DOUGIE Brown last night backed Calum MacLeod to follow in his 
footsteps to become a top-flight all-rounder.

Brown delivered his verdict after the Warwickshire teenager was called 
up by Scotland chiefs for the back-to-back Friends Provident Trophy 
encounters with Durham and Yorkshire.

And the signs are that MacLeod will feature in the Saltires attack in 
at least one of the bank holiday weekend encounters at Riverside and 
Headingley.

The former Drumpellier and Uddingston rookie will replace Watsonians 
skipper Gordon Drummond, who suffered a recurrence of a hamstring 
problem during an eventful midweek cup tie.

And MacLeod's summons came just two days after he collected a six 
wicket haul for Warwickshire against Worcestershire in a Second Eleven 
Championship match.

Brown, a double internationalist for Scotland and England, couldn't 
disguise his delight over the youngster's inclusion in the Saltires 
plans, but claimed he should have been involved sooner.

He declared: "To my mind, he was ready to play his part at the start 
of this season's campaign.

"Calum is definitely ready to compete at this level and I believe he 
will make a big impression when he gets his chance.

"He has made tremendous progress over the past year or so and his 
performance against a very strong Worcestershire seconds side 
underlined that.

"But there is a lot more to him than just being a decent bowler. He is 
no slouch with the bat and he is a pretty good fielder - in fact, I 
see him as a complete all rounder who can go far in the sport."

Brown, who skippers MacLeod at the Barnt Green club and is head coach 
at the Warwickshire Academy, went on: "What has also impressed me is 
his willingness to listen and learn. He is a level-headed boy who has 
no airs or graces and I am looking forward to tracking his career."

Drummond, meanwhile, admitted he was "desperately frustrated" after 
aggravating the injury he sustained during Scotland's victory over 
Lancashire at Old Trafford.

The fresh problem happened during Watsonians' Masterton Trophy win 
against Heriot's which proved an emotional roller-coaster ride for the 
home captain.

Near the end of his match-winning half-century, a lofted drive by 
Drummond stuck top umpire Sandy Scotland on the head, inflicting a 
wound that required six stitches.

Scotland was detained in hospital overnight and is due to undergo 
further tests by an eye specialist.

Drummond said: "It was a scary moment, but I am just so relieved the 
damage was not much worse.

"On my own situation, this is the first time I have had hamstring 
bother, so I probably didn't give it long enough to heal.

"Bowling has been fine because it is a case of running straight. The 
tweak came during the batting because you have to skip around at 
different angles."