Puddy ton seals Wembdon's title

WEMBDON clinched the Somerset Division title with a comprehensive victory over Westlands on Saturday.

Sam Puddy was the stand-out performer for Wembdon with an unbeaten 131, as they amassed 280-5 from their 50 overs.

In reply, a blistering opening spell from Brendan Pope (4-12) helped to bowl Westlands out for just 127 to seal promotion for the home side after a shaky couple of weeks when they had suffered two defeats.

Wembdon lost the toss and were asked to bat first by a side they had bowled out for just 42 earlier in the season.

The innings started in positive fashion with Rich Gower (19) and Puddy finding the boundary at regular intervals.

Curd (49) joined Puddy in the fourth and the pair brought up Wembdon’s 50 in the 11th over and with a combination of good running and regular boundaries.

The second-wicket partnership of 127 was brought to an end when Curd was well caught when trying to up the run rate, but the platform had been set for an imposing total.

At 152-2, Jack Lowe (23) added impetus to the innings with a quick-fire knock and Bingham (15) joined in the fireworks as he helped push Wembdon to full batting points.

But it was Puddy who was the innings’ mainstay and he brought up his century with another boundary before going on to bat through the innings as Wembdon finished up on 280-8 from their 50 overs.

After the demoralising collapse in the season’s earlier fixture, Westlands were always going to be up against it, and their task was made far more difficult when Pope dismissed Boucher in the first over.

He followed that up with the wicket of Davis in his third over and when Bingham removed captain Gundry five balls later, Westlands had slumped to 14-4.

Cook (41) gave the score an element of respectability but the introduction of Cook (1-24) and Joshi (3-16) brought the end ever closer as they blew away the lower order.

Fittingly, it was the captain Joshi who took the final wicket, courtesy of a catch in the deep by Bingham.