Issue 58

CHAMPIONS Mens First XI Masterton Trophy Women’s First XI Women’s Premier League U15 Northern Region Champions CHAMPIONS U16 Scottish Cup

Carlton beat New Rover CC (Leeds) by 10 runs Carlton - 84-9 Shreyas Tekale 27 James Stronach 13 New Rovers 74ao Shreyas Tekale 3-10 Lewis King 3-11 Robbie Murray 2-15 Jumping for joy - the final New Rovers wicket falls Carlton beat Eckington CC (Derbyshire) by 12 runs Carlton 106-7 Lewis King 28 James Stronach 18 Aadi Khadse 18 Eckington 94-7 Josh Cully 3-13 A GREAT DAY OUT AT YORK CC Come Together - Carlton players come together after the last ball v Eckington

Carlton v Eckington The final over. Great work on WhatsApp by Keith Murray A surprise addition to Carlton’s travelling support at York CC was Carlton legend Rob Thornton, newly arrived in the UK from Australia. Rob hot-footed it from Manchester Airport to lend his support. Rob reminisced on the u15s Cup Run of 2014 in an early edition of the Arrow. A few words from u15 Coach Charles Stronach: What a win! A fantastic team performance has taken the under 15s within one win of a grand final at Lord's and the chance to be the best team in Britain! Carlton’s opposition in the semi final was New Rover who had beaten us a couple of years earlier in the U13 regional final. New Rover restricted us to 84-9 with a good bowling performance but great bowling and fielding took us into the final against Eckington. Another tight game resulted in a 12 run victory and huge celebrations!

It’s been a few days now since we won the Masterton Trophy against RH Corstorphine at Linlithgow and…what can I say? To see the Carlton first team squad pull together and put in a magnificent performance on such a big occasion, with a large crowd full of loyal supporters, speaks volumes of what this club is about. The resilience, determination and sheer willingness to win when seemingly our backs were against the wall is what I’m most proud of. The success is not down to just the playing XI. The wider squad of players, some of whom were incredibly unlucky to miss out (understandably), were nothing short of exceptional in rallying around and providing the players with support as needed. The coaches, families of players, ground staff, volunteers and anyone else I’ve missed, all played a massive part in this success. However, it does not stop here. We have a huge opportunity at the National Finals on 6 August to repeat our success of 2021. Personally, I’d like to thank everyone involved at Carlton Cricket Club, this success is down to you all and we hope you can support us on finals day as we aim to try and secure our ticket to the ECL again. Umi receives the Masterton Trophy from ESCA President Kashif Hussain. We're absolutely delighted to have retained the WPL title this season. We played some really good cricket with everyone contributing across the season. There has been a real competition for places this season, and it's testament to having two teams. This has helped drive the standards up with more opportunities for players to showcase their skills and put their name in the mix. Underpinning all of this is the support Carlton have committed to giving us this season, with 2-3 coaches on a Friday night. It does make such a difference and allows us to refine individual skills ahead of the weekend. I'm very grateful to the women's committee for their dedication and support this season, and to our loyal parent and friend supporters who help out with lifts, scoring and delicious baked goods each weekend! Our focus now turns to the upcoming Scottish Cup and looking to continue our good run of form, whilst hopefully having some fun along the way! VICTORIOUS SKIPPERS UMAIR MOHAMMAD AND SAM HAGGO REFLECT ON THEIR SUCCESS

