ABBOTSBURY 245-6 (20pts) beat CORFE MULLEN SECONDS 114 (5pts) by 131 runs

A CAPTAIN’S century by Simon Pengelly propelled Abbotsbury to a resounding victory over Corfe Mullen Seconds in County Division Four.

On a sunny afternoon, home skipper Pengelly had no hesitation in electing to bat first after winning the toss as the Swans sought to bounce back from defeat in their previous match at Sherborne.

Pengelly opened the batting with Aaron Oliver and the pair put on a partnership of 54 before Oliver (27) was bowled by Crate (3-20).

Crate then dismissed Steve Budd (8) and Nick Kneebone (8) but the arrival of Chas Duerdoth to the crease signalled a sharp increase in the run rate as the bearded destroyer dismantled the Corfe Mullen attack.

He struck five maximums before a mix up with Pengelly resulted in Duerdoth being run out for 65.

Meanwhile, Pengelly, though hindered by a groin strain, launched into a more attacking mode after passing 50, clobbering three sixes on the way to finishing unbeaten on 103.

The visitors had some late success with the wickets of Stu Gill (14) and Chris Backhouse (4) but were left with a target of 246 to win.

In reply, the Corfe Mullen openers stood firm against the Swans’ opening attack of Grafton Straker (0-23) and Jay Lintern (1-28) until the latter made the breakthrough in the 12th over, trapping Dave Robson (9) lbw.

The incoming Phil Lloyd struck a rapid 25 but a bowling change brought success as Krishnan Subramanian picked up the first of a five-wicket haul in finding the edge of Lloyd’s bat, Frank Pitman taking the catch in the slips.

With Subramanian able to turn the ball both ways on a helpful pitch, the Corfe Mullen batsman found the experienced spinner unplayable.

Phillips fell for a defiant 27 when he was caught in the deep by a sprawling Lintern and the middle order fell to a succession of catches, with Gill clutching three at silly leg.

Subramanian finished with magnificent figures of 5-9 off his eight overs and there was to be no respite for the visiting batsmen as his replacement in the attack, off spinner Backhouse (2-7), picked up two wickets in his first over.

Paceman Duerdoth (2-21) also grabbed a late brace as the visitors subsided to 114 all out to give the Swans maximum points.

Fifth-placed Abbotsbury go to Sturminster & Hinton next to take on the side one place and a single point above them in the table.

Abbotsbury Cricket Club are sponsored by Bride Valley Motors.