Greenock slip to foot of table after Dumfries defeat

Dumfries vs Greenock 1st XI
WDCU CSL Premier Division
Saturday 30th June 2018

Scorecard       

Greenock's long journey south to Dumfries on Saturday, for a match they needed to win, ended in defeat and so the team slipped down into bottom position in the Premier Division.

The month of June has been topsy turvy one for Greenock. The first two Saturdays brought wins against Uddingston and league leaders Ferguslie and Greenock seemed to be 'on a roll'. The third Saturday was washed out and then the last two Saturdays have brought defeats from Poloc and Dumfries.

WDCU CSL Premier Division Table (as at 30 June)

Greenock lost the toss and, perhaps surprisingly on a hot and sunny afternoon, were asked to bat. For the first thirty overs of the Greenock innings, the Dumfries captain Chris McCutcheon might have been rueing his decision as Greenock had moved into a strong position at 146 for 3 and a 250 plus score looked possible. But then the whole game altered as Greenock lost their way and could only limp through to the end of the 48th over, losing six wickets and adding just a further forty seven runs.

Opening the innings, Neil Flack and Harry Briggs got the Glenpark side off to a decent start by scoring 24 runs from the first six overs. But with the first ball of the seventh over Flack (13) was bowled by South African Jesse Smit.

Just five runs later, Briggs (10) edged a delivery from Smit and Stuart Corbett-Byers took a regulation catch behind the stumps.

The fall of the second wicket brought together Greenock's two overseas players and for a spell the pair looked to be putting together a solid partnership. Thirty five runs were added in eight overs, but then Stuart Davidson had South African amateur Laurens Smit (17) caught by Corbett-Byers.

Jonathan Hempsey joined Indian professional Saurabh Bandekar and the partnership which developed was Greenock's largest of the innings. The pair put on 82 runs in just 12 overs and Greenock moved in to what seemed a quite commanding match position. At 146 for the loss of just 3 wickets after 27 overs, the Glenpark side looked set to post a very challenging score for Dumfries to chase.

But the pendulum began to swing back in favour of Dumfries when Hempsey (21) presented Corbett-Byers with his third catch of the afternoon when he got an edge to a ball from McCutcheon in the 28th over.

And when Bandekar, who had been scoring quite effortlessly, was caught by Andrew Mascall for 75, Greenock's innings, which had been looking so promising for quite a time, was suddenly in a precarious position at 156 for 5 in the 30th over.

With three Under-18 players drafted into the Greenock team due to injury and holidays, much of the lower order of the batting line-up lacked experience and the earlier target of 250 plus suddenly seemed a distant hope ... and so it proved.

The run rate which had been up to, and slightly above, five runs per over, dropped back significantly as the lower order dug in to try and survive until the fifty overs were played out. That they managed to keep going until the 48th over was a decent achievement, but what should have been a period of rapid run-scoring, had wickets not been lost, became a rearguard action as just thirty seven more runs were added in the eighteen overs before the last wicket fell on 193.

Wicketkeeper Stuart Corbett-Byers with four catches and a stumping had a fine afternoon behind the sticks, while Chris McCutcheon with 3 for 21 and Alan Davidson 3 for 45 were the top bowlers for Dumfries.

Chasing a much lower total than at one point expected, Dumfries needed to score at just four runs per over to gain their first Premier Division win of the season.

The capture of two early wickets, Andrew Dawson and Chris Bellwood, provided some welcome encouragement for Greenock. However a 76 run partnership between Jesse Smit and Andrew Mascall took Dumfries to 90 for 2 after just 17 overs and the south of Scotland side were firmly in the driving seat.

But a second double wicket breakthrough, with no further runs added to the score, once again gave Greenock some hope that the match could be saved. Greenock's Laurens Smit captured both wickets in the 18th over. Firstly, Mascall (40) was caught by Jonathan Hempsey and then new batsman Robert McBride was adjudged LBW.

Dumfries' Jesse Smit was still at the crease however and batting well and along with Alan Davidson another good partnership, this time worth 74 runs, took the Nunholm side to within striking distance of their target.

Then for the third time in the innings, Greenock got two wickets in quick succession when firstly Davidson (28) was bowled by Laurens Smit and then incoming batsman Stuart Alexander was bowled by Neil Flack. 167 for 6 wickets in the 33rd over and still 27 runs needed.

The experienced Stuart Corbett-Byers joined Jesse Smit out in the middle and the pair steadied the Dumfries 'ship' when lesser batsmen might have panicked, and the remaining runs were scored without any further loss. Smit was unbeaten on 73 and Corbett-Byers completed a fine personal afternoon with 14 not out.

Laurens Smit took 3 wickets for 33 runs and Neil Flack 2 for 51.

Greenock now have eight matches during the months of July and August to find form to win a number of games and rise clear of the bottom two relegation places.