Cup Match had a dramatic finish yesterday at Wellington Oval when batsman Dion Stovell was struck in the head on the first ball of the Somerset second innings and taken to hospital.

Somerset, who started their innings at 7.16pm, had been set an unlikely winning target of 136 to win in the remaining nine overs of the final 20.

Somerset dismissed St George’s for 153 in 44 overs in their second innings, after leading by 18 in the first innings.

They looked ready to take up the challenge when Stovell attempted to hook the first delivery from Justin Pitcher which was short, and was struck in the side of the head.

He dropped his bat which subsequently hit the wicket, but all that became irrelevant once it was noticed that Stovell, lying on the ground, had been seriously hurt.

After several minutes waiting for a stretcher to be brought on to the field, the umpires called off the game with the stumps pulled at the bowler’s end, the mood around the ground quickly changing from anticipation to sombre. Stovell was discharged from hospital last night.

“We knew it was a serious injury as soon as it hit him on the temple,” said Lionel Cann, the St George’s captain, who was fielding at slip. “As soon as somebody gets hit, especially if they don’t have a helmet on, it affects you immediately.

“I had nothing to do with the game being called off, which was the right decision with everybody’s frame of mind.

“It was good that they took up the challenge, that’s what Cup Match is about. There is always a chance you could chase down 13 runs an over on a small field like this.”

Terryn Fray, who took over the captaincy of Somerset in the St George’s second innings after Jordan DeSilva suffered a calf injury during his innings of 76, admits it was a sad way to end the two days of cricket.

“Dion is a tough cricketer and I’m sure he’ll bounce back,” Fray said. “We just hope it is not as serious as everyone thinks. He is one of the best players I’ve ever played with in Bermuda, so I give him the utmost respect. You can always call on him to bat or bowl and he’ll do the job.”

Yesterday, the Somerset first innings ended at 2.52pm, batting 76.1 overs for their 315 which was led by Stovell’s top knock of 79 from 73 balls, hitting eight fours and two sixes.

Captain DeSilva scored 76 from 135 balls at No 7. The pair put on 105 for the fifth wicket after Stovell, who went off injured on Thursday evening, returned at 123 for five yesterday.

Stovell was caught and bowled by Pitcher who led the St George’s bowling with four for 94 from 22.1 overs while Macai Simmons claimed two for four from four overs late in the innings.

St George’s dropped several catches in the Somerset first innings, including DeSilva being missed on 21 by Zeko Burgess at deep mid-off as the fielding began to get sloppy.

Wicketkeeper Temiko Wilson then put down an easy chance off a DeSilva edge after he had reached 50.

Captain Cann was also guilty of missing an easy catch when he dropped Malachi Jones’s skied shot at mid-wicket off Pitcher. Some of the St George’s batsmen batted irresponsibly in the second innings to give Somerset a faint hope of victory after they were reeling at 71 for five.

Knocks of 21 and 25 by Allan Douglas and Lionel Cann helped bring up the hundred after Douglas was controversially given out lbw by umpire Emmerson Carrington, the batsman indicating that he hit the ball.

Cann and OJ Pitcher added 21 for the eighth wicket when Cann skied to deep mid-wicket where Greg Maybury held a good catch.

Justin Pitcher added a valuable 15 in the tail end before he was caught, sweeping, on the square leg boundary by colt Alje Richardson.

Derrick Brangman claimed four for 48 from 15 overs while Stovell and Jones took two wickets apiece.

St George’s, sent in by Somerset on Thursday, scored 297 for six before they declared in the first innings on Thursday.

They batted for 66.3 overs before Somerset replied with 119 for four at the close, eventually batting for 76.1 overs.

Chris Douglas hooked the first delivery of the Somerset first innings from Justin Pitcher for six to signal their intention as they began their run chase.

He and Fray put on 49 for the first wicket in 13 overs, before Douglas was run out for 25 after driving a Mackih McGowan delivery through extra cover where Treadwell Gibbons got his hand to the ball before Justin Pitcher followed up to throw to the wicketkeeper Steven Bremar with Douglas caught well short after being sent back by Fray.

Fray added 23 before he was caught on the square leg boundary by Justin Pitcher, giving colt Mackih McGowan his first wicket in Cup Match, the score 61-2.

Richardson, who had a nervous start after replacing the injured Stovell, was caught at short leg by Macai Simmons off a no-ball from Pitcher before settling down to play some impressive boundary strokes, getting off the mark with a four off Pitcher and then next ball lifted the ball over mid-wicket for a six.

He was soon out for 30, caught at the square leg boundary by Allan Douglas off Onias Bascome. He hit four fours and two sixes.

Greg Maybury and captain Jordan DeSilva are the two overnight batsmen, both in single figures after two wickets went down in the space of just two runs as St George’s fought back before the close.

