SUNDAY,JUNE 15
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DEVON buried the memory of last season's Lord's heartbreaker when they dumped Cheshire out of the Minor Counties Trophy at Chester.
Almost 12 months ago to the day, Devon were 12-run losers at the same Boughton Hall ground to Cheshire in a Trophy semi-final.
The boot was on the other foot yesterday as Devon dismissed Cheshire for 178 in the last of their 50 overs – paceman Ian Bishop softening them up with three for 21 at the start – then knocked off the runs for the loss of four wickets.
The only difference second time around was that yesterday's game was a quarter-final – so there is always the danger of missing out on Lord's again if Devon slip up in the last four.
Devon will find out on Wednesday who they face next after Lincolnshire and Norfolk settle their difference at Grantham.
Given the clinical way Devon dealt with Cheshire, last season's beaten Trophy finalists and the reigning Minor Counties champions, they won't be too worried about going to either Grantham or Norwich in the semi-finals
Cheshire skipper Andy Hall won the toss and opted for trying to bat Devon out of the game on the sloping Boughton Hall pitch.
Other than opener Danny Leech, who made 41, none of his frontline batsmen came off as Bishop whipped them out one after the other.
South African dangerman Warren Goodwin mistimed a drive and was caught at mid-on by Exeter's Aaron Williams, who was called up late on Saturday into the side when Paignton's James Hudson pulled out.
Goodwin made six – as did Hall before Bishop rearranged his timbers. Ben Spendlove was in and out for a single and at 64 Leech went to a slip catch by Neil Hancock off Sidmouth clubmate Scott Barlow.
Arul Suppiah snared James Duffey leg-before for 19 as Cheshire slumped to 89 for five and at that stage Devon were running away with it.
Nathan Dumelow and Jason Whittaker arrested the decline with a stand of 62 for the sixth wicket that ended when Dumelow (47) lobbed a catch to Hancock at extra-cover to give Trevor Anning his first victim.
Anning struck again in his next over when he trapped Whittaker on the crease for 19.
The overs were ticking down quickly now and wickets fell in a desperate scramble for an extra run here or there.
Devon's chase was routine in comparison with Suppiah and Bob Dawson both scoring half-centuries to make it easy.
Andy Sydall dispatched opener Chris Mole at 39, but that turned out to be a mixed blessing as it brought out Suppiah, who batted through to the finish for an undefeated 52.
Dawson, who hit 57 off 53 balls with eight fours and two sixes, departed at 85 for two when he tried to smash Whittaker down the ground and was caught on the long-off boundary.
Hope flared briefly in the Cheshire camp when Hancock was third out at 100, Whittaker winning an lbw shout, but Suppiah and David Court (20) pushed the score up to 138 and by then there was only going to be one outcome.
Five overs was all it took Suppiah and David Lye (20no) to make the last 40 needed to win. The deciding runs came when Whittaker was brought back for a second spell and chucked a loosener down the leg side for five wides.
Cheshire 178 (D L Leech 41, N R C Dumelow 47, J P Whittaker 25; I E Bishop 3-21, T S Anning 2-29, A V Suppiah 2-43), Devon 180-4 (R I Dawson 57, A V Suppiah 52). Devon bt Cheshire by 6 wkts.
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