Beaconsfield u11A (125-9) beat Gerrards Cross (56-8) by 69 runs.

The match was designated a combined league and cup fixture. The permutations were simple : the winning side would go to the top of the South Bucks League Division 1 and progress to the next round of the cup, whilst the losers would be knocked out of the cup, and lose ground in the title race.

Beaconsfield won the toss and decided to bat on the lively Nursery pitch at Wilton Park. The hosts accelerated well to a total of 125-9 From their 20 overs, with James Marsh (32, retired) and Edward Hilditch (30, retired) both outstanding in their brutal punishment of the Gerrards Cross attack. Joe Ing and Toby Slater, with 11 and 12 respectively, each made solid run-a-ball contributions as the target was pushed to over six per over.

Facing an intimidating run chase, Gerrards Cross endured a terrible start, losing their two county players for ducks to brilliant run outs in the first three overs as Ollie Walter and Ben Ul-Ghani set the tone of the innings with miserly spells. Beaconsfield continued to field superbly throughout the innings, with pressure applied with such aplomb that they never allowed their opponents to come remotely close to the required run rate.

Rahul Randev's blistering spell of pace bowling yielded two wickets, and Slater's legspin picked up three more courtesy of some excellent catches by the infield. As the Gerrards Cross innings closed at 56-8 from their 20 overs, the Beaconsfield team spent little time dwelling on a convincing 69 run victory. Their attention already switched to the following day's game against a much-fancied Amersham side.

TEAM : Dhillon, Hilditch, Ing, Marsh, Mercer, Pym, Randev, Rodgers, Slater, Ul-Ghani, Walter.

Match Report by Jim Slater