galloway
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Galloway
CRICKET CLUB
The light wasn’t all that good. The batsman peered from
under her helmet at the approaching shadow and lifted
her bat. It was cold too. At four o’clock on a September
morning it would be another hour before the sun came
up. Some of the more senior fielders reflected on the
wisdom of agreeing to do this shift but they were carried
along by the enthusiasm of the younger members.
Galloway Cricket Club’s 24-hour
game was partly a fund raiser, partly
a profile raiser but mainly a challenge
set for itself. This spirit is a big part
of the attraction of Galloway CC. A
community club with an innovative,
can do attitude. Another challenge
involved climbing the highest local
peak and playing a game at the
top. Then there was beach cricket in
November.
The other great attraction is
the beautiful cricket ground set in
woodland, within the walls of the
Cally Palace at Gatehouse of Fleet.
This setting is now adorned by a
modern pavilion where meetings are
held and new plans are made.
Cricket in this part of the world
poses many challenges. It is a
rural community with a scattered
population. The game doesn’t
feature prominently in school
curriculums. The summer term ends
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just as the season starts. Once they
finish school, most young people
will leave the area for education and
work. The sport’s national body,
Cricket Scotland supports where
it can but like most clubs of its size
outside the central belt Galloway
has to rely heavily on the efforts of
volunteers to organise teams, coach
juniors, prepare pitches and raise
funds.
The club approaches the 2019
outdoor season with optimism. The
1st XI won their opening match on a
typical April day where the umpires
signalled fewer and fewer wides
as their limbs were affected by the
extreme cold.
The women and girls have trained
hard over the winter and took part
in Cricket Scotland’s ‘Wee Bash’
Series, sending two teams to most
events and finishing a respectable
4th overall. As summer approaches,
they have sufficient numbers to
field a team on their own but have
joined forces with Dumfries CC to
compete against clubs from all over
the country in the Women’s Premier
League.
The club runs festivals and kid’s
camps through the summer. It has
a good track record in developing
young stars. The brightest hope of
the club at the moment is Jessica
McCulloch, a regular in the 1st
XI who has now made it into the
Scotland under 17 squad.
Everyone at the club gets a
lift when they walk in to the new
pavilion which replaced the much
loved, temporary wooden structure
(erected in 1953). The new building
provides modern facilities including
a large social area which is used for
music nights, birthday parties, and
Yoga. It is also the venue for the
club’s Jazz Café.