Despite the rain delay, having won the toss and opted to bat Carlton would have been confident of posting a challenging total. However at 19-3, with Da Costa, Simpson and Pillai all dismissed cheaply, there was cause for concern. Hugo Southwell and Shujaa Khan knuckled down, but when Shujaa miscued to mid-on in the 8th over with the score on a lowly 47, there was much anxious prowling of the boundary by Carlton’s large support. Ali Shah joined Hugo. Watchful at first, they gradually accelerated until in the 12th over Ali exploded and got his trade-mark slog sweep going - 4,6,6,4! Hugo departed a couple of overs later having contributed an invaluable 32. Ali was joined by Umi who ceded as much of the strike as possible to him. A third 6 brought up Ali’s half-century and the score mounted nicely Carlton’s innings closed at 143-5 off the 18 overs with Ali 60*. A score that seemed highly unlikely only 45 minutes previously. It was now down to the bowlers and the did not disappoint. Ali Evans (nicely warmed up through acting as runner to the hamstrung Umair in the final over of the Carlton innings) took 2 wickets in his first 2 overs to leave RHC on 10-2 after 4. The skipper turned to Shujaa Khan to bowl the 5th over. It did not start well with a loose delivery conceding 5 wides. Two balls later Gould deposited him over the long-on boundary for a maximum. Another wide followed, 12 off 3 balls - and the Carlton support began to twitch. But Khan had the answer - a slower one, Gould played too early and Shujaa took the return catch. Three balls later he took the off stump of the dangerous West and Carlton were on the up. Obviously a change of ends was required. Shujaa came back from the railway end for over 8 - BANG BANG BANG - the first three deliveries reduced RHC from 45-4 to 45-7 and there was no way back for them. A double hat trick for Shujaa - four wickets in four balls! While there was some late resistance which gave some respectability to RHC’s innings, Evans returned to snag another one and McIntyre also got into the act. But they left the stage to Shujaa to end the innings in the 16th over with his 6th wicket. RHC 102ao. Carlton win by 41 runs. Shujaa finished with 2.2-1-12-6, Evans 3-0-10-3. THE SHUJAA-ALI SHOW The Masterton Final As It Happened Highlights can be viewed on ESCALIVE

Cup Final Ali Not for the first time, Ali Shah has pulled Carlton out of the fire in a Cup Final. His 60* from 36 balls in this year’s Masterton Final ensured Carlton had a significant total to bowl against. In 2017, his 41 was key to rescuing the Carlton innings from a faltering start and securing the Scottish Cup. In 2021 in the National T20 Final, 28* off 20 balls was vital to securing victory. In 2022 in the Masterton Final his 92* levelled the scores with Heriot’s,although Carlton lost out having lost more wickets. Super Ali indeed! As you might have been able to tell from my celebrations I had absolutely no idea that I had achieved a hat-trick on the second ball of the second over. It was only after the game finished that Gav Murray came over and told me and I realized what had happened. Whilst I have had a junior hat-trick before, this was my first senior one so it felt really special especially considering that it was in a final! Most of all though, it was an amazing feeling to be able to contribute to the team winning another T20 cup and back up the incredible batting by Ali and Hugo! 2.2-1-12-6 Khan Do Double hat-trick hero Shujaa on a special bowling spell ‘ The double hat-trick - four wickets in four balls - is an exceedingly rare event. Carlton’s collective memory cannot recall a previous one in the club’s history. There have been none in Tests, only 1 in ODIs and 4 in T20I. Photo David Potter

‘This must be a first! Watching Carlton live in the middle of the North Atlantic!’ - Alasdair McLeod texted during the Masterton Semi-Final But he is not the only one following Carlton from afar this season. Left, the Beatties keep an eye on the 1s and 2s on the bus to San Sebastian. And right, after stretching out poolside in Hollywood Stuart Dawson tried to establish interest in a movie deal about Carlton First XI’s season. And, right, he thinks he may have found the Fantasy Bob doesn’t know whether to concentrate on the Ashes or the Masterton Final. Martin Firth contemplates another batting collapse with Rum in the background. with the stormy sky looming astern. ideal man for the starring role.

