Lodway 1sts continued their promotion push with a hard-fought 3-wicket win against a weakened Clevedon 2nds at Ham Green on Saturday, requiring an unbeaten 8th-wicket partnership of 65 to see the side home on the hottest day of the year so far.

Electing to bowl first under cloudy and humid conditions, Lodway did not make the early breakthroughs they had hoped, with Clevedon skipper Jack Davey and fast bowler turned opening batsman Harry Fear putting on 51 in double-quick time before Fear was bowled off his pads by Ben Stitfall for a 14-ball 31. Charlie Lamprell came and went, bowled by Alex Tierney (1-35), before Stitfall (2-42) finally snared Davey for 28 thanks to a thick edge deflecting off veteran gloveman Stephen Edmonds’ thumb to Joe Crutchley in the slips. With Clevedon at 77-3, Lodway hoped for a sub-150 target, but a 106-run partnership between Mike Cowdy and Ali Balcombe, helped by sloppy fielding from all corners and a dropped catch by Edmonds, propelled Clevedon to 183-3 in the 33rd over. At this point, death pacers Alfie Rendell and Matty Crutchley dragged the home side back into the game, with two clean bowleds apiece; Balcombe the first to fall to Rendell (2-20) for 74 (54). In his last over, Crutchley (2-41) was clearly battling a side injury, and, although he struck with his fifth ball, he was withdrawn from the attack to be replaced by Toby Rice for the last ball of the innings, which Edmonds was unable to cleanly gather for a stumping as Clevedon closed on 218-7, with Cowdy unbeaten on 43.

With all players taking tea sheltering from the scorching sun, the second innings began in balmy conditions, and Clevedon made the better start, as skipper Davey (3-62) single-handedly took out the Lodway top three with only 34 on the board. When Rice Jnr helped Kian Ware’s first ball to extra cover to fall for 14, Lodway were 56-4 in the 10th and in danger of throwing the game away, but Paul Stubbs and Caolan Pearce again combined to rescue Lodway, this time delivering a fifth wicket partnership of 85. Stubbs’ luck finally ran out when he was caught and bowled by Lamprell for 43 from 29, having been dropped 4 times during his innings, and Tierney didn’t trouble the scorers before being bowled by Fear (1-38). When Rendell went back to Lamprell (2-48) to be bowled for 9, Lodway found themselves 156-7 in the 20th over, with Pearce, on 46, facing the spectre of running out of partners. However, skipper Crutchley J (13*) played a mature, sedate hand as cousin Caolan plundered at the other end, with the required runs coming in less than 10 overs, Pearce sealing the victory with a maximum to end on an unbeaten 59-ball 91.

With title rivals Bath losing by a wicket at Keynsham, Lodway are now only 9 points off fierce rivals and new leaders Timsbury as they head to Lansdown next weekend to close out the first half of the season