The Glenrothes Gladiators Under 12s welcomed Largo Lions to the Ramsay Oval at Gilvenbank Park last night for a mini hardball fixture.

With two late call-offs it was thanks to Aayan and Rayaan for stepping in to cover to ensure the game was played.

Largo batted first, finishing on 68 for the loss of nine wickets from their 16 overs. Wickets were shared across a number of players, with Joe and Archie in particular swinging the ball prodigiously, which was more often to their disadvantage as they just missed the stumps a number of times. Three run outs from indifferent calling won't have helped the Lions though.

In response, the Gladiators went with a slow and steady approach to their batting (as opposed to the boundary hitting bonanza the previous week against Freuchie Fliers), meaning they slowly accumulated but crucially lost few wickets throughout. Third pair Joe and Scott batted well not to lose any wickets, and it was left to final pair skipper Sam and Saim to build the highest partnership of the game with both striking some nice shots - Saim's leg-side push for 4 off the final ball of the game bringing the biggest cheer of the night.

Overall, a really close game but the Gladiators losing fewer wickets pushed them ahead - but with the two overage players helping the Gladiators it was agreed that a honorable tie was the most fitting result. Cricket definitely the winner!