BRADNINCH & Kentisbeare 2nd XI defeated promotion rivals Whimple by six wickets to secure the runners-up spot out of the D Division West.
Although Upottery were odds-on favourites for the top spot in the final table – their 10-point lead made them virtually bomb proof – Bradninch & Kentisbeare, Shobrooke Park and Whimple were all chasing second place.
Shobrooke Park’s defeat by lowly Topsham denied them the chance of going up and turned Whimple-against-Bradninch & Kentisbeare into a winner-takes-all affair.
David Drury (61) and skipper Mike Searle (38) were Whimple’s main run scorers in a 40-over total of 181 all out. Thirty-one extras helped.
James Mills (2-34) took the bowling plaudits for B&K. Joe Gillett and Morgan Lamey had two wickets each.
A stand of 108 for the third wicket between captain Scott Chappell (32) and Darren Paul (60) put Bradninch & Kentisbeare on the path to victory.
UPPOTTERY thumped Ottery St Mary 2nd XI by 150 runs to lay their hands on the D Division East title.
Upottery took over from Shobrooke Park at the top of the table after round eight – and alternated there with Bradninch & Kentisbeare ever since.
A three-way fight for two promotion places continued until the final day of the season when Shobrooke Park were the unlucky ones to miss out.
Upottery’s usual suspects – Matt Broom (97) and Matt Matravers (115) – put together a stand of 107 towards a team tally of 292 for six.
Mattravers, in at 45 for one, was finally dismissed on 273 for five after completing his third league ton of the season.
Keeping the runs down and taking wickets was a problem for Ottery, although Kevin Brandom’s nine overs for 32 runs ticked one of the boxes.
Ottery were all out for 142 with no one bettering the 40 scored by Dave Weeks. Skipper Matt Brewster (29) and Eddy Kerr (24) were next in line.
Ben Kidson’s four-for-41 haul was largely responsible for Ottery lurching from 84 for three to 88 for six.
SHOBROOKE Park’s promotion prospects evaporated following a 37-run reversal against visiting Topsham St James.
St James were not without motivation themselves as a heavy defeat could have plunged them into relegation jeopardy.
This win ensured Topsham stayed up and consigned Clyst Hydon to the drop, despite their 54-run, last-day win over Barnstaple & Pilton.
Opener Declan Wardell made a top score of 89 for TSJ in their 45-over tally of 189 for nine. His stands of 75 with Jonathan Sapwell (27) and 60 with Ross Treleaven (14) underpinned the total.
Aussie due Fergus Campey (4-19) and Chris Simpson (3-46) were Shobrook’s main wicket takers.
Topsham’s Nibu Thomas (4-34) and Deon Kemp (3-48) did most of the work dismissing Shobrooke for 152.
Shobrooke needed a batter to go on after getting started. Andrew Steer (22), Joe Harris (27) and Greg Cole (25) all got started, but did not go on.
CLYST Hydon’s 54-run win away to Barnstaple & Pilton was not enough to spare them from relegation.
Hydon were 15 points adrift going into the final batch of fixtures and needed Topsham to come a cropper as well to stay up.
James Billington (57) and Jeff Sanders (38) shared a stand of 95 for Hydon that went a long way towards their all-out score of 185.
Charlie Holm (4-43) topped the bowling stats for B&P. Jimmer Thomas was next best with three for 29.
Barnstaple & Pilton struggled to put meaningful partnerships together – the best was one of 36 for the third wicket between Tom Poole (28) and Thomas (7) – and were all out for 131. James Poole top scored on 39.
Bowling-out B&P was a collaborative effort by Hydon with two wickets each for Haris Reshi, Sanders, Chris Holmes and Ian Sutton.]
DOOMED Thorverton 2nd XI won for only the second time this season when they overcame mid-table North Devon by five wickets.
There were more extras (38) than any batsmen put in the book for North Devon in their total of 159.
Under-15 all-rounder Navindu Vanderbona made 35 at the top of the order for North Devon, going through 200 DCL runs form the season in the process. No one else made it into the 20s.
Shane Yelverton (4-9) topped the bowling returns for Thorverton. Imogen Daldorph and Jonny Baker had two wickets each.
Andy Daldorph (21) and Jack Baker (31) pointed Thorverton in the right direction. Yelverton (54no) and Jonny Baker (22no) finished the job.
Vanderbona’s three for 21 from five overs stood out among North Devon’s bowling figures.
