LANGFORD’S penultimate match of the season was a visit from Chawton.

Luke Stephens won the toss and invited Chawton to bat.

However, what seemed like a good toss to win didn’t go to plan as Chawton raced along to 130 at the drinks break. O. Williams and A.Vickers the pair responsible, and in doing so setting the perfect platform for the Chawton innings.

With both falling either side of drinks for 43 and 61 respectively. It brought J Channon to the crease, he bludgeoned the Langford attack to all parts and raced along to a rapid fire 59. The Langford attack did well to claw back Chawton and take wickets late on. Runs continued though and Chawton finished on an imposing 278 for the loss of 9 wickets. Huge credit must go to Nick Partridge, Gary Smith and Chris Miles who stuck to their task and got two wickets piece for their efforts.

The Langford reply started badly with Gary Smith falling cheaply.

Nick Partridge batted aggressively and in doing so got Langford back in to the game and importantly in keeping with the run rate. Chris Mundy joined Partridge (45) to help keep the scoreboard ticking over before the latter fell going for one big hit too many. Tom Bennett strode out to the middle and picked up where Partridge left off, despatching the Chawton attack to all parts. Both men brought up their fifties and help keep the game alive. Mundy finally fell for 66 with G Charlton sneaking one through his defences. Bennett, had to contend with a bad back and a flurry of wickets at the other end. He batted superbly and brought up his 100 and more importantly kept Langford in the match.

Unfortunately he was run out for an excellent 112 and in doing so removing any chance of a Langford win. Liam Harvey the last to fall, the home side 17 runs shy of Chawton’s 278.

With Langford’s relegation all but confirmed, the result is a reminder of what could of been for their season. Langford host Tichborne in their final fixture and look to finish on a high.