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13th July 2010 - MCC Toil With the Bat to go Out of the President's Trophy
MCC stumbled at the quarter final stage of the President's Trophy with a heavy 9 wicket defeat by Watsonians at Cavalry Park. Batting first, Marchmont got off to a sluggish start, losing Aaron Sardesai early for 0. Will Colllier (25) and Matt Loeffen (16) started to get some runs on the board, but once they were both out to 'Sonians Sevak (2-11), MCC could only get to a lowly 78, losing their last 6 wickets for just 5 runs.
It was never going to be enough and despite Matt (1-16) removing the dangerous Ewan Robertson for 15, 'Sonians scampered home easily and with plenty of overs to spare.
A disappointing end to a good cup run, which same some good performances against Carlton and Edinburgh. This leaves MCC in just 2 cup competitions - the Metcalfe and Activcity Trophies.
MCC stumbled at the quarter final stage of the President's Trophy with a heavy 9 wicket defeat by Watsonians at Cavalry Park. Batting first, Marchmont got off to a sluggish start, losing Aaron Sardesai early for 0. Will Colllier (25) and Matt Loeffen (16) started to get some runs on the board, but once they were both out to 'Sonians Sevak (2-11), MCC could only get to a lowly 78, losing their last 6 wickets for just 5 runs.
It was never going to be enough and despite Matt (1-16) removing the dangerous Ewan Robertson for 15, 'Sonians scampered home easily and with plenty of overs to spare.
A disappointing end to a good cup run, which same some good performances against Carlton and Edinburgh. This leaves MCC in just 2 cup competitions - the Metcalfe and Activcity Trophies.
13th July 2010 - A New Addition to the Renwick Household
Congratulations to Anita and Alan who now have a new addition to their home. Baby Alex was born last Tuesday and mother and baby are both doing well. Congrats to both from all at MCC.
12th July 2010 - 2nd XI Averages Updated
Updated 2nd XI averages can now be see on the website here. These averages include all games up to and including the game vs Fauldhouse on 11th July. Updated 1st XI averages will be uploaded later this week (once I have the scorebook!)
11th July 2010 - MCC 2s thumped by Fauldhouse as batting fails
With the MCC 1st XI having a week off due to the weather in Saturday, it was left to the 2nd XI to look for a win for the club on Sunday.
Skipper John MacConnachie won the toss and on a damp wicket, asked Fauldhouse to bat. At 38 for 1 off 18, the decision seemed a good one, with Steve Mathers (1-19), Steve Clayton (2-25) and Neil Granger (0-18) being particularly stingy. However Fauldhouse progressed steadily and upped the run rate effectively, propelling them to a handy 182 for 8, with Ramesh Viswanathan (2-40) picking up a couple of wickets.
A requirement of a little over 4 an over was not outwith the capabilities of the MCC batsmen, however the innings got off to an appalling start, Harith Ramachandra (7) chopping on and Steve Mathers being run out for just 3. MCC 14 for 2 off 5. Worse was to follow as batsmen numbers 4 to 7 combined for just 1 run, failing to support Alan Farnworth (18) with some poor shot selection.
By the time that Farnworth was out, MCC were 36 for 7 and in real danger of not reaching 50. Granger, (19* coming in 8), tried his best to steady what was left of the ship and steer MCC to a batting point, but even with support from Phil Morris (eventually out to a very decent ball) and Charlie Rich (done by a lack of bounce), MCC could only get to 62, some distance from making a competitive match.
The defeat with only 4 bonus points will keep MCC in 7th. The capitulation of the batting will be disappointing for all concerned, but the bowling and fielding (in most part) had a number of positives, not least 2 run outs, 3 catches and the opening and closing bowling spells. MCC 2s will have a chance to rebound against 3rd place Livingston next week, while the firsts take on struggling Heriots at Cavalry Park.
11th July 2010 - Website
After a 2 week holiday, the MCC website will be being updated with various bits and pieces over the next few days, including a summary of games in the last two weeks and a mid season summary. Come back for more soon.
