WHITCHURCH discovered the hard way why Brixham are running away with the D Division West in a 192-run defeat away to the leaders.
New skipper Richard Potts had to grapple with numerous selection problems going into the game, which was hardly the preparation he would have wanted.
Brixham piled-up 277 for seven in their full 45 overs – Tom Hopper top scoring with 72.
Whitchurch were all out for 85 in reply with no one making more than Phil Mansfield (19).
Said Potts: “Credit to our second-team boys, who stepped into the firsts to ensure we fulfilled the fixture as availability again caused us a headache.”
Rhys Dallow (30) made early runs for Brixham before Hopper took charge.
Hopper put on 76 with Dallow and 56 with Chris Lanyon (43). Craig Eaves (45) and Lee Upham (32) kept the runs flowing until the overs expired.
“Some good bowling from us didn't get the breaks and Brixham accelerated in the last 20 overs,” said Potts.
There were two wickets each for Marc Kerswill (2-36), Jason Webber (2-53) and Ben Hodge (2-35).
Eaves (3-6) had a lot to do with reducing Whitchurch to 24 for four before Mansfield and Nigel Barriball (18) staged a mini-fightback.
Once Barriball went at 62 for five it was downhill all the way for Whitchurch as Dallow (3-4) and Tom Blundell (2-14) bowled them out in a hurry.
HATHERLEIGH 2ndXI had to work every inch of the way for a one-wicket win over Ivybridge.
Ivybridge were all out for 195, which Hatherleigh got after a defiant last-wicket stand between Richard Tidball and tail-ender Ed Dumpleton, who put on 39 to win it.
Andy Johnson (45) and Josh Zimmerman (47) got the Bridge up to 138 for three before the innings slowed.
Best of the bowling for Hatherleigh came from Tom Carroll (3-29) and Henry Nicholson (3-28) with Tidball (2-23) not far behind.
Openers Ryan Quick (34) and Greg Solkin (29) pointed Hatherleigh in the right direction before Jon Doel (3-41) and Lewis Clarke (2-45) sent them on a detour to 92 for six.
Danny Forrester (43) staved off total collapse, but when he was ninth out on 158 for nine it looked like Ivybridge’s game.
Dumpleton and Tidball had other ideas and saw Hatherleigh home with four overs to spare.
PLYMSTOCK 2nd XI remain tucked in behind the top two in the D Division West after defeating Plympton by 92 runs.
Atif Hussain, who went in at 86 for five, top scored with 88 not out for Plymstock in their total of 233 for eight.
Alex Thomas (35) and Luke Dennis (22) both chipped in and 43 extras helped the total along.
Plympton bowlers Surya Suresh and Josh Willcock had two wickets each. Steph Hutchings bowled nine overs for just 21 runs conceded and dismissed Marc Woodward.
Plympton’s innings never really got out of second gear with Suresh (39) and Keith Willcock (35) the only batters to make more than 17.
The last five wickets went for just 19 runs scored as Plympton collapsed to 141 all out.
Wickets were shared two each between Woodward, Matt Whalley and Tom Baker.
BEN Passmore picked-up a four-wicket haul for Babbacombe in their 109-run win over Ipplepen.
Pens were all-out for a paltry 75 chasing 185 to win at Walls Hill.
After openers Toby Holroyd (10) and Jeff Heath (12) fell to Passmore, only Steve Bowden (13no) made it into double figures was wickets fell on a regular basis.
Paul Bates (2-5) and Sree Sreejlth (2-28) both got in on the act as Pens crumbled.
There was no happy return to Walls Hill for Marcus Thompson, who was out for a duck against his former club.
Henry Stubbs top scored for Babbacombe with 38 and laid the foundations for skipper Rob Redding (33) and Tim Goodwin (30no) to build a total.
Bowden (2-13) was the pick of Pens’ bowlers. Harry Lewis had two for 38.
BARTON’S batting performed a disappearing act at Kenn, where they vanished for 64 on the way to an eight-wicket defeat.
James Mason (5-27), the former Bovey Tracey seamer, and Henry Gaydon (3-13) had Barton reeling at 24 for six.
Barton veteran Dave Cadwallader resisted for a top score of 26 before he was bowled by Hugh Stronge (2-12).
Kenn’s run chase was a perfunctory affair with opener James Gosling making 52 not out in the 17.4 overs needed to knock off the runs.
