Two tons put paid to hopes of success

MARK Smith’s decision to bowl first on a damp track came back to bite him as Bridport suffered a 158-run defeat against Cerne Valley in Dorset League Division Three at Brewery Field.

The home captain was in confident mood ahead of the game and when Sam Good took a fantastic catch to dismiss Raj Lehal (2) it appeared his side would be in for a profitable afternoon.

However, a huge second-wicket stand between Neil Kellaway (115 not out) and John Stiles (102) soon turned the tables allowing Cerne to assume full command of proceedings, much to Smith’s dismay.

The frustrated skipper, whose side currently sit second-bottom in the table, said: “After the rain on Friday, I deliberated long and hard whether to play but with the sun out on Saturday I decided to go ahead, a decision I came to regret later in the day.

“I won the toss and decided to have a bowl on a damp wicket and with Sam taking a stunning catch in the slips early on it seemed promising.

“However, the introduction of Kellaway and Styles soon proved that decision to be very wrong with the wicket clearly playing very well for the batsmen.

“Their excellent display made all our efforts in the field look laboured and despondent, and with no luck going our way, our heads dropped on what became a very long afternoon.

“Chasing a large total of 262-3, our batting ability then eluded us again with only Ed Halson (31) and I (35) managing half decent totals as Cerne bowled us out for 104.”

Smith went on to add: “With a 20-over friendly against Beaminster tomorrow, I am hoping we can get this out of our system before the weekend because we have some key games coming up at Parley Seconds and Compton House, who are down there with us.

“Nothing less than 40 points are required from those two games and we are certainly capable of achieving that.

“We have great ability at this club and I know all my players can do so much better. With clearer heads and more luck I know we can show we are worthy of being in this division.”