Hamilton cricketers ready for new season

May 8 2008

HAMILTON Cricket Club will this season compete in the Western District Union Division Five.

As there are 13 member clubs, it has been agreed that after the first round of matches the top six and bottom seven clubs will form two groups to play-off, deciding promotion and which sides finish bottom of the division.

It has also been decided to compete in the evening league and cup competitions.

The Evening League team will be known as Hamilton Thistle.

Hamilton’s first evening league match went ahead as scheduled on April 23 against West of Scotland, at Hamilton Crescent.

West won the toss and, electing to bat first, kept up a steady scoring rate with most of their batsmen achieving double figures.

Although there was some encouragement for the visitors in the steady fall of West wickets, a combination of sharp fielding and poorly judged running between the wickets resulted in the loss of two to run-outs.

Some clever work by Imam led to the dismissals of Sutherland, clean bowled for 14, and Sood, for 24, with an athletic low catch off his own bowling.

However, Talpur, West’s top-scoring batsman, then went on to practically secure the victory, with a brisk knock of 58, featuring 10 boundaries and three consecutive sixes, the last of which landed in the street outside Hamilton Crescent.

He was eventually dismissed while going for another big hit, when caught by Imam off the bowling of Parsons.

West finished on 157-5, with Aamir Ashraf claiming the other wicket to fall and finishing the most economical of the bowlers, returning figures of 1 for 27 from his four overs.

Thistle’s reply started brightly, progressing to 21 before the first wicket fell in the fourth of their allotted 16 overs.

However, this promising start was not maintained, and three of their batsmen departed without troubling the score.

An exception to this was from Afzal, but his performance came to an end when, in an attempt to raise the tempo, he was caught and bowled for 44 off a mistimed shot.

In a late flurry of resistance, however, Scott Jackson added an exhilarating 26 before succumbing to the same method of dismissal.

Thistle then finished their innings on 99-8, which was well short of their target.

In a Division Five match at Greenock on Sunday, April 27, Hamilton had a disappointing start to their league campaign when, after bowling opponents Hillend all out for 103, they could only muster 73 in response.

More disappointment followed when a home fixture against Inverclyde Comets in the Greenwood Trophy first round at Hamilton Palace Sports Grounds on May 1 was called off.

A second home fixture against Whiteinch in Division Five was also postponed on Saturday, May 3.

Hamilton hope for better fortunes when Inverclyde are the visitors on Saturday.

Anyone interested in playing cricket or sponsoring them should contact Melvyn Gibson on 01560 600170 or 07752 599353, or David Richardson on 07790 335206 or 01355 260638.