MINOR COUNTIES CHAMPIONSHIP PLAY-OFF - DAY TWO, SEPTEMBER 11

LATE arrivals missed the best of Devon's play on the second day of the Minor Counties Championship final as most of it was squeezed into the first hour.

   Bucks could probably have claimed to have shaded the first day by a whisker after bowling Devon out for 290 then reaching 134 for two when bad light stopped play 13 overs early.

   Devon had a pre-start bonus when their first-innings total was raised to 302 after the umpires Tythcott and Evans hit Bucks with a 12-run penalty for slow bowling on the first day.

   It didn't get any better for Bucks in the first hour as what slender advantage they had, and it wasn't much, was wiped out in 60 minutes.

   Matt Eyles, who came in last thing the previous night, was out in the second over without getting off the mark when he prodded a return catch back to Devon bowler Ian Bishop.

   Surviving opener Alex Hayles and Paul Sawyer added 38 for the fourth wicket in a stand that ended when Sawyer was snapped up at slip edging spin-bowler Andy Procter.

   Duncan Spencer accepted the bait when Procter tossed one up to him and was caught out on the deep mid-wicket boundary by Neil Bettis, whose only movement was to cup his hands as the ball came down.

   Then Hales, who had moved into the nervous 90s by then got in a muddle running between the wickers with Phil Sampson and couldn't reach the bowler's end before Arwyn Jones' throw reached the waiting Procter.

   Four wickets had fallen for the addition of 59 runs and Bucks' hopes of building a substantial first-innings lead had gone. Although Procter took the wickets, Jones did his share of pressure building as well, but only had one wicket to show for his efforts.

   Sampson tried to make up lost ground as best he could, but on 28 went to hit Jones over wide mid-on and was caught just inside the rope by Devon captain Bob Dawson.

   Paul Atkins (29no) and Graeme Paskins (29) put on 46 in a final flourish, Neil Hancock taking a bit of stick when he dropped it short, but when the mandatory 70 overs expired Bucks were 14 runs behind on 288 for eight.

   In Dawson's perfect world Devon would have raced away after lunch towards a hoped-for lead of 360 and the time to bowl Bucks out and win the title on the third and final day. It ain't a perfect world, especially for cricketers in the middle of September when there is rain about.

   Devon's second innings started in carbon copy fashion to the first with opener James Beeney, Bettis and Dawson all out with less than 40 on the board.

   Beeney swished down the leg side at Sawyer and was caught, Bettis fell caught at slip and Dawson was bowled by Sawyer in much the same way as he had been on day one.

   Chris Mole and Hancock rescued Devon on the first day with a stand of 93 and got the sticking plaster out again to reach 77 without further mishap before play was halted by a combination of bad light and the sound of thunder rolling round the Exe estuary.

   One hour and 41 minutes later the covers came off and Mole and Hancock picked up where they left off by pushing the score along cautiously.

   Hancock was 47 not out when bad light stopped play moments after Mole, who has just passed his half-century, was hit hard on the hand by paceman Spencer.

  Devon 302 (N D Hancock 95, D G Court 53no, C M Mole 36; P J Sampson 3-50, D J Spencer 4-71) & 138-3 (N D Hancock 47no, C M Mole 55no), Buckinghamshire 288-8 (A D Hales 92, J C Harrison 47; P D Atkins 29no; A J Procter 3-92).

First day report