BELSTONE kept up the pressure on Spreyton at the top of the Twenty20 Buckley Cup with two convincing wins last week. First they chased down Hatherleigh Colts total of 90 for five to win a low scoring game by six wickets with five overs to spare. Batting highlights for Hatherleigh were Cooper (23), McLaren (26 ret) and A Fishleigh (24 no), who also bowled well to take three for 16 from his four overs. Richard Drake (25 ret) and Phil Woods (26 ret) did most of the work in Belstone?s reply. Two nights later Belstone took the Tedburn St Mary attack to pieces to amass 170 for seven, the club?s highest ever 20-over total, comfortably beating the previous best of 156 for seven against Lydford in 2000. Drake began the charge with 26, which included his 16th six of the season, well backed up by Wayne Pearce (27 ret), Woods (25 retired) and Neil Rowlands (23). Tedburn had little chance of matching the required 8.5-an-over run rate and after two early run outs their innings faded to 79 for six with only Neil Branton (26 ret) batting with authority. l Last Saturday?s annual match between Belstone and an XI put together by club president Peter Hammond was blessed with a rare fine day. Belstone batted first in the 45-over match with the top of the order held together by a watchful half century from opener Pete Gross, who was third out with the score on 99. Skipper Andrew Paterson (32) and Phil Woods (23) secured the middle order before a late assault from Aidan Easterbrook (three fours and a six in 24) and Rob Hall (19) boosted the total to 202 all out. For the President?s XI the pick of the bowlers were Matt Dennis (5-0-32-2) and captain Daryl Chapman who worked through the lower order to claim four for 34 from nine overs. In reply, the President?s XI started cautiously in the face of an accurate attack led by Jonathan Parsons (6-1-14-1) and Hall (6-4-3-0) with openers Simon Tremain (8) and Cleave Collins (18) taking eleven overs to score 17 runs before Tremain was first out. The middle order fell victim to some rash strokes against the tempting slow bowling of Chris Gomersall (four for 16 from six overs) and with Easterbrook?s pace (3-0-6-3) causing problems at the other end the President?s XI fell away rapidly to an all-out score of 65, Chris Walsh wrapping things up with the final two wickets off consecutive balls.
