| DEVON
are the Minor Counties champions for the seventh time in their
history after thrashing Buckinghamshire by 180 runs in the
annual end-of-season play-off game between the winners of
the Western and Eastern divisions.
Plympton spinner Arwyn Jones was
the man of the moment with a seven for 32 haul that hustled
Bucks on their way for 127 chasing 308 to win on the final
day. 
When the tousle-haired left-armer came on Bucks were 56 without
loss in the first nine of what would have been around 60 overs
to knock-off the runs and comfortably ahead of the asking
rate.
Alex Hales was on his way to 48 to follow up his first-innings
92 and old Surrey all-rounder Keith Medlycott has shored up
an end for an eventual 22.
Eighty without loss was no improvement for Devon, but 93 for
four in the over after tea was and at that stage Bucks abandoned
the chase and set their sights on a draw and a share of the
title.
Hales was caught by a back-peddling Trevor Anning at mid-on,
Medlycott was run-out from silly-point by Dave Court, Jason
Harrison gave Court a catch off Jones at silly-mid-on and
Paul Sawyer played down the wrong line to Jones. After that
little collapse going for the draw was the only option. 
Bucks' tactics played right into
Devon's hands as skipper Bob Dawson was able to pack men round
the bat and build pressure on the batsmen. They crumbled under
it.
Any hope of saving the game went at 105 for six when Matt
Eyles was given out lbw not playing a shot to Jones's spin
partner Andy Procter.
Jones (right) mopped up at the other
end – three wickets for no runs at one stage and seven for
18 after five wicketless overs to start with – and last pair
Duncan Spencer and Simon Stanway were left 16 overs to block
it out for a draw.
They got halfway to doing it before Procter induced Stanway
into playing on and Spencer had no one left to bat with.
Jones might have been the man of the moment, but Man of the
Match went to Paignton's Neil Hancock (below),
who added the small matter of 139 not out in the second innings
to his 95 and out in the first.
Dawson had declared midway between lunch and tea on 293 for
three thanks almost entirely to a stand of 256 for the fourth
wicket between Hancock and opener Chris Mole. Seven more runs
would have broken a county record of 262 that has stood since
1949 when Tom Troman and Norman Borrett set it against Dorset
at Paignton.
Devon had been 37 for three when Mole and Hancock teamed up.
They moved the score on to 138 for three at close of play
the night before then had to wait an hour longer than planed
to press ahead on day three as overnight rain and general
gloom delayed the start.
Mole dropped anchor – give or take a minute he batted four
hours for his 88 not out – while Hancock played his shots
to complete his fourth ton of the season.
Having been beaten in the 2003 play-off game against Lincolnshire,
and shared the 2004 title with Bedfordshire when rain ruined
the game, yesterday's win was oh-so sweet for skipper Dawson.
Said Dawson: “I have played in some pretty big matches in
my career and won a few of them, but I have never been as
proud to be part of a team as I am now. We've won all seven
of our Championship matches this season, which has never been
done before, and are deserved champions.”
Click
here for last-day scorecard
First
and second day reports
Pictures
can be ordered from David G Morgan by emailing david@dm27.com
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