Andy Hemming was the Shipton-under-Wychwood’s hero for a second match running as they saw off