KYLE Coetzer last night entered the record books when he made the highest score by a Scot in first-class cricket.
The Scotland captain stroked a peerless 219 as Northamptonshire piled on the runs in a County Championship match against Leicestershire at Grace Road.
Coetzer's marathon knock – it lasted well over eight hours – eclipsed the best efforts of giants of Scottish cricket such as Mike Denness, Dougie Brown and Douglas Jardine. Neil Leitch, Cricket Scotland's statistician, confirmed: "The highest score by a Scot playing for Scotland was 190 not out by Rev. James Aitchison against Ireland in 1959, and that record stands, but Kyle has his own place in history now."
When Coetzer reached 173, he passed his own previous best and 196 took him beyond the former England captain Denness' best effort. Brown's place as the highest-scoring Scot in a County Championship match fell when Coetzer reached 204, and Jardine's 214 for England against Tasmania in 1928 was eclipsed when Coetzer, the former Stoneywood-Dyce batsman, reached 215. He added four runs before being caught by the Ireland wicketkeeper Niall O'Brien off Alex Wyatt's bowling. He had faced 402 deliveries, hitting 36 of them for boundaries and adding just one 6.
Meanwhile, Craig Wright last night backed Ruaidhri Smith to become a Saltires regular after the Glasgow-born Glamorgan all-rounder was called-up for a senior debut in next week's YB40 triple header.
Smith, who has earned promotion from Wright's Under-19 side, is in line for his first start against Durham on Sunday while Neil Carter will make his first appearances against county opposition when the Saltires face Lancashire and Derbyshire next Tuesday and Thursday.
Wright, Cricket Scotland's head of youth development, said: "Ruaidhri is a genuine all-rounder with lots to offer. He is a new-ball bowler who delivers with decent pace and moves the ball away from the batsmen. He is also a hard-hitting, middle-order batsman and an athletic fielder."
Smith, 18, made his U19 debut last year when his Scottish roots were discovered and Wright recalled: "He scored 140 on his debut in a World Cup warm-up and he went on to be one of the top associate bowlers at the World Cup. He's a mature lad and has had good experience at Glamorgan."
Carter, the former Warwickshire bowler, should also make his YB40 debut. He has only played T20 and one-day internationals for Scotland but will replace Gordon Drummond, who is only available for Sunday's trip to Durham. Majid Haq has passed a fitness test and returns after two weeks out with a hamstring injury.
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