Surrey Championship Premier Division

Sunbury 145

Reigate Priory 146-6

THE biggest match of the season arrived last Saturday at Reigate Priory as the first XI lined-up against second-placed Sunbury.

Priory knew that with a win would mean being crowned League Champions for the fourth time in six years.

Given the wet weather during the course of the week and a rather soft wicket, it was a surprise to see Sunbury's Oli Roland-Jones call the toss correctly and decide to have a bat first.

In front of a fully subscribed supporters' lunch, the Priory opening bowlers took no time in getting into their strides.

Alex Mendis and Neil Saker both started with their usual tight and disciplined bowling, quickly finding consistency just short of a length.

With the early moisture in the wicket doing the rest Saker picked up both opening batsmen, White and Spencer, with edges to Michael Foster and keeper Stuart Mills (diving full stretch), while Mendis at the other end picked up the key wicket of London, leg-before.

The Sunbury batsmen were finding scoring opportunities difficult to come by and once Saker had Roland-Jones caught behind, Sunbury were faltering at 44-4.

Mendis continued to bowl tightly, as he has all season, and finished his 10 overs having conceded just 22 runs.

Newly introduced Toby Briggs picked up the wicket of Poynter, just as the batsman was starting to look dangerous.

But former Middlesex wicket-keeper David Nash was quickly looking more comfortable and put together a couple of decent partnerships to take the score to 99-7.

Even Saker's return to the fold couldn't finish the game off but his two maiden spell secured his impressive match figures of 3-24 off his 10 overs.

It was time for the Reigate skipper to introduce the spinners.

Hume, showing the consistency and experience he has flaunted all season, and at 39 looking as ever youthful, didn't take long to pick up his first wicket and importantly end the largest partnership of the innings at 135-8.

With his very next ball he made it 135-9 (his 32nd league wicket this season) and it was left to Simon Day to pick up the final wicket of Nash (46), smartly caught by Alex Richards.

The Priory needed 146 for victory and the Championship title.

Jonathan Perkins and Richards started the Reigate innings cautiously with the new ball continuing to prove tricky business. With the score on 27, Perkins (10) was caught and bowled by Grainger off a leading edge.

Just six runs later Mills was caught behind and the very next ball Reigate's skipper Chris Murtagh was also caught behind. This was not going to be the easy run chase the Llamas were hoping for.

The Reigate supporters' blood pressure was just starting to settle down with the experience heads of Richards and Foster at the crease.

Some fine drives and some experienced shot selection proving to be the key to this partnership.

They put on 44 until Foster (17) was unluckily caught behind sweeping off the spin bowling of Matt Todd. Reigate were 77-4.

Saker and Briggs both came and went and at 93-6 it was looking more and more vital for the in-form Richards to see the team over the line.

The following partnership was one of the most important and hardest fought for partnerships that the supporters are ever likely to witness given what was at stake.

Simon Day proved to be a tremendous thorn in Sunbury's side, driving anything full enough sublimely to the boundary and leaving everything else diligently.

Richards at the other end was looking superfluous and obstinately irremovable. He R continued to command the bowlers and it was only fitting that it was Richards (68no) who smashed the last ball of the 46th over to secure the win and the title.

The celebratory reaction of the team and all of the Reigate supporters was testament to the hard work that the squad has put into this season and the depth of quality that the club has within its ranks.

The Championship has been won through a combination of some fantastic individual performances but also thanks to a result of a large squad effort.

A number of squad members were not present on the field including Aiden Blizzard, Jason Roy, Matthew Bennett, Simon King, Daryl King and Jonathan Gale, all of whom have made key contributions over the course of the season and to Reigate's league title.