24th June 2010 - MCC's Bid for Masterton Final Halted by Grange
Marchmont's success in the Masterton Trophy came to an end in the semi final against Grange, despite the best efforts of a banged up MCC team. Ultimately Grange batted well and 203 was a big target, albeit on a favourable batting track and fast outfield, not helped by some poor fielding by MCC's recent high standards. A number of MCC bowlers were dispatched around the ground, predominantly by Grange's Cole (90) and Maiden (33) and only really Matt Loeffen (1-14) and Neil Granger (1-21) could return reasonable figures, with Davi Sardesai (1-42) picking up the 3rd wicket.
In response, things started positively with an opening partnership of 68 between Will Collier (33) and Aaron Sardesai (29), setting up a solid base for the chase. However wickets fell at the wrong time, with Collier and Sardesai going in quick succession. Matt Loeffen (28) and Pete Maksimczyk (24) tried to kick start the run chase again, but once Loeffen was caught in dramatic fashion by Coles, and with skip Sam Peachey missing due to a hamstring injury sustained in the field, MCC struggled to regain the momentum. The lower order pushed the score over 150, giving some respectibitlity to the effort, but it wasn't enough.
MCC can take a lot of positives from the experience and will look to the Terry Newcombe and President's trophies next week for a cup bounce back.
Good luck to Grange in the final.
20th June 2010 - Team effort sends MCC through
A devestating 6 over, 6 wicket spell between Neil Granger (4-27) and Pete Maksimczyk (2-24) tore the heart out of the Edinburgh top order to propel Marchmont through to the quarters of the President's Trophy, where Watsonians lie in wait. However, the win was more down to a huge team effort in the field, with some outstanding catches and performances.
MCC posted a modest 162 with Aaron Ardesai (39) and Corne Van Jaarsveld (30) top scoring, with a number of others chipping in. This looked to be about 20-30 runs light, but MCC reduced the normally explosive Edinburgh to 62-7 and despite an 8th wicket flurry of 57, Pat Snowdon (3-18) tidied up the tail to finish Edinburgh off for 124.
19th June 2010 - 1sts Fall Short by 4 as 2s tie
Marchmont 1st XI narrowly lost to league leaders Murrayfield at Cavalry Park, by just 4 runs, despite Matt Loeffen's excellent century (120) and 3 wickets (3-35). Needing 74 off the last 10, Loffen, Pete Maksimczyk (30) and Farhan Sheikh (21) almost saw MCC home. MCC take 10 points from the game to stay 3rd.
Marchmont 2s were even tighter against Edinburgh South at Inch Park, with Edin South clinching a tied game off the last ball of the game. More to follow.
17th June 2010 - Marchmont Masterton Semi Date Announced
Marchmont will play Grange at Raeburn Place in the semi final of the Masterton on Thursday 24th June 2010. It will be a 6pm (ish) start, but please can all associated with MCC try and get down to lend support. team will be announced shortly.
16th June 2010 - Marchmont far from Casual in run chase
Marchmont picked up their 23rd win of the season in all competitions to keep on target to retain the Terry Newcombe Trophy and remain unbeaten in all cup competitions.
A 9 wicket victory does not tell the full story, as the Casual's middle order smashed 79 off 8 overs to post a handy 131 for 7 off their 20. Ravi Hegganni continued where his debut left off (3-8) and Pete Maksimczyk also chipped in with 3 wickets in 6 balls. In response, Aaron Sardesai's excellent unbeaten 72* was the crux of the MCC response, supported by Alan Renwick (26) and John MacConnachie (20*), as MCC cruised to victory with 4 overs to spare. Murrayfield await MCC in the quarters.
15th June 2010 - Gandhi Injury Setback
MCC 1st XI will be without Nirmal Gandhi for a period yet to be established, after the all rounder broke his finger in 4 places against Leith FAB. It is expected that he will be sidelined for 6 weeks, dependant on consultant's reports. Get well soon Nir!
14th June 2010 - MCC See off Morton in Activcity 20|20
Will Collier's (3-9) rich vein of form continued with his 7th wicket in 2 games as Morton could only recover from 24 for 5 to 85 for 9 in the Activcity 20|20. MCC made short work of the response, with Sam Peachey (35*) and Stuart Macgregor (33) securing a 9 wicket victory with 6 overs to spare. MCC will take on fellow ESCA 2 team Musselburgh in the next round.
