Lord’s (Flatts won toss): Bailey’s Bay beat Flatts by 83 runs

Derrick Brangman ended Flatts’ hopes of capturing the Eastern Counties Cup for the first time in 37 years by taking five wickets in Bailey’s Bay’s 83-run win on Saturday.

Kamau Leverock gave Flatts a fighting chance when he ripped through the Bay middle and late order to claim six wickets on his debut at Lord’s on Saturday.

However. the Flatts batsmen were not up to the challenge of scoring 166 for victory in 63 overs, as the Bay bowlers protected their modest total when Flatts were dismissed for only 82 in 36.1 overs.

The performance by Brangman, the left-arm spinner, in his debut series — five for 18 from 12 overs — helped to earn him the Man of the Match and Man of the Series awards.

In the process, he overshadowed Leverock, who was virtually unplayable in his final ten overs after lunch. He claimed five of the wickets to finish with figures of six for 75 from 21 overs.

Leverock did not take a wicket until his ninth over, when he bowled Tre Manders just before lunch for 33. But, after the break, the Cardiff-based student bowled with great pace as he claimed further wickets in his 14th, 18th and 19th overs before two more in his 20th over made certain there would be no late resistance for Bay, who slumped from 150 for five.

Leverock also bowled top bat Sinclair Smith for 40, which included five fours in 62 minutes, and Brangman for 23. After Dennico Hollis survived a confident leg-before appeal off Leverock, the paceman came back next ball to uproot his middle stump. Coolidge Durham also fell to a six-ball duck when Temiko Wilson took a catch behind off Leverock in the same over before Vernon Eve wrapped up the innings three overs later when he held a return chance off Kyle Hodsoll.

“I thought we were probably about 60 runs short,” Rodney Trott, the Bay captain, said. “I was looking for about 230, which I thought would be a good score on that wicket.”

Flatts struck an early double blow when Nelson Bascome removed openers Terryn Fray and Malachi Jones in his first over, the second of the innings, with just four runs on the board. Trott and Manders started the recovery with a 31-run stand for the third wicket in 13 overs before Trott was caught behind by Regino Smith for 20. Manders was then fourth out on 77 as Bay went to lunch at 93 for four. Manders faced 74 balls and hit four fours.

Stephen Outerbridge added 31 before Smith and Brangman also made useful contributions in the middle order. Leverock ended a 45-run stand between Outerbridge and Smith when he had the former caught behind by replacement keeper Temiko Wilson on 112 for five.

“Early on the ball was doing a little something and Tre and I put on that partnership,” Trott said. “It was unfortunate how I got out but Tre carried on. We also lost wickets at crucial intervals.

“I have to give some respect to Flatts, I thought they did very well and Kamau bowled an excellent spell, so hats off to him. However, this was our county and it was meant for us to win. It was a good team effort.”

Bascome finished with two for 28 off ten overs, with three maidens, while Leverock bowled four overs in his spell.

However, Leverock put so much into his bowling that he had little to offer Flatts in the batting after suffering cramps in both legs at the tea break with Flatts crucially placed at 24 for two. Leverock was at the crease with opener Reggie Baker, but despite treatment by St John Ambulance personnel during the break, the left-hander did not bat upon the resumption after promising much with a six and a four in his 14.

And when his replacement, Regino Smith, lofted a catch to Outerbridge at long-off soon after the resumption to make it 29 for three, Flatts were starting to wobble. Baker was still there, but neither the still-recovering Leverock nor captain Kijuan Franks, who had a side strain, came in to stop the rot as they slumped to 41 for five when Franks entered at No 8. By now, Brangman was also in the attack and doing what Leverock did earlier as Franks was stumped off him for two. Leverock added four more runs to his total before he was seventh out on 47, by which time Flatts had lost the fight they had shown earlier.

In the end only Baker, who was last out for a 200-minute 32, and Leverock, with 18, reached double figures, with Leverock hardly able to walk after the match.

Supporting Brangman was Hodsoll with two for 20 and Malachi Jones with two for 13 off eight overs. Bay even had the luxury of giving an over to five bowlers during the final wicket stand of 18 between Baker and Vernon Eve, before Trott decided to end things, taking the ball and claiming the wicket of Baker with his first ball.

“I thought the turning point was when Kamau didn’t come back out to bat [after lunch], that was when I knew we were in the match,” Trott said.

Leverock came to the crease at No 4 in only the third over after Hodsoll removed opener Wilson and Cofield Robinson in successive balls with only one run on the board.

“And then when he came back he was struggling to run, so it was only a matter of time,” Trott added. “Our bowlers bowled well, too, Derrick got five wickets and Kyle two so it was a good team effort.”

Brangman had a memorable first Eastern Counties, winning the Man of the Match award and Man of the Series after his eleven wickets from a six and five-wicket hauls. He was also awarded the Stanley Smith Trophy for Spinner of the Series.

“Eastern Counties is totally different, it’s like a mini-Cup Match with a good atmosphere,” Brangman said. “Too bad we can’t have all the counties like this. I just want to say thanks to my team-mates. It was well worth waiting [to qualify]. The first game [against St David’s] was one of the best games I’ve played in my life.

“The turning point today was when Kamau got injured. Flatts fought hard, they came down here looking for a win.”

Bailey’s Bay

M Jones c Baker b Bascome 1

T Fray c Franks b Bascome 1

T Manders b Leverock 33

*R Trott c wk Smith b Franks 20

S Outerbridge c wk Wilson b Leverock 31

†S Smith b Leverock 40

D Brangman b Leverock 23

D Hollis b Leverock 0

C Durham c wk Wilson b Leverock 1

K Hodsoll c and b Eve 3

Z Burgess not out 2

Extras (1b, 4lb, 3w, 2nb) 10

Total (52.2 overs) 165

Fall of wickets: 1-3, 2-4, 3-35, 4-77, 5-112, 6-153, 7-155, 8-159, 9-160.

Bowling: K Leverock 21-4-75-6; N Bascome 10-3-28-2; K Franks 2-0-4-1; V Eve 14.2-1-43-1; R Baker 5-0-10-0.

Flatts

R Baker c Durham b Trott 32

†T Wilson lbw b Hodsoll 0

C Robinson c Smith b Hodsoll 0

K Leverock b Jones 18

†R Smith c Outerbridge b Brangman 4

C van Tonder c Smith b Jones 1

A Lamb c Hodsoll b Brangman 5

*K Franks st Smith b Brangman 2

D Carey b Brangman 0

N Bascome b Brangman 4

V Eve not out 6

Extras (5b, 1lb, 2w, 2nb) 10

Total (36.1 overs) 82

Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-1, 3-29, 4-30, 5-41, 6-46, 7-47, 8-50, 9-64.

Bowling: K Hodsoll 5-1-20-2; Z Burgess 7-2-14-0; M Jones 8-2-13-2; D Brangman 12-3-18-5; D Hollis 1-0-1-0; S Outerbridge 1-0-4-0; T Fray 1-0-2-0; C Durham 1-0-4-0; R Trott .1-0-0-1.

Umpires: R Dill, C Brangman

Man of the Match: Derrick Brangman (Bailey’s Bay)

Man of the Series: Derrick Brangman

Spinner of the Series (Stanley Smith Trophy): D Brangman (6-40 v St David’s; 5-18 v Cleveland)

2018 schedule

1st round: Bailey’s Bay v Cleveland

2nd round: winner v Flatts

Final: winner v St David’s