CRICKET ESPANA LEAGUE ROUND UP
Catalunya A retained the Spanish League Championship title with a comprehensive victory over the ECCL Champions Sporting Alfas in a one sided contest at the Woodbridge Oval in October..
Batting first against distinctly friendly bowling and generally inept fielding the Catalunya side plundered 308 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. A belligerent Asif Zia Mughai carved the Alfas attack to all parts of the ground. in scoring 148. He was ably supported by Faisal who made 62
Against a keen bowling attack Alfas started their reply with caution but fell well behind the run rate.. Gary Crompton 71 and Wasim 37 improved matters but eventually the Alfas team were dismissed for 205 to lose by 103 runs.
In their domestic league Catalunya A beat Barcelona Centre in the Play Off final to qualify for the National Play Off competition. In the two individual leagues Barcelona Centre remained unbeaten, Fondo finished a close second to Catalunya A and both Bengali and Santa Coloma failed to register a victory. It was unfortunate that due to internal problems only a few result scorecards were received by Cricket Espana so no individual performances could be registered.
The Liga del Sur came to an early conclusion with newcomers Fuengirola proving to be the most successful side. It was unfortunate that before the league fixtures were announcedCordobawithdrew from the competition, citing a lack of available cricketers.
Misfortune continued whenMalaga, after playing their opening fixture, then decided that they could not complete their remaining matches and withdrew from the league. With only two teams remaining, it was decided that Fuengirola andCombinedCollegesshould play each other in a Best of Three Series to determine the champions of the league. Fuengirola proved their worth by winning two of their allotted three fixtures.
In the Liga delEste y del Centro the Sporting Alfas Club enjoyed a memorable season with both their 1st XI and 2nd XI winning their respective league championships. Tariq Ali Awan, the league’s leading batsman, scored six centuries and ensured thatAlcorcon finished as Runners Up.
Last year’s champions La Manga finished in a creditable 3rd position.Madrid, who did not register a single victory, did not finish in last place.Valencia who won five matches, were deducted sixty points for the cancellation of matches, which relegated this unfortunate club to the bottom of the league.
The Development League saw newcomers Orihuela win nine matches and finish Runners Up to Alfas II. 3rd placed Madrid II improved immensely from their previous year’s performance when they finished in last place. Mojacar found victories difficult and their winless season saw theAlmeria club finish in last position.
St Georges were crowned champions of the Liga Canaria during 2011. Unfortunately Cricket Espana received details from only four fixtures so a more comprehensive report cannot be provided.
With details from Liga Catalana, Liga del Sur and Liga Canaria being scarce the following information is provided from the LigadelEste y del Centro records.
14 centuries were recorded in Division 1 with a Top Score of 163 by Tariq Ali Awan.
5 centuries were recorded in Division II with a Top Score of 127 no by T. Stanford
8 five wicket hauls were recorded in Division 1 – Best Bowling by Talat 7/8 in 5.4 overs
10 five wicket hauls were recorded in Division II – Best Bowling by Harmit Phull 7/19 in 7 overs
Highest Team Score 410/6 by La Manga in Division 1
Highest Team Score 252/8 by Alfas II in Division II
John Dye CE League Chairman