Dumfries Sports Club

Tom off to U19 World Cup

Tom McBride, of Dumfries Cricket Club, has been named in the Scotland squad heading for the U19 World Cup which takes place in Australia in August.

The side which came through two qualifying stages are drawn in a group with Pakistan, New Zealand and Afghanistan and have warm-up matches against New Zealand and PNG. This week he has been turning out for Scottish Students in Dublin against Irish Universities in the Celtic Student Cricket Series scoring thirty opening in their win in the first match.

The team leave on the 24th July for an intensive period of preparation prior to their first match in the competition against New Zealand on the 12th August on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland.

Also this week Dumfries’s Kirsty Strachan and Rachel Howard have been part of the Scotland Women’s U17s squad playing in the ECB County Championship with fixtures against Leicestershire, Staffordshire and Nottinghamshire. Strachan won her first cap in the side’s 28 run win over Leicestershire U17s on Monday.

On Saturday the top of the table encounter between first and second in the Western Premier League, West of Scotland and APD Dumfries, was a victim of the rain. An encouraging start in the league with four consecutive wins means Dumfries are one bonus point behind West and as Captain Stuart Corbett-Byers noted “In a new league at a higher standard, I would have taken that start back at the beginning of the season”.

That marks the completion of the first half of the league season and a resumption of the Scottish Cup with APD Dumfries playing away at Weirs on Saturday. Dumfries beat Weirs in their first group game and lie second to Watsonians. The group winners progress to the Scottish Cup quarter-finals and the second placed side to the SCU Trophy.

The same rainy fate affected CWE Nunholm, with their home match against Partick in the Reserve league cancelled and they also restart their cup competition with a Western Cup game against Whitehaugh at Benfield Park Nunholm on Saturday. The Dumfries seconds mirror the firsts, second in the league and second in their cup group table.

Holiday junior cricket: The Nunholm club’s Monday junior coaching sessions continue at Dumfries Sports Club over the summer holidays, from 6:15 to 8, with a Summer Camp on Thu/Fri, 19/20 July. These are open to non-members, boys and girls. For more details on junior, senior, and women’s cricket contact Trefor Williams (01387 256455), dumfriescricketclub@gmail.com, or see www.dumfriescricketclub.co.uk.

Dumfries CC Womens Team

In their first competitive outing the Dumfries Cricket Club Women’s team registered a win over Galloway in their Scottish Cup match at Nunholm on Tuesday.

Dumfries posted a challenging 139 for 2 in their twenty overs and it was that total that presented a problem with Galloway finishing on 79 for 1.

Dumfries were put in to bat and openers Kirsty Strachan and Rachel Howard set up the win for their side with an eighty run opening partnership. That only came to an end in the 13th over when Howard was bowled for 17 and, one brings two, Strachan was also bowled five short of a first fifty.

Rosy Ryan and Sue Strachan steadied the innings and accelerated in the last couple of overs with Strachan hitting three successive fours. They finished not out on 24 and 32 respectively for a good total of 139 for 2 in the twenty overs.

Hamblin and Maxwell batted well for Galloway but it was the weight of runs that was the problem with the Dumfries side fielding well to stop the runs and bowling effectively. The pair had almost batted right through when Howard hit the top of off stump to bowl Hamblin for 19 in the very last over. Galloway finished on 79 for 1 with Kate Maxwell undefeated on 30 to back up her good bowling in the first innings.

Kirsty Strachan took the Parkdale Garage Dumfries Player of the Match award for putting her side on course with her innings of 45 to make it a good week after she, and Rachel Howard, were both picked for Scotland U17s for their away matches in the ECB Championship next week starting with a match against Leicestershire.

The game was a credit to both sides who are both in the early stages of playing. It was the first such game for the Dumfries side and a first for the club since Dumfriesshire Ladies were recorded playing at Nunholm in the 1890s. Dumfries will play at either Ayr or Glasgow Accies in the semi-final.

The club at Nunholm are keen to introduce more girl and women players to the game, with beginners most welcome. Those interested can contact the club through dumfriescricketclub@gmail com, or contact Trefor Williams (01387 256455) to find out about the weekly coaching sessions for women and girls running throughout the summer.

Scoreboard: Women’s Scottish Cup Quarter-final at Benfield Park Nunholm
Match sponsored by Parkdale Garage
Dumfries Women beat Galloway Ladies by 60 runs
Dumfries Women 139 for 2 (20 overs) K Strachan 45, S Strachan 32no,
R Ryan 24no, R Howard 17, N Hamblin 4 overs 1 for 30
Galloway Ladies 79 for 1 (20 overs)
K Maxwell 30no, N Hamblin 19, R Howard 4 overs 1 for 5
Parkdale Garage Dumfries Player of the Match: K Strachan

APD Dumfries celebrate a wicket

APD Dumfries beat St Boswells in the Twenty20 Borders Murgitroyd Cup on Sunday. This was the only weekend outing with Saturday’s league matches victims of the rain.

The game at Benfield Park Nunholm went ahead in good conditions and Dumfries were immediately in trouble losing two wickets in eight balls for zero runs. However Chris McCutcheon and Scott Beveridge recovered with eighty runs over the next ten overs. McCutcheon took the opportunity to improvise until he was caught for 43. Chris Bellwood was Beveridge’s next partner as the latter reached his fifty with a couple of sixes despite being hampered by injury. Both were out looking for runs in the last couple of overs, Beveridge for 55 and Bellwood for 34.

St Boswells had a difficult start chasing the Dumfries total of 157 for 6 when Alan Davison snared two wickets in his second over and McCutcheon bowled another. St Lucian Mathurin was the mainstay of the St Boswells innings with 30 when a skier was caught off Goodin with the Borders side at 46 for 4 off ten overs. Young batted well for 46 not out as wickets fell at the other end but the opposition finished 37 runs short losing eight wickets for 121. Dumfries play at Gala next in the Borders semi-final. This Saturday, in the league, they play at top placed West of Scotland.

Club sponsors Elliot Graham, Jim Main and John Strong of APD try their Dumfries Cup shirts.

Dumfries tried coloured kit for the first time in a competitive match at Nunholm and appropriately Newbie sponsors APD Ltd had been at the club to receive their shirts and to mark the seventh year of their Club sponsorship. Elliott Graham from APD said “we are pleased to support a local community club like Dumfries CC and to see the firsts, APD Dumfries, challenging at the top of the Western Premier League”.

Meanwhile Tom McBride has been named in the provisional Scotland U19 squad for the U19 World Cup in Australia in August and Kirsty Strachan, and Rachel Howard, for Scotland Women’s U17s for their away matches in the ECB Championship next week. The Nunholm club’s junior coaching sessions continue on Mondays and over the summer from 6:15 to 8 at Dumfries Sports Club, contact Trefor Williams (01387 256455).