Earlier, they had four batsmen reach 50s after losing opener Treadwell Gibbons in the second over of the game, caught and bowled by Malachi Jones after he tried to turn the ball onto the on side and got a leading edge.

Rodney Trott (68) and Temiko Wilson (66) had the perfect response, adding 138 for the second wicket.

It was Wilson’s first 50 in Cup Match after making his debut last year.

Onias Bascome and Macai Simmons picked up the scoring pace in the middle order, both scoring 54 after Allan Douglas failed to score.

Bascome hit two fours and two sixes and Simmons three fours and three sixes.

He and Justin Pitcher were together when the declaration was made at 4.23pm. Pitcher blasted 28 from four sixes.

Jones claimed three for 49 and spinner Derrick Brangman two for 48 for Somerset.

CUP MATCH 2019

Wellington Oval (Somerset won the toss):

Match drawn

St George’s First Innings

T Gibbons lbw b MO Jones 3

R Trott c C Douglas b DC Stovell 70

†T Wilson c C Douglas b MO Jones 63

A C Douglas c GH Maybury b MO Jones 3

O G L Bascome c D Richardson b Brangman 54

M Simmons not out 52

*L O B Cann lbw b DL Brangman 5

J Pitcher not out 28

Extras (nb 3, b 10, lb 6) 19

Total (6 wkts; 66.3 overs) 297 (Declared)

I Greaves, M McGowan, Nzari Paynter, O Pitcher, O Bascome, Z Burgess did not bat

Fall of Wickets: 7-1 145-2, 148-3 , 156-4, 221-5, 249-6

Bowling: GH Maybury 11.0- 0- 46- 0; MO Jones 15.0- 2- 51- 3; K James 10.0- 0- 54- 0; JA DeSilva 4.3- 1-25 -0; DC Stovell 15.0- 0- 57- 1; DL Brangman 11.0- 3- 48 -2

Somerset First Innings

C Douglas run out (J Pitcher) 25

T F Fray c J Pitcher b M McGowan 23

D C Stovell c & b J Pitcher 79

A Richardson c AC Douglas b OGL Bascome 30

S D Outerbridge b R Trot t7

G H Maybury c AC Douglas b J Pitcher 4

*J A DeSilva c AC Douglas b M Simmons 77

†S Bremar Jr b J Pitcher 4

M O Jones lbw b M Simmons 25

D L Brangman lbw b J Pitcher 0

K James not out 0

Extras (w 9, nb 2, b 18, lb 12) 41

Total (76.1 overs) 315

Dalin Richardson, I Richardson, N Mills did not bat

Fall of Wickets: 49-1, 61-2, 55-1*, 98-3, 104-4, 126-5, 228-6, 255-7, 296-8, 315-9, 315-10

Bowling: J Pitcher 22.1- 4- 95- 4; Z Burgess 12.0- 2- 42- 0; M McGowan 12.0- 1- 58- 1; OGL Bascome 8.0- 1- 35- 1; R Trott 14.0- 4- 33- 1; AC Douglas 4.0- 0- 18- 0; M Simmons 4.0- 0- 4- 2

St George’s Second Innings

(Target 136)

R Trott lbw b DL Brangman 13

T Gibbons c SD Outerbridge b GH Maybury 11

O Pitcher run out (DC Stovell) 19

M Simmons c & b MO Jones 14

OGL Bascome b DL Brangman 11

†T Wilson b MO Jones 7

AC Douglas lbw b DL Brangman 21

*LOB Cann c GH Maybury b DC Stovell 25

J Pitcher c A Richardson b DL Brangman 15

Z Burgess not out 8

M McGowan lbw b DC Stovell 1

Extras (w 2, b 4, lb 2) 8

Total (44.1 overs) 153

I Greaves, Nzari Paynter, O Bascome did not bat

Fall of Wickets: 17-1, 42-2 51-3, 65-4, 71-5, 95-6, 109-7, 130-8, 152-9, 153-10

Bowling: GH Maybury 5.0- 0- 22- 1; K James 1.0- 0- 12- 0; DC Stovell 9.1- 3- 35- 2; DL Brangman 15.0-3- 48- 4; MO Jones 14.0- 2- 30- 2;

Somerset Second Innings

D Stovell hit wicket b J Pitcher 0

M Jones not out 0

Extras 0

Total (1 ball) 1

A Richardson, C Douglas, Dalin Richardson, DL Brangman, GH Maybury, I Richardson, JA DeSilva, K James, N Mills, SD Outerbridge, S Bremar Jr†, TF Fray did not bat

Fall of wickets: 1-0

Bowling: J Pitcher 1-0-0-1

Umpires: E Carrington, A Knight

Third Umpire: M Best

Fourth Umpire: S Caines

Match Referee: J McKirdy