Haq credits squad effort as Dale win Western Union
MAJID Haq predicted a bright future for Clydesdale after leading the Titwood club to their first Western Union title since league reconstruction.
Haq and his team-mates have had to play second fiddle as Dumfries, Uddingston and Ayr pipped them to the post in the last three seasons.
However, Clydesdale finally got over the line on Saturday when victory over Renfrew confirmed that the title is theirs.
There had been an element of formality, since Dale needed just a single point from their trip to the King George V Playing Fields but that did not dampen the celebrations on Saturday evening.
“It’s a very proud and rewarding feeling to captain this team to the league title,” said Haq.
“We probably knew when we beat Kelburne a couple of weeks ago we would be champions but it’s fantastic to complete the job.
“The fact that we have been so close in each of the last three seasons probably adds to the sense of achievement and we’re going to enjoy being champions.”
The sense of personal satisfaction for Scotland’s most capped player is also heightened by the fact that Haq went into this season under a huge cloud following the notorious race-related tweet that saw him sent home from the World Cup in Australia. He was also serving a club ban carried over from last year’s Scottish Cup final defeat to Grange.
Haq added: “Obviously it’s been tough and still is tough but I’ve had great support from lots of people including my family and team-mates.
“What happened is still fresh in my mind but I’m determined to look to the future. At the moment my ambitions don’t go any further than simply enjoying my cricket. It has been a great challenge captaining Clydesdale and one I have really enjoyed. I have tried to lead from the front and set a good example.
“Now we have to build on this success. The club is in a good place because the U15s won their Scottish Cup last weekend and we have lots of talented players coming through. It has been a real squad effort that has won us the Western Union and it had to be. I missed the whole of May and Richie [Berrington] and Con [de Lange] were unavailable throughout July. Players have stood up at vital times.”
That was the case again on Saturday when, having slumped to 90-7, Dale were bailed out by a 130-run stand between Basit Ali (77) and Akram Shakoor (62), the latter scoring his first senior half-century in an ultimately formidable total of 264.
Renfrew raced out of the blocks to reach 60-1 after six overs but Mo Ali claimed three wickets and Berrington two while Clydesdale also held some fine catches to seal a 74-run win – and the title.
The Union champions will now take on Eastern Premier winners Grange in the Grand Final on 5 September and Haq added: “We lost a tight Scottish Cup final to them last year, so this is a chance to put that right.
“We’d also love to be the first team from the west to win the Grand Final.”
Elsewhere, Kelburne enhanced their prospects of finishing runners-up in their first season in the top flight with a three-wicket win at East Kilbride. Ferguslie slipped up against Drumpellier, whose three-wicket win at Meikleriggs sealed premier division status.
Relegated West of Scotland lost by 86 runs at Dumfries while outgoing champions Ayr enjoyed an eight-wicket success against Uddingston.