Abbots Langley fall to Hexton defeat

Having won the toss, Hexton put their opponents into bat and they were soon in early trouble at five for two.

However, Mark Bishop (84) and newcomer Will Graves (72), steadied the ship. The innings ended on a relatively par score of 209 for five and maximum batting points.

Hexton started off well thanks to Sam Cooke (30) and Luke Munt (68) as they chased 210 and they got over the line eight men down in 46.1 overs after George Agius had taken four wickets.

Rickmansworth Seconds fell to a heavy defeat against table-topping Reed Seconds.
Ricky put the opposition into bat but struggled to contain a Reed batting line up that possessed too much power and precision, scoring 247 for seven from 51 overs.

In reply, Ricky were rolled over for 54 in 27.5 overs as Reed sealed a commanding victory.

Langleybury Thirds were hoping to get their Division Eight promotion push back on track as they faced Offley and Stopsley, but were disappointed to only come away with six points from their match against the second-bottom side.

After winning the toss, Langleybury decided to put their opponents in as it looked a favourable pitch to bowlers.

The plan initially worked as Offley were reduced to 38 for four after 12 overs but young batsman James Kempton then started to frustrate the attack as he slowly but surely reached a total of 84.

This led to a shake-up in the Bury attack and this seemed to work as Offley were bowled out for 175 after Josh Spinks and Kevin Kelly had claimed two wickets apiece, while Angus Ball and captain Steve Carter picked up one each.

Bury’s reply got off to an awful start though, and after 23 overs they were 29 for six.
However, Angus Ball (76) and Ross O’Reilly (21) helped stave off the threat of defeat as their side finished on 151 for nine to claim the draw.

In a battle between two strugglers, Hemel Hempstead Fourths were held to a draw by Old Camdenians Seconds.

Put into bat, Hemel made 255 all out, with Andy McFarlane’s unbeaten 81 and Tim Wright’s 74 the highlights of their innings.

The Old Camdenians’ response got off to a slow start with their opening batsmen dismissed for just a single run between them.

Darshan Shah’s unbeaten 94 moved the scoring along, but Haish’s unbeaten 32 was as good as it got for the hosts as they posted 209 for seven in response.
Richard Morton’s three for 30 made him the pick of the Hemel bowlers.

Chorleywood Thirds brought their run of six successive defeats to an emphatic end as they thumped Division Ten leaders Frogmore by 127 runs.

After being asked to bat first, Wood posted a competitive total of 184 for nine from their 53 overs.

Chris Lee top-scored again with 35 and there were contributions from Rohan Dua (29) and Michael Dunning (26).

In the field, Wood picked up wickets in the first two overs to leave the visitors reeling.
Michael Dunning produced an immaculate show of off-spin to run through the Frogmore line-up to finish with figures of seven for 18 from his 12.1 overs.

Paceman Michael Brown picked up two for 20 as Frogmore were bowled out for just 57 to give Wood only their second win of the season so far and a chance of moving out of the relegation zone.

Abbots Langley Thirds remain mid-table after they saw off Flamstead Seconds by 78 runs.
After winning the toss, Abbots elected but at 75 for five and three debutants to come, it was looking favorable for Flamstead.

Lee Rossiter (19) batted confidently until he thought he was bowled, while Simon Eastaugh (17) came in and steadily improved as he went on. The other two debutants, Aiden Hinks and Craig Shilling, put on a valuable 15 runs and took up five overs to get the score up to 150.

Abbots then took command with the ball and it was left to James Allan with three wickets to win the game as Flamstead were dismissed for 72 to make it six wins in Langley’s last eight outings.

The victors were also delighted with the contribution of 12-year-old Aiden Hinks, who came in at the last wicket and did the team proud behind the stumps.