BEAMINSTER 130-7 (17pts) beat BOURNEMOUTH III 129-8 (5pts) by three wickets

JOE Hawkins and Ian Hutchings chipped in with late runs to ensure Beaminster limped home to a third consecutive victory in Dorset Funeral Plan League Division One.

The duo, who along with Ross Baker have dug their front line batsmen out of trouble on more than one occasion this season, added 62 for the eighth wicket to complete a modest run chase against Bournemouth at the Memorial Ground.

Charged with scoring 130 for victory, after a fine bowling and fielding display, Beam-inster stumbled to 53-6 and 68-7 before Hawkins (28 not out) and Hutchings (30 not out) took control.

After good spells from Lewis Lett (2-38) and Dave Drysdale (2-21) the pair took advantage of the weaker fourth and fifth bowlers to propel their side out of the relegation zone for the first time this season.

Fortunately for the hosts' batsmen they had all but won the game in the field.

Simon Jones (1-10) had Australian Johno Glenn caught during a miserly opening spell of seam bowling and from then on the East Dorset side failed to break the shackles.

Grant Vink took full advantage with a superb spell of left arm spin. He finished with 2-12 from his 10 overs and broke the back of the Bournemouth batting along with Fred Etherington.

Etherington, who missed the whole of last season through injury, took 4-14 as the Chapel Gate batsmen all got started but failed to go on and compile a match-changing innings.

By the end of their 45 overs Bournemouth had mustered just 129 for the loss of eight wickets - a sorry effort that represented a run rate of less than 2.87 per over.

At tea Beaminster must have been hoping for a seven or eight-wicket triumph to lift them well clear of struggling clubs Bridport and Wimborne and Colehill at the bottom of the table.

But a calm and comfortable run chase failed to materialise.

Vink was run out for 19, Richard Runyard, promoted to the top of the innings, was trapped lbw to Lyndsay Stanniford (1-30) and Julian Davies was cleaned up by Drysdale.

Simon Jones and Chris Park followed in quick succession to Lett, who took five wickets against Bridport a week earlier, and Baker was caught behind off the bowling of Drysdale before skipper Richard Bugler was dismissed with the score on 68.

An embarrassing defeat lay before the West Dorset club but they were saved that fate by a fine counter attacking display from players of the match Hawkins and Hutchings.

MEMORIAL GROUND SCOREBOARD

BOURNEMOUTH III

Glenn c Vink b Jones 18

Old c Davies b Vink 13

Coombes c Bugler b Vink 9

Webb c Park b Etherington 17

Mosses c Runyard b Etherington 18

Bryant lbw Etherington 0

Watts c&b Wyatt 11

Drysdale b Etherington 19

Lett not out 3

Stanniford not out 1

Extras 20

Total (8wkts, 45overs) 129

FoW: 1-28, 2-54, 3-60, 4-83, 5-83, 6-94, 7-123, 8-127

Bowling: Wyatt 10-1-46-1; Jones 7-2-10-1; Baker 7-0-14-0; Vink 10-6-12-2; Hutchings 6-3-23-0; Etherington 5-1-14-4

BEAMINSTER

Vink run out 19

Runyard lbw Stanniford 8

Davies b Drysdale 11

Jones c Glenn b Lett 9

Park lbw Lett 3

Bugler c Glenn b Lett 5

Baker c Sutton b Drysdale 1

Hawkins not out 26

Hutchings not out 30

Extras 18

Total (7wkts, 33.3overs) 130

FoW: 1-21, 2-38, 3-39, 4-47, 5-52, 6-53, 7-68

Bowling: Stanniford 8-1-30-1; Drysdale 10-1-21-2; Lett 10-2-38-2; Watts 4-0-28-1; Glenn 1.3-0-9-0