Alton opener Abhay Gonella : Howard Gadsby
Havant are 24 points adrift at the foot of the ECB Southern Premier League top flight after losing their relegation battle at Alton.
A five-wicket defeat from a tension racked affair at the Jubilee Ground was the 14-times champions’ 10th defeat in 14 completed games and leaves them contemplating the unthinkable.
Left-arm spin all-rounder Tom South was a main contributor to their latest loss, taking three wickets and hitting an unbeaten 40 for second-bottom Alton.
After having been inserted, 26-0 quickly became 29-3 with Zach Gadsby (3-38) dismissing opener Charlie Whitfield and fellow teen Ben Feeney.
Skipper Peter Hopson hit 23 of those opening 26 runs, including five boundaries, before he was caught off the bowling of Tom Varney.
At 121-5, the vastly experienced pair of Chris Stone (35 not out) and Chris Morgan were Havant’s main hopes of pushing towards 200. But they both fell in a dire run of three wickets for no runs in just five balls, South (3-6) removing Morgan and Olly Perkins with successive deliveries before Ben Rolfs won a leg before decision against Morgan.
Havant were still in with a chance when they reduced Alton to 65-4. But that only brought in South, who promptly added 64 for the fifth wicket with opener Abhay Gonella (63).
LSE graduate Gonella was leg before to Matty Hayward but South saw Alton over the finishing line, shunting Havant a step closer to Division 1 cricket.
A five-wicket defeat from a tension racked affair at the Jubilee Ground was the 14-times champions’ 10th defeat in 14 completed games and leaves them contemplating the unthinkable.
Left-arm spin all-rounder Tom South was a main contributor to their latest loss, taking three wickets and hitting an unbeaten 40 for second-bottom Alton.
After having been inserted, 26-0 quickly became 29-3 with Zach Gadsby (3-38) dismissing opener Charlie Whitfield and fellow teen Ben Feeney.
Skipper Peter Hopson hit 23 of those opening 26 runs, including five boundaries, before he was caught off the bowling of Tom Varney.
At 121-5, the vastly experienced pair of Chris Stone (35 not out) and Chris Morgan were Havant’s main hopes of pushing towards 200. But they both fell in a dire run of three wickets for no runs in just five balls, South (3-6) removing Morgan and Olly Perkins with successive deliveries before Ben Rolfs won a leg before decision against Morgan.
Havant were still in with a chance when they reduced Alton to 65-4. But that only brought in South, who promptly added 64 for the fifth wicket with opener Abhay Gonella (63).
LSE graduate Gonella was leg before to Matty Hayward but South saw Alton over the finishing line, shunting Havant a step closer to Division 1 cricket.
Tom South top all-round performance : Howard Gadsby
