Week 10 and 11 Review - Mixed fortunes in the league but cup run goes on

Week 10 saw the start of the second half of the league season with Ferguslie visiting Glenpark. After a week that saw preparation of the pitch badly affected by the weather, it was clear that the toss would be crucial. Richie Berrington, standing in for Craig Wright who was sidelined by the re-occurrence of his back trouble, kept up Greenock's amazing run of success in winning the toss and had absolutely no hesitation in inserting the visitors. After 13 runs had been scored off the first 16 balls of the innings, wickets fell quickly, so much so that Ferguslie were at one stage 19 for 6 with Sean Weeraratna claiming 4 victims and Dewald Nel 2. The bottom order rallied matters to a certain extent but even so, Ferguslie only reached 63 due to the generosity of the Greenock bowlers in conceding 14 wides. Weeraratna finished with 5 for 12 and Nel 3 for 34.

In reply, Weeraratna fell to his first ball and Berrington only contributed 11 but Tim McIntosh was his usual solid self and saw the game through to a conclusion, finishing on 32 not out. In all truth, Ferguslie undoubtedly had the worst of the conditions but credit must go to the Greenock bowlers for taking full advantage. The scorecard details are available here.

The following Saturday saw Poloc come to Glenpark and they too were faced with conditions that were far from perfect, thanks to the wet weather during the week. Again Richie was successful, or to be more accurate Gavin Ewing called incorrectly and again the visitors were inserted. However, this time, with the innings in ruins at 17 for 5 after 13 overs, the elements intervened and no more play was possible. Dewald Nel maintained his good form, taking 3 for 8 and for the third week in a row bowling the opposition professional. The abbreviated scorecard can be viewed here.

The day after the victory over Ferguslie, the delayed second round Scottish cup-tie went ahead at Dunfermline. After 30 minutes of play, rain drove the players off the field and the ugly possibility of a bowl-out became close to a reality. Just in time, the rain relented and there were no further interventions. The home team had elected to bat first on winning the toss but struggled to get on top of the bowling. Wickets fell regularly and they were eventually dismissed for 81. The wickets were shared round the bowlers with Dougie Wylie the top dog with 3 for 14.

Greenock made a slow start, losing Weeraratna and McIntosh by the time 20 were on board. Berrington and Shailesh Prabhu then took the score to 49 before the former was bowled and Byrnes Howe fell cheaply to leave Greenock in a spot of bother at 52 for 4. Prabhu and Dewald Nel however ensured that there would be no further alarms, with the former finishing on 35 not out. The scorecard details are available here.

This victory meant a quarter-final tie at Titwood at Clydesdale, a repeat of last season when the tie came to an explosive conclusion. On this occasion, the game was played without any difficulty with the home side subsiding to a rather tame loss by 47 runs. Greenock were inserted but after Sean Weeraratna was dismissed cheaply, a partnership of 169 between Tim McIntosh and Richie Berrington, put Greenock in a commanding position. The skipper eventually fell for 57 but the professional carried on the good work, ending undefeated on 139. With 61 runs scored off the last 5 overs, an imposing target of 262 was reached and it was clear that Clydesdale would need to work hard to win.

In the event, they never really got close to the target. Nel and Weeraratna claimed three early wickets and from that point, the Glasgow side were always toiling. Only professional Sajid scored heavily, although others all got started, but he was left undefeated on 96 as the last wicket fell at 215 in the last over. Dewald Nel was again the most successful bowler, claiming 3 for 47. Check out the scorecard details here.

The reward for this victory is yet another away game with a trip to Penicuik to meet the shock troops of the tournament on August 10. With Greenock likely to be without at least Nel and Berrington for this game, due to international commitments, this will not be a game to take lightly if another final is to be reached.

The Glenpark XI have played two league games in this period, against Meikleriggs and Shawholm, and in both cases, rain has seen that a conclusion could not be reached. As a consequence, the team remains anchored to the foot of the table. On the other hand, the Hillend XI successfully defeated Windyedge to maintain their recent good form.