Twos put up a fight but fail to stop the champions.

The end of another season and a final home game against a Wimbledon team not only wanting revenge for their defeat by Ashtead earlier in the season, but needing to win to ensure they lift the league title. The visitors won the toss and chose to bat, but were shortly to be in for a shock as Ashtead’s opening bowlers of Chris Douglas and John Vaughan-Davies proceeded to cause havoc to Wimbledon’s top order. The first wicket fell in the eighth over with Guy Mitchell straying out of his crease to be stumped by Seb Stewart off Vaughan-Davies for 7. By the fifteenth over Wimbledon found themselves six down with only 53 runs on the board with 3 wickets each for Douglas and Vaughan-Davies.

Initial jubilation from an Ashtead team looking for a win was soon dispelled by the partnership of Billy Sewell and Amit Patel who proceeded to knock up a further 105 runs before Patel was finally bowled by Ahson Bukhari for 55 in the 34th. Sewell continued to amass runs and it wasn’t until another 46 had been added and the score had reached 183 that the next wicket was claimed as Jonathan Clare was caught and bowled by Gary Martin. Sewell fell at last, bowled by Tayler Young for an impressive 90 with the score on 229. Martin took the final wicket, another caught and bowled shortly afterwards and the visitors had made 234 in 47.3 overs.

The question would be whether Ashtead’s batters would be up to the challenge. Things did not start well as Wimbledon’s bowlers Charlie Leonard and Jak Gaff bowled tidily and made it hard to score. By the 9th over Ashtead had only reached 15 when Gary Martin was out, to be followed by another two cheap wickets. Ashtead’s innings seemed to be going the same way as Wimbledon’s as the hosts had reached 84-5 by drinks. Chris Douglas then raised home hopes as he proceeded to dispatch the ball around the ground with aplomb. Gradually the run rate increased and the target again seemed possible. Jason Vaughan-Davies and Ahson Bukhari both started promisingly only to be felled before really getting into their stride. Vaughan-Davies was caught by Robbie Gunn off Jonathan Clare (his 3rd wicket) and Bukhari given lbw to Patel. Douglas eventually notched up an entertaining 67 before he was bowled by Gunn with the score on 177-8.

The tails couldn’t hang on for long and Ashtead were soon all out for 184, 50 runs short, and Wimbledon had won the match and the league.