Sunday 25 June: the annual Carlton Kwik Cricket Festival at Grange Loan. Clubs across Edinburgh and the Lothians take it in turn to host Kwik Cricket Festivals across the summer. Our home festival is special for two reasons: we get to welcome other clubs to Grange Loan; and it's the only time that we get to enter three teams. And so it was that three Carlton teams and eight visitors convened at Grange Loan on a sunny Sunday morning. Wait, eight visiting teams? RHC and Bass Rock had half a team each, so joined forces to preserve the ideal even total. Regrettably, we failed to name the combined team, but Royal High Bass Rock would have been magnificent: is it a bass-heavy rock band? a regal baritone sanctuary? an imperious fishing perch? I digress (I think that's the established style in match reports?) Grange Loan is a riot of colour on Kwik Cricket Festival days. Five little pitches dot the ground, sporting blue and orange wickets, each marked out in their own colour of cones. The teams add to the spectacle: this year we had teams in blue, burgundy, red, yellow, white and multi-colour. And each team brings its spectating parents, with the result that about 150 people are dispersed around the ground whilst astonishingly still leaving room to play cricket. Kwik Cricket being a fast-moving game, it is generally hard to tell what is happening. It is therefore uniformly held that the result is not the important thing, it's all about the taking part, which saves the scorers an awful lot of bother. A clear corollary is that if a watcher polled each team as they left as to their results, and summed the wins, they would find more than the 15 wins expected from 15 matches. However, the "taking part" theory was somewhat blown apart by one Carlton team on pitch 3 who reached the last ball of the game requiring 4 runs to win. The noise levels as the bowler ran in to bowl the crucial ball were exceeded only by those when the Carlton batter hit the required boundary. Looking around the apparent chaos, it is sometimes tempting to ask what all this has to do with cricket. By way of answer, I will leave the reader with this thought: as I write this a few weeks later, I count around 30 players turning out for senior teams whose first taste of competitive cricket was representing Carlton in Kwik Cricket festivals. It's fascinating to look at the Kwik Cricketers playing in this event and to speculate as to which senior teams they will soon be playing for. Martin Firth describes this year’s KwikCricket Festival

Carlton welcomed members of the touring Goodwood CC from Adelaide to Grange Loan on Monday 24 July. One of the largest clubs in Adelaide, Goodwood counts Carlton’s own Chayank Gosain among its former ‘GREATS’. Cheeky played there during the 2019-20 season. An exciting T20, ended with the scores level. For carlton there were good contributions from Jamie Beattie with bat and ball, and from Gavin Murray with the bat, A super-over followed - Ben D’Ulisse was given the responsibility and successfully defended Carlton’s total which had been bolstered by 2 fine boundaries by Rory Ledingham including a perfectly executed ramp. Goodwood have been in the UK for 3 weeks, and their visit to Grange Loan was their only Scottish outing. After leaving Edinburgh they headed off to Cumbria for the last leg of their tour before heading home. It was a pleasure to host them. GRANGE LOAN WELCOMES GOODWOOD CC

Growing up in the late 60s/early 70s a mile from Edgbaston cricket ground, it is no surprise that cricket has always been part of my life. As a young boy I always had a cricket bat or cricket ball in my hands. I was always shining a cricket ball and I can still remember the smell of the leather. During the school holidays my younger brother and I would play cricket behind our house where there was a wide alley-way with house walls either side and bins for fielders. This was a perfect cricket pitch - if you hit the ball against the wall without it bouncing, you were out. We would put tape around half a tennis ball so it would swing. We would pretend to be our favourite players, Bob Willis, David Steel. After joining Carlton I was surprised that kids still do the same things that my brother and I did, although not in an ally but in the nets. In the early 70s we would go on family holidays to North Wales. Whilst driving there we would listen to the cricket on the radio and I still remember listening to the commentary of David Steel batting against Lillee and Thompson and being enthralled. North Wales has great beaches for cricket. We would spend all day playing beach cricket. I would bat all day and no one could get me out - although my brother’s recollections might vary. I didn’t play club cricket until I left school and I think that was the norm then. We would have school cricket games after school and on Saturday mornings. When I was 11 I was selected for Warwickshire Colts and I spent 2/3 years being coached by some professional Warwickshire players, notably the legendary West Indies player Alvin Kallicharran. We would be asked to bowl to some of the professional players and I remember bowling leg spin to Dennis Amis the England and Warwickshire opening batsmen. I’m sure I got him out, but again recollections may vary. During my last year at school we won the West Midlands cricket shield which was played at Edgbaston. I scored a 50 and took 5 wickets - and that can be verified! (See photo over.) After leaving school I played for Bournville CC. The pitch was in the grounds of Cadbury’s chocolate factory and, yes, you could always smell the chocolate. I moved to Edinburgh in 1995. It’s only recently that I remembered my first unknowing encounter with Carlton. Scotland were playing the West Indies and I wanted to go but I didn’t know where the ground was. FROM EDGBASTON TO GRANGE LOAN The cricket journey of Paul Kentish

