Devon Cricket Board - Bideford win again!

Bideford win again!

BIDEFORD aren’t down and yet as their 37-run win over Hatherleigh amply demonstrated.
The odds on Bideford staying up look slender as they are 27 points adrift at the bottom, but two successive wins have given everyone a lift at Westward Ho!
And a win over fellow strugglers Tavistock in two weeks time may well be the catalyst for a late dash for safety.
Josh Roach held it all together for Bideford with an unbeaten 130. He batted from start to finish, faced 188 balls and found 16 fours and three sixes to hit.
There was an opening stand of 148 with Dan Barratt – he made 52 – and an unbroken stand of 73 with Alex Hannam (36no) in a total of 254 for three.
Jack Cherrington had two of the wickets to fall, but they didn’t come cheaply.
Mark Lake (1-36) and Rob Fishleigh (0-33) both bowled tidy spells.
Hatherleigh made chasing hard by declining to 83 for five – most of which Danny Forrester (40) had scored.
Carl Schwarz (54) and Lake (68) then batted Hatherleigh back into the game by putting on 109 for the sixth wicket.
A running total of 208 for six with Lake still in and five overs to go hinted at a close finish.
Bideford kept their nerve though and a with skipper James Ford taking three for 19 and James Atkinson returning to add a third wicket to his haul, Hatherleigh were all out for 217 with 14 balls to go.
Skipper Ford may be staring down the barrel of a prompt return to the B Division, but still has his sense of humour.
“We are beginning to play like a team that believes we should be in the A division, but I think we may have left it a bit late for a promotion push,” said Ford.
Ford said it was nice to put one over on Hatherleigh after a bit of a wait.
He added: “It was great knock from Josh, well supported by Dan Barratt and Alex Hannam though I feared probably 20-30 runs short.
“Mark and Carl played well after we had them in trouble at half way. But as soon as we got one out it was always going to be a big ask.”
Rival skipper Lake said dropping Roach twice – in the 40s and the 80s – proved costly for Hatherleigh.
“He played well though and, give Biddeford credit, they bowled well to get us 83 for five,” added Lake.
“A big partnership got us back in it but it was always going to be s tough ask.
“Bideford, in the end, were better than us overall and deserved to win.”

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