BEAMINSTER 160 (7pts) lost to POOLE TOWN II 161-8 (19pts) by two wickets

BEAMINSTER slipped to a late two-wicket defeat by Poole Town Seconds on a fruitless return to County Division One.

Chris Park’s men lost the toss and were invited to bat first on an under-prepared wicket caused by a late switch of pitches after the near-side boundary became waterlogged.

In damp conditions, Beaminster plugged away with skipper Park (23) and Ross Baker (47) the mainstays of the innings.

Andrew Ruston (4-35) ripped through the middle order but late runs from Simon Jones saw Beaminster post 160 all out.

READ MORE: Beaminster clinch Division Two title after beating Shaftesbury

The consensus was that Beaminster’s total was 20 runs short of par but the hosts made early inroads at 8-2.

Ruston (45) and Jordan Down (57) then carved out what proved to be match-winning knocks, the latter smashing four sixes.

However, Beaminster showed trademark grit to reduce Poole from 135-4 to 155-7 and force the match into a final over, Poole prevailing with four balls to spare.

Park said: “I was really happy with 160 but you could say 180 would’ve won us the game and we were 20 runs short in all honesty.

“That’s cost us and we did drop a couple of catches as well. If those are taken it’s a different game.

“We’ve played in quite a few of these games last year that went down to the wire. I’m pretty proud of the lads, we kept on going and taking wickets until the end.”

Beaminster now host Puddletown on Saturday (1pm) looking to seal their first win of the season against a side relegated from the Premier League in 2022.

Park added: “A few of the lads know their players and they’ve heard rumblings that they’re a few players short.

“It doesn’t really matter, it’s how we play. If we do the same again, we’ll be fine.

“I think we’re going to challenge everyone this year. I’m not saying we’re going to win every game but we’ll certainly never stop fighting.”

Beaminster make two changes as Ben Golledge and Ollie Hey miss out for Paul Edwards and Jack Ronan.

Beaminster: Park, W Moss, A Moss, Baker, Damen, Hillier, Jones, Edwards, Ronan, Hansford-Harvey, Hollely.