Devon Cricket Board - Paignton end wait to lift cup

Paignton end wait to lift cup

PAIGNTON ended a six-year wait to get their hands on the Aaron Printers Narracott Cup again when they defeated Bovey Tracey by 10 runs in a high-scoring final at Queens Park on Friday night.

Martin Swannell hit 55, and Mark Smith 42, as Paignton raced along to 167 for four in their 15 eight-ball overs.

As targets go it was a hefty one – around 140 is generally par for the course in the final – and Bovey were behind the clock almost from the word go.

But hard-hitting Aussie Rod Hokin, later named Man of the Match despite being on the losing side, ignited the game with three successive sixes in one over from Neil Collings to spark the chase into life again.

Had Hokin stayed in for the rest of the over, Bovey Tracey might have gone on to win. Collings got him fifth ball and despite the best efforts of skipper Chris Bradley (36no) it proved to tall an order.

“It would have been a good toss to win as batting second as the shadows got longer and longer wasn’t easy,” said Bradley.

“My brother (Pete) has been in great form with the bat recently and losing him third ball was a setback we could have done without.

“But we had a go and had Rocket (Hokin) stayed in just a bit longer we might have done it.”

Winning captain Neil Edmonds said he felt the game swung back his side’s way when Hokin got out, but added he had his own candidate for Man of the Match in youngster Andy Kingdon.

“He came in after Seb Benton got out and hit a very quick 38 which I thought took the game beyond Bovey at the time. They were certainly valuable runs,” said Edmonds.

“Not only that, he put his hand up and offered to bowl the penultimate over, which was a big one, despite not bowling at all earlier in the innings.

“They still needed 37 at that stage, but one big over could have made it dicey for Seb (Benton) bowling the last one. Andy only went for eight – there was a bye in there somewhere – and they weren’t going to get the rest of the last over.”

Smith (42) and Swannell (55) gave Paignton a 90-run start, although Bovey had a clutch of chances to get either of them out either caught or stumped. Smith, who faced 35 balls and hit five fours, was first out when Ben Ayres stumped him off Jamie Pooley (2-31).

Benton came and went for 14 – Ayres stumped him off Pooley as well – then Swannell’s 48-ball stay ended in another stumping, this time off Chris Bradley’s bowling.

Kingdon was in by then and he swished his 38 off just 21 balls before holing out on the square-leg boundary with one ball to go.

Bovey couldn’t have wished for a worse start as Edmonds bowled Pete Bradley three balls into the reply.

Opener Hokin looked settled but struggled to find someone to stay with him as Edmonds (2-32) and left-armer Liam Bryan (2-36) took out his batting partners at regular intervals.

At 99 for five with four overs to go, Hokin had just reached his 50 and decided to hit out.

Collings looked suitably crestfallen after being hit on the railway lines three times, but had the last laugh when a full-length ball swung in and took middle and leg stumps to send Hokin back for 67 off 46 balls.

Bradley’s 36 not out off 29 balls wasn’t enough to pull the game out of the fire and stop Paignton lifting the trophy.

Paignton II 167-4 (M Smith 42, M Swannell 55, A Kingdon 38, J Pooley 2-31, C Bradley 2-44), Bovey Tracey 157-8 (R Hokin 67, C Bradley 36no; N Edmonds 2-32, L Bryan 2-36). Paignton bt Bovey Tracey by 10 runs.

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