James Taylor could hardly have chosen a better time to notch the 12th century of his Southern Electric Premier League career …
The unbeaten 140 he scored at Loperwood Park set up a crucial 46-run win over Calmore Sports and lifted Totton & Eling out of the Division 1 relegation zone.
It gave Totton an 18-point lead over troubled Hartley Wintney, whose visit to Southern Gardens on Saturday (1pm) will be decisive.
On the flip side, Calmore are now 24 points below the nearest safety rung and must win at Rowledge to keep their fading survival hopes alive.
Totton were in difficulty at 23-2 after two strikes by Calmore left-arm quick Steve Wright.
But Taylor calmed things down, steadily reaching his 50 before enjoying a thumping 142 run stand off 110 balls with Tom Beresford (45 not out).
Taylor hit four sixes and 19 fours in his 140 not out, one sky of his highest SPL score.
Ben Johns (46) and Mark Lavelle (38) provided an 82-run response for Calmore, who promptly collapsed to 115-6 after a four-wicket burst by Josh Metcalfe (4-17).
Tom Pegler hit a valiant 71, but fell to the unorthodox bowling of Beresford with Calmore 216-9 and still 46 runs short.
Suman Ganguly took 3-23 before hitting a match winning 80 as Liphook & Ripsley rose to fifth place with a thrilling one-wicket win at Hartley Wintney, where the visitors’ chased down 251-9.
Hartley’s plight was subsequently deepened by the deduction of five points for fielding an ineligible player and the six-match ban imposed on captain Jamie Teale for problems at the recent Hook & Newnham Basics derby.
The unbeaten 140 he scored at Loperwood Park set up a crucial 46-run win over Calmore Sports and lifted Totton & Eling out of the Division 1 relegation zone.
It gave Totton an 18-point lead over troubled Hartley Wintney, whose visit to Southern Gardens on Saturday (1pm) will be decisive.
On the flip side, Calmore are now 24 points below the nearest safety rung and must win at Rowledge to keep their fading survival hopes alive.
Totton were in difficulty at 23-2 after two strikes by Calmore left-arm quick Steve Wright.
But Taylor calmed things down, steadily reaching his 50 before enjoying a thumping 142 run stand off 110 balls with Tom Beresford (45 not out).
Taylor hit four sixes and 19 fours in his 140 not out, one sky of his highest SPL score.
Ben Johns (46) and Mark Lavelle (38) provided an 82-run response for Calmore, who promptly collapsed to 115-6 after a four-wicket burst by Josh Metcalfe (4-17).
Tom Pegler hit a valiant 71, but fell to the unorthodox bowling of Beresford with Calmore 216-9 and still 46 runs short.
Suman Ganguly took 3-23 before hitting a match winning 80 as Liphook & Ripsley rose to fifth place with a thrilling one-wicket win at Hartley Wintney, where the visitors’ chased down 251-9.
Hartley’s plight was subsequently deepened by the deduction of five points for fielding an ineligible player and the six-match ban imposed on captain Jamie Teale for problems at the recent Hook & Newnham Basics derby.