2012 was the season which saw Carrickfergus fall out of top flight cricket after brief flirtations with relegation in previous years.
It doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to work out what went wrong for the Middle Road outfit. While their batting performed decently enough on a few occasions, their bowling wasn't anywhere near the quality required for Premier League cricket.
The absence of Ryan Eagleson for a significant chunk of the campaign didn't help their cause either - the veteran all-rounder was in Australia coaching the Under 19's for a month at the crucial juncture of the season.
Carrick lost a number of close encounters and when you're struggling, decisions and luck tend to go against you, and they certainly found that to be the case in spades.
In total the club used 23 players in total - an unsettled side always an indication of a struggling club.
On the batting front Carrick scored 15 half centuries and two hundreds during the season. Two players, Jamie Holmes and Mike Taiaroa scored 11 of those fifties and the two centuries, which means the remainder didn't contribute very much in the batting stakes.
Holmes totalled 731 runs at 43.00, while Taiaroa made 723 runs at 55.62. Ross Gelderbloem slipped from his usual high standards making just 309 runs at 20.60.
Of the other 20 players used, those worthy of any passing mention are Alex Haggan with 214 at 23.78 and Ryan Eagleson (aided by a lot of red ink) averaged 50.25 making 201 runs.
If the batting is underwhelming, then the bowling stats are truly horrific.
In total Carrickfergus took just 75 wickets in the entire season, with their leading wicket taker capturing just 11.
Three players managed that figure - Iain Parkhill at 37.64, Ross Gelderbloem at 46.73 and Jamie Holmes at 57.91.
Next 'best' were Anthony Martin with 9 at 58.67 and Ryan Eagleson with 7 at 43.29.
I fully expect Carrickfergus to regroup in 2013 and come back a stronger side for the experience. They have proven themselves to be a resourceful club in the past and with the addition of a few bowling personnel mightn't be too far away in the promotion race.
Batting
Jamie Holmes 731 @ 43.00
Michael Taiaroa 723 @ 55.62
Ross Gelderbloem 309 @ 20.60
Bowling
Iain Parkhill 11 @ 37.64
Ross Gelderbloem 11 @ 46.73
Jamie Holmes 11 @ 57.91
