Cleeve CC secured a place in the semi-finals of the Somerset Intermediate Cup after beating Winscombe by 30 runs on Wednesday.
Bristol & District Second Division side Cleeve hosted Somerset Premier’s Winscombe at the King George V Playing fields with a cooler evening greeted both sides.
Cleeve’s opening pair of Mitch Want and Sam Williams, electing to bat first. Both combined well, rotating the strike combined with regular boundaries at a run rate of more than 10 an over.
Want dominated early exchanges until the introduction of spin of Fraser resulted in Want departing bowled for a cracking 49 runs (32 balls, 10 fours) at the start of the ninth over, Cleeve at 71-1.
James Ball at number three continued the cause before being bowled for more than and run a ball 17.
Glenn Lewin was adjudged LBW also to the spinner Fraser for 4 bringing Connor Hance to the middle adding another nine runs, out caught but not before Williams converted his half century with two consecutive sixes towards the pavilion in the 16th over.
Tom Birt was unlucky to be run out for four in the 19th with Williams finally out at the start of the 20th over in the deep, caught for 66 (51 balls, two fours and three sixes).
Alfie Parsons was run out three balls later leaving James Cole and Max Viney the not out batters on two and zero, with Cleeve posting 164-7 at the halfway mark.
Cleeve knew they needed to be on their game with the ball and in the field and to a man, the side delivered. Lewin struck with his fourth ball courtesy of a Williams catch at extra cover, 0-1 with the removal of opener Robert Bradley.
Winscombe then settled with Jack Fraser and Tom Hall scoring at more than a run a ball before Viney, grabbed his first victim with the wicket of Hall via a great deep mid-off Josh Carpenter catch at 55-2 in the sixth over.
The feat was matched in identical fashion two overs later for Viney (4-2-18) to nab his second scalp at 65-3 with Fraser bowled out.
A sharp run out from Williams fielding at mid-off at the end of the 12th, which saw Ben Goodrum removed, had Winscombe at 88-4. With the required run rate at over 11 runs an over, the pressure was on as Carpenter carefully choreographed his bowlers.
His next wicket, Liam Cureton, was to the off spin of Cole (4-1-31) via Tom Carpenter's catch, for 91-5 in the 13th, followed by Hance’s (4-1-31) wicket of Jory Cureton via a steeping Williams catch at deep mid-off.
With Lewin back into the attack, safe hands from Want and wicket keeper Carpenter (26th victim of the season), victory looked certain, finishing on 4-3-17 with the wickets of Fin Mayo and Rob Shephard.
And so it was as Winscombe finished on 135-8, leaving Cleeve running out victors, capping an excellent all round team performance.
Timsbury firsts, from the Somerset Premier, are the semi-final opponents for Cleeve, who are now the lowest ranked side left in the competition, as they keep their dreams alive of a finals day at Taunton.
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