Greenock drop out of Premiership
Published 29 Aug 2011 12:00
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MIXTURE OF EMOTIONS: Greenock players celebrate a wicket but a failure to beat Stirling forced them down.
Picture: Sheenagh Cameron
GREENOCk'S long held place at the top table of Scottish cricket was ended at the weekend when the team could win only one out of the two crucial matches in their SNCL Premiership relegation playoffs against Stirling County and Drumpellier.
On Saturday against Stirling County at Glenpark, the local side fell just seven runs short of the visitors total and that failure to win condemned the side to relegation into the SNCL Championship for season 2012.
Sunday was an altogether different story as the Glenparkers cast aside the gloom of Saturday evening to brush aside fellow strugglers Drumpellier and end the season with their most convincing win of 2011.
Against Stirling, Greenock made a very positive start to this match with Richie Berrington and Aussie pro Luke Butterworth spearheading the bowling attack. With just ten overs bowled, County were in a spot of bother with three batsmen out for just 21 runs on the board.
However a fine partnership of 81 runs between Anderson and Tweedie gradually hauled Stirling back into the game before Dougie Wylie bowled Anderson for 48 and Andy Hislop had Tweedie caught for 27 runs.
The remaining middle and lower order Stirling batsmen all scored some runs but there was no one who made a significant contribution, and in the 47th over County were all out for 166. Greenock made use of eight bowlers of whom Butterworth, Jamal and Hislop picked up two wickets apiece.
Possibly the most significant event of the weekend for Greenock came just moments before the Stirling innings ended when Richie Berrington received a bad finger injury as he backed up an attempted run out throw from Butterworth. The Scottish internationalist had to leave the field to get his injury treated and when Greenock's innings got under way he was forced to drop way down the batting.
The injury subsequently led to Berrington having to withdraw from the Scottish Saltires match against Hampshire which is being played today at the Rose Bowl, Southampton.
Greenock's innings got off to a poor start with Shailesh Prabhu, Alex Baum and Chris Bellwood all out with less than 23 scored. Worse was to follow however as Luke Butterworth played an uncharacteristic shot and was caught at second slip for just 13 runs, Willie Rowan departed quickly and then Andy Hislop, who had been in for quite a period, mis-timed a drive and was caught at point having scored 15 runs.
At 52 for 6 Greenock were in deep trouble. Jonathan Hempsey joined Ryan Begley in the middle and 21 runs were added before Begley's dismissal for four added to the gloom over Glenpark.
The injured Berrington came in to bat at number nine in the order and along with Hempsey, a very significant partnership developed. Hempsey was the lead player scoring numerous fine boundaries with straight drives while Berrington managed to support him although obviously in pain from his hand injury.
The deficit was reduced over by over as Hempsey hit regular fine shots past the Stirling fielders to the boundary and the possibility of a home win eventually came into sight. With the partnership on 66 and the Greenock total on 139, Hempsey was caught by Miller having scored an excellent 57 runs. Greenock now needed just 28 runs with 2 wickets and 6.4 overs remaining.
Dougie Wylie joined Berrington, and with the large Glenpark side willing them to continue on to victory the runs kept coming at the necessary pace, until with just 12 runs needed from the last three overs Wylie was run out.
Berrington was left to take the team over the line, but, with every ball jarring his hand it was a tall order, and with eight runs needed from the final over he went down the wicket in search of a big hit and was stumped by wicket-keeper Rob Carswell for 27. Jubilation for Stirling and gloom for Greenock.
After the pain of Saturday, came the feeling of 'why' for Greenock as the team gained their most emphatic win of the season with a nine wicket hammering of Drumpellier.
The victory was to be a rather hollow one as it failed to lift the Glenparkers out of the relegation zone, as would have been the case if Stirling County had been beaten on Saturday.
Drumpellier lost the toss and batted first knowing that if they could beat Greenock then they could have the chance to climb above Stirling and avoid relegation. So there was still much to play for in this final SNCL Premiership match.
Greenock's bowlers dominated for much of the Drumpellier innings however, with Luke Butterworth showing the class which has taken him into the reckoning with the Australian test selectors. He picked up four wickets for 29 with two victims clean bowled and another two trapped LBW.
The Drumps professional Kulatunga scored a fine 58 runs before being bowled by Hislop and, along with McLaren (37) and Rawlinson (38), got the Langloan side to a respectable 184 before the team was all out in 44.2 overs.
In reply, Greenock were never in trouble. Only one wicket was lost, that of Prabhu LBW with the score on 33 as the runs were piled on at a swift rate.
Chris Bellwood and Aussie Luke Butterworth put together a partnership of 155 with a display of fine batting which brought victory in just 36 overs. Butterworth was unbeaten on 81 with Bellwood also not out on 70.
What would Greenock have given for an innings such as this in either of their two previous play off matches. But that now is history, and relegation to the SNCL Championship the reality, as a season of rained off matches and missed chances has caused Greenock to drop out of the Premiership.
This article appeared in Greenock Telegraph 29 Aug 11
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Teamnipper
79 posts
Sep 1, 12:09
Report commentSorry to see Greenock fall out of the premiership but I have to admit it has come as no surprise. I watched the game against Carlton in July not having watched the team for over ten years and was left shocked feeling Greenock had become a bunch of rank amatuers in comparison to one of the top teams when whilst I was growing up they had been one of the top teams in Scotland themselves. The writer of the article in this paper commenting on that match I felt had watched another game. Carlton were able to take their foot off the gas and still win.
Come on Greenock. Let's get the standard back up and get back into the premiership for the 2013 season. We know you can do it!!! Look what the English national team have done in only a few years: gone from has beens to the best in the world.
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robbojnr
1 post
Sep 2, 14:56
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