After last week’s disappointing reversal the Trees were hoping to get back on track for silverware in their home fixture v Blaina.

Heavy Friday rain on an uncovered wicket meant that captain Dennis Heath was keen to end his run of three losing coin flips so that he could insert the opposition. He lost the toss again but, surprisingly, chose to bat. They didn’t have to wait too long before they were made to regret their decision as David Lomax (4-30) ripped out the top order courtesy of a yorker, a nick behind and a beauty that pitched middle to take the top of off.

Michael Clarke (not the Aussie one, but the Blaina one, looked in better form anyway) tried to hit Lomax out of the attack with a quartet of well struck boundaries but he perished too when he edged to first slip chasing another. 

At the other end Glen Hamilton (3-15) was steaming down the hill and when he knocked back Palmer’s middle stump the visitors were wobbling at drinks on 61-5. The bowler gained further reward for his fine spell when he found the edge of a defensive bat and the nick was superbly taken by keeper David Nowell diving in front of first slip. A couple of balls later Hamilton struck the thumb of another batsman to give Nowell his third catch of the innings. 

At 66-8 the Trees were desperate to apply the coup de grace but Alan Barber (22*) frustrated them, just as he did earlier in the season, with an innings of careful defence that, in conjunction with Aaron Robertson’s selective hitting, pushed the score up towards three figures before Chris Powell prized out the latter. The Trees surrounded the batsmen with attacking fielders but the final wicket was not forthcoming and the innings closed on 102-9.

After tea Blaina needed early wickets to make a game of it and Richard Geer charged in and put the drying wicket to good use. He first gloved Mark Baxter and then nearly fired a yorker through defences before the Tree’s opener squirted an inside edge down to fine leg. Lomax (30) seemed more fluent and struck five good boundaries before he was undone by the wicket when the ball stopped on him as he drove to present a catch to mid-off.

To gain maximum batting points the Trees could afford to lose no more than two wickets and Baxter (23 not out) needed no second invitation to engage the Boycott button on his bat and drop anchor. In contrast Christian Dewfield (26 not) clearly had a pint on his mind as he crashed his runs at better than a run a ball to ease Llanarth to their target at 103-1 after just 20.2 overs.