THE new Tidball Insurance T20 Cup has reached the quarter-final stage now the last batch of first-round matches are out of the way.

Ivybridge and Exeter 3rd XI were the final two teams to qualify for the last eight after winning through a busy qualifying round at Shaldon.

Exeter romped to an eight-wicket win over Ipplepen 3rd XI, who were skittled out for 62 in the 17th over.

Pens collapsed to 17 for five early on against Richard Bentley (2-8) and 28 for six when Tom Cooper was dismissed was hardly an improvement!

Charlie White (10) and James Congdon (12) hung around for a while, but Fred Croft (2-4) and Harrison Gribble (2-8) soon brought the innings to an early conclusion.

Elliot Barnes stroked an unbeaten 32 as Exeter knocked off the runs midway through the ninth over.

Ipplepen stayed on to face Ivybridge, who defeated them by 11 runs in a high-scoring affair.

Andy Johnson (69) and Jerry Clough (57no) both hit half centuries in an Ivybridge total of 167 for three. They shared a stand of 111 for the third wicket.

Ipplepen had a real go at chasing down the total with opener Jasper Heaver (68) setting the tone from the start.

Wickets for Jacob Kopparambil (3-22), Tom Bendall (2-37) and Joe Benson (2-29) made it interesting. Despite 27 from Lewis Borlase, Pens came up short on 156 for eight.

With nothing on it for either side, the game between Ivybridge and Exeter was scrubbed.

Exeter’s unbeaten record went when host club Shaldon made 154 for five, which was just enough to earn an 11-run win.

Scott Baxter (56) and Freddie Bond (45) scored the runs for Shaldon, then Bond took three wickets as the city side were held to 136 for nine.

Ivybridge secured top spot in the pool with a seven-wicket win over Shaldon.

James Ferriman (4-15) and Jerry Clough (3-27) dispatched Shaldon for 115. Clough (27no) and Tom Bendall (32no) knocked off the runs.

The game between Shaldon and Ipplepen was surplus to requirements.

Devon League officials realised there was a gap in the cricket calendar for a T20 competition for clubs in the lower divisions and inaugurated a new competition for 2019 to complement the existing Servicemaster Clean Devon and Ivor Dewdney’s Corinthian cup tournaments.

The league found a willing sponsor in Richard Tidball, the veteran Hatherleigh cricketer and co-director in the insurance brokerage that bears his name.

The draw for the quarter-finals is: Honiton v Cheriton Fitzpaine, Topsham v Sidbury, Uplyme v Exeter and Chagford v Ivybridge. All ties to be played by July 31.