I asked a friend “do you know where The Grange is” She said “there’s a cricket ground at Grange Loan it’s probably there”. This was before the internet. So I got a taxi to Grange Loan. I looked through the gate and thought, this is a bit quiet this can’t be it. Anyway it became patently obvious I was at the wrong venue. I got to the Grange late but I witnessed Courtney Walsh bowling with an apple and saw a streaker before I fell asleep having had one beer too many - a great day. In 2004 Charlie and Fraser were born. We have a photo of them watching the 2005 Ashes so it’s not surprising that they both took an interest in cricket. We would play in the hall and in the garden for hours and hours. We joined Carlton in 2014 and since then it has been our second home. I hadn’t picked up a bat since the early 90s and, as happens to so many lapsed cricketers, I had one net and I was hooked. I really enjoyed helping Stevie Gilmour coach the 2004 cohort from playing softball to playing senior cricket and it’s great to see and play cricket with lots of these young men as they are now. But the best part is that I have played in the same team as Charlie and Fraser. There aren’t many team sports that you can do that. My favourite Carlton matches are when I played in the same team with Charlie and Fraser. A game against Peebles springs to mind, for no other reason than Charlie scored runs and Fraser took wickets. I didn’t bat but the pleasure I took watching them enjoying themselves was immense. I still enjoy playing and hopefully scoring runs and helping young players understand this great game. Well done all involved in making sure Carlton carries on being the envy of other clubs. Paul with the West Midlands’ School shield (no comment on the hair style).

It may not have been until the 1970s that Village People would urge disco dancers to Go West, but Carlton’s western adventures began over a century earlier. In June 1872, in one of their first forays to the West, a Carlton team travelled to face Greenock CC. While it is known that cricket had been played in Greenock as early as 1819, the present club had been founded in 1862 making it a year older than Carlton. Go West Glenpark (photo below) has been home to Greenock CC since 1864, The present pavilion and clubhouse dates from 1923. In 1926 Scotland played their first ever first-class match at Glenpark against Ireland. Scotland were victorious by an innings and 147 runs. Carlton’s CS Paterson was in the Scotland XI on that occasion. Among the greats to have played at Glenpark is Jack Hobbs. The legendary England opener, with 197 centuries to his name, was 53 and had announced his retirement from first class cricket when he played in Harry Rowan’s Invitational XI in June 1935. 1500 spectators saw him score 62, one run more than local favourite John Kerr (see below). Another great opening batter from another era also graced Glenpark - the West Indian great Gordon Greenidge played a couple of seasons for Greenock in the early 1990s. In a new series the Arrow looks at Carlton’s fortunes against some of the best of the west.

Getting There For Carlton’s players in 1872 an away trip to Greenock was a significant undertaking. The Edinburgh Glasgow railway had opened in 1842, operating at first to Haymarket and extended to Waverley in 1844. The journey time was 150 minutes. Because of the slope out of Queen Street Station, the train had to be hauled by a rope powered by stationary steam engines (see photo below). A brake engine was coupled for the entry to Queen Street. Similar arrangements continued until 1909 when more powerful engines became available. By the 1870s the journey time for the express service, stopping only at Falkirk, had reduced to 80 minutes and the second class fare was 2/6d. The Glasgow to Greenock service which had opened in 1841 was another 50 minute journey (a third class fare, standing only, was 6d). Getting to the ground from Greenock West Station would have involved a horse and cart journey. Victory for Carlton The logistics of travel may have been behind the fact that Carlton could only field 9 players in this match, notwithstanding which, and despite frequent interruptions by rain, they won convincingly by 97 runs. The highlight was ‘G F Rayner’s handsome score of 83 (out of the total of 137) comprised three 6s four 3s nineteen twos and fifteen singles.’ A month later a return fixture was played in Edinburgh. By contrast with the first match, the weather was distinctly better - the Scotsman reported that ‘the heat of the sun was very great. Generally,’ the report continued, ‘the cricket was very good and the Carlton came off victorious in the first innings by 37 runs with the second grealy in their favour.’ In the return fixture Carlton fielded only two members of the side who had travelled to Greenock a month earlier. Six Greenock players played in both fixtures. Rayner was again the most successful batter with scores of 28 and 27.

