Western Premier cricket: Dumfries ‘win twice’ over Stirling to top table

RELIEVED Dumfries star Scott Beveridge last night told how his side had to beat Stirling County twice over to remain at the top of the West Premier Division.

The Nunholm men trooped off the New Williamfield ground desperate to order their celebration pints at the bar – only to be told they hadn’t actually finished the job.

Beveridge said: “It was all due to the scoreboard operators not co-ordinating with the official scorers.

“At the start of the final over the board indicated that we needed 13 to win – and thanks to three boundaries and a single, we reckoned we hit the target and everyone headed for the clubhouse. Then we saw the scorers scuttling across frantically to tell us that the totals were level and that we would have to go back out into the middle.

“It meant all the pressure was on tailender Jerry Goodin, who was facing – and thankfully he managed to hit the single we needed to win all over again.” Beveridge also picked out the man at the other end – skipper Stuart Corbett-Byers – for plaudits after he finished on 72 not out. “It was an amazing knock by Stuart, probably the best I have seen from him,” he said.

Beveridge insisted Dumfries haven’t yet got fully into their stride, saying: “We still have lots to work on. For a start, we have been giving away far too many sloppy extras and we need to address that quickly.”

Former Dunfermline ace Vasu Reddy had hit 74 to help propel County to 265 for five. He then struck four times with the ball to give the home brigade the edge going into the tense finale. But Corbett-Byers and Goodin held their nerve to secure the last-gasp triumph.

It wasn’t such a close encounter at Bothwell Castle Polices, where a marvellous 127 by Calum MacLeod inspired Uddingston to their demolition job on struggling Greenock. MacLeod faced just 97 balls, clearing the boundary twice and hitting the rope 14 times.

West of Scotland brushed aside the challenge of Drumpellier at Coatbridge. World Cup star John Blain has often been the dominant figure in West’s attack and he again took two wickets, but Ian Cran and Stuart Leggat produced a crucial six-scalp haul between them to dismiss Drumps for 155 in reply to 179 for six. Westveteran Dougie Lockhart had laid the foundations with a knock of 59.

A solid all-round team effort also resulted in Clydesdale’s comprehensive success against Ayr at Titwood.