Drumpellier hoping to climb league table

Jun 15 2011 by Colin Paterson, Airdrie & Coatbridge

Drumpellier Cricket Club.

DRUMPELLIER captain Graeme McLaren has urged his side to hold their nerve as they gear up for a massive month.

The Langloan outfit haven’t won in five games and been left frustrated by inclement weather.

But McLaren says it’s vital Drumpellier remain positive as they look to push away from the bottom end of the Premiership.

And he has backed his team to kickstart the revival when fellow strugglers Greenock visit this Saturday.

McLaren told Advertiser Sport: “We knew at the start of the season that we had a difficult run of fixtures.

“But we’d targeted the Uddingston and West of Scotland matches for victories only for them both to be rained off.

“Now we’ve got a big game to look forward to at home to Greenock and this is one we need to be looking to win if we want to stay in this league.

“After that, we have games against Arbroath United, Heriot’s and Stoneywood-Dyce which are all winnable for us. We have an important few weeks coming up.”

McLaren says there is room for improvement within the team as Drumps get to grips with life in the top-flight.

He added: “We’re trying to keep everybody’s spirits up. We didn’t play well in the league and cup games against Clydesdale but we haven’t played all that poorly.

“I don’t think we’ve fully clicked as a unit yet and our fielding is a big issue at the moment. We need to work on our fitness as that can make the difference between victory and defeat.”

One plus point for Drumps has been the form of Sri Lankan professional Jeevantha Kulatunga who is already averaging over 50 with the bat.

“Jeevantha is enjoying himself,” said McLaren. “He has experienced these conditions before so knew what to expect.

“I know he’s looking forward to making some big scores and we’ve already seen what he’s capable of.”