WITCHAMPTON 195-8 (7pts) beat WEYMOUTH 145 (20pts) by 50 runs

THE old adage catches win matches was left ringing in the ears of Weymouth Seconds after they fell to a 50-run defeat against Witchampton at Redlands.

The Seasiders had the Witches pinned down at 112-7 at one stage but let them off the hook when a dropped chance enabled Mark Bowles (93 not out) to rescue his side’s innings with the help of Adam Croker (28) despite the tremendous efforts of John Ryan (5-42).

Tim Guyett (2-29) and Michael Pearce (1-9) also bowled superbly for the hosts but 195 was still a challenging target and once Harry Tucker (19) and Dave Pearce (74) had departed the crease, the Seasiders showed very little resistance as S Hibberd (4-32) and K Bridle (4-11) rattled through the mid-to-lower order with very little fuss.

Weymouth skipper Michael Pearce, whose side are still searching for their first success in Dorset League Division Two, said: “We should have really won.

“We had them on 112-7 but then dropped one of their lads on 30, who then went on to score another 60-odd runs.

“We should have been chasing 130 but ended up chasing 190 and it was too much.

“Having said that, we were 60-1 at one stage and in with a decent shout but we then collapsed again and that was it.

“It was very frustrating but at the end of the day catches win matches.

“We just need to sharpen up on a few things. We haven’t batted the full 45 overs for three weeks in a row now and that needs to change.

“Hopefully, we can all just learn from this defeat now and move on.”

Life in Dorset League Divi-sion Two does not get any easier for Weymouth whose next test is a tough away trip to table-toppers Cranborne on Saturday.