Ashburton first team entertained unbeaten Dartington & Totnes first team in a first against second clash at the top of the table.
Skipper Ash Berry lost the toss and Ashburton were asked to bat on a very damp wicket. Ashburton lost regular wickets and found runs hard to come by as only Lloyd White (17), Arun Karthick (37) and Steve Edmonds (12) made it into double figures. Jacobus Snyman (3 for 7), Chris Cook (3 for 12) and Jono Colegate (3 for 22) picked up the wickets as Ashes were all out for 107 in 40.3 overs.
Dartington also struggled against the Ashes new ball pairing of Edmonds (9 overs, 2 for 29) and Matt Coon (7 overs, 0 for 7) and after 15 overs were on 27 for 2. However opener Snyman remained at the crease and showed his class as he started to play his shots. 81 came from the next 8.3 overs as Darts cruised to a comfortable 8 wicket win. Snyman finished unbeaten on 57 and Colegate unbeaten on 30.
Skipper Berry said after the game "Always difficult to be put in on a wet one and get anything significant. And whilst we made it very difficult at the the start of their chase, credit to Darts for being clinical. We now go to our final two games and look to consolidate our position.".
Arun Karthick batting against Dartington on Saturday (credit Julian Preston)
Ashburton second team travelled to play their Chudleigh counterparts and after winning the toss asked the hosts to have a bat.
Chudleigh were all out for 109 as Freddie Harvey (4 for 15) bowled an exceptional spell. He was well supported by Robin Lambert (2 for 16) and there were also wickets for George Marshall, Chris Yeo and Ashton West.
After losing the top 3 cheaply, the Ashes reply was dominated by Yeo (53no). He found a willing partner in young Toby Pascoe (15) and together they knocked off the bulk of the runs as Ashburton won by 4 wickets with 11 balls to spare.