Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Title race going down to wire
EDGING THE CLOSE GAMES WILL BE VITAL TO CANTERBURY’S CHANCES OF WINNING THE LEAGUE, SAYS BATSMAN STEER Kent League
Canterbury held their nerve to beat Bromley Common by five runs and keep up their pursuit of Division 1 leaders The Mote.
Just three points separate the division’s top two clubs following the latest round of fixtures, which saw The Mote scrape a one-run win over Tenterden.
And the top six in Division 1 are covered by 44 points, with Tunbridge Wells and Folkestone – fifth and sixth respectively – both holding a game in hand.
Canterbury’s Paul Steer said: “I think it will go down to the final round of games. It’s a credit to the way the league is set up and how the points are scored.
“I can’t see one team winning all their games between now and the end of the season.
“In our experience, the difference is when you win the close games.”
Saturday was certainly one of those. Canterbury won the toss and batted first at The Grove, with captain Stuart Drakeley hitting 75 off 64 balls to boost his side to 242-8.
Opener Leigh Walker hit 70 for Bromley Common, who looked favourites to win the game all the time James Goodman was at the crease.
The home side were up with the required rate when Charles Hartley crucially ran Goodman out for 76.
Common needed 10 off the last over and Steer bowled tightly to deny them.
He said: “It could have gone either way, it was a game that ebbed and flowed nicely.
“They were up with the run-rate all the way but those run-chases do hinge on small moments.
“When Charlie ran out Goodman, that was a turning point and it made us think, all of a sudden, that we had a chance.”
Canterbury host The Mote in a crunch clash on Saturday.
Elsewhere in Division 1, things get no better for basement boys St Lawrence & Highland Court after they lost to Linden Park by two wickets.
Skipper Lewis Jenkins and Ruaridh MacLeod each hit 46 as St Lawrence posted 216-7 and they looked well placed when Linden Park were reduced to 150-8 in reply.
However, an unbroken stand of 67 between ninth-wicket pair John Harvey (61 not out) and Andy Healy (17 not out) saw Linden Park home with 11 balls to spare.
Nathan Walsh finished with 3-50 from 9 overs while Jim Showler claimed 2-49.
Premier Division strugglers Whitstable slipped closer to the relegation trap-door with a 27-run defeat at Sibton Park.
Replying to Park’s 196- 9, Whitstable came up short at 169 all out despite 70 from Max Campbell.
Promotion hopefuls Chestfield now look to be playing for second place in Division 3 after leaders Nonington dug in to deny them victory.
Neil Gowers hit 77 at the top of the order to help Chestfield post 244-6 and they were flying when they picked up four quick Nonington wickets.
But the leaders proved tough to crack and despite losing those early wickets, they closed on 152-8.
Chestfield captain Daniel Patching said: “Once they lost early wickets, they shut up shop. The wicket wasn’t responsive, it was fairly dead and it’s hard to bowl teams out when it’s like that.
“Second place is certainly a realistic prospect. Nonington might be a little bit too far ahead of us now but they might slip up. We have the ability to go up.”
Chestfield, 12 points behind second-placed Old Colfeians and a further 23 back from Nonington, host Ashford Town this weekend.
Macknade lost to Betteshanger Colliery Welfare by 18 runs in Division 4, bowled out for 237 in reply to 255-4.
Dan Sadler and Andrew Machin each made 39 with Danny Haxton adding 38 for the Faversham side.
In 2nd XI Division 2, Tory Hughes hit 150 for Canterbury 2nds but they had to settle for a winning draw against Sidcup.
The visitors were hanging on at 227-9 after Canterbury had declared at 299-4.
There was another century for Chestfield 2nds skipper Paul Gibson (107), whose side raced to a 10-wicket win after bowling Addington Village out for 159.
Whitstable 2nds slipped to a seventh straight Premier Division defeat.
They could only muster 180-5 in reply to Sandwich Town’s 264 all out.
There was a five-wicket defeat for St Lawrence 2nds at the hands of Linden Park in Division 1 and Macknade 2nds lost their Division 4 clash with Hollingbourne by 47 runs.