12th June 2010 - 1sts make it 6 from 7, but 2s struggle
Will Collier's all round performance (53* and 4-42) flanked by batting performances from Stuart Macgregor (49) and Aaron Sardesai (35) and bowling performances from Davi Sardesai (3-29) and Neil Granger (2-34) helped Marchmont 1sts ensure there was no slip up against Leith and mainained pace with Musselburgh and M DAFS.
However the seconds had less luck down in Dunbar. John MacConnachie's career high of 38 and new boy Ravi Hegganni (25 & 3 wickets) could nout stop Dunbar from reaching their target with 6 wickets to spare.
10th June 2010 - MCC Set Up a Masterton Semi
Marchmont became the first ESCA team to reach the Masterton Trophy Semi finals in 8 years by knocking out Div 1 outfit Holy Cross at Cavalry Park. MCC ultimately cruised to an 8 wicket victory to set up asemi final clash against the Grange at Raeburn Place later this month.
Holy Cross were restricted to 104 off their 20, thanks in most part to good fielding and some good bowling performances (Granger 1-14 and Collier 1-16) and were in trouble at 22 for 3. However a stand of 56 between Fraser (50*) and Bonfield (21*) ensured that MCC would have to bat well.
Collier (66*), opening for the first time this season, showed his intent immediately by carving Bonfield for and early 4 and MCC never looked back. Even despite Aaron Sardesai going early, thanks to an oustanding catch by Cross' Graham, Loeffen (23) and Collier put on 80 for the second wicket, with the run rate generally hovering around the 8 an over mark. It was left for Stuart Macgregor to smash the winning runs through the covers and send MCC marching on.
3rd June 2010 - MCC see off Widows in the Parks for 9 in a row
MCC won their 9th game on the spin, going through to the Parks quarter finals at the expense of Scottish Widows on Thursday night. The MCC bowlers managed to tame Ewan Robertson's bat this time round to ensure that the 'Sonian didn't hit another 103*. Tight bowling all round and wickets for the Granger brothers and Nirmal Gandhi ensured Widows fell 46 runs short in their chase of 141, after a bright start. Earlier, 51 from Alan Renwick, 35 from Navin Chetty and 23 from Aaron Sardesai helped MCC to a healthy 140 off the 20 overs.
31st May 2010 - Duck hunting almost costs MCC
It was scrappy, nervy, and wasn't pretty, but in the end it didn't matter, as MCC did it the hard way to reach the final of the Metcalfe Trophy. MCC lost 4 wickets for 1 run, chasing 137 to win vs Stockbridge in the Metcalfe Trophy semi final, after cruising at 124 for 3, with 6 overs left, thanks to another fifty from Nirmal Gandi (51) and Corne Van Jaarsveld (26).
29th May 2010 - Job done: 40 more points for MCC
A 106 run partnership between Matt Loeffen (65) and Sam Peachey (38) followed by 60 for the 7th wicket between W Collier (49) and Jonathan Leburn (19*) was enough of a foundation to beat Corstorphine at Cavalry Park. With all the bowlers chipping in (in particular Neil Granger's 3 wickets and Matt Loeffen's 7-5-5-2) MCC 1s eased to a 74 run win.
The 2s also made sure of seeing off Corstorphine III at Bangholm and making it a good weekend for the club, thanks in the most part to a destructive 32* from Corne Van Jaarsveld and 4 wickets from Steve Clayton. Chasing 113, the 2s made heavy work of it, eventually winning by 3 wickets, Van Jaarsveld hitting 5 6s in quick succession.
23rd May 2010 - MCC 1s Thump League Leaders and 2s beat Peebles to make it a 40 Point Weekend
Marchmont 1st XI picked up another 20 league points by beating league leaders Freuchie by 10 wickets at Cavalry Park. Davi Sardesai picked up 4 wickets while Aaron Sardesai (67*) and Stuart Macgregor (51*) ensured an emphatic victory. Notable performance for Steve Clayton with the ball too, as he picked up 2 wickets, with Will Collier, Pete Maksimczyk and Euan Granger also contributing.
