GREAVES Clydesdale came within a whisker of reaching the national final of the Murgitroyd 20/20 championship on Sunday — and suffered the agony of tying the scores but losing on a countback.
The first attempt to play the semi final, a month earlier, had put the Titwood team firmly in charge against second-division Dunfermline, but the rain wiped out the game after just 10 overs, when Clydesdale had already notched up 70 runs.
This tim
e, Dunfermline batted first and made 109 for the loss of eight wickets, and when Clydesdale found themselves at 37 for six, an ignominious defeat loomed.
In the end, though, it was veteran internationalist Greg Williamson who nearly pulled off a sensational win. Combining well with international spinner Ross Lyons, the pair took the score past the 100 mark before Lyons was bowled trying an unorthodox shot.
With two balls remaining, and seven wickets down, Clydesdale needed only one run to level the scores, which would have been enough had no further wickets fallen.
But Williamson, who had scored three sixes and several splendid fours, was out, caught tamely at deep gully for 46, and the single off the final ball to achieve the tie was not enough, as Dunfermline claimed their place in the final on the strength of the relative positions at the end of the 19th over.
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