Emergency post: Doug Watson steps down and Grand Final report
Graeme Macpherson analyses the decision to make the change, the reasons behind it and what happens next, while Adam Richardson reports from Grange Loan
Hello cricket fans,
We’ve brought forward this week’s Monday edition by a day to reflect on this morning’s breaking news that Doug Watson has left his role as the Scotland men’s head coach.
We’ve also got a special report from yesterday’s Grand Final when Clydesdale again got the better of Heriot’s in the West vs East clash at Carlton.
This ‘emergency’ edition is again free of charge for everyone to read but we would be grateful if you could please still register with our site to help us understand the appetite for more Scottish cricket coverage as we plan ahead for next season.
As always, we’d be happy to hear any feedback. Just fire off an email to david@tiecricket.com.
All the best,
David Barnes
Watson moves on
IT had seemed for some time that a parting of the ways between Scotland and the men’s head coach Doug Watson was inevitable and that separation duly arrived this morning.
The tremors from the announcement were felt in three countries; in Canada where Watson has been with the men’s national team all week competing in the latest Cricket World Cup League 2 (CWCL2) series, in New Zealand which the South African has called home for some time now, and back here in Scotland.
Watson is a hugely personable figure and a coach of some substance, but the sporadic nature of the international calendar, Cricket Scotland’s stretched finances and his decision to base himself in New Zealand for much of the year all eventually conspired against him.
Bonus post: Sun, sea, sand and cricket with The Ship Inn CC in Elie
He leaves with Scotland sitting atop the CWCL2 table after a frustrating series that saw the team win both the matches playable against Canada and Namibia, while enduring two rain-outs during a fairly mild week in Toronto due to the impoverished state of a King City pitch clearly not fit for international cricket.
It was the team’s failure to qualify for next year’s T20 World Cup earlier in the summer, however, that perhaps sealed Watson’s fate. To lose once to either Italy or Jersey – rising stars of the Associate game – could be considered unfortunate. To lose to both, however, has to be interpreted as a sign of a wider malaise.
That failure can’t be placed entirely at Watson’s door – the players should have been good enough to get over the line – but his domestic arrangements wouldn’t have helped, either.
His counterpart in charge of the Scotland women’s team, Craig Wallace, is facing a long stretch without a competitive match but has been busy filling that void by getting involved in pathways and regional cricket, putting on one-to-one coaching sessions, assisting with the under-19 teams and making regular reconnaissance missions to check on players in action down south.
Watson, on the other side of the world, hasn’t been in a position to do any of those things that might have delivered incremental improvements before going into such a significant qualifying tournament.
It should be noted here, however, that Cricket Scotland knew and accepted Watson’s lifestyle arrangements when they agreed to turn his interim stewardship into a permanent arrangement last year, handing him a three-year contract.
If anything, it benefited them financially to an extent in that they didn’t need to provide year-round accommodation and a car for the head coach had he chosen to live full-time in Edinburgh. Now, at the halfway point of that deal, a decision has been taken to bring it to an end “following a review of recent results and subsequent planning around future fixtures and allocation of budget”.
A significant factor in the timing is that Scotland don’t have another date in the diary until March when they embark on the next CWCL2 mission in Namibia after a series originally set for Nepal in November was rescheduled for next May by the Nepalese.
Cricket Scotland, therefore, won’t rush into appointing Watson’s successor who will be charged with making sure of a top four CWCL2 position and then helping the team qualify for a first 50-over World Cup since 2015.
Watson came agonisingly close to achieving that goal in one of his first tasks as interim head coach after succeeding countryman Shane Burger in 2023 when Scotland beat three ICC full members in the qualifier – Ireland, West Indies and Zimbabwe – only to miss out agonisingly on World Cup berth due to net run rate.
They made amends with a clean sweep of victories at the home qualifier a month later for the 2024 T20 World Cup at which they won twice, ran Australia close and gave England a fright before the Caribbean weather intervened.
In failing to qualify for next year’s edition, Watson could, rightly, also point towards other mitigating factors like not getting key players released by their English counties and the early retirement of fast bowler Chris Sole.
It is hard to imagine Watson being out of work for any length of time given his coaching hinterland but it wasn’t difficult to detect a note of sadness in the statement announcing his exit.
