Devon Cricket Board - 2003 Cup final - Brixham complete double

2003 Cup final - Brixham complete double

THE Midas Group Shield final went all the way to a last-over finish for the third year running as Brixham clinched a knockout cup double with a seven-wicket win over Paignton IIs.

Friday’s night’s final at Queens Park appeared to be all done and dusted after Brixham had ground to a halt chasing Paignton’s 124 for eight.

Five overs out Brixham still needed 62 to win and although they had wickets in hand — nine of them — it was an almighty task.

The game was won and lost in one wayward over from the normally reliable Jon Barnes, whose first two eight-ball overs had cost just 17 runs.

His third and last went for a staggering 27 (six wides boosting the total) and from then on Brixham were favourites.

Opener and Man of the Match John Lamswood had gone for 47 by then, as had Matt Caunter who hit Barnes for a six and a four and was out next ball.

Sean Friend was still there, having got going again after getting stuck in the doldrums, and with Pat Steytler for company saw Brixham home.

From a seemingly impossible position they got down to the last over needing just two to win.

Friend, who finished unbeaten on 39, didn’t mess about as he lamped the hapless Rees Wyborn for six over long-on from the only ball he bowled.

“It all came down to that one over from Barnes as we looked like losing it at that stage,” said skipper Adam Castle.

“Friend couldn’t hit the ball off the square; Lammy had just gone and they were on top.

“Matt Caunter hit a six and a four then got out, but the wides and four from Pat (Steytler) which none of their fielders saw got us right back in it.

“Lammy was superb for us; had he not batted through as long as he did I doubt we would have done it.”

Earlier, Mark Smith and Liam Talbot were joint top scores for Paignton with 23 each in a total which looked around 20 short at the break.

Brixham’s fielding was hit and miss at times — their catching was great but their ground cricket was found lacking — but Paignton didn’t really cash in.

Strangled

One of the reasons was the way they were strangled by Brixham’s bowlers with Steytler going for 26 off his four overs and both Castle and Paul Heath picking up three wickets.

And, while the outcricket was dodgy, glovesman Lamswood was on top form behind the stumps with two stumpings and a catch — all of them standing up.

Brixham knew who the dangermen were and were happy to settle for getting Talbot on 23.

Skipper Mark Griffiths, who won the semi-final for Paignton, came and went for four when Friend took a difficult catch out in the country with the ball coming out of the setting sun to him.

And Barnes, a destructive batsmen when he gets going, launched some booming drives down the ground before Castle put a man back for him with inevitable consequences.

Heath made a difficult catch look easy to remove Neil Edmonds for 14, and the rest was just bits and pieces until the overs ran out.

“We targeted their top four because we felt they didn’t have much to come after that,” said Castle.

“Liam (Talbot) has had us chasing round in the past so we were glad to get him for 23.

“And Mark Griffiths cheaply was a bonus for us as he can smash it.”

Victory gave Brixham the clean sweep as their seconds have already won the Brockman Cup.

Paignton 124-8 (M Smith 23, L Talbot 23; J Barnes 17; P Heath 3-31, A Castle 3-34), Brixham 129-3 (J Lamswood 47, S Friend 39no). Brixham bt Paignton by 7 wkts.

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