WHEN putting out the scoreboard at the start of the day, one of the Thriplow players jokingly added numbers that suggested the home team would amass 365 for 1 off their 45 overs. Hopefully that same individual had some money on the 3 o clock at Newmarket

WHEN putting out the scoreboard at the start of the day, one of the Thriplow players jokingly added numbers that suggested the home team would amass 365 for 1 off their 45 overs. Hopefully that same individual had some money on the 3 o'clock at Newmarket as they were only fractionally adrift as a combination of a damp ball and devastating batting saw Thriplow destroy Milton in one of the few games to survive the weather.

Having won the toss, the Milton skipper beckoned his team for a team huddle and after a lengthy deliberation decided they would bowl. This suited Thriplow who would have batted anyway feeling that bowling with what was likely to become a bar of soap was not a good idea.

This excuse was not justifiable for the first few overs however, as the Milton attack found a line and length something of a problem and Paul Staley and Theo Giasemidis punished them mercilessly. The scoreboard rattled along, with Giasemidis in particular combining ruthlessness and elegance all around the wicket.

The 100 partnership came up in only the twelfth over and bowlers were rotated with little impact. It was thus a surprise when, with a century beckoning, Giasmisdi missed one to be lbw for 81 with the score on 160 in only the seventeenth over. Hugh Spotswood then joined Staley and gave a master class in shot selection to the extent that Staley was reduced to scratching around for singles until he was caught at point for 89.

Cliffe (7) fell quickly but Spotswood reached an excellent 61 and after a final flourish from Mike Sewell (41) and Chris Viner (40), the tail fell away in a flurry of wickets. However the final total of 369-8 was a record for the ground and for the club as a whole. Milton were commended for staying out in the field but the weather did not materially worsen all afternoon and their earlier decision not to take first strike was no doubt a subject for discussion at the Thriplow tea table.

In response, Major (8) fell early to Andy Morris but McHugh (57) and Dye (53) both battled their way to half centuries, albeit somewhat behind the 8.2 per over required run rate. However once these two fell, the rest of the batting dribbled away, with Andrew Woolley (3-35) and a late burst from Ally Cliffe (3-15) seeing Milton all out 165.