1st XI face Langside in an important contest

The 1st XI begin the final third of their WDCU Premiership Two league programme on Saturday when Langside are visitors to Glenpark. These six remaining fixtures will be important for them to cement a place in the top half of the league.

The match with Langside (formerly Weirs) will be viewed as a must win fixture for the team as they try to get back on to a winning path after a middle section of the league programme in which two matches were won, two matches lost and two abandoned.

And with the teams sitting in sixth (Greenock) and seventh (Langside) places in the league table and just six percentage points separating them, a win would provide some much needed breathing space with so few matches remaining.

The fixture between the two sides earlier in the season, which was due to take place in the south side of Glasgow on the last Saturday in May, was cancelled due to wet weather so there is no previous 2024 meeting form to compare.

The Glasgow side has had a similar inconsistent season to their opponents with just four wins to show from ten matches completed.

Twice Langside have been bowled out for less than ninety runs. But four times since mid-June the south-siders have scored more than 140 when batting first. And one of those occasions was when they scored 176 and dealt the first defeat of the season to the then undefeated league leaders Kelburne, who they bowled out for just 59.

In their most recent match two weeks ago, Langside were themselves bowled out for 68 chasing second bottom Glasgow Accies score of 119.

So, the Glasgow team's form has been a difficult one to predict this season and the 1st XI will therefore need to be well prepared and focussed on Saturday to ensure the visitors do not have one of their better performances.

A factor in the team's own inconsistent season has been the availability of regular 1st XI players. The modern day work patterns are such that numerous players frequently require to work on Saturdays and therefore there is a lack of continuity week by week in the team selection. Add to that injuries which develop as the season progresses and also players off on holiday.

For the match against Langside, this issue is once again a problem for Greenock. Greg McDougall, the team captain, was unfit to play in last weekend's abandoned match against Glasgow Accies due to an injury and is once again sidelined this weekend.

Sam Sanghera too is doubtful due to an injury and several others are unavailable for the reasons mentioned above which has resulted in a much-changed selection for the game.

So much will depend on the side's two young Australian amateurs Connor Nowlan and Angus Tolhurst. Both have had a good season so far with bat and ball. Between them they have scored almost 800 runs and taken close to 40 wickets. Another good Saturday would certainly be helpful to the team's aim to gain a win over Langside.

The Glenpark XI face Clydesdale 4th XI at Hamilton Palace Sports Ground, having played them last weekend at Glenpark in another match that failed to beat the weather. When the rain intervened, the Glenparkers were well on their way to victory so a similar performance this week should do the trick, although the team to be fielded does show a number of changes to that which played last week.

Both games are scheduled to start at 12 noon.

The Club is grateful for the continued sponsorship from Cleaning Supplies 4U.