Issue 12

Carlton prides itself on the quality of its teas. Karen MacPherson knows a bit about it. Through the years the tea set-up has changed. During the 1980’s the Saturday and the Sunday teams brought “tea for three” which was laid out by a small group of tea helpers. There was huge variation in quantity and quality. There were jam, peanut butter, banana and spam sandwiches provided by young single players and students. Often last minute packs from the local garage appeared from those less well organised! There were lots of packet biscuits provided and little home baking. The club then instituted tea rotas, initially involving the captain collecting “tea money” after each game. The quality of teas took a big leap forward and thankfully jam and spam sandwiches became a thing of the past. Costs are now met from subs. Through the years players tastes have changed. Sandwiches were king for many years but there is a shift towards street food such as pakora, samosas, sausage rolls, pizza, Satay skewers and sweet potato wedges, particularly for younger players. More recently, hot dishes such as pasta, macaroni cheese and garlic bread have become very welcome. To show how things have changed, the hit towards the end of last season was asparagus, red onion and gruyere cheese tart! Excellent home baking has also become more popular and the 1st and 2nd XI players are now spoilt with different baking choices each week, though if the 1st XI are fielding second, Ali Evans has often had to work hard to ensure his bowlers are not stuffing themselves too much with homemade cakes! The club have also become more aware these days of specific dietary and religious based requirements of many players and the spread of teas tries to take these into consideration. The reputation of Carlton teas is down to the dedication of many tea helpers. However, we always need more helpers. As one of, if not the, biggest club in Scotland, we work hard at being together as one club. For that to be the case, we should provide teas for all games at Grange Loan - not just the 1st and 2nd XIs. The women’s team and the 3s, 4s and 5s should be treated equally. We all recognise this is an issue. To make it happen we need more volunteers to join the tea rota. Caroline Allardice kindly arranges the tea rotas and she would be delighted to hear from anyone who would like to get involved in helping. Two or three times a season will be all that is needed. It is also a good way to meet other club members and make new friends. Hopefully if we can get a few more volunteers then between us we can meet our aim of providing teas for all games played at Grange Loan and “tea for three” will be a thing of the past. Caroline can be contacted via email at carolineallardice.ca@gmail.com

Back in 2014 I had the genius idea of rating each club’s spread out of 10. Not only did this cause great excitement amongst players and tea teams across the country and spark some friendly interclub competition – it also meant I secured a weekly spot in the 2s. For any budding juniors who aren’t actually that good at cricket but still want to be first name on the team sheet, here are two key pieces of advice: 1) Offer to do the match report every week 2) Write a tea review. No praise is too high for Grange Loan’s star bakers - Kerry Simpson, Richard and Caroline Allardice, John Beattie, Karen Macpherson & Co would give Bake Off judges headaches for days. No cricket for the time being is a shame. But an even greater shame is the fact that this summer we are missing the full Grange Loan spread with all the trimmings. We might not experience that feeling of eating one too many scones at tea and spending the next 10 overs trying not to be sick, praying the ball doesn’t come to you. Or bowlers might not experience that feeling of elation when you learn you’re fielding first so you’ll be able to stuff your face at the break. Or the feeling of rage when you have to politely let the away team go first and you see them taking all the strawberry scones. However there are still reasons to be positive. Time in lockdown has allowed for new recipes, creativity and fine-tuning in the kitchen. Many have taken to baking to pass the time. Banana breads, cinnamon buns and oreo brownies have become the new normal. So when cricket resumes, it promises to be tastier than ever. I can’t wait! Gavin Rittoo’s tea reports were the stuff of legend. And he has never stopped thinking about tea. Don’t forget – tea for three!” The dreaded statement no cricketer wants to hear on Friday night. How the whole “tea for three” equation even works out is quite frankly beyond me. If 11 players bring tea for 3 does that not make tea for 33? Who brings the sandwiches and savoury goods? What happens if you have a team made up of 9 juniors (often the case in many a Carlton team), how do you organise it so you don’t have a tea consisting of reduced to clear biscuits and chocolate? WHO’S BRINGING THE SANDWICHES?!?!? Oh! the joys of organising a tea in lower leagues… An alien concept for the first and second-teamers. They have a whole new worry: rating how GOOD the tea is.