North Devon crowned T20 champions

The final of the North Devon T20 knock out cup was finally played at Barnstaple & Pilton CC, at the third time of asking, between North Devon and Bideford.

Holders North Devon retained the cup, beating Bideford by eight wickets. Batting first, Bideford were reduced to 12 for 3, thanks to some tight opening spells from Jack Moore (3 for 14) and Josh King (1 for 16).

Julian Hayter (36) and Alex Hannam (22) led the fightback, sharing a stand of 65, however, they both fell victim to Jay Rothery, as Bideford’s innings closed on 99 for 8. 

Rothery and King opened for North Devon, and broke the back of the run chase with a stand of 82. Rothery confirmed a MOTM performance with 47. They both fell to Bideford skipper Jack Ford, which left Rueben Windley and Moore plenty of time to see North Devon Home.

In the North Devon league, Exford beat Ilfracombe by 56 runs. Exford amassed 161 for 9, in their 40 overs. James Griffiths (64) and Paul Jones (21) rescued the home side from 71 for 6 with a stand of 73. John Garner and Tom Ward both took three wickets for Combe.

Ilfracombe’s chase never really got going, and they were eventually all out for 105, inside 31 overs. Streevishnu Komath broke the back of the Ilfracombe batting card with 4 for 31.

There were a load of runs at Braunton, where Barnstaple and Pilton were the visitors. James Kemp opened the innings for the hosts and was still there at the end of the 40 overs, having dominated the bowling. He was unbeaten on120, as the Kelseymen racked up a total of 230 for 7. There were a couple of wickets each for Jamie Sutton and Tony Gilbert.

Step-brothers Matt Newton (103) and Dom Chugg (53) dominated B&Ps run chase, with a stand of 165 for the third wicket. Matt Newton scored his maiden century off 96 balls, with 11 fours and 2 sixes, as the visitors won by 6 wickets, with 9 balls to spare. Joe Mullens took a couple of wickets for the hosts.