Town make hard work of victory

Ashford Town

Liam Tegg was delighted to see leaders Ashford Town claim their second 20-point haul of the season, edging home by 10 runs in a lowscoring Division 3 match at Harvel on Saturday. The skipper branded the Gravesend villagers’ wicket as terrible – Town making only 106 – before dismissing the hosts for 96, both teams suffering batting collapses in the second half of their innings. Leg spinner Craig Buckham quickened Harvel’s downfall with 4-21, after they were 61-5 at one stage, James Rodway (3-23) having removed the top order. Craig Calvert’s 18 notout off 14 balls with two fours and six at the end proved vital for Town who lost their last five for only 27 runs. Tegg said: “We don’t make things easy for ourselves at times but the wicket was nothing short of terrible, with some going through the top and others keeping low. “Four or five of our wickets were down to soft dismissals, some balls rolled along the ground but the one that got me would have hit me in the face, if I hadn’t got a glove on it and caught at cover.” He added: “It was a great feeling to get over the line and take maximum points. “Our fielding was good and we held all our chances which made the difference. “Jack Richardson took a nice one at cover (one of three in the innings) and it’s great to have Stuart Paine back at the club because he is as good a fielder as there is in the Kent League. “He went to St Lawrence and then Gore Court but didn’t play at all last year after changing jobs.” James Mitchell’s 118 led Harvel 2nds (183-5) to a five-wicket win in the reverse Division 5 fixture. Jack Price, batting at No.9, hit 43 to help Town recover from 120-7 to make 186.