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Unbeaten Cavaliers stay on course for treble

Unbeaten Spring Garden Cavaliers remain on course to land an unprecedented sweep of the Commercial Cricket League's three major trophies this season after an emphatic weekend double catapulted them into the Twenty20 League Cup final.

Cavaliers, who currently hold a four-point lead over Forties at the halfway stage of the league programme, beat Forties by 44 runs and then defeated BC Allrounders by six wickets at Shelly Bay.

Cavaliers piled up 165 for six from their 20 overs before dismissing Forties for 121 with ten balls to spare in a preliminary round match and later clinched their place in the final – in which they will face either North Village or Jamaica in late August – by romping home against BC Allrounders with more than four overs to spare chasing a modest victory target of 105.

"We don't seem to do too well in Twenty20," conceded Forties' skipper Gordon Campbell, who sent Cavaliers in after winning the toss.

Number three Barry Richards led the Cavaliers assault with 43 from 19 balls, including three fours and three sixes, and was supported by Richard Foulds' 30 from 20 balls, Donovan Livingston's 27 from 23 and Craig Smith's 26 from 23.

Pick of the Forties attack were Palithapushpa Kumara (two for 23) and Anton Fernando (two for 35).

Opener Campbell (25) and Yatin Gawas (25) added 54 for the second wicket as Forties gave chase and Stephen Drake made 27 at number five but a clatter of wickets saw their effort fizzle out as Trevor Haynes snapped up three for 27, Richards two for 11 and Smith two for 15.

"They batted very well and we knew 165 was an excellent score," said Campbell.

"We thought we could do it and were up with the run rate for the first half of the innings. But we lost some of our big guns cheaply. Then wickets fell too quickly under the pressure to keep up with the run rate.

"Cavaliers look very good to go all the way in this competition."

Foulds said the target Cavaliers set Forties was always going to be a tough one.

"Even when Steve Diamond's third over went for 19, the score never seemed within their reach as they were losing wickets regularly, and apart from Steve, none of our bowlers conceded more than a run a ball.

"Craig Smith and Trevor Haynes were the pick of our bowlers. Craig strangled the score-rate in his four overs and Trevor bowled excellent lines too, picking up the key wickets of Gawas and Ernest McCallan in one over, after which Forties never recovered. Towards the end some smart glove-work from Alan Boyce helped Barry Richards claim two wickets with stumpings."

After Cavaliers won the toss in the semi-final only opener Dano Outerbridge, who made 46, and number eight Mitchell DeShields, who later claimed three for 21, with an unbeaten 17 offered any real resistance as Smith (three for nine) and fourth-change Jeff DeSilva (three for 12) restricted BC Allrounders to 104 for eight.

Livingston (26) and DeSilva (36) engineered Cavaliers' romp by putting on 60 for the first wicket in eight overs before an unbeaten 18-ball 30 from Richards, which included three sixes and two fours, sealed the win with 25 balls to spare.

"Apart from opener Dano Outerbridge, no one in BC Allrounders' top order really got going as again we managed to keep the score-rate down with some excellent bowling from Craig, who this time opened the bowling," said Foulds.

"Some clean hitting from Mitchell DeShields down the order ensured that BC Allrounders made over 100, but a target of 105 was unlikely to trouble us unless we started to lose early wickets. Donovan and Jeff gave us the start we have come to expect and from there it was a canter to the finish line.

"We did lose a couple of wickets when in sight of the target, but when the call came for the scorers that we needed ten to win, Barry hit a four and then a huge six in consecutive balls to finish proceedings, and we remain unbeaten in all cricket so far this season."

Third leg of the title treble, the knockout, will get underway in early August.

Meanwhile, this weekend defending league champions Forties will face defending knockout champions North Village in the annual Memorial Trophy match, normally the season opener, at Shelly Bay.