“While I’m disappointed to be moving on, I’ll take with me many fond memories of my time with the organisation,” he said. “It has been a pleasure to work with this squad and coaching staff, and I’m proud to leave with the team top of the ICC CWCL2 qualifying table, but I am now looking forward to spending more time with my family.
“I’m honoured to have worked with Cricket Scotland, and I will follow their future progress closely. I wish everyone involved every success moving forward.”
With his assistant Craig Wright also heading off to a new job in Hong Kong, Cricket Scotland will need to look in a new direction when the time comes to eventually appoint the next head coach.
Cricket Scotland Head of Performance Steve Snell said: “I’d like to thank Doug for all his efforts with the team during his time in charge. He is well liked by the players, has made a positive impact in many areas and has enjoyed some memorable moments with the squad during his time as Head Coach.
“With no fixtures until March 2026 and with Doug being based overseas, it is the right time to ensure that our coaching provision reflects what the needs of the squad and the organisation will be in the coming year and beyond. We wish Doug all the best for his next steps, and we are thankful for his contributions to Scottish cricket.”
Cricket Scotland Chief Executive Trudy Lindblade said: “We are grateful for Doug’s commitment since joining Cricket Scotland in 2023 and the positive impact he has had on the team’s performance and culture, but as we plan for 2026 and beyond, it became clear that a change was needed.
"I would like to sincerely thank Doug and wish him and his family the very best for the future.”
Clydesdale complete a memorable hat-trick
Clydesdale added another accolade to their outstanding campaign by defeating Heriot's in the ‘Grand Final’ (a play-off between the two teams which topped the Western Premiership One and the Eastern Premier League, respectively) at Grange Grange Loan on Saturday.
A six-wicket victory in the Edinburgh sunshine sealed a famous treble of league, Scottish Cup and now Grand Final for the Titwood side.
Clydesdale’s treble-clinching success was built on standout individual performances: veteran leg-spinner Zeeshan Bashir once again led the way to finish an astonishing summer in style, while Charlie Cassell offered Heriot’s brief resistance with a spirited 49. In reply, Sheryar Awan anchored the chase with a composed 48 before Craig Young sealed victory in style, blasting an unbeaten 40 that carried Clydesdale to their third trophy of the season.
Clashes in the calendar meant that both sides were shorn of Scotland stars due to international duty - Richie Berrington absent for Clydesdale, while Mark Watt and Matthew Cross missed out for Heriot's – while star bowlers such as Adil Ghaffar and James Dickinson (both of whom had fantastic 2025 summers) were also unavailable. Such was the strength in depth of both squads, the contest still carried the weight of a true final.
Speaking after the win, Clydesdale stalwart and standout bowler on the day Zeeshan Bashir said: “This certainly felt like the icing on the cake for a great season. This was the most successful season in the club's history and the most successful I've been a part of. We were missing three key players today but that just opened up opportunities for youngsters and showed the depth in this squad. We are so, so proud."
It was another low-scoring affair but not as nerve-wracking as their Cup triumph over Heriot's a fortnight earlier. Where that had been an arm-wrestle with 20 wickets falling for less than 200 runs, this was a clinical batting display to reward an excellent bowling effort.
Having won the toss, skipper Kallum Dhami put Heriot's into bat and his bowlers immediately repaid the decision. Rafay Khan opened with spin, and his very first delivery bowled Peter Ross as he shaped for a big sweep. By the end of the second over, Heriot's were two down, Lloyd Brown run out by a direct hit from Ali Khan.
Wickets continued to tumble. Keeper Dougie Voas chipped a return catch to Ravi Alavala, leaving Heriot's 16 for 3. When Vian Maritz sliced a big drive to point off Zeeshan Bashir, the Goldenacre side were in huge trouble at 47 for 4. The hill the Edinburgh side had to climb got steeper still when Bashir added Ryan Brown and Joe Kinghorn-Gray to his wicket tally either side of Sheryar Awan removing Jarrod Rubly.
A 'Dale' legend, Bashir has been incredible all summer and once again he delivered, finding turn and inconsistent bounce to suffocate the middle order. He finished with 4 for 18 from his 10 overs, bringing his extraordinary season tally to 62 wickets at just 6.81 runs apiece – scarcely believable figures at any level.