CARLTON V GREENOCK - MATCHES The 1872 fixtures began a long relationship between Carlton and Greenock, with many exciting tussles over the years. Fixtures were regular until 1924. The reasons for their cessation are lost in the mists of time, although it is highly probable that the rise during that period in Western Union commitments crowded out Greenock’s fixture list. Or it may be that both sides preferred to seek opposition elsewhere. It was not until 1971 that Carlton and Greenock crossed swords again in a series of friendlies between the clubs and the occasional Scottish Cup tie. The sides met regularly during the period of the SNCL’s existence between 1999 and 2011. Since when meetings have been restricted to cup ties, most recently in 2021 and 2022 both of which ended up in victories for Carlton. Over the complete history of the fixture Carlton has won 23, Greenock 22 and there have been 3 draws. Carlton players celebrate a wicket during their victorious cup tie at Glenpark in 2016 One of the tensest encounters between the clubs came in the 2009 Scottish Cup Quarter Final at Glenpark. In a match reduced to 36 overs, Carlton posted 173-8 with Fraser Watts top scoring on 57. Greenock required 8 off the last over to win. A scrambled single off the last ball tied the scores - and secured the victory for Greenock who had lost only 6 wickets. This was the last Cup victory for Greenock - more recent meetings have ended in wins for Carlton. The highest scoring encounter was the previous year in 2008, when a below par fielding display by Carlton at Glenpark allowed Greenock to amass 289-5 with Richie Berrington top scoring on 95. Despite Fraser Watt’s 92 (below), the chase proved too much for Carlton who were all out for 234. Greenock’s total that day was one run higher than Carlton’s highest, and winning, score of 288-4 in 1921. While no score has plumbed the depths of Greenock’s 39 on the first ever encounter, and Carlton’s 47 in 1879, Carlton were all out for 93 in the 1986 cup tie, losing by 13 runs while Greenock scored only 86 in 2012’s cup tie.

Cup Final Agony While Carlton may have been victorious over Greenock in recent years’ cup ties, they faced only heartache in 2007 when the sides met in the Scottish Cup Final at Ferguslie’s Meikleriggs ground. It had been thirty years since Carlton had appeared in the final, when they lost out to Clydesdale, and hopes were high of bringing the trophy home to Grange Loan for the first time. Confidence bolstered by the fact that Carlton had won when the clubs had faced up in the league earlier in the season. The first attempt to play the match had been defeated by the rain and while the ground was still very wet the following week, play went ahead. Winning the toss and batting, Carlton soon found themselves in lots of trouble as wickets tumbled. Only a 37 run partnership between pro Peter Wooden (30) and Craig Marshall (16) put some respectability on the scoreboard. At 98-7 Carlton’s attempts to push on were demolished by a hat trick for Kevin McLaren, the last a stumping off a wide, meaning that the innings closed on a paltry 99. While Carlton’s bowlers forced a hiccup or two, two players with Carlton connections, Craig Wright (19*) and Sean Weeraratna (25*) took Greenock over the line to win by 5 wickets. Carlton’s match reporter ruefully commented ‘Surely it won’t be another 30 years until Carlton’s next Cup Final’. In fact it was only 6 years until their next appearance, an equally agonising loss to Grange in 2013. But time speeds up, and Carlton finally came good in their next final appearance in 2017 when they overcame Watsonians.

