Persistence pays off for champs in repeat success

TWO weeks after knocking Dunstall flat in a tight finish to their Premier Cup tie, Spondon did it to them again.

This time, there were three balls to spare when South African Warren Bell thumped the ball into the pads of countryman Lucien Simpson to pinch a 10-run victory for the champions in their Derbyshire Premier League meeting at Dunstall Park.

For Spondon, it was a triumph of persistence as the pressure of their energetic fielding brought a late reward, yet for so long it seemed Dunstall had enough in hand to see off their 222-run target.

A third-wicket stand of 89 between Carl Eyden and Jamie Benstead took them to a strong position at the midway stage of their reply and Eyden was almost there at the end to see them through.

The right-hander came to the crease with his side in early trouble at 22-2 after Neil Gunter, feeling his way back to sharpness following a side injury, claimed two wickets within four balls of his second over.

Former Derbyshire bowler Gunter had been punished by Benstead for a wayward first over but held a firm return catch from Paul Shaw and then found good bounce to take the edge of Matt Gouldstone's bat and give wicketkeeper Dave Hartley a simple catch.

Gradually, Eyden and Benstead tilted the balance, though both survived difficult chances.

Eyden edged just wide enough of Joe Ashdown's right hand at slip when he had made 25 at 68-2 and Benstead, on 33, gave slow left-armer Chris Windmill a sharp caught and bowled chance low to his left at 85-2.

Together, they carried the score on to 111 when Benstead, now on 44, miscued and, this time, Windmill was able to gather a more straightforward catch off his own bowling.

By then, Spondon had both their spinners in tandem and off-spinner Joe Ashdown claimed the wicket of Matt Benstead three overs later, lbw for two.

That made it 119-4 in the 30th over and left plenty of work for Dunstall to do but, with Eyden in the middle, their prospects remained healthy.

He and Scott Chilman added 43 at a decent pace until Chilman top-edged a slog-sweep at Windmill and was caught by Bell at mid on for 16 to the last ball of the 40th over. Two overs later, Craig Jennings fell to the same combination.

With five overs to go, Dunstall needed 37 to win and had four wickets in hand, when Spondon captain Sam Kellogg made what was to prove a key bowling switch.

He replaced Windmill, whose 15 overs brought him 3-49, with the raw pace of Bell. It appeared the wrong choice as the South African's first ball flew down the leg side at rib height without pitching and was called a no-ball in an over that cost him nine runs.

Joe Ashdown kept tighter standards in the next to leave 23 to get off three overs and it was still advantage Dunstall when six more runs came off the first five balls of Bell's second over.

But then, off the final ball, Eyden tried to clear extra cover and the ball was hauled down by Sam Kellogg. He had made 92, off 131 balls with 10 fours and two sixes, but as he left the field to deserved applause, Dunstall's chances of victory diminished considerably.

A home win was still not out of the question, with John Jennings going well, and, to their credit, they kept pushing for it.

But Jennings was sent back by James Grice when he wanted to push for a second and Ben Ashdown's accurate throw from long on to his brother left him stranded, having made 25.

The final over began with 12 needed for victory but it was Spondon who took the two wickets they wanted, with Bell's full and fast first ball knocking back Grice's middle and leg stumps before a similar third delivery defeated Simpson.

After a rocky start, Bell finished with 3-17.

The overseas player's contribution with the bat had been less decisive, after Ben Ashdown and Hartley had given Spondon a solid start.

Ashdown was the aggressor, driving Simpson to the long off boundary for two fours in the South African's first over and opening partner Craig Jennings was also too inclined to over-pitch early on as Spondon hit 30 runs off the opening six overs.

The bowlers soon began to hit better lengths and their breakthrough came at the end of the 12th over as Ashdown, whose 31 included seven fours, edged a drive at Simpson which Gouldstone caught safely at gully.

Dunstall skipper Martin Clewley made a swift impact when he brought his own off-spin into the attack in the 17th over, as Bell's sliced cut off his fourth ball was held at backward point by Simpson.

With Chilman tidy at the other end, the slow bowlers had the squeeze on Spondon, who finally reached 100-2 in the 29th over.

Hartley, who escaped a missed stumping chance on 30, tried to accelerate but was caught by Grice running in from midwicket off Chilman for 44.

His replacement, Windmill, injected the pace Spondon needed.

He began by hitting Clewley onto the roof of the pavilion, then launched Chilman over the sightscreen and swept Clewley for a third six in successive overs. He added two fours and another half-dozen overs of such striking might have forced a change of bowling tactic.

But Windmill's brief 21-ball stay ended in a mix-up with Joe Ashdown which Gouldstone exploited with a good throw to run him out for 31.

Clewley stayed in the attack to finish with 3-63 as he removed Joe Ashdown, for 45, and Ollie Baum with successive balls to make it 175-6 in the 43rd over.

Dunstall did well to haul Spondon back in after that Windmill flurry and though Tom Good completed the innings by pulling Simpson for six, 221-8 was a lower total than they will have had in mind at one stage.

It proved enough but Spondon knew it was a game they could so easily have lost.