Sutton seize victory as rain falls on Ashtead's parade

Rain always changes the game. And so it proved for the Ashtead Stags, as they succumbed to a 34 run defeat at Sutton in Round 3 of the 2016 Surrey Championship Premier Division.

Tom Deighton won the toss, and elected to field – seemingly a wise choice, given the impending rain for the second innings and the two previous collapses of the Sutton top order. However, Kelvin Smith and Matt Nicol had other ideas, plundering the fast bowlers and the seam up that the Stags used in the early overs. Even the spinners could not contain the charge, and it was the last ball before drinks that claimed the first scalp, Smith bowled by Dom Sibley for 80. At 141-1, the platform was set.

Runs continued to flow after the break, and despite some comical running, the hosts looked set to post a huge target. Nicol eventually edged off for 75, but the damage had been done, as Sutton were 192-3 from 38.

The final few overs brought even more runs, and despite some late wickets for Sibley and John Vaughan-Davies, Sutton bludgeoned their way to 296-6 from 50. The late flurry came predominantly from ex-captain Gary Outram, who took 71 runs from 62 balls during the final 12 over display.

As the tea interval came and went, the rain began to fall, and only 3 overs were possible before conditions became untenable. A gap of 90 minutes the ensued, and when the dust settled from the extensive calculations, the target has been revised to 211, with 30 overs to play.

202 from 27. Enter Dom Sibley. He took the fight to the hosts immediately, plundering the slower bowlers employed by Sutton. However, he also came just as quickly as he had been scoring, caught on the boundary for 22.

This brought Stew Cameron to the crease, who proceeded to approach the chase in exactly the same way as his predecessor. However, wickets continued to fall around him, and despite some cameos from Paul Harrison and Matt Friedlander, the chase always seemed a little too far.

Cameron eventually fell for 61, 5 overs from the end. By this stage, the equation had become 72 from the last 5, with the majority of the big hitters already back in the clubhouse. The lower order continued to fight, however, and secured two batting bonus points before the close. The visitors ended up on 176-8 from the 30 overs, falling short by 34 runs.

This puts Ashtead into 8th place in the league table, although on the same win count as the two above them. Next week sees the Stags travel to Normandy for the final game of the first 50 over section of the league season. Normandy currently sit third, after losing on the opening day and then securing two good wins. A tough challenge, but one that Ashtead will relish. Join us then.