Selkirk followed up Friday night’s Border T20 Cup final triumph with an equally emphatic 125-run victory over Murrayfield DAFS 2 at Philiphaugh on Saturday – their final Edinburgh League Division 3 home match of the season.
This was the Souters’ fourth consecutive win, and lifts them to fourth place in the league table, with just one fixture to go – against Haddington away on Saturday.
In a quite brilliant individual display, which must rank alongside some of the greatest ever witnessed at Philiphaugh, Greg Fenton dominated the contest with both bat and ball. Unbeaten on 117 runs at the end of the home innings, Selkirk’s 32-year-old all-rounder followed up his dazzling century by notching Selkirk’s first ‘fifer’ of the season – his five wickets coming at a cost of just 23 runs.
It was a day he, his team-mates, and all the home supporters basking in the warm Philiphaugh sunshine will remember for a long, long time.
Put into bat by Murrayfield DAFS, the writing was on the wall for the visitors when Greg and Todd Dekker (60) combined seamlessly to put together a 117 partnership.
Some spilled catches and frequent instances of below par fielding didn’t help the city side’s cause, with Selkirk’s batters taking full advantage.
In the final overs Bob Wilkinson (22*) kept up the home side’s momentum, and at the end of Selkirk’s innings the total stood at 221-3 – the highest score of the season.
Nadeem Anjum (2/36) ended as Murrayfield’s top bowler, with the other Selkirk wicket going to Rajesh Roogi (1/55).
In reply, the visitors got off to a calamitous start when opening bowlers Daniel Heard (2/24) and Michael Fenton (1/27) both took wickets in their very first overs.
It was left to Kiran Bhaskar (39) and R. Prakash (15) to try and steady the ship, but the introduction of Greg Fenton (5/23) into the home attack signalled the end of any slim hope Murrayfield might have harboured of getting near the Selkirk total.
The hosts’ fourth bowler, Bob Wilkinson (2/21), is becoming something of an expert at wrapping up opponents’ innings, and the visitors’ final wicket fell in the 26th over, leaving Murrayfield DAFS all out on 96.
Match report and photos by John Smail.