SOUTH Wilts have enjoyed some fine moments in the ECB Royal London national club championship in recent seasons – their duels with Bath, Sully Centurions and Bridgwater are still fresh in the memory – but reaching the group final this time around has been anything but satisfying.

Captain James Hayward will take his South Wilts team to Havant on Sunday, June 19 to decide who will go through to the national phase of the competition.

But his side has progressed to the last 32 stage without having bowled a ball.

Handed a first round bye, South Wilts then got a walkover when Fawley cried off.

Then, last Sunday morning, the unthinkable occurred – with Lymington, the previous day’s Premier Division opponents, pulling their scheduled third round visit to Bemerton due to being unable to raise a side.

South Wilts have remained tight-lipped on the subject, declining to make any public statement.

Club official Neil Trestrail explained Lymington’s late decision to withdraw: “It's sadly quite simple: two players got injured on Saturday, one being Ryan Scott and when I got home from cricket on Saturday evening, I had two texts to say that two of our youngsters could not play, which left us with seven players, plus Stewart Hand (Dom’s father) left to play.

“We simply do not have a bank of reserve cricketers available to play cricket on a bank holiday weekend Sunday after a full league Saturday.

“Club cricket on Sundays is dying a death, sadly this is a known fact and the National Knockout, no longer involves our strongest teams.”

Havant rocked up an enormous 420-9 to win their group semi-final tie at Ventnor, with Josh McCoy blazing 198.