Paul lands top award on cricket club’s awards night Silver service from Central’s seniors
Paul Bielby has become the latest recipient of the prestigious Willie Little Trophy at Stirling County Cricket Club’s annual awards night.
The trophy is the club’s top honour and was donated to the club by the Stirling Observer in memory of former editor and ex-County captain Willie Little and presented for the first time in 1975.
The club’s grounds convener had a difficult time during 2019 as the weather put paid to a number of fixtures throughout the season but worked tirelessly to make sure as many matches went ahead as possible.
He follows in the footsteps of his dad Neil, the club’s former treasurer, who won the award back in 2001.
Pictured above are some of the award winners
Central AC men’s team of Ben MacMillan, Michael Wright, Jamie Crowe and Alastair Hay picked up silver medals in the East of Scotland Cross Country Relays on Saturday at Deans Country Park, Livingston.
The race consisted of four legs of 4000 metres with Under 20 runner Ben on the first leg, running 12 minutes 58 seconds for the fastest by an Under 20 runner on the day.
Michael’s fine 13.02 effort on the second leg was bettered by Jamie Crowe’s fastest individual leg of the day (12.12) to leave the team just behind Edinburgh University Hare and Hounds.
Alastair Hay put in a fine effort on the final leg, recording the 12th fastest time of the day with 12.55 but had to give way to an excellent run from the students who won by 17 seconds after some 51 minutes of running.
The day had started with the young athletes’ relays following a three-leg format of an Under 13, followed by an Under 15 and completed by an Under 17, each running 2500 metres. The two Central girls teams finished in the centre of the field with Carys Gibb leading the A team effort with 10.46, Scarlett Roy running 12.15 and Carrie Banks (10.23) taking the team to 15th overall.
Leya Gibb made a strong start of 11.04 for Central’s B team, Brogan MacMillan ran 12.13 while Kyra Gibb’s final lap (10.21) moved them up to 16th place, with Kyra recording the eighth fastest Under 17 time of the day.
There was also an encouraging turn out of Central’s young male athletes with the A team comprising Under 13 Aaron Middleton (9.27) Under 13 Jamie Connor (11.39) and Under 15 Cameron Kerr (8.55) for 17th overall. Aaron was the third fastest Under 13 on the day and Cameron the fourth fastest Under 15.
The B team of Joshua Kennedy (9.32), Owen Eckersley (11.11) and Euan Docherty (9.39) finished 22nd overall. The Central C team of Henry Crossley (11.02) and Douglas Fleming (11.53) didn’t have a final leg runner to complete the race and were in 33rd place at the end of their effort.
The senior ladies raced over three legs of the same 4000m course as the men and finished ninth overall. Under 20 runner Lauren McCulloch ran 15.46 then Claire Waterhouse, who had only been promoted to the A team on the morning of the race, ran 16.47.
A typically storming run from Fanni Gyurko (15.22) rounded off the team’s effort, to finish in ninth overall.
The B team proved to be a fine effort from three of the club’s Under 20 runners with Heather Scott (18.22); Rosie Eckersley (17.54) and Elizabeth Thompson (18.24) finishing 26th. There were further good efforts from Julie McAfee (18.48) and Kirsten McStay (17.51) with this incomplete team running in 33rd place at the end of the second leg.
Central men’s B team came home in an admirable 10th place overall through Fraser Logan’s first leg of 14.07 followed up by Dale Colley (13.34) and two Under 20 runners Sandy Holl (13.59) and Tom Graham-Marr (13.22). The C team was led off by Under 20 runner Telfer Gray (13.35) with Gordon Appelbe (17.23), Ben Noad (18.19) and Under 20 Sam Burton (15.21) to finish in 45th place overall.
The top veterans’ team of Charles Graham-Marr (16.45), Will Hensman (15.02), Jens Subke (16.20) and David Eckersley (15.34) were 43rd while the other vets - Cameron Campbell (22.42), Colin Sinclair (17.54), Allan Gall (19.27) and John Millar (22.32) - were caught up in a tussle towards the back of the race, finishing in 72nd place. Liam McCabe (19.33) rounded off Central’s efforts on the day in an incomplete team.