Surrey Championship Premier Division

Spencer 201-7

Cobham Avorians 85-7

IN a rain-affected match Cobham Avorians were very lucky to escape with a draw against Spencer, surviving only because the visitors left their declaration too late to bowl out an outplayed Avorians side.

With the start delayed until after the lunch break, the Avorians, having won the toss, decided to let Spencer bat, backing themselves to win any run chase. In the early stages, it seemed that the A's had made a good decision.

While neither Mawson nor Shankar, the Spencer openers, were about to give up their wicket easily the scoring rate was slow and Spencer, despite having all their wickets intact, had only 66 on the board after 22 of their maximum 41 overs.

However, by then the Avorians injury jinx had struck again. Jamie Lawrence, having just completed a maiden over, pulled up with a hamstring injury and was unable to take any further part in the game. This put extra pressure on the strike bowlers, and forced captain Steve Naylor, to turn to some of the lesser lights to fill in while the top bowlers took a rest.

Spencer took full advantage. Both openers made their half centuries and Surrey contracted player, Alex Tudor, raced to 35 before Jarvis and Naylor returned to put the brakes back on the run rate and make inroads into the middle order, each taking two wickets.

Spencer declared on 201-7 leaving the Avorians with 34 overs to chase down their score.

In reply the Avorians got off to the worst of starts. Rajiv Tanna survived just three balls before being caught for one, one of four victims for Spencer's teenage bowling sensation, George Edwards.

The Avorians best chance of winning lay with hard-hitting Luc Durrandt but, with two boundaries already to his name, the South African was given out to a dubious decision.

Officially caught gloving a delivery from Tudor, Durrandt's demonstration of the seam burn on his arm cut no ice with the umpire, and he had to go.

The rest of the batting line-up had little defence against the pace of Tudor and Edwards.

The next three wickets fell for single figures and it was left to Scott Jarvis and Ben Kingsnorth to see out the overs with little or no attacking intent.

Their partnership of 33 took care of 13 overs ensuring that Spencer could not claim victory, but a cameo performance at the end of the innings by Graham Crawford, hitting 18 runs off 15 balls, showed what might have been.

The Avorians closed their innings on 85-7, claiming a point from their losing draw.