After a tough run of fixtures Gunnislake were away on Saturday to lowly St Austell IVs and came away with a convincing nine wicket win. It was a glorious Saturday for once, but rain in the week meant a soft wicket and Gunnislake elected to bowl on winning the toss.
As with many fourth teams an array of promising young players faced the more experienced, or elderly, Gunnislake team. St Austell made a slow start against tight bowling from Dinesh Thirupuvanarajah at one end and Lee Roberts from the other. The score crept up at two an over with a slow outfield keeping the boundary rate down. The first wicket fell in the ninth over with St Austell on only 16. Two more quickly followed leaving the score on a precarious 17 for 3. At this point William Apted and Jon Dee steadied the ship slightly with Jon Dee hitting one massive six wide of long on. But Gunnislake were not deterred and Leigh Acton got one past the bat of Dee to bowl him for 18. The score was 42 for 3, but with 21 overs of the allotted forty already gone. Mark Bennetts replaced Dee and also played well, with a series of singles and fours, but after Apted was caught off the bowling of Joe Organ, Bennetts received little support at the other end. Organ and Acton ripped through the lower order, before Mark Everett finished off the innings as six batsmen were bowled by a rampant Gunnislake.
Ninety three runs in 33 overs seemed unlikely to be enough, but with Gunnislake’ brittle batting anything was still possible. Mark Bennetts finished on 25 not out, while Joe Organ and Leigh Acton took three wickets apiece. Organ just missed out on a hat-trick when a potential third wicket found the edge and a gap through the slips.
Gunnislake set off on the reply at five an over. Adam Emmerson drove well including a glorious straight six. Meanwhile Stephen Lees helped himself to anything short on the leg side. St Austell rang the changes with a series of young bowlers, but to no avail. With a ten wicket victory in sight Lees missed one from Osbourne that nipped away and was bowled for 29. But there were no further alarms as Joe Organ knocked off the winning runs, Emmerson finishing on 39 not out.
In less than seventeen overs Gunnislake had broken their losing streak and secured Division 5 safety. Meanwhile St Austell live to fight another day, as their production line of young talent continues to serve them well. One match remains in a season interrupted by rain and cancellations as the Cornwall Leagues head to their climax.
St Austell IV 93 all out (M Bennetts 25 no; L Acton 3-27, J Organ 3-30, D Thirupuvanarajah 2-13). Gunnislake 95-1 (A Emmerson 39 no, S Lees 29). Gunnislake (20 points) beat St Austell (2 points) by 9 wickets.
