League champions Leg Trappers swept North Village aside to keep their double hopes alive and were joined in the Commercial Cricket League knockout semi-finals by West Indian Association, Jamaican Association and St. David's.

Leg Trappers, who pipped WIA by one point for the league title, now take on holders St. David's, who were handed a semi-final berth when Police Recreation Club pulled out of the competition because of a lack of players, while WIA meet Caribbean rivals Jamaican Association in the other semi-final.

WIA advanced by beating Forties for the third time this season - an emphatic seven-wicket triumph after a one-run success the previous week denied Forties the league title - but 77 wides in the 89 extras, almost a third of the runs scored, made a mockery of Sunday's match at Shelly Bay.

Unlike the other two matches where normal league rules on wides were employed, skippers Barry Richards of WIA and Forties' Gordon Campbell correctly agreed umpires should be strict on balls down the legside and wayward deliveries meant the scorers had to work overtime to keep up with the flurry of extras.

Forties' 136 from 39 overs included 37 extras - 35 of them wides - while WIA's 137 for three in 32.1 overs contained 52 extras, including 42 wides.

As Forties became increasingly frustrated by no-ball calls to deliveries close to the off-stump the game turned to utter farce when WIA umpire Randolph (Cracker) Byer signalled a delivery wide as it was square cut for two - a decision he was forced to reverse.

Richards switched his umpires at the 20-over water break when WIA were coasting at 96 for two and calm prevailed with only a handful more wides called in the remaining 12.1 overs, but there was no way back for Forties, who looked a shadow of the team whose proud record includes 11 knockout titles, the most recent in 2000.

WIA owed their victory to man of the match Junior Watts whose early burst ripped out Forties' first three wickets with his medium pacers, finishing his eight-over stint with three for 21, and then, pushed up the order to open the innings, made a patient unbeaten 36 from 110 balls to secure victory after adding 82 for the third wicket with John McConnie (24).

The tone for WIA's innings was set in the opening two overs when David DeSilva was called for three wides and David Jarrett for five. First-change bowler Terence Corday (two for 30) offered Forties some hope by having Richards superbly caught one-handed by Gladwin Ingham on the mid-wicket boundary for ten and removing Dave Greenidge for 11 with the total on 49 but Watts and McConnie put their heads down to engineer victory.

Earlier, 60-year-old Gerald Simons, inspired by a recent trip to England with Southampton Rangers, rolled back the years to add an air of respectability to the total, stroking a fine unbeaten 34 from 57 balls as wickets continued to tumble, Olwin Clarke adding to Forties' early woes by scything through the middle order and snapping up four for 28.

Leg Trappers, who last completed the league-knockout double in 1999, turned in a good all-round performance to send North Village packing by 147 runs at Sea Breeze Oval.

Trappers' imposing 244 for six - including 24 extras, six of them wides - was built around a fourth-wicket stand of 137 between Chris Fleming and Gary Knight, who each made a half century. No. 3 Fleming's 77 included nine fours and a six while Knight, batting at No. 5, struck nine fours and two sixes in his 73 before running himself out. Jonathan Hughes made 20.

Derek Bell (three for 44) and Webster Mills (two for 30) were the pick of the Village bowlers but their batsmen had little answer to a varied Trappers attack - apart from skipper Dion Ball (27) and Bell (20) - as Graham Strange claimed three for 25, Hughes two for eight, Colin Scaife two for 15 and James Swan two for 20 and were all out for 97 in the 27th over, a total boosted by just six extras.

"We played well throughout and David Hosier took three good catches in the deep," said Trappers' spokesman James Broadbent.

Jamaican Association, needing 101 to beat Devonshire Stars at the Royal Naval Field, were given a flying start by openers Chris Daley (32) and Donovan Livingston (18), who put on 54, but their departure triggered a collapse before a three-wicket victory was sealed in the 24th over, Justin Bailey taking three for 33 and Jeremy Fray two for 28.

Earlier, only Larry Allen (26) made any impression with the bat as Stars were dismissed in 27 overs with Livingston taking three for 11, Junior Lindo three for 23 and Glenroy Brown two for 21. There were a total of 39 extras - 31 of them wides - in the match.

"We've got our work cut out now," said Jamaican Association manager Glenmore Barrett ahead of Sunday's semi-final showdown with WIA, "but I want to salvage something from this season and hope to post our best team."