Meigle Cricket Club

The 2013 season begins tomorrow with a friendly fixture at Victory Park against Carlton X1 from Edinburgh. Carlton being the club where a former Meigle star now ply's his trade. And besides Neil Kirk, the current Scotland skipper turns out for them occasionaly too!

Some sterling work by the groundstaff this past week has Victory Park looking in fine condition considering the recent awful weather, and with Meigle adding to last season's squad with some Abertay students and the returning Drummond (PJ not PCJ), new skipper Persil has a decent team to put out.

In the close season the long awaited new astro net surfaces and cages have been installed and have already revolutionised practice evenings with a lot more time spent practicing and a safer, truer surface the standard of practices so far has been very high and has encouraged higher and more consistent numbers at training. Long may it continue and if you have not made it down yet, what's stopping you?!

The first junior practice night on Thursday saw a very healthy turnout, with the vast majority of last seasons members returning. This is a very encouraging sign for the long term future of the club.

Lastly, for all playing and non-playing members of the club, the first fundraiser of the season is next Friday the 26th April in the form of a quiz night in the Kinloch Arms with a 7.30pm start. Please make every effort to at least attend yourself and preferrably bring a few mates to make up a team. Persil has attained some very attractive raffle prizes for the evening.

So here's hoping the sun shines this weekend and we can get the season off to a flyer.

Yours in cricket

PJD

Meigle will take on Kinloch CC in a friendly twenty20 match on the evening of Thursday 4th July to honour Jack Hirst aka 'Mr Kinloch', who has passed away after a short illness, at Ninewells Hospital. Kinloch CC, formerly of Lochee Park, now play out of the University of St Andrews grounds.

The next Committee meeting will take place at 7pm on 14th April. Bill has sent committee members the minutes of last meeting/agenda, so check your emails.

The annual Meigle CC quiz night is on Friday 26th April in the Kinloch Arms. We have some great prizes as we start fundraising for new covers. 'Deadly' Denis Christie will again be the question master and teams of up to five can enter. It is £3 per team member, so a five person team is £15. Help the club raise funds for new wheel on and off Dome Pitch Covers. Please bring along family and friends, we want to see as many different faces as possible so we can have a great night and get the ball rolling for raising funds for the new covers.

Raffle Prizes include:

• A four ball at Strathmore Golf Centre, 
• £50 Slaters Menswear Vouchers, 
• MEAL FOR TWO at Riverside Inn - Dundee, 
• A Lucky Makes Hamper, 
• Two tickets for a days play at Emirates Old Trafford courtesy of Lancashire CCC, 
• Four Ball at Blairgowrie GC "Wee course".

The Three Counties Cup draw has been released by the S & P C U. Meigle face an away Quarter final tie, after being given a bye in round one of the prestigous Union midweek twenty20 cup that the club have won six times and been runners-up a further six times.

Dalnacraig (DHSFP 2nds) and Forthill 2nd XI (Forfs 3rds)  will contest round one before June 2nd. The q-final will take place after that date and before June 16th.
The winner of the quarter final will play at home in the semi final.

The 2nd XI have been drawn at home at Victory Park in the Two Counties Cup vs new club Perth Doo'cot XI. Tie to be played before May 26th. The second string last won the competition in 2000, when the club did the Union t20 'double'.

http://www.spcu.co.uk/pages/page_16427/M-power-Cup-2011.aspx

The club has entered into a partnership with the University of Abertay Dundee Cricket Club that will see Victory Park host their home games in the BUCS Scottish Conference 4A. Abertay have restarted a cricket side in recent times after several years without one and we are looking forward to seeing the students play on Wednesday afternoons in the summer.

Meigle youth players can now purchase their new playing whites ahead of the 2013 season. The clothing is supplied by top brand Kukri and is adorned with primary club sponsors Peter M Drummond Ltd. http://www.teamshopbuilder.co.uk/meiglecricketclub/retrieveProd.action?prodId=206#.UOYOZYj1vBE

Meigle recorded their first win in the indoor sixes at Bells defeating Morrison Accademy FPs 28 - 30 in the second game tonight after being defeated by Glenalmond 49 - 13

The league AGM was held at Forthill. Full details will be on the SPCU website.
The new constitution was approved along with the new playing conditions which will require a further EGM to iron out some issues with the club.
The 1st XI will play in the Premier Division next year and after reconstruction the 2nd XI will play in the north section of Division 2.

At the club's Annual General Meeting last Sunday there were changes in the captaincy roles and continuity in key committee positions. The Club President Bill Morton, Vice President Peter CJ Drummond and Secretary/Treasurer Bill Scott are continuing in their roles, as is Match Secretary Denis Christie. Craig Mitchell will again be doing an excellent job on the ground as he is Groundsman for 2013. 

The captain of the club in 2013 will be Iain M Stewart with Jamie Morrison continuing as 1st XI vice captain. Scott Boyer will captain the 2nd XI on Sundays with the experienced off spinner Chris Dickson supporting him as vice captain. Youth convenor in 2013 will again be Peter J Drummond who will be focussing on bringing through the next generation of Meigle cricketers now he has relinquished the captaincy of the club.

The list of player of the year award winners are detailed in the Honours Board section of the site. We hope to update the Honours Board on the site in the coming weeks with the names of winners from all the previous years etched on the cups.

A reminder the annual Whist Drive & Prize Draw is in the hall on Tue 11 Dec.