Back

Sidmouth III v Seaton

SEATON had something worth celebrating after their 142-run win over Sidmouth 3rd XI – their first league victory since 2005!

   The Court Lane side didn't win a match at all in 2006 – and were winless for the final three games of the 2005 season as well.

   The grand total was 21 games since the last win, so no wonder Seaton's new skipper Sean Perry was a happy man after the game.

   “I am thrilled to bits although, if I am hyper-critical, I don't feel we fielded particularly well for the first 15 overs of the Sidmouth innings,” said Perry.

   “After such a long run without a win it is something to behold that we did achieve a victory.”

   Australian Kim Manolas was the Seaton hero with bat and ball.

   Manolas hit 119 – when he was out the score was 164 for four – and with Richard Arbuthnot (23) and George East (20) chipping in Seaton reached 237 all out.

   Bruce Robson (4-57) and Paris Pinney (3-50) worked through the bottom half of the Seaton batting once Manolas had gone.

   Sidmouth were going well at 69 without loss, but it all went wrong for them when opener Bob Macey got in the way of a drive from Mike Dibble which he thought had broken his arm! A hospital check up found severe bruising but nothing broken.

   Sidmouth collapsed from 69-0 to 75 for five and nosedived to 95 all out. Pete Lawson (5-13) and Manolas (5-20) whipped Sidmouth out between them.

   Sidmouth's side contained six colts, one of which was Dibble's daughter Jodie, who at 12 years old made a small bit of history as the first lady to play in a men's game for the club.

 

Axminster v Torquay

THERE was a thrilling finish to the game between Axminster and Torquay that hung in the balance until AFTER the last ball.

   Richard Milton hit a century – he shared in a stand of 105 for the fifth wicket with Steve Craig (36) – in Torquay's total of 283 for eight. The Thompson brothers – Matt (27) and Joe (28) chipped in as well.

   Axminster captain Paul Miller led the home side's reply with 144, which included 21 fours, and hoisted 153 for the second wicket with Kevin Moran (56) to make a real game of it.

   At the start of the final over Axminster required 11 runs for what would have been a remarkable victory. Miller was at one end and Steve Hill at the other. With two balls to go the target was five to win, Miller hit the ball into the outfield but was run out attempting a second run.

   Noah Hillyard had to face the final ball and he swatted it to the deep, only to be run out trying to make the third that would have given his side a tie instead of a draw.

 

Abbotskerswell v Shobrooke Park

SHOBROOKE Park got their money's worth, so to speak, out of Pete Turner in the 53-run win over Abbotskerswell at Two Mile Oak.

   Turner started off behind the stumps as Shobrooke set about defending a total of 181 all out, then whipped off is pads in the dying overs to bowl a couple of overs and pick up the last two wickets needed to dismiss Abbots for 128.

   Jon Aggett (3-34) had Shobrooke struggling at 15 for three before Matt Kirk (62) and Roger Jones (27no) started moving the score along during a partnership worth 98.

   Abbots had 59 overs to knock off the runs, but with only four survivors from the side that finished last season it was always going to be tough, which skipper Andy Rose had worked out when his side was 24 for three.

   Aggett (47) and Jim Peck (39) tried to save the day, but Francis Pyle (5-43), Turner and Neal Anning (2-25) had Abbots all out with 12 overs to spare.

 

Cornwood v Exeter St James

CORNWOOD handed out a hefty 250-run beating to Exeter St James in a game in which one records fell and another survived by the skin of its teeth.

   Graham Jones larruped the St James bowling to make 177 towards a total of 300 for two declared in 40.1 overs.

   Jones and Richard Conn (63no) shattered the A Division 2 nd XI second-wicket batting record by putting on 237. The previous best, set by Alex Paget and Tom Wainwright of Sidmouth was 229 and had stood since 1997.

   Some of the St James bowlers probably needed counselling after looking at their figures, which included two overs for 37 runs (T Hunter) and three overs for 30 runs (N Fereday).

   Poor old St James were then rolled over for a paltry 60 – and the best figure in the scorebook was 17 extras.

 

Budleigh Salterton v Bovey Tracey

BOVEY Tracey were scratching around to fill the last few places in their side on Saturday morning and the gaps showed as they crashed to a 10-wicket defeat at Budleigh Salterton.

   Skipper Jeremy Parr with 69 top scored for Bovey in their total of 209 for seven, but will have been disappointed that the rest of the side didn't kick on after he had taken them to 145 for two midway through the 50 overs.

   Tight bowling from Jamie Wyman (2-40), Greg Marks and Lloyd Murrin, helped keep the Bovey total down.

   Colin Shute, who bowled 10 overs for 35 runs, kept Budleigh tied down at one end, but they were racing away with it at the other where skipper IanTaylor and Rob Newing were scoring at will.

   Parr didn't have that many bowling options – one youngster got hit for 37 in three overs – and then went down to 10 men for a while after Nigel Mountford suffered a facial injury while keeping wicket.

   Parr had to take over behind the timbers while Mountford was being treated.

   Taylor and Newing kept on going as Bovey's bowling faltered and were 80 and 92 not out respectively when the winning runs were scored. Had it not been for Bovey dishing up 39 extras, one of them might have made a century.