Devon Cricket Board - Staddon man of moment as Cornwood win a thriller

Staddon man of moment as Cornwood win a thriller

ELLIOT Staddon was the man of the moment as Cornwood got back in track after two defeats with a one-wicket win over Bradninch.
Tim Piper hit a top score of 67 for Bradninch, who accelerated to finish on 233 for five.
Cornwood looked down and out at 144 for seven in reply, but Staddon and Matt Butterworth had other ideas.
Staddon made 57 not out and Butterworth 24 in a stand of 89 for the eighth wicket.
It looked like game over, but there were a few more twists left yet.
“With seven wickets down and only 144 on the board, there weren’t many who were backing Cornwood to win,” said cricket manager Nick Goodliffe.
“Elliot and Matt got us within one run of victory, before Butterworth top edged and got caught.
“Next ball, Craig James was caught at mid on attempting to put a full-toss over the top.
“Last man Adam Goodliffe came out with Will Squire on a hat-trick – and with an aggressive field round the bat.
“Adam fended off the first ball and the second was disappointingly for Bradninch was a wide , giving Cornwood the victory in the tightest of circumstances.”
Earlier Mark Horwell had done his best to hold things in Cornwood’s top order.
Whilst wickets fell around him he kept his composure and eased himself to an important 51 before falling to Will Squire (4-36).
Skipper Jason Hall was thrilled with the result but disappointed Cornwood allowed Bradninch to post a target of 233 on the board.
“There is still room for improvement in terms of fielding and bowling performances,” said Goodliffe.
“With a fixture at table-topping Brixham next Saturday, there is little time to get back to our normal levels of sharpness.”
Dan Hardy, the Bradninch captain, said a rain break didn’t help his side, who didn’t help themselves either!
“The weather didn’t help as we lost three overs at the end of our innings, which probably cost us 30 runs,” said Hardy.
“We had enough runs to win the game, but didn’t bowl well enough in the last 10 overs.
“And to be fair to Staddon – he batted well.”
Bradninch, who are five points clear of the relegation area, need to pick themselves up for a home game against Hatherleigh this Saturday.

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