C Division East round-up – week 17: Promotion squabble between Seaton and Heathcoat will be settled on final day
PROMOTION-chasing Seaton defeated relegation-threatened Alphington & Countess Wear by 112 runs to preserve their two-point lead over Heathcoat 2nd XI at the top of the table.
While the promotion race comes to a climax this Saturday, Seaton need to defeat Ottery St Mary and hope Heathcoat don’t take three more points off Uplyme in their last game, A&CW are fully focussed on dodging the drop.
The Alphas need three more points from their engagement with Exmouth 2nd XI than Upottery take off Sandford 2nd XI to climb off the trap door.
Kai Croft belted 128 off 81 balls for Seaton towards a total of 318 for seven. Matt Hewer, the team’s Mr Consistent, made 61. Chip-ins from Tristan Wakeley (31) and Tim Doulton (34no) kept the scoreboard ticking over.
Lawrence Marsh (3-59), James Bovey (2-66) and Wessel Oosthuizen (2-29) took wickets for A&CW.
Marsh (31) was the only top-four batter to make runs for A&CW before Tynan Hill (52) and Matt McCollum (39) weighed in a sixth-wicket stand of 87.
The lower order had way too much to do once Hill departed. A six-wicket haul for Doulton (6-51) consigned A&CW to 206 all out.
NOTHING less than a win over Uplyme & Lyme Regis will be enough to earn Heathcoat 2nd XI promotion in the final round of C East fixtures – and even that may not be enough.
In a regional division with only one promotion place, Heathcoat are second with a two-point gap between them and leaders Seaton.
Heathcoat need three more points than Seaton earn from their derby date against Upottery to get past them. Otherwise, the side that topped the table for 14 weeks will be staying put.
Exeter 2nd XI still have work to do to steer clear of relegation danger after going down by 81 runs to the promotion hunters.
A 12-point distance between the County Grounders and second-bottom Alphington & Countess Wear is not enough to feel comfortable.
A win over doomed Bradninch & Countess Wear 2nd XI should do the trick!
Heathcoat piled-up 281 for five in a 45-over game. Rob Holman, the former Devon and Exeter batsman, opened-up with 83 and shared a 141-run stand with Tom Lock (61).
Tom Frankpitt (42) and Will Hall-Tomkin (42no) added another 63 for the fourth wicket. Musa Kaleem (3-59) was Exeter’s main wicket grabber.
Exeter, still not 100 per cent sure of staying out of the bottom two, were faded from 159 for three to 175 for eight and on to 200 all out.
Aaron Lawrence (23), Max Cockram (29) and Felix Joseph (45) got Exeter off to a solid start.
It all started to go wrong after Aashay Dube was fourth out for 61 – 50 of which came in boundaries – to Joe Parkinson (3-44).
Parkinson, Artie Evans (3-36) and Malcolm Cloete all contributed to Exeter’s demise.
EXMOUTH 2nd XI banished any lingering relegation worries once and for all with a 45-run win over third-bottom Upottery that moved them 25 points clear of the drop spots.
Matt Edworthy (41no) top scored for Exmouth in a total of 194 for nine. Bob Dawson (27), Billy Reed (26), James Edworthy (24) and Connor McCann (25) all contributed.
Ben Kidson (3-25) and Jack Larcombe (2-32) impressed for Upottery during nine-over stints.
Upottery looked in good shape at 101 for three – Matt Broom (24) and Rob Tasker (25) delivering – then collapsed to 106 for seven. Dawson (4-36) was largely responsible.
Upottery were eventually all out for 149 and face a nervy end to the season preserving their C East status.
SANDFORD 2nd XI defeated Bradninch & Kentisbeare 2nd XI by one wicket in a game with nothing on it for either side.
Bradninch & Kentisbeare went into the match knowing there was nothing they could do to avoid being relegated.
Sandford came out of the dressing room aware they could not finish any higher than third.
The two teams produced an engrossing encounter that was won from an unlikely position by Sandford’s tail-enders.
Toby Hard (56), in at 23 for one, was the last man out for Bradninch & Kentisbeare in their total of 176. Morgan Lamey made 20 and skipper Darren Paul 19.
Alfie Butterfield (4-48) and Pete Steer (3-45) did most of the damage with the ball for Sandford.
Joe Hopkins (26) and Tom Gidney (33) got Sandford up to 83 for two before the chase slowed as Josh Stewart (2-20) and Freddie Gillett (2-23) picked-up wickets.
The batter B&K could not shift was Andrew Fry, who appeared to have an uphill battle on his hands at 139 for eight to win it from there.
Brian Leach, a Sandford lifer with previous experience in that department gained over more than 400 league games, found a few balls to hit as the target came down. Expensive overs from Hard and Lamey helped.
By the time Tom Kittow bowled Leach the target was four to win, which reduced by one when the next ball down was a wide.
Fry was 31 not out at the non-striker’s end when last man Sebi Gibbs hit the first ball he could reach for four to win it.
