Key players to return as capital rivals clash

Edinburgh derby matches between Mazars Grange and Carlton are always intriguing affairs and this afternoon’s meeting in the CSL Eastern Premiership should be no different.

Grange are sitting second behind Arbroath and having been knocked out of the Citylets Scottish Cup and the Murgitroyd Masterton Trophy they will be focusing on the league for the rest of the summer.

Champions Carlton are seventh, but have a big cup semi-final with Drumpellier waiting tomorrow.

Last Saturday Grange skipper Preston Mommsen retired hurt in the victory over Heriot’s, but he has recovered and Avinash Yadav and Ryan Flannigan return.

Carlton have batsman Fraser Watts missing, but Rory Mccann is back.

Last weekend Michael Herdman of Carlton became the first top-flight batsman to reach 500 runs.

Heriot’s and Watsonians have big weekends. Today the Goldenacre men host Tayside Group Forfarshire in the league with Watsonians welcoming Aberdeenshire. The two Edinburgh sides then meet in the cup semi-final tomorrow.

Prestwick skipper Shahzad Rafiq has hailed Andy Tennant for his role in galvanising the Ayrshire club.

Rafiq’s men rose to the top of the Western Premier table last week and are now eyeing a return to the glories of the early 1990s.

Tennant, a stalwart of that side, is a coaching consultant at the Henry Thow Oval and Rafiq values his input.

Rafiq said: “Andy has been brilliant – he’s a great help to me and also the younger players. His knowledge and experience have been a big factor and he is a Prestwick man through and through.”

Rafiq acknowledges that staying top will be hard in a season which has seen the leadership change hands on an almost weekly basis.

Prestwick, pushed hard by bottom of the table Kelburne a week ago, face another tough test at Dumfries today.

Elsewhere, Uddingston, the team Prestwick replaced at the top, entertain Poloc.