Clydesdale's success was very much a group effort this season, though. Speaking on his part in an incredibly successful bowling attack that Clydesdale have assembled Zeeshan added, "To be honest, it was the entire five-man attack this summer.
“Having Adil [Ghaffar] back was brilliant. He debuted in the first team in 2012 when I was captain, I’m so happy to see him performing like this. I've been playing first team cricket at Clydesdale for 23 years. I've got to see some brilliant cricketers in that time but I think this attack is the best I've been a part of.
“No team has passed 200 in the league against us this summer. We've bowled teams out for under 100. Now, we’ve had these two bowling performances in the Cup Final and Grand Final against a Heriot’s side that, on paper, many might not have fancied us against. It's been a special thing to be involved in."
At 59 for 7 after three more quick wickets, Heriot's were in danger of being swept away for double figures before Scotland capped all-rounder Cassell and departing stalwart Adrian Neill mounted a spirited eighth-wicket stand. Cassell played positively, striking cleanly through the leg side, while Neill soaked up deliveries and rotated the strike well. Their 51-run partnership pushed Heriot's into a position where they had something to defend and a flicker of hope.
Cassell’s dismissal for 49, edging behind off Awan just after bringing up the 50 stand, ended the resistance. Neill pressed on with last man Niall Alexander, who found the edge for a couple of streaky boundaries, but the innings closed at 136 all out – giving the Goldenacre men a chance, but well short of par.
If Heriot's were to keep the game alive, they needed early breakthroughs. Neill obliged with the new ball, removing Paddy Barbour for one as Ross held a sharp catch at point. But from then on, the game steadily slipped away from them.
Awan settled any Clydesdale nerves with calm authority, working the ball into gaps and punishing anything straying onto his pads. Ibrahim Faisal complemented him with fluent stroke play, including a fantastic pick-up pull over the deep square boundary that was Rohit Sharma-esque, and almost certainly shot of the day.
Faisal’s dismissal for 28, edging Cassell behind, briefly gave Heriot's renewed energy, but they simply didn’t have enough runs and Clydesdale rode the pressure well. Awan anchored the chase before falling just short of his 50, leaving Craig Young to apply the finishing touches. Young's striking was brutal at times, smashing 40 not out with 32 of those runs coming in boundaries. Leaving Ali Khan to slog-sweep Rubly for four and complete the chase.
Zeeshan summed up this moment well for those who have seen these players develop at Clydesdale.
"Watching these young guys feels different from my perspective,” he said. “These are guys who have come through our pathways. They started in the juniors, playing from under-10s level up. They worked their way through, putting in so much effort to get here. To then see Ibrahim playing a no look pull for six off a Scotland fast bowler …
“They are just playing with no fear. Seeing those young guys we’ve developed like Shreyar and Ibrahim finish off the season like that, it was almost poetic, it really was."
For Heriot's, defeat capped a frustrating fortnight. Champions once again of the Eastern Premier League and winners of the Masterton T20 Trophy mark another strong season. They have been the most consistent side in the East of Scotland. Yet two national finals slipped from their grasp against the same opponent to finish the summer. It will leave a sense of "what if."
In the end, the story belonged to Clydesdale. To go through Western Premiership One unbeaten, edge a thrilling Cup Final, and then impose themselves so coolly in the Grand Final is testament to a brilliant season. Bashir’s fantastic leg-spin, Awan’s composure with bat and ball, and Young’s finishing power provided the highlights on the day, but the collective strength of their squad underpinned a fantastic campaign.
Under the late summer sun, Dhami and his players lifted the trophy to warm applause. Thanks must be given to all at Carlton CC for hosting the final so warmly on a gorgeous day to end the cricketing summer.
Only once since the ‘Grand Final’ was inaugurated in 2012 had it been won by a Western Premiership club – Ferguslie in 2022.
Elston Clydesdale capped a memorable season by becoming just the second club to take the Willie Morton Memorial trophy back to the West of Scotland.
Extra:
Watsonians promoted
Watsonians will play in the Eastern Premier League next season after they topped an unbeaten season in the East of Scotland Cricket Association [ESCA] Championship with a promotion earning play-off win over Strathmore & Perthshire Cricket Union [SPCU] winners Freuchie at Scroggie Park. The Edinburgh target had set a target 165 in 37.2 overs, before bowling their Fife opponents out for 118 in 31.5 overs for a 47 run victory
