HORSPATH will travel to Challow & Childrey in the Hartwell Senior Cup next Tuesday knowing they must win to be sure of top spot in Pool 2 and a place in Oxfordshire T20 Finals Day at Wormsley on September 17.
Wormsley hosts Finals Day on September 17
The club, who sat out this week's fixtures with five sides in the group, have a perfect record of three out of three following wins over Tiddington, Aston Rowant and Oxford Downs.
However, Horspath can still be overhauled at the top following Challow's 37-run win at Oxford Downs last night with head-to-head results and then net run rate to be used if sides finish level on points.
Opener Shaun Burningham smashed 85 off 52 balls as Challow - who have an outstanding home game against Aston Rowant which is due to be rescheduled - posted 180-4, before Downs were restricted to 143-6.
Meanwhile, Tiddington, who beat Challow last month and entertain Downs next week, also kept their hopes alive with a four-wicket win in a low-scoring contest at Aston Rowant.
Holders Banbury are favourites to win Pool 1 after winning their opening three games. A home match against Cumnor on July 26 completes their fixtures.
Hawtin and Belcher shine as Horspath grab dramatic draw
HORSPATH came back from the dead in Home Counties Premier League Division 2 to snatch an improbable draw at Oxford Downs with the scores level in a last-ball thriller.
The visitors were in disarray at 25-5 after being put in to bat, before an eighth-wicket stand of 95 between Will Hawtin (72) and Lloyd Belcher (43) turned the innings round to take Horspath to 218 all out.
Will Hawtin starred with a Home Counties best of 72
Even then, third-placed Downs looked to be in control at 103-2 but, with skipper Patrick Foster (4-63) leading the way, Horspath pegged the home side back to set up a dramatic finish.
The hosts needed seven to win off the last over, bowled by the Horspath captain, with two wickets in hand.
Frankie Crouch and Prav Chahal picked up two singles and two twos from the first five balls to tie the scores and leave Downs requiring one for victory off the last ball.
But Horspath kept their nerve and when Crouch hit it to Will Eason at mid-on he returned it to Foster at the bowler's end to run out the Downs batsman, leaving the home side 218-9.
It was an incredible finish to a cracking game, which no-one could have predicted after Horspath had collapsed in spectacular fashion earlier in the day.
Matt Warner did the damage, blowing away the top order with a stunning spell of 4-0 off 4.2 overs as the visitors lost five wickets for seven runs after reaching 18-0.
Tyrone Eyles led the Horspath fightback with a fluent 40 from 36 balls, but when he was caught and bowled by Downs skipper Tom Costley in the over before lunch the situation still looked bleak with the visitors 84-7 at the break.
However, Hawtin and Belcher came to Horspath's rescue after the interval with a terrific partnership. Hawtin was the busier of the two, striking the ball crisply to hit his highest Home Counties score and his first league half-century for Horspath.
He brought up his fifty with a superb sweep shot - his third boundary in the over following a straight four and one through the covers.
When he reached 63 he had passed his previous best league score of 62 for Banbury at Henley in 2016, before his excellent innings finally came to an end when he chipped a delivery from Costley to Tom Cosford at mid-wicket, leaving Horspath 179-8. His runs came off 64 balls and included 14 fours.
Belcher, meanwhile, provided excellent support to also post his highest Home Counties score. Solid in defence, he applied himself well to the situation and with Will Eason, who chipped in with a handy 16, took the visitors past the 200-mark for just the second time this season.
They had moved the score on to 214 when Eason was bowled by Warner, who returned to complete his five-wicket haul, finishing with 5-28 from 13 overs.
Four runs later Belcher was the last man out in the 57th over when he dragged one on from Costley (3-52).
Horspath's rearguard action had given them a chance and their hopes were boosted further after Eason had Freddie Smith caught by Belcher and Foster bowled Will Watts for 25 to leave Downs 44-2.
But the home side still had the upper hand as James Lauder and Cosford brought up the hundred. Foster then struck twice in as many balls by bowling Lauder for 25 before Luke Maslen fell to a good low catch behind the stumps by Hawtin to make it 103-4.
Cosford batted with his usual fluency, hitting four fours and three sixes, before bringing up his half-century with a single off Belcher.
Leg-spinner Josh Richardson, on his Home Counties debut, was to prove his nemesis, though, as the former Horspath batsman's 46-ball knock was cut short when he holed out to Belcher at long on for 50 to make it 133-5.
Ten runs later, the teenager struck again with Kalan Niyarepola caught by Imraan Manack at deep mid-wicket for 19, but Costley and Warner took the score to 192 before Belcher bowled the Downs skipper for 24.
Warner scored freely to make 34, before Foster returned to the attack to have him caught by Richardson at long off and leave Downs 200-8.
Chahal and Crouch took the home side to the brink of victory, before Horspath's spirited fightback was complete as they snatched a draw out of the fire in a thrilling finish with Foster's final over.
The Horspath captain was well supported by his bowlers with Richardson taking 2-16 and a wicket apiece for Eason and Belcher.
JOEY Todd hit a resolute half-century as Horspath 2nd maintained their promotion push in Cherwell League Division 2 with an 83-run win over Oxford Downs 2nd at the Recreation Ground.
