Our thoughts to Gerald Wadley who, as most of you know, is in hospital with pneumonia. Let's hope he recovers quickly. He is thankfully out of intensive care but still very poorly.
In the 1 st X1 South, Berkshire overtook Kent 186-8 (Bob Pettit 62) and with 50 ECB opener David Steak underpinning the innings with 72 and John Marston scoring 55, they took home the 22 points in the 43 rd over.
Sussex cemented their top spot with a visit to leafy Wales for their Quarter Final. Worcestershire 200-5-(6 points). Sussex replying with 201-5, in 41.1. John Johnson made 62 and Barry Peay with 52. Wales will be difficult opponents – let's hope it's not at Milford Haven !
Also in the South, Kent (playing twice in one week) took on Surrey , the former scored 224-4 with Colin Breed (61) and Martin Burgess on 82 not out. Martin Couch made a welcome return with analysis of 9-0-39-3. ‘ Teach these youngsters a thing or two !!' Surrey , in reply, despite Bill Munday's 54, fell 3 agonising runs short with 7 down.
In the North, Cheshire/Derbyshire, Cheshire/Yorkshire + Northumberland/Leicestershire were all rained off.
The East saw Essex hold on to their top spot and a visit to either Derbyshire/Yorkshire/Leicestershire. Hertfordshire , scored 203-3 in 45, not nearly enough. Peter Tyler (66) and Tony Johnson (62)*. Essex chased these down with 204-1 in 33 overs, Robert Newman eyeing an England spot, smashing 92 in 76, backed up by the John Stuck non-look alike replacement Peter Marshall on 83 not out.
Suffolk took on Lincolnshire at Mildenhall and the visitors included 50ECB opener John Taylor – you need a couple of mid-offs, 2 long-offs and another couple about 50 yards beyond the boundary edge. You might get him then … Suffolk obviously didn't as he scored 127 not out on his debut. Suffolk , however, stayed ahead of the game enough, with Peter Boughton's 86 backed up by Graham Penny's 41, to see them home in 42.2.
