Devon Cricket Board - Devon snatch victory in last over

Devon snatch victory in last over

DEVON beat the Devon Lions by six runs at Sidmouth yesterday in a pre-season warm-up game that went right down to the last ball.

   Matt Thompson made 43 as Devon recovered from 113 for eight to 199 all out in the last of their 40 overs – target the Lions looked like knocking off with no trouble at all when they were 154 for three in reply with Rob Woodman leading the way.

   Woodman went on to make 87, but the former Somerset, Gloucestershire and England U19 all-rounder couldn’t quite get the Lions over the line.

   Devon skipper Neil Hancock and seamer Ian Bishop got the brake on just in time as the Lions reached the last over needing 15 to win with Woodman (86no) and Adam Parker (9no) in the middle.

   It came down to six to tie off the last ball from Josh Bess and Woodman (87) was caught on the mid-wicket boundary by David Lye going for it.

   Devon’s total of 199 all out owed a great deal to a ninth-wicket stand of 59 between Thompson and Ian Bishop (23).

   Opener Neil Bettis made 21, Lye chipped in with 30 and Hancock walked past a ball from Will Murray which bowled him after making 22.

   Nick Seager and Bob Dawson missed out on time in the middle

   Thompson went in at 92 for five and was joined sooner rather than later by Bishop after the next three wickets had fallen for 21 runs.

   Bess was just getting going on his home ground when he smacked Harry Booker down the ground and was caught on the line by Yau. Sandy Allen went for nothing then Trevor Anning was splendidly caught by a diving Adam Parker at point having a flail at Matt Kidd’s bowling.

   Kidd got flailed at again when he bowled to Bishop, only this time with a less desirable affect. One ball disappeared over a nearby hotel wall while two more in the same over skipped over the turf for fours.

   With 15 overs to go when the stand started, the important thing was to bat out time. Thompson let Bishop get on with it at first, then slowly overhauled him by working the ball around and rotating the strike effectively.

   Kidd, Harry Booker and Woodman all tried and failed to break the stand, which pushed the score along to 172 before it ended with Bishop smashing the returning Matt Wood to long-on.

   Thompson and last man Chris Bradley (11no) kept going until the final over. Booker’s off-spin proved to much of a temptation for Thompson, who lashed the first ball for six then missed a wide one and was stumped.

   Murray and Booker took three wickets each while the impressive Wood took two for 31.

   Devon 199 (M Thompson 42, D Lye 30, I Bishop 23; W Murray 3-31, H Booker 3-45), Devon Lions 193-6 (R Woodman 86, B Huxtable 31; J Bess 2- 23). Devon bt Devon Lions by 6 runs.

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