CHELMSFORD I..123 all out

LOUGHTON I...............124-5

(Loughton won by five wickets)

(Shepherd Neame Essex League Premier Division)

An excellent bowling display could not save Chelmsford from a disappointing defeat on Saturday in a match sponsored by Bairstow Eves.

Loughton's decision to bowl first paid immediate dividends as Chelmsford were reduced to two for one.

However, Ian Brailey (21) and Neil Fergus (14) started to rebuild, with Brailey in good form until he was adjudged run out at 40.

Fergus followed shortly after and the rest of the middle order was unable to support captain Tim Jones.

The innings subsided to 80 for six in the face of excellent bowling from spinners James and Laird, and Jones was dismissed for 31 shortly after lunch.

Matthew Poole produced some lusty blows to carry the score to 123, before being caught for 24.

James and Laird each took four for 40, and the impressive over rate meant that Loughton had a mammoth 71 overs to chase a low total.

The pitch was offering considerable movement and Chelmsford's bowlers produced a wholehearted display.

None of the batsmen were ever comfortable but Colin Greenhill rode his luck to compile a matchwinning unbeaten 80 and was named the Bairstow Eves man of the match.

This was poor reward for the sterling efforts of Eddie Lawrence (2-42 from 26 overs), Matt Poole (2-28 from 17 overs) and Tim Jones (1-21 from 10 overs).

Throughout the innings, Loughton always seemed to have just a wicket too many in hand and Greenhill deservedly provided the winning hit with five overs to spare.

The defeat leaves Chelmsford and Billericay adrift at the bottom of the table.

With five games to go in the season, Chelmsford must look to enjoy the remaining weeks and hope that this leads to improved performances.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.