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Season Start Successes for Breadies
Strathmore & Perthshire Division 1
Breadalbane 1st XI vs Stoneywood/Dyce CC
Saturday 3 May at Victoria Park Aberfeldy
After having Premier League status stolen from it last year, Breadalbane set its stall out to regain promotion with an emphatic win in the opening encounter of the season.
Breadalbane were in no mood to show any quarter to the travelling Stoneywood/Dyce, fatigued from their long trek from Aberdeen.
Runs were not going to come easy on the heavy Victoria Park pitch as the visitors elected to bat first.
The Breadie bowling attack kept the Eastcoasters run rate well in check as it rarely exceeded 3 an over. Wickets were falling too, as deft bowling changes by the Breadies skipper Mark Bowler never allowed the Stoneywood men to settle.
The Aberdonians struggled to 145 for 9 in their allotted 45 overs. Wickets were shared around amongst the Breadalbane bowlers, Langhorn, Hardy, Delph and Julian Brunt, on his first appearance for the club, all taking two apiece. Another 6 catches were pouched, a phenomenon which is rapidly becoming an exciting feature of the the Breadies’ fielding.
Breadalbane’s formidable opening partnership of Platts and Hardy piled on the agony for Stoneywood. They reached 79 before Platts inextricably hit his pad instead of the ball allowing the cherry to go on and demolish his stumps. Platts departed for a useful 22. Stoneywood/Dyce here given some heart as Eyes and Lawson soon followed Platts back to the pavilion.
Whenever the Breadies sense trouble there always seems to be a Bax about. This time it was Bax Sr., James, who along with the undismissable Kyle Hardy, knuckled down and comfortably steered Breadalbane to victory with a satisfying 11 overs to spare.
Hardy finished on 79 no, Bax 18 no.
The 2nd Division match vs Strathmore XI on the following Sunday was called off.
Strathmore & Perthshire Division 2
Sunday 20 April at Doo’cot Park
Breadalbane 2nd XI vs Strathearn 2nd XI
The icy winds blew across Perth’s Doo’cot Park as Breadalbane embarked on its first encounter of the new season straight into the teeth of an easterly gale.
The Breadies are notoriously slow starters, so much planning was entered into to see if, for the first time in recent memory, a victory in the season’s first encounter could be achieved. All the planning soon went for nowt as skipper Langhorn promptly lost the toss and the Breadie openers gingerly made their way to the centre.
Langhorn need not have fretted, however, as two hours later they were still there and Breadalbane had reached 183 without loss. Platts and Hardy expertly played the Strathearn attack like a well greased fiddle. Platts dismissal for a stylish 75 only brought Chris Eyes to the crease intent on giving the Strathearn men even more grief. He pummelled the bowling (and the roof of the pavilion) for 44 before a mix-up running between wickets found him whalelike and stranded yards from home.
Hardy, on the other hand, had no intention of being run out or out by any other means. Rocklike he remained unbeaten throughout the entire innings claiming 97 not out. Inexplicably and selflessly, with a century in sight and requiring four runs from the last two balls, Hardy ran a single from the penultimate ball of the innings! Absolute dedication to the cause from the young man. Breadalbane finished on a very satisfying 245 for 2.
The Strathearn reply never really got going. The Breadies’ doughty stumper, Mark Bridgeman, pouched the top three batters with just 44 on the board and the game became a procession. The Breadalbane bowlers ground down their opposition as the asking rate steadily climbed.
Spinner Mark Bowler accounted for three of the Strathearn batsmen and old reliable Dave Delph claimed two. Another happy Breadalbane bowler was 14 years old Robert Thompson who took his first wicket for the club. He took a good catch too, and proudly declared that his mum promised to give him 50p per catch and 50p per wicket. Come on Annette, surely your first senior club wicket is worth a fiver! Then again, the way young Robert is shaping up it could be a costly pledge.
It’s also worth mentioning that the Breadies hung on to 8 catches, very encouraging and somewhat better than the 14 they spilled in last year’s opening bout.
Strathearn were bowled out for 158, giving Breadalbane an 87 run victory margin and a great start to the season.
by Tailender
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