Somerset 128 St. George's put the brakes on high riding rivals Somerset with a comfortable 163-run triumph at Somerset Cricket Club on Sunday, dropping the west enders from the ranks of the unbeaten.

Veteran opener Dexter Smith emerged from the scoring doldrums, blasting a boundary-laden century to help the visitors to an imposing total of 291.

Smith hammered five sixes and 14 fours on the way to a season-high 111 as he and Eugene Foggo (15) added 74 for the first wicket. Smith dominated the stand, showing little respect for the Somerset attack led by David Gibbs and captain Wendell White.

White finally got the better of Smith, bowling the left-hander, but by then the score read 182-3 and with a lot of meat left to come in the order.

Former skipper Graham Fox continued the assault with a well crafted half century. He and Ryan Steede, again showing himself as a useful allrounder, managed 72 for the sixth wicket, with Steede cracking 55. White ended with figures of two for 58, while Gibbs, Francis Richardson and Leon Place each took one wicket.

Somerset's chase never materialised once opening bat Tony Cheeseman departed for a team high 22, a victim of Herbie Bascome, with the score on 33. Matters deteriorated rapidly from there as Bascome ripped through the order, with assistance from pace partner Gregg Foggo as the home side slumped to 128 all out. Bascome earned season-best figures of five for 42, while Foggo took two for 35.

Somerset dropped from second to fourth on net run rate, though level with Western Stars and Bailey's Bay on 20 points.

Western Stars 322-9 Devonshire Rec. 134 Opener Albert Steede's hunger for runs continued when he stroked 101 to lead Western Stars to a 188-run victory at St. John's field.

The top bat slammed 14 fours as Stars devoured a lacklustre Devonshire Rec.

bowling attack with eight team-mates joining Steede in the run feast. Stars got off to a decent start with Steede and Jermaine Postlethwaite (25) putting on 66, forcing the bowlers to labour from the outset.

Others having a good day with the bat were Gary Brangman with 30, Cleon Scotland (27), Ja Ja Millett (20) and Hassan Durham (16 not out).

Skipper Winston Trott led Devonshire's attack with two for 35 while Kanaz Tuzo had two for 56 and Omar Amory two for 77.

After toiling in the field, Devonshire's batsmen weren't able to offer much resistance with the bat with just four reaching double figures. D.Davis was high man with 26 not out while Caldon Grimes made 20, Trott 16 and Ricky Brangman 14.

Justin Robinson led Stars' bowling with three for 28 off 10 overs.

Southampton 266-9 Flatts 233-9 League champions Southampton Rangers were made to sweat before pulling off a 33-run victory over Flatts at Southampton Oval thanks to some solid batting by Janeiro Tucker and Clevie Wade, both of whom scored 78.

The pair put on 155 for the fifth wicket, taking the score from a precarious 72 for four. The only other player making a noticeable contribution was opener Keith Wainwright with 34.

Troy Dean was the best bowler for Flatts with three for 31 off 10 overs while Phillip Burgess had two for 25 and S.Harvey two for 45.

Flatts' batsmen put up a gallant fight in their run chase, although things had looked grim when they slumped to 80 for six. Thanks to a superb 61 not out by Nakia Smith and a crisp 49 by number nine bat Quinn Outerbridge they put Rangers under pressure before eventually surrendering 33 short of the target.

Skipper Rahji Edness chipped in with 14 and Derek Wright 18. Ryan Belboda took three for 53 and Janeiro Tucker and David Saltus two for 30 each.

Police 258-7 Willow Cuts 187 Ferdinand Thorne hammered 77 while Dwayne Leverock and Richard Austin combined to take five wickets as Police defeated Willow Cuts by 71 runs at Police Field.

After losing two wickets for 64, Police got a solid third wicket stand of 116 from Thorne and skipper Stevie Lightbourne, the latter hammering 52.

Also among the runs were openers David Greenidge with 35, Terry Thomas with 16 and Archer who was undefeated with 36.

Teenager Jermaine Trott was the top bowler for Cuts with two for 61 off eight overs.

Skipper Dexter Basden led Cuts in their fightback with a fine 62, adding 75 for the second wicket with Kevin Fubler who stroked 32. Leverock claimed three for 43 and Austin two for 47.

Top bats: Janeiro Tucker (left) and Clevie Wade both struck 78 as defending Premier League champions Southampton Rangers scored a 33-run victory over Flatts on Sunday.