PLAYERS THE GREENOCK GUV’NOR John Kerr - known as the Greenock Guv’nor - made his debut for Greenock against Carlton in 1901, a match Greenock won by 4 runs. This was the start of long and memorable career in which he scored a record 58 centuries. One of those was 127 against Carlton in 1910. Over his long career he scored over 20,000 runs for Greenock. John Kerr played for Carlton between 1906 and 1908 scoring 3 centuries in his final year before returning to Greenock where he continued to pile on the runs until retiring in 1945. Kerr played 32 times for Scotland between 1908 and 1933. In 1921, he scored 147 against the touring Australians, and in 1923 he scored 178* against Ireland. That score remained a record, as did his 1975 runs for Scotland, until both were overtaken by James Aitchison (who also played for Carlton during his career). More recent players with split loyalties are former Scotland skipper Craig Wright (below rt), former Carlton junior Sean Weeraratna (below left) and current Carlton coach Dewald Nel. Photos Greenock CC John Kerr takes his stance, above, and, below, snapped with Jack Hobbs in 1935 (Photo Greenock CC)

FRAGGLE Exactly 100 hundred years after John Kerr moved eastwards across country, Carlton’s former Director of Cricket Fraser Watts went in the opposite direction to spend a couple of seasons at Greenock before returning to Grange Loan in 2008. Recalling his time in the West Fraggle says, ‘I played at Greenock for 2 years and had a wonderful time. It was the right time for me to move as I felt I was getting a bit stale at Carlton so it was nice to have a fresh challenge. ‘I didn’t play in the 2007 cup final (see above) as it was my sister’s wedding. I can’t remember much about specific Carlton vs Greenock games but I’m pretty sure Greenock won most of them during that time!’ (Greenock won both the SNCL and the cup while Fraser was with them.) ‘I obviously got a lot of stick from the Carlton guys which was fine! ‘These are two great community clubs who are run by some outstanding people and who always make you feel welcome.’ Fraggle on the front foot for Greenock v Grange, 2007 Photo Greenock CC In 2 seasons at Glenpark, Watts scored 1310 runs including 2 centuries (neither against Carlton - his top score against his ‘home club’ was 38*). He played twice against Carlton in that time, Greenock being victorious on both occasions. Back in Carlton colours in 2008, Watts scored 92 at Glenpark in his first outing against Greenock - albeit in a losing cause in a high scoring match. ANOTHER GREENOCK GREAT Current Scotland skipper Richie Berrington started his career at Greenock, before moving to Clydesdale in 2013. In 166 matches for Greenock he scored 4189 runs and took 136 wickets. His highest score against Carlton was 95* at Glenpark in 2008, the same match in which Fraser Watts hit 92 for Carlton. In Carlton’s 150th Anniversary Match v CricketScotland President’s XI, Berrington scored a blistering century.

Batting In the history of the fixture there have been 5 centuries, 4 of which were at Glenpark. Carlton’s only centurion is Cedric English who scored 101 in 2002, but ended up on the losing side. For Greenock, J Reid Kerr scored 114 in 1905 to help the home side to victory. In 1910 John Kerr (see next page) scored 127 in another home victory. Neil Macrae scored 106* in 2000 - Carlton holding on for a losing draw. The only century at Grange Loan was scored in 2009 by Australian Cameron Borgas His 119* helped Greenock to victory. Carlton’s best at Grange Loan is Preston Mommsen’s 97 in 2010. Bowling Michael Herdman had the remarkable return of 5-6 in the 2012 Cup tie at Glenpark. In June 1897 NL Stevenson took 5 wickets against Greenock twice in 3 days as the teams played back to back matches home and away. Carlton were victorious in both. But the most successful bowler of the early period was the Greenock pro WH Jenner who took a liking to Carlton batters, returning 6-29 at GL in 1903, 7-45 at Glenpark in 1905 and 5-41 at GL in 1909. Jenner was a Glenpark from 1901-1909 and subsequently played for Watsonians before returning to Greenock as an amateur. Carlton v Greenock Top performances Borgas acknowledges his century in 2009. Photo Greenock CC A rare ‘action’ shot of NL Stevenson Michael Herdman Thanks to Brian Papworth Greenock CC for additional information.

