Watsonian cricket club 3rd X1 have enjoyed a season of success winning East Division 5 to merit promotion,
Proud captain Jaideep Singh summed up the campaign, saying: “Although the individual statistics are impressive the biggest success was that everyone contributed..
“Our coach, Oli Hairs, and I decided that we wanted to build a strong core of around 6–7 players who would play the majority of the games. We were fortunate that availability remained very good throughout the season, which gave us consistency and allowed everyone to play their part.
“Everyone performed when it mattered. We batted well, fielded well and, most importantly, supported each other. There was clear communication with the players, we had plans going into games, and everyone understood their role.
“Our wicketkeeper, Simon Moulds, who unfortunately isn’t in the team photograph, was terrific behind the stumps and played a very important role throughout the season.
“One of the things that really defined this team was the way we responded when things weren’t going our way. When our batters didn’t perform, our bowlers stepped up. When our bowlers struggled, our batters backed them up. It was a complete team effort.
“In almost every game, there was someone who stood up to the challenge when we needed them most.
“A great example was our first game of the season. We were struggling at 74 for 8 (against Morton 3rds), but Malcoln Saures played a gem of an innings, scoring 124, which helped us reach a total of 216. Our bowlers then produced an excellent performance and bowled Morton out for 129..
“For me, though, our best performance came in our 16th match against St Boswells, away.
“We didn’t bat particularly well and managed only 145 runs. St Boswells were then cruising at 111 for 3 and looked to be in a strong position to win the game. That’s when Rohan Chaudhary bowled just 3 overs, took 4 wickets and conceded only 11 runs, helping us bowl St Boswells out for 143 and win the game by just 2 runs.
“That game really summed up the character of the team.”
Top individual displays:
- * Sukhraj Veer – 12 matches, 449 runs – 1st highest run scorer in Division 5
- * Vishal – 15 matches, 426 runs and 17 wickets – 3rd in batting and 16th in bowling in Division 5
- * Aryama Apte – 15 matches, 26 wickets – 2nd highest wicket-taker in Division 5
- * Michael Maclean – 12 matches, 22 wickets – 4th highest wicket-taker in Division 5
- * Vikash Gautam – 14 matches, 21 wickets – 8th highest wicket-taker in Division 5
- * Hamish Tucker – 14 matches, 19 wickets.
- * Simon Moulds – 16 matches, 268 runs – 13th in batting
Pictured are, back row, left to right – Evan Howe, Laurie Cox, Vishal Chawan, Sukhrajveer Singh Loyal, Vikash Gautam, Rohan Chaudhary, Gregor Haire.Michael Maclean
Front row – left to right– Fraser Kinloch, Aryaman Apte, Patrick Crunden, Jaideep Singh (Captain), Pranjan Patel, Ethan Haire, Hamish Tucker, John Reid (Club President)
