Pressure told at the top of the Kent League Premier Division as Hayes were beaten at home by Blackheath, but second placed Minster did not take advantage, going down at Tunbridge Wells.

Ross Richardson led the way for Blackheath with 51 but 162 all out looked under par. Alex Blake claimed 3 for 26 and Will MacVicar 2 for 13, each from their full ten overs.

When it came to Hayes turn to bat, they found the going equally tough and only Beau Couldrey made it to 30. He fell to Tanweer Sikandar who finished with 3 for 9 as Hayes were bundled out for 114.

Chris Williams scored 103, brother Alex 63, Sam Smith 37, and Matthew Barker 33 as Tunbridge Wells amassed 276 for 7 against Minster despite Greg Lamb claiming 5 for 37.

Barker followed up his batting exploits with 3 for 20 and Michael Waller took 3 for 44 as Minster were dismissed for 205. Ed Moore top scored with 58, Joseph Parry scored 34 and Kai Appleby 30 in the response.

Bexley continued their unbeaten run by winning at Bickley Park. Having elected to bat first George Haley scored 107, Shaun Evans 65, Matt Stiddard 39, and Ben Aldred 38 as they amassed 266 for 4. Only Elliot Hooper claimed any wickets, finishing with 3 for 40.

Many Bickley batsmen made starts however did not go on to make big scores. Seb Naylor scored 42, Jotty Singh and Michael Ridley 37 each, Daniel Magin 32, and Krishna Padmanabhan 31 to get them close but they were bowled out for 235, 31 runs short. Adam Ball was the most successful bowler with 3 for 32.

Sevenoaks Vine visited Lordswood and chose to bat first. Luke Schlemmer top scored with 52 and Chris Vernon scored 33 as they finished on 204 for 9. Scotland’s Calum MacLeod returned 3 for 30.

He was also in good form for the bat, scoring 70, and Jack Laraman hit 46 not out as the hosts eased home by five wickets with 22 deliveries to spare.

In the remaining match, relegated Beckenham put Sandwich Town in danger of joining them with a solid away victory. Having decided to bat first, Archie Holman scored his best score for the club at any level in his first eleven league debut. His 56 not out built on Rob Clements’s 50 and Harri Aravinthan’s 38 as they totalled 227 for 6.

In response, Zack Fagg scored 59 but he got little support as Sandwich were bowled out for 164.

Ishan Sabharwal took 4 for 31 and James Ronay 3 for 26. The three bonus points that Sandwich won are the difference between them and Bickley Park in the other relegation spot with two weeks of the season remaining.

Picture supplied by Keith Gillard.