Another Carlton record fell at Grange Loan on 15 July when the 2nd XI were bundled out by Dunnikier for 44. This is not itself a record, there have, sadly, been lower scores in the club’s history. However this paltry total contained no fewer than 7 ducks (two of them golden). This is confidently believed to be the highest number of ducks in a single Carlton innings. The 2nd XI broke their own club record having previously recorded 6 ducks in 1972 (v Leith Academicals), 1974 (v Holy Cross) and 1977 v Stenhousemuir 2. The 4th XI also achieved 6 ducks against Tranent Preston Village in 2017. The 1st XI’s highest duck quota is 5, achieved in their EPL match with Heriot’s earlier this season, matching their tally in 1966’s match v Watsonians. The 5th XI had 5 ducks at Leith Links v LFAB2 in 2018. The 3rd XI’s highest is a mere 4 ducks which they most recently achieved in Livingston in 2017. But there is still scope for this record to be beaten - in 2014 Wirral CC were dismissed for 3 in a Cheshire League match. Leg Byes was top scorer with 2. Only one batsman got off the mark, mustering a solitary run. There were 10 ducks. The scorecard from Wirral CC’s innings of 3 ao. A NEW RECORD

MORE ON DUCKS Like death and taxes, ducks are one certainty in cricket if not in life. Play cricket long enough and you will certainly fail to trouble the scorers. While it is the bowlers who most frequently face the lonely scoreless trudge back to the pavilion, even great batters are susceptible. Bradman was out for 0 in 7 out of 80 test innings, including most famously his last ever Test innings - he needed to score 4 to secure his test average at 100, but he was bowled second ball for 0 by Eric Hollies. In 260 Test innings Steve Waugh failed to score 22 times, including 6 first ballers. By contrast Aussie batter Jim Burke played a record 44 Test innings between 1951-57 without a duck. For Carlton, Richard Dickinson (rt), primarily a bowler but a handy middle-order hitter with more than 2000 runs for Carlton, had a record 38 ducks in 197 First Team innings. Preston Mommsen batted 60 times in First Team matches without a duck. (He should have stayed at GL - he scored a duck for Grange in 2018!) DUCKS - THE POETIC APPROACH Shreds and Patches, the Carlton booklet commemorating the 1923 season contains the verses below on the torment of returning runless to the pavilion. They are the work of Alec Walker, Treasurer of the Club between 1921-27 (which included the years of financial stress of securing the purchase of Grange Loan). If not the greatest poet, Walker was a handy all rounder on the field. In 1921 he scored 102 against West of Scotland and he was the club’s best bowler in 1923 taking 54 wickets at 9.8. Bradman’s last Test innings

Ruari McIntyre celebrates scoring the winning runs in Carlton’s narrow league victory over Heriot’s on 8 July……. ….and again six days later when he bowls Heriot’s Hayes Van Der Berg in the Semi-Final of the Masterton Trophy CELEBRATE! The McIntyre Way ..and in the Final of he Masterton Trophy

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY A BUSY MONTH AHEAD 6 Aug - National T20 Finals - Stirling - Carlton v Falkland (the winners will play Forfarshire or a yet to be identified WDCU team) 7 Aug - ECB u15 Cup - Elsecar CC - Carlton v Leamington 18 Aug - U12 Derby Night and Social* 19 Aug - Darts Night - Grange Loan* 26 Aug - End of Season Dinner* 1 Sept - Junior End of Season Prizegiving 2 Sept - Grange Loan T10 Festival - Senior Prizegiving* *Full details will be available shortly on Pitchero. FASHION CORNER There have been gasps of admiration around Grange Loan following the recent appearance of the jaunty new gear presented to Carlton’s highly valued Groundstaff - seen here modelled by Alasdair Macleod. ‘Where can I get one?’ has been on everyone’s lips. A decision has yet to be taken as to whether this smart item will be added to the range of clubwear already available. Could be a big seller at Christmas.