Budleigh Salterton in sight of A Division thanks to win over Stoke Gabriel | Ten-point target from last two games for promotion

BUDLEIGH Salterton are as good as promoted from the B Division following a five-wicket win over Stoke Gabriel.

This win – number 11 in the season so far – put table-topping Budleigh 27 points ahead of second-placed Plymstock with 40 points left to contest.

Third-placed Ivybridge are four points further behind, which means Budleigh only need 10 points from their last two games to go up. A win over Braunton this Saturday will do it. And if Plymstock slip up against relegation worriers Bovey Tracey 2nd, the title will be Budleigh’s with a game to spare!

Skipper Ed Doble still does not want to talk about promotion until it is in the bag.

"Another great win for us, and with one of the youngest sides we have had out since I have started playing, which is great for the club,” said Doble.

Stoke Gabriel still have plenty of work to do to avoid relegation. With just six points between them and second-from-bottom Ipplepen, there is virtually no margin for error in last two games of the season.

Stoke, who defeated Budleigh two weeks earlier in the Corinthian Cup final, recovered from being 35 for three to make 194 all out at the Holt.

A middle-order rescue mission was carried out by Danny Duke (46), Isaac Withington (20), Mike Meech (22), Abhishek Anand (39) and Adriaan Maxwell (42no) that got Stoke out of trouble.

Budleigh seamers Hugh Moore (3-27) and Jack England (2-41) took front end wickets, spinner Alex Roper (2-34) broke a couple of partnership and Ryan Harris-Cotton (3-25) reeled in the stragglers.

Budleigh lost run-machine Luke Domachenz cheaply to Maxwell, but a partnership worth 141 between Luke Davies  (52) and Max Mejzner (76) thwarted Stoke’s hopes of a bowl-out win.

James Doble (25no) took Budleigh the rest of the way to a win sealed with more than nine overs to go.