CERNE VALLEY 203-8 (9pts) lost to PORTLAND RT 204-8 (19pts) by 2 wickets

A CAPTAIN’S innings of 86 not out from Matt Randell guided Portland to a two-wicket victory against Cerne Valley at Reforne.

The visitors won the toss and opted to bat first in this showdown between second and third in County Division Two.

Portland got off to a good start, dismissing Cerne’s top four for just 32 with Simon Proffitt (3-36) and Alex Johnson Jnr (2-50) the stars with the new ball.

The ball was then handed to Gary Randell (0-30) who dried up the runs at one end and didn’t allow Cerne to gain any sort of momentum.

Cerne finished their innings on 203-8 for a total which looked to be around 50 below par.

The islanders went out with the bat and looked to be positive in their run chase.

However, their confident approach went against them as they found themselves 58-5 when Matt Randell joined Callan Laws at the crease.

Chris Leake (20) and Proffitt (16) had reached double figures but Elliott Sawyer, Simon Barrett and Dave Adkins all failed to make more than five.

But Laws and his skipper constructed a plan and knew batting deep was the key to chasing down a low total.

Laws went on to hit 46 from just 45 deliveries, striking boundaries and doing his best to relieve the pressure at one end.

Randell scored an unbeaten 86 and batted steadily to ensure he was there at the end to give his side every chance of winning and claiming second place.

The hosts did lose three further wickets but Johnson (14 not out) joined forces with Randell to ensure Portland crossed the line.

Portland won with just two wickets and four balls to spare for 19 league points and an 11th success of the summer.

Captain Randell said: “It was a great game to be a part of and even better that we came out on top.

“We knew picking up early wickets was key when we went out to bowl and I would like to think we would have put on more than 200 if we had batted first.

“We played positive strokes in the chase early on which is how we’ve been putting on big scores this year, and how I want to encourage the players to play.

“It was nice to have contributed heavily myself but I couldn’t have chased their total down without Callan striking the ball to the boundary and AJ holding his nerve until the end.

“This sets us up perfectly now to finish in second place and it’s only us that can throw it away.”