SPCL1 Week4 - Four byes gives Academy glory

Hampshire's Academy side are off the mark in the ECB Southern Electric Premier League with a tense one-wicket victory at Liphook & Ripsley - the winning runs coming courtesy of four byes!

The Young Hawks had lost nine wickets and left last pair Charlie van der Gucht and Tony Middleton to chisel out the 11 runs needed to squeeze past Liphook's rain reduced 130-run target off 34 overs.

And they did it, thanks to several lusty leg-side blows from the Hampshire left-arm spinner ... and four byes off South African Alistair Gray, which shot past wicketkeeper Jez Bulled and sped over the boundary.

There was great relief in the Academy ranks - but heartbreak for Liphook, who have now lost three times already this season.

"I honestly didn't think they'd beat the 190-9 we scored off 50 overs," lamented Liphook skipper Bulled. "Especially when they were 58-5 and then 119-9."

Liphook's total was built around Gray (56) and Duncan Berry (49), with Morgan Rushbrook (3-31) and Kevin Latouf (3-33) bowling the county youngsters back into contention.

Latouf (26) became the first of three victims of spinner Alan Crawford (3-25), who had the Academy struggling at 58-5 before Mitchel Stokes (29) and Tom Burrows (21) pulled things round.

Burrows held firm while later wickets tumbled, but when he was caught at 119-9, the Academy looked set for a second consecutive defeat. But van der Gucht and those four byes changed all that!

Havant emerged 16-run winners over Calmore Sports, whose prospects of pulling off a surprise win gradually diminished in the last 15 overs.

Chasing Havant's 214-6 (Dominic Carson 48), Calmore came out of the traps at speed with Clive Surry (50) leading the charge. "Their tactics really caught us by surprise," admitted Havant skipper Paul Gover.

"With the fielding restrictions, you can hardly defend at all in the initial 15 overs and the Calmore top order batters took advantage."

Surry remained until Calmore reached 121-4 and then watched Tom Pegler (30) and David Rouse (32) apply further pressure on the champions.

But as the scoring rate increased, four batsmen were run out and Calmore finished 16 runs adrift at 198 all out after a gallant effort.

Gover reckoned that the pre-tea onslaught by his own fifth-wicket pair Bev Moynhan (36) and Shane Ferguson influenced the outcome.

"They put on about 80 in ten overs, including a 14 run blitz at the end - and that was a major factor," he added.

Havant fear that their unbeaten start could come to grief at Lower Bemerton next Saturday when they play South Wilts, who nailed Portsmouth by eight wickets at St Helen's, Southsea.

Portsmouth, furious that Lawrie Prittipaul had been pulled out of their starting line-up to carry out Hampshire's second innings 12th man duties against Somerset at the Rose Bowl, caved in against some top class pace bowling.

Hampshire's James Tomlinson (1-32) and Combined Services pacebowler Andy Senneck (1-18) had Portsmouth scrimping and scraping for every run.

"The overs were keeping pace with the runs at one stage," reflected South Wilts skipper Rob Wade.

But it was Adie Holewell (3-18) who did the damage, as Portsmouth slipped to 47-5 before Neil Randall (41) and James Manning (39 not out) led the recovery and they reached 147-9.

Paul Draper and Russell Rowe fell cheaply for South Wilts, who would have lost Jason Laney - but for a spilled return catch.

The former Hampshire man cashed in with 75 not out, including three big sixes off Lee Savident, and with Wade (48 not out) alongside, swept South Wilts home.

Bournemouth made it two wins out of two after a cloudburst left Andover marooned in the rain at Chapel Gate.

They beat the North Hampshire side by virtue of a faster overall run rate to secure a second consecutive Division 1 win in four rain-ravaged weeks.

Once Bournemouth had posted 227-5, they were always favourites to beat weakened Andover.

But it was only due to the fact that they bowled their overs quickly after tea that they snared the crucial win points.

"We'd bowled 26 overs - one more than the regulation number you need to send down in order to get a result - when it poured down with rain," said vice-captain Martin Miller.

"Five minutes later, Chapel Gate was underwater and a haven for seagulls."

Bournemouth's success was built around former Hampshire all-rounder Richard Scott and Kingston Lacey teenager Nick Park, who shared a prolific 153-run opening partnership.

Park, whose elder brother Chris cut his teeth at the Sports Club two seasons ago before joining the Northants Academy, belied his tender years with a splendid 62.

Scott, striking two 6s and ten boundaries, hit 99 before being stumped by young Cille van der Merwe off Hampshire Under-19 spinner Matt Hooper.

"It would have been my first ton since 1997," Scott said afterwards. "And, of all things, I go and get myself stumped."

Nonetheless, the pair set the tone for Western Australia's Adam Voges to spank 41 and lift Bournemouth to 227-5 in 50 overs.

Andover, fielding a much weakened side, lurched to 13-2 against the miserly David Kinder and Joe Wilson who, conscious of the pending rain storm, whipped through their overs.

Left-arm spin duo Voges and Sean Wallbridge hurried through their overs to leave Andover marooned at 52-2 after 26 overs when the rains came.

Skipper Roger Miller, with little back-up batting to follow, was 29 not out.

It all went horribly wrong for Bashley (Rydal) at BAT Sports, who avenged a recent ECB Club Championship defeat with a 22-run victory at Southern Gardens.

"We bowled very poorly to start with and batted without much application," groaned skipper Matt King.

Kiwi Neil Parlane (40) and Richard Kenway (40) feasted on Bashley's off-line bowling and were comfortably scoring at six runs an over.

BAT pushed on to 100-1, with Dave Banks (44) piloting the mid-innings while wickets fell to Matt King (4-29) and Kevin Nash (3-53).

Rain delays left Bashley chasing 170 off 42 overs - BAT had reached 202-8 in their full 50-over allocation - but the Tobacco men need not have worried.

Bashley's batting folded against the second string attack of Mark Page (3-16) and Chris Thomason (2-14), who had the visitors reeling at 30-5 and later 47-7.

Kevin Nash (52), with a swashbuckling maiden SPL half-century, and Neil Taylor (29) launched late resistance, but Bashley could only manage 148 all out.