side on the right track and when Lockhart was out caught by McCutcheon in the deep for 29, West were in dire straits at 93 for 7.
West of Scotland were finally all out for 134 to complete a comprehensive win by virtue of another team effort which was characteristic of the side’s efforts throughout the league season. That win in the club’s ‘biggest ever game’ meant that the side has won three consecutive league titles in three years.
This Saturday, APD Dumfries play Watsonians, winners of the Eastern Premier, in the Cricket Scotland Premiership Final in Edinburgh for the accolade of the top club side in Scotland.
Dumfries Women at Scottish Cup Finals Day
A good batting effort by Nunholm reached 158 for 7 with Building Tec Man of the Match Richardson top scoring with 59. However that target was successfully passed with the loss of seven wickets.
On Sunday, in their Scottish Cup semi-final, Dumfries Women got close to Glasgow Accies’ total of 77 for 6 but lost by thirteen runs, six down for 64. Rachel Howard was the Parkdale Garage Player of the Match taking two wickets.
In the Western Premier League the weather hit first placed APD Dumfries’s title bid on Saturday as their game at home against fourth placed Drumpellier did not start due to rain. With the entire set of Premier fixtures cancelled or abandoned the table stays unchanged for the last league game on Saturday.
Tommy batting against Pakistan U19s ©ICC/Getty Images
That day Dumfries play second placed West of Scotland at Benfield Park Nunholm in a match which will decide if the title goes to Dumfries, West or Clydesdale.
The side go into the game knowing that victory would mean that they would win one of the top two leagues in Scotland at the first attempt. The match starts at noon.
The league’s top wicket taker, former Yorkshire and Scotland seamer, John Blain, will lead a strong West attack at Nunholm.
One behind him in wickets, Dumfries’s Scott Beveridge will be aiming to continue his all-round form and top run scorer Aussie Josh Geary plays in his final match.
Clydesdale face a Greenock side who must win to possibly avoid relegation.
Dumfries’s batting depth was demonstrated last week with their one wicket win at Uddingston and Tom McBride’s return from the U19 World Cup in Australia strengthens the squad.
Youngster McBride top scored for Nunholm
There he had the opportunity to play in matches against Australia, New Zealand and Pakistan.
Scotland reached the semi-finals of the Plate competition and finished with a comfortable win over perennial rivals Ireland.
The Western Premier Reserve match for CWE Nunholm at Langloan was abandoned, also due to rain, with Langloan interestingly on 25 for 3 chasing a meagre sixty two but on a difficult wicket.
Youngster Chris McBride was the Homer Burgess Dumfries Man of the Day top scoring with twenty three.
This weekend CWE Nunholm are at West seconds, Partick, in the West Premier Reserve league and on Sunday the Dumfries Women’s team play in the Women’s Scottish Cup semi-final at Ayr.
Dumfries Tennis Club resurrected the Border Cups Tournament which was played on 25th & 26th August. This tournament started away back in the 1920’s and has been played on and off over the past 90 years and is open to players who either stay, play or were born in Dumfries & Galloway or the Borders.
This year’s tournament was sponsored by Soltyre Ltd and Solway Insulation Services Ltd.
The gents singles were played on a damp Saturday and after an exhausting 7 hours of play Kevin Breen eventually overcame Richie Cunningham 6-2 6-4 to claim the trophy.
In contrast the gent’s doubles were played on a very hot and sunny Sunday with Kevin Breen & Richie Cunningham just edging an exciting final against Lister & Ben Mckiddie 6-4, 5-7, 10-8 in the championship tie-break.
All the results can be viewed here.
Dumfries Sports Club 
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