51 from Alan Renwick and 24* from Colin Smith ensured that Peebles only took bonus points from Cavalry on Sunday, as MCC 2nds won by 4 wickets. Colin also took 4 wickets to go past the 100 league wicket mark for the 2s and new boy Corne Van Jaarsveld chipped in with 3 of his own.
Choosing to field in the sun, Peebles accelerated away quickly, Granger bearing the brunt of the fast outfield. It took until Peebles were in the 60s before MCC struck - Pat Snowdon picking up a well deserved wicket. Peebles continued well and despite a good runout of his own making by Liam Healy (never run on a misfield, particularly by the keeper...) they strolled on to 100+ for 3. Then came the collapse. Colin, bowling in tandem well with Harith, made the breakthrough removing Swan just as he was getting going. Three more followed and when Corne wrapped up the tail for negligible runs, MCC needed 135 to win.
On a very dry cavalry track, with a lightning fast outfield and in glorious sun, MCC were confident that this could be surpassed. However at 27-2 and then 80+ for 5 and the top order back in the hutch, there were a few nervous faces. But a cameo of 19 from skipper John MacConnachie, as well as some strong hitting from Colin (24*) ensured there would be no mistake, as he and Granger steered the MCC ship home for the full 20.
Next week both teams play their Corstorphine counterparts.
20th May 2010 - Another Scalp for Marchmont in Masterton
Marchmont claimed another big scalp in the 1st round of the Masterton Trophy on Thursday night, this time SNCL Division 1 Stenhousemuir, a team 2 leagues above Marchmont.
After putting out Edinburgh Accies at the same stage last year, Marchmont were looking for a repeat of the last time MCC took on 'Muir in 2001, where 'Muir were bowled out for just 66 and lost by 7 wickets. On that day James Green took 4 for 21 and this time another MCC bowler stepped up to the plate; new boy Nirmal Gandhi taking 4-16. But it wasn't just Nirmal - all MCC's bowlers performed well and 'Muir fell just 1 run short, on the last ball of the game, thanks to the composed bowling of Pete Maksimczyk (1-15) and skipper Sam Peachey's second run out of the night.
MCC had decided to bat, but wickets fell at regular intervals as they struggled to 108, with only Matt Loeffen (31) getting real joy with the bat, supported by Pete (14) and Nirmal (12). Tom Rutherford and Stuart Whyte both took 3 wickets each for the hosts. In response, Nir bowled Halcrow (0) and Kelly (2) as 'Muir also struggled. 42-2 became 49-5 as Gandhi picked up his 3rd and 4th wickts of the night, followed by a run out from Peachey. 'Muir began the rebuilding process and got to 70-5 before Loeffen, Peachey and Maksimczyk all picked up wickets to reduce the hosts to 87-9 and to the brink of defeat.
However, 'Muir's final pairing of Mackie (13*) and D Halcrow (7) proved to be more than stubborn and despite best efforts, they made sure MCC were pushed right to the final ball of the game. For the 5th time in 2 years, all 3 results were possible off the final ball of the game but, thankfully for MCC, the combo of Maksimczyk and Peachey closed out the game, running out Halcrow to win by just 1 run.
MCC will play ESCA Div 1 Holy Cross in the quarter finals.
18th May 2010 - MCC to meet Widows in Parks Rnd 2
Matt Loeffen's moved towards the 500 run mark for the season with a fine 69* against Maccabi. A good bowling spell from him and Pat Snowdon ensured a good win with 8 balls to spare.
15th May 2010 - MCC 1sts pick up another 20 points
Matt Loeffen's good start to the season continued with another 91 runs and Stuart Macgregor chipped in with 40 as MCC defeated Heriots at Goldenacre. 3 Wickets for skipper Sam Peachey and Nirmal Gandhi and a brace for Neil Granger ensured MCC eased to a 95 run win.
11th May 2010 - MCC lose midweek friendly to Widows in the rain
Widows' Euan Robertson smashed an unbeaten 103 as MCC struggled with the ball in the rain at Cavalry Park. However 38* from Neil Granger and 23* from Chris Durling (as part of an unbeaten 54 partnership for the 7th wicket) gave some respectability to the score. Navin Chetty also chipped in with 38.
