SHROTON 152 (7pts) lost to BERE REGIS 173 (18pts) by 21 runs

BERE Regis halted a run of three Dorset Funeral Plan Premier League losses in style with a 21-run triumph over rivals Shroton at the Fairfield.

Batting first after winning the toss, Bere lost openers Matt King and Nick White without scoring as Ryan Doble (2-35) and Ryan Boardwell (1-25) struck respectively.

Captain Rich Cole (31) got the innings back on track during a solid 52-run stand with Rob Murphy (16) until the latter became Doble’s second scalp after nicking behind.

However, the introduction of Matt Pike (3-36) changed the direction of the match when the seamer accounted for Garry King, David Griffiths (both 11) and Pete Macklin (13).

Pike’s endeavours, combined with Steve Franklin (1-25) picking up the prize wicket of Cole, left Bere on 118-7.

With a low score beckoning, Rob Cole (27) and Crispin Brown (35) counter-attacked, Shroton spilling three catches, to give the visitors a competitive 173 all out, Mike Shepard (2-12) removing both men.

Shroton were handed an excellent start to their reply by Boardwell (46), who smashed six fours and two sixes, but Brown (2-36) checked their progress by dismissing Marc Doble (10) and Shepard (0) as Shroton reached 58-2.

Franklin (24), Hewitt (11) and Pike (12) all got starts but Bere claimed the wickets of all three to leave the hosts needing 54 with five wickets remaining.

Yet Murphy (4-30) and Matt King (2-32) returned to combine with devastating second spells, taking 5-14 between them, as Shroton’s tail was blown away.

Speaking to Echosport after securing a second win of the season, Bere skipper Rich Cole expressed his delight at defeating his side’s old adversaries.

He said: “It was a pleasure to beat them. We got our expected fiery hospitality and that never stopped, so we knew we had a fight on our hands. We stayed patient and focussed all the way through.

“We had a really bad start with the bat being 0-2 and then a partnership between me and Rob (Murphy) put us in a good position.

“Shroton bowled in the right places and got us all out, but Crispin and Rob (Cole) scored vital runs at the end.

“They went off like a steam train, so we had to be patient and take every catch we could. I’m really pleased with how we managed to defend our total.”

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