Cricket: Double winners Heriot’s aim hit heights again as new season begins

Heriot’s will once again be the team to beat in the Eastern Premier League this season - and new skipper Lloyd Brown is “honoured” to lead the Goldenacre men into the domestic cricket campaign this weekend.

Under the captaincy of Scotland spinner Mark Watt, Heriot’s secured the top-flight title and the Scottish Cup double in 2021, securing their position as the best 50-over-a-side club side in the country.

With Watt having a lot of Scotland commitments and a contract down south at Derbyshire for part of the summer, he will still be able to play for Heriot’s when he can, but has passed on the leadership role to South African Brown.

Brown, now 27, only moved to Edinburgh to work early last year with his fiancée, but he settled in at his new cricket club straight away.

South African Lloyd Brown is honoured to have been asked to captain Heriot’s for the 2022 campaign

“I had a great time at Heriot’s last year, the guys welcomed me in straight away and I was proud to play my part for the first XI in a successful summer,” Brown said.

“Now I am really honoured to have been asked to captain the team going into 2022 action and the challenge for us as a playing group is to keep our standards high like in 2021.”

Brown continued: “Other clubs will be out to beat us, but we have a good balance in the squad and we are looking forward to getting things going.”

Heriot’s begin the season tomorrow with a fixture away at Arbroath, while Carlton, who finished second in the league last term and won the Masterton Trophy and the National T20 crown, are also on the road to promoted Falkland.

Similar to Watt, Heriot’s captain from last year Ali Evans is likely to have quite a few Scotland duties in the coming months, so wicketkeeper/batter Tom Simpson will be leading the Grange Loan men.

Gen!us Grange finished third in the standings last term and Tom Foulds is still their skipper as they start off at home to RH Corstorphine. RHC have James Dickinson as captain now.

In the other Edinburgh derby on the opening day, Mike Carson’s Watsonians host Steven Parker’s Stewart’s Melville at Myreside.

Stoneywood-Dyce also play Forfarshire.