Devon Cricket Board - D West: Depleted Kerswell pull off win

D West: Depleted Kerswell pull off win

D DIVISION WEST

DESPITE working with severely depleted resources Kingskerswell were still able to increase their margin at the top of the D Division West with a tight and tense victory over Dartington and Totnes.

Deciding to make first use of a good looking batting track Dartington quickly found themselves in trouble at 15-2 off 12 overs. Makeshift opening bowler, Chris Hurrell, bowling seamers for the first time since his school days, took both opening batsman one bowled and one caught at gully.

After that the Dartington innings briefly threatened to flourish thanks to Paul Taylor (25) and A Life (39) but the persistent falling of wickets meant that Kerswell always maintained a degree of control despite that fact that three bowlers who previously had not bowled this season were asked to step up and do a job.

Of those who contributed with the ball most impressive, as usual, was Pieter Douglas with 3-13 off his 13 overs, young Dan Elliott following his return from China with 2-47 off 10, and 14 year old Conner Adams with 2-25 off 7 overs of tidy spin.

All in all restricting Dartington and Totnes to 155-9 on a good batting track and with severely depleted bowling resources was a major achievement.

In response Kerswell were coasting at 66-0 but then a steady procession of batsman back to the pavilion left the innings delicately poised at 101-4. Only Mike Etherington (62) had made a contribution of note.

With a longer tail than normal, if anything the odds were in favour of a Dartington victory at that stage but skipper Nigel Butt (25 not out) and Pieter Douglas (22) took the score to 145 at which stage the game looked done and dusted.

The unhappy Douglas was then adjudged to have been caught bat and pad and following his dismissal two wickets fell in the space of the next three balls to leave the Kerswell innings once again teetering on the brink at 145-7.

Butt was joined at the crease by new man Matt Gladman and the two of them were able to polish off the 11 runs required for victory with seven overs to spare.

The victory was hard fought and the win means Kerswell are now 16 points clear of Ashburton against whom there is another crucial match this coming Saturday.

Ashburton’s 2nd XI continued it its rich vein of form by rolling over Plympton 3rds by two wickets.

Plympton batted first and lost opener Sean Mortimer for a duck with only 6 on the board. His partner Dan Queen however stayed around long enough to top score with 58.

Todd Rossouw (28) and Joe Gilpin (16) also manged double figures.

Matt Coon (4-26) despite still nursing a side strain removed danger man Queen and three late order batsmen for a respectable score of 148 all out. Robin Lambert (3-22) and the remaining bowlers bowled with great discipline to keep the score down.

Ashes charged over the line with Dom Durman hitting a sparkling 30 when the match could have gone the other way. The bedrock was laid by a number of Ashes batsmen. Kevin Cock (15) and Alan Churchill (31) made a solid start backed up by Tom Pucknell (10) and skipper Matt Coon (22). The wickets were shared around for Plympton, Sean Mortimer (2-29), Rossouw (2-27) and Ben Vince (2-21) kept things in check but it was not enough to stop Ashes from picking up their ninth win of the season (196 points) moving up to second place behind leaders Kingskerswell (212 points) whom they play this coming weekend at home.

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