HEATHCOAT II march on at the top of the D Division East with a 57-run victory at Barnstaple making it five from five.

Opener Justin Williams made a patient 42 to see off the new ball, leaving the stage for James Onley-Gregson (51) and in-form Simon Sobczak (72) to crack on.

Lee Dixon joined Sobczak at 134 for five and the pair added 131 for the sixth wicket. Dixon made 69 off 32 balls with six fours and four sixes.

Keeping the runs down was a problem – Heathcoat made 271 for nine - although Jack Moore (1-39) and dad Steve (3-36) got through 18 overs between them and Robin lake had respectable figures of 7-1-22-0.

Sam Bithell top scored on 61 as Barnstaple were held to 214 for five in reply.

Bithell put on 43 with Jack Moore (26), 64 with Lee Cole (30) and 30 with Henry McEndoo (29).

Wickets were shared between five bowlers. Matt Hague (8-2-14-1) was particularly hard to score off.

CLYST St George gave Exmouth II run for their money before going down by 11 runs in a high-scoring affair on the Bohea Field.

James Horler (66) and Jon Evernett (52) both smacked half-centuries in Exmouths’s tally of 277 all out.

There were stands of 58 between Horler and Lawrence Greenway (36) and 69 between Evernett and Louis Morison (28).  Sam Goodier chipped in with 34 going in at fifth wicket down.

Sam Read (9-1-32-0) was the cheapest of the Clyst bowlers. Andrew Donovan (5-48) had the most success.

Clyst got  to 196 for five in reply with Dan Kendall (29), Ben Pullan (29), Chris Ferro (39) and Jayakrupaker Nallala (36) all among the runs.

The asking rate crept up to 10  an over for a while and Andy Donovan (34) and skipper Harry Attwater (43) did their best to keep up.

Twenty-five to win from the last two overs proved just too many an Clyst ran out of time at 266 for six.

Exmouth entertain Uplyme this Saturday. Clyst are away to leaders Heathcoat II.

NORTH Devon II were always favourites to defeat Sandford II after skittling them out for 12.

Opener and captain Chris Blake made a long 42 – he was fourth out at 86 – and the next best was Jason Matten’s 18 at fourth wicket down.

The slow left-armers of Matt Dart picked up five Sandford wickets for 25 runs.

North Devon were home and dry midway through the 28th over.

James Tyson (31) made a start on the chase then Jamie Thomas (54no) saw North Devon to a seven-wicket win.

Sandford have signed former Chagford player Liam Gardner, whose most recent club is G East side Lustleigh.

UPOTTERY stay third in the C Division East table after a workmanlike win over bottom side Uplyme by four wickets.

Mark Batey (26), Bruce Maltby (24) and Jed Whittington (21) had the best of a modest set of scores in Uplyme’s 131 all out.

Lee Nessling (3-14), Paul Wakefield (3-24) and James Mitcham (3-22) did the majority of the wicket taking.

Bits and pieces got Upottery home with Jack Larcombe (23) having a bit more than Mike Arscott (20).

Upottery skipper Mark Joyce said: “When I won the toss putting them in was an easy decision as it looked a bit damp.

“That said our bowlers did their work well. Lee (Nessling) bowled a good line and length and gave us a great start.

“Getting them out for 131 was certainly a job well done by the bowlers.

As for the batting, we did lose six wickets along the way in a chase that ought to have been a more comfortable one. I was personally never doubting the outcome, but there were one or two twitchy folk in our ranks!”

Upottery host Chardstock this Saturday. The villagers are unbeaten since the move there last summer.

Said Joyce: “They [Chardstock] are going well and, when they have their full side I see them as a handful. We will need to be fully focused, but then I am sure we will be.”

One player unlikely to be involved is Kalann Nessling who has asked for a transfer to Bradninch.

 “Kalann wants to be gone and, although I have yet to see the transfer request from another club, he can go and we wish him well,” said Joyce.

COUNTESS Wear’s season hit a low point when they went down by 204 runs at Chardstock.

Chardstock openers Ed Pyman (26) and Gary Larcombe (88) raced to 127 without loss – and that was just the start of the problems for Countess Wear.

Third man in Tom Warren clouted 72 and by the time he got out the total had reached 287 for six.

Rob Hutchings made 34 and Steve Allsopp shared a partnership worth 81 with Warren for the fourth wicket.

Chardstock were 313 for seven when their overs ran out.

The Wear were all out for 109 in reply, no one making more than Ben Jones and Ian Ballinger, who made 18 each.

Alex Watson bagged three Wear wickets for 22 runs and there were two each for Larcombe, Richard Pyman and James Pyman.

Defeat leaves the Wear one off the bottom of the table. Only Uplyme are below them.