Todd made 65 at the top of the order from 120 balls with 12 fours as Horspath posted 184 all out after being put in to bat.
He put on 90 for the second-wicket with Robbie Eason (30), but after they were dismissed in quick succession the innings fell away and it took a breezy 28 from Charlie Turner to take the hosts to their final score.
Ben Denton pegged the home side back with 5-19. But Horspath's bowlers then got stuck into Downs' batting as the visitors crashed to 101 all out.
Erasmus Du Toit (4-19) was the chief destroyer, well supported by opening partner Subhan Javaid (2-18) with Turner, Luke Heritage and Christopher Hofen picking up a wicket apiece.
Anand racks up successive tons in Horspath 3rd's win
OPENER Tejas Anand reeled off back-to-back centuries as Horspath 3rd recorded a stunning 102-run victory at Great Brickhill 2nd in Cherwell League Division 3A.
He smashed a brilliant 126 off 97 balls with 23 fours and one six as Horspath rattled up 279-9 after choosing to bat.
Tejas Anand hit a superb 126
Anand, who made a league-best 132 against Leighton Buzzard Town in his last knock, carried on where he left off before he was finally dismissed to make it 201-5.
Joe Gibbs then took over, blasting a maiden league half-century with an unbeaten 53 to take Horspath to their final total. His runs came off 70 balls and included seven fours and a six. Dominic Pritchard (3-44) and Nimesh Chavda (3-46) were Brickhill's most successful bowlers.
Gibbs then got to work with the ball, taking 3-23 to reduce Brickhill to 69-3. Hadi Ali trapped opener Hamid Miah for 56, while Drew Burrows chipped in with 39 before falling to stand-in skipper Jason Cardy.
Stuart Berry also took a wicket before going off injured after splitting the webbing on his hand, leaving Tom Smith (3-13) to step in and wrap up the innings.
Captain Craig Wharton continued his fine form with 75 as Horspath 4th secured a draw at home to Wantage & Grove in Division 5C.
Facing the visitors' formidable 246-7 dec after they had chosen to bat, opener Wharton kept Wantage at bay during his 108-ball knock, which included 14 fours, as Horspath closed on 171-8.
He was well supported in a third-wicket stand of 101 by Abdul Dogar (23) after the hosts had been in early trouble at 17-2. Will Bury (3-26), Tim Weekes (3-42) and Will Harvey (2-30) shared the wickets.
Earlier, Adrian Manger had been the pick of the Horspath bowlers with 3-62, while Sammy Parker picked up 2-23 as Wantage piled up the runs.
Opener Colin Mercer (71) and Bury (23) put on 113 for the first wicket, before three wickets fell for one run. However, Tim Lane (59) and Bhupendra Basilisco-Gurung (52) then shared a stand of 118 to power Wantage to their final total.
Ruff rocks the Rec as Horspath roar on in Hartwell Senior Cup
ELLIOT Ruff hammered an imperious half-century as Horspath took a giant step towards Oxfordshire T20 Finals Day with an emphatic 65-run victory at home to Oxford Downs in the Hartwell Senior Cup.
Elliot Ruff cracks a cover drive during his brilliant knock of 58. Pictures: Rob Judges
The side have now won all three of their matches to strengthen their grip at the top of Pool 2 with a trip to Challow & Childrey on July 19 to complete the group games.
Ruff wasted no time in getting the Recreation Ground rocking after Horspath elected to bat, with three fours in the second over, before he repeated the feat with three consecutive boundaries in the next.
He kept up the sublime strokeplay with two more fours in the fifth over, before a sweetly-struck straight six by the scout hut saw Horspath race past 50.
Ruff brought up his own half-century with a four over extra cover in the next over, before his brilliant knock came to an end when he was caught on the mid-wicket boundary by the hedge off Gus Watts for 58 to make it 70-1. His runs came off just 31 balls and included 12 fours and one maximum.
Jimmy Phillips hits out on the way to making 42
Jimmy Phillips had been content to play a supporting role, but he stepped up a gear accompanied by skipper Patrick Foster, who made 19 before falling to a low catch at deep square leg off Henry Welch, leaving Horspath 110-2 in the 15th over.
Phillips hit a straight six over long on by the cycle speedway track before being caught off Welch's next ball at mid-on as he attempted to repeat the shot for 42 from 38 deliveries.#
Welch was enjoying success with his leg spin and claimed two more wickets to finish with 4-33 as Horspath closed on 168-6.
Bowling with good pace, Charlie Turner (2-16) then struck two early blows in Downs' reply with Alex Ling flicking a delivery off his legs into Phillips's hands on the deep square leg boundary by the hedge, before Luke Maslen was trapped lbw to leave the visitors 30-2.
Spinners Imraan Manack (2-23) and Josh Richardson (1-19) tightened Horspath's hold with a wicket apiece to make it 60-4 as opener Matthew Young (24) and Frankie Crouch fell with Subhan Javaid and Tyrone Eyles taking good catches in the deep.
Downs were never in the hunt from that point and left-arm spinner Lloyd Belcher ripped through the lower order with 4-7 as they closed on 103-9, despite a hard-hit 22 from Watts.
