LURGASHALL clinched second place in Division Two behind champions Pirbright and an almost certain first promotion to the I’Anson top flight – subject to any decision to restructure the competition at the forthcoming ADM.

Elstead, their only rivals for runners-up, lost to The Bourne.

Lurgashall crushed an under-strength Badshot Lea by 177 runs. The home side were again full of runs and the ball regularly disappeared into the short-boundary hedge as they racked up 227-8 in 45 overs. Captain Aaron Carter led from the front with 95 and Drew Clark and keeper Alex Wadey did their bit to ensure a 200-plus total.

Clark was then handed the new ball and wreaked havoc by taking 4-3 in seven overs. The innings lasted just 19.2 overs and the visitors were shot out for 50.

Elstead were missing key players and were bowled out for 115 by The Bourne, with most of the damage done by change-bowlers Dave Stone and Mark Budd. Stone finished with a season’s best 3-16 in his full 14 overs.

The Bourne also struggled and were five wickets down for not many runs when old stagers Neil Poulter (36 not out) and Nick Hales (27 not out) came together in an unbroken stand that saw their side to eight points in the 34th over.

All four results were still possible with one ball to go in the match between Shalford and Frensham II. Shalford needed two runs for victory, while the visitors required one wicket. In the end, Satya Ravipati, having missed the previous four balls from Hally Baldock, hoiked the fifth miles into the air and with the ball just evading the backpedalling Richard Chuter at mid-off, the last pair scampered the winning runs.

Frensham had earlier recovered well after losing three early wickets to Dave and Ollie Rowe, thanks to half-centuries from James Wood and Sam Farncombe. Shalford restricted the late chase for runs and Frensham made a sporting midway declaration at 178-7.

Shalford collapsed from 33-0 to 73-7 in 15 overs and defeat seemed certain. But Dave Rowe joined the steadfast Peter Unsworth (skipper for the day) in a match-changing stand of 104 in 21 overs.

At 174-7, the home side required only five runs from two overs, but Unsworth (95) and Rowe (53) were out to successive balls, leaving Peter Simmons and Ravipati to see Shalford home in that memorable last over.

In a match reduced to 88 overs due to a late start, Fernhurst amassed 262 against 10-man Headley II. Good bowling by Mike Hughes and Charlie Neville had Fernhurst in trouble after opener Mark Charman had scored a half-century, but Harry Lambert and Steve Tytler rallied their side with a big-hitting eighth-wicket stand. Lambert hammered 88, including 10 fours and three sixes, before being bowled by Bill Ray.

Mike Allen had a rare batting failure, but took his revenge by claiming 5-12 in five guileful overs. One of his victims was Ian Neville who top-scored with 49 (11 fours) in Headley’s total of 135.

Harting, unable to raise a side, conceded 10 points to Grayshott II who finish fourth in the table.