PAIGNTON'S Neil Hancock hit his second century of the match as Devon eventually beat Cornwall by 237 runs at St Austell to clinch the Minor Counties Western Division title with a game to spare,

   Hancock was on exactly 100 not out when skipper Bob Dawson declared Devon's second innings closed at 341 for five giving them a massive lead of 494 over Cornwall.

   Scoring a second century in a game gave Hancock an indelible place in the Devon record books as the first county player to score two unbeaten tons in the same game. Dawson is the only other player in 106 years to make back-to-back hundreds in the same game – his were against Wales two years ago – but he was out in one of them.

   Along the way Hancock put on 115 for the fourth wicket with Dawson, who was out for 55 in the second over of the day, and 66 for the fifth with David Court, who monopolised the strike to make 56 off 34 balls.

   For Cornwall, in an increasingly ill-humoured game after a clutch of disputed umpiring decisions went against the home team, the object of the exercise was to stop Devon winning. They came within 15 balls of doing it.

   Former Northants all-rounder Anthony Penberthy led the rearguard action with a dogged 76 – his was one of the dismissals that sparked the outbreak of ill-will all round – and he had support from opener Matt Robins (44) and James Hands (23).

   Spinner Arwyn Jones bowled 36 overs for a three-for-88 haul – better figures than they looked as Devon frequently had six men round the bat and huge gaps in the field – and there were wickets for Andy Procter and Trevor Anning as well as the Cornish batting was whittled away.

   Former Cornwall captain Gary Thomas looked like he was dug in for the duration and getting him out was crucial to Devon winning the game. Hancock was called up to bowl in the hope he could force a breakthrough and got his man lbw in his second over.

   Thomas didn't think too much of his lbw decision either and made it plain as he trooped off.

   With Thomas gone Devon needed two more wickets to win the game and the overs were ticking away to do it in. Under the rules of the competition the fielding side can take a new ball at 90 overs and Dawson decided if spin wasn't working he would give the seamers another chance with fresh ammunition.

   Anning was called back up to bowl and delivered the wicket that mattered when he deceived Chris Hunkin into playing no shot to a ball that swung into him late and pulled out his off-stump.

   Devon had no more than four overs to break the last-wicket pair of Gavin Edwards and Lee Caddy and Hancock used one of them up without success. However, Caddy was on strike for the next over from Anning and, as a genuine Number 11, they fancied their chances of getting him out.

   It took Anning three balls to find the edge of Caddy's bat and the faintest of edges just carried through to wicketkeeper Sandy Allen to give Devon victory. According to the umpires, there would have been time for two more overs before time was called.

   It was a close-run thing for Devon and Dawson's tactics had plenty of home supporters fuming. They reckoned he had killed the game stone dead by batting too long before lunch to let Hancock make his second century.

   But Dawson wanted to be sure he couldn't lose the game and let second-placed Dorset close the gap on them by beating Oxfordshire, which they did by one wicket in a thrilling last-over finish a Banbury.

   But Dawson had his tactics right as he had sufficient runs not to lose and enough overs – it would have been 96 – to bowl Cornwall out.

   Devon are 29 points ahead of Dorset with 24 left to play for, and can look forward to a play-off game against the Eastern Division champions at Exmouth next month. Before then comes a game against Wales, also at Exmouth, and the chance to become the first county to win all six games since the competition went to a three-day format six years ago.

   Devon 421-9 (N D Hancock 155, A W P Allen 100, D G Court 67, R I Dawson 31; A Hunkin 3-77, T G Sharp 3-85, J M Hands 2-96) and 341-5 dec (N D Hancock 100no, R I Dawson 55, D G Court 56, C M Mole 40, N C Bettis 40), Cornwall 268 (T G Sharp 51, B P Price 91, A L Penberthy 28; T S Anning 5-56, M J Webb 3-41) & 257 (A L Penberthy 76, M L Robins 44; T S Anning 4-53, A Jones 3-82). Devon (24pts) bt Cornwall (6) by 219 runs.

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