The July record heat wave continued and Devon congregated at Exmouth with a full contingent having collected two players from Exmouth Station. Worcestershire, who went on to win the division won the toss and batted. At lunch they were 113-0 off thirty-three overs with Wynn and Harris looking very comfortable. They had contributed just six runs the previous day at Brixham but were now making hay in the sunshine. Wyatt-Haines rang the changes and used eight bowlers in the first session. A splendid T-hut lunch was enjoyed and Devon went out in the heat. Off the first ball of the eleventh over after the break Dominic Bess struck when he enticed Wynn to give Lines a catch. The batter had just reached his fifty. It got better as next ball Ollie Dawe ran out the keeper Milton going for a second run. Worcestershire was now 141-2 and incredibly it became 143-3 as the top scorer from the one dayer, Westbury, was caught by the captain off Bess. Meanwhile the Worcestershire captain Harris was in prime form he was undefeated on 81. At afternoon drinks Worcestershire were 162-3 with Martin helping to restore the initiative for the visitors. Twenty runs later he was out when keeper Mawdsley took a good catch off Hoddinott. Harris was then one short of his hundred. This quickly followed and the second best partnership of the innings started to grow. By tea Worcester were thirteen runs past their second batting point with Harris on 116. However Devon had had an excellent session and pegged their opponents back taking four wickets in conceding a hundred runs. In the sixth over after the break Marcus Hoddinott took the vital wicket when he bowled Harris for 139. He had faced 225 balls and had hit twenty-one fours. Worcester had now banked three bonus points to Devon’s two but both sides were to pick up their full quota. The sixth wicket put on twenty-eight but the last four only twenty-five as Devon took five wickets in nineteen overs. Hoddinott took a third with Reid Mawdsley taking another catch. Hugo Whitlock had Jaswel caught by Searle who took two wickets himself having Patel caught by Dawe and bowling Hodgetts. Whitlock had earlier bowled Downes. Worcestershire were all out for 308 off 98.3 overs an excellent recovery by Devon. The home side had a difficult five overs to navigate before close of play. They scored at two an over and the only casualty which was major was the breaking of Declan Lines nose. It was an excellent short delivery which got through the batsman grill but was certainly tainted by the fielding side’s response to the damage caused and blood on the wicket. Lines went off to A&E with Matt Cooke and was not expected to be seen again the following day. Jack Thomas entered as night watchman.

   Remarkable Lines was present and correct with only a cut to show, no bruising to remind people of the horrendous knock that resulted in Mike Gatting’s nose being rearranged by a  Malcolm Marshall bouncer in a one day International at Jamaica in February 1986. The night watch man lasted twelve deliveries as Thomas and Hoddinott took Devon to twelve. Marcus fell on the same score and Devon was really up against it. In the thirteenth over Higgs was bowled with Devon now on 15 The captain was now trying to steady his ship with Billy Searle but only another fourteen runs were added as Devon were in deep trouble at 44-4 off just eighteen overs. Reid Mawdsley who was at this time virtually playing seven days a week helped Wyatt-Haines put on the best partnership of the innings – 39 off thirty-one balls in nineteen minutes. Devon had not reached lunch when Mawdsley departed. He had decided that attack was the best form of defence as his strike rate of 108 confirmed. The brave Lines reappeared lasted ten overs putting on another thirty runs with the captain until four minutes before the interval he was caught. At lunch Devon were virtually down and out on 114-6 one hundred and ninety-four behind. Wyatt Haines was one run past his fifty. It had been hard going. Devon were all out forty minutes after lunch. Ansley, Bess, Singh and Dawe helped Wyatt-Haines get Devon to 151. The captain was unbeaten on 68. He had faced ninety-five balls and batted for 138 minutes hitting thirteen fours. Considering the circumstances his strike rate of 71.58 was outstanding. 

  Devon had been bowled out in forty-four overs, they were 157 runs behind and there were a minimum of 63 overs left in the day, would they be invited to follow on. Somewhat surprisingly the answer was no. Worcestershire would bat again and this provided Devon with an opportunity of making up some of the lost ground their batting had created. Second innings bonus points are always vital in the final end of season placing. To date Worcestershire had eighteen points to Devon’s four. The final innings of the game increased the returns to twenty and eight respectively. Searle struck with his fourth ball and Harris was dismissed for 135 less that the previous day. Over the next thirteen overs Wynn and Milton put on 62 when Hugo Whitlock struck for the first time bowling Wynn. In the same over three balls later Mawdsley, who had been thrown in at the deep end in 2013 with Maunder out as it transpired for the summer, Dan Powell who was on holiday in the States and Harry Choule retiring what had been a plethora of talented keepers batsmen had all fallen by the wayside. Worcestershire were now 66-3. Eleven balls later Whitlock took his fourth bowling Milton. In the final over before tea, the seventeenth, Whitlock trapped Martin in front – 80-5 – Whitlock’s figures were the impressive 6-2-12-4. The captain had again been proactive employing five bowlers. In the final session of the game there were 46 overs available. Devon needed just twenty-seven as by twenty-four minutes past five Worcestershire had been bowled out for 153. Bess took the first post tea wicket with the help of a catch from Ollie Dawe. Parminda Singh took his one wicket of the summer bowling Smith and Whitlock was successful with two leg before appeals. Searle ended the innings as he had started bowling Hodgetts. Whitlock’s figures of 12-3-21-6 were the third best at seventeen’s.

    The weather had  remained outstanding as were our hosts – Exmouth Cricket Club and the side had bowled a side out twice. It was now a just matter of scoring sufficient runs against Hampshire after a weeks break.