Alton successfully defended a 110-8 total to beat fancied Portsmouth by 15 runs to clinch a place in the Vitality Hampshire Under-19 t20 Cup final against favourites Sway & Lymington, who beat Fair Oak by nine wickets in the other semi-final.
They made a positive start through Abhay Gonella (39) and skipper Freddie Egleston (20) but tailed off from a healthy 74-2 to post 110-8. Henry Woolf (3-19), Tom Wallis (3-11) and Jacob Harris (2-26) shared the wickets for Portsmouth after Gonella had launched two sixes over the St Helen's pavilion. He was smartly stumped by Jack Collett, the first of three victims off Wallis's spin.
Openers Harris and Wallis perished to Jude Wright (2-14), but Portsmouth were at their most dangerous while Joe Krooner-Evans (26) and Woolf (28) were at the crease. Alas, both holed out in the deep when they appeared set, both to the left-arm of Egleston (3-19), the catch by Nathan Vincent, low down and on the run at deep long-off unquestionably the champagne moment of the night. It was also a semi-final tie clincher as Portsmouth fell away to finish 95-7 in the gathering Southsea seafront gloom.
ALTON
Standing (from left): Gemma Porter, Ellis Ballinger, Sam Bridger, Jude Wright, Ethan Footit, Xavier Bochereau
Kneeling: Toby Fuller, Tom Green, Freddie Egleston, Abhay Gonella, Nathan Vincent.
They made a positive start through Abhay Gonella (39) and skipper Freddie Egleston (20) but tailed off from a healthy 74-2 to post 110-8. Henry Woolf (3-19), Tom Wallis (3-11) and Jacob Harris (2-26) shared the wickets for Portsmouth after Gonella had launched two sixes over the St Helen's pavilion. He was smartly stumped by Jack Collett, the first of three victims off Wallis's spin.
Openers Harris and Wallis perished to Jude Wright (2-14), but Portsmouth were at their most dangerous while Joe Krooner-Evans (26) and Woolf (28) were at the crease. Alas, both holed out in the deep when they appeared set, both to the left-arm of Egleston (3-19), the catch by Nathan Vincent, low down and on the run at deep long-off unquestionably the champagne moment of the night. It was also a semi-final tie clincher as Portsmouth fell away to finish 95-7 in the gathering Southsea seafront gloom.
ALTON
Standing (from left): Gemma Porter, Ellis Ballinger, Sam Bridger, Jude Wright, Ethan Footit, Xavier Bochereau
Kneeling: Toby Fuller, Tom Green, Freddie Egleston, Abhay Gonella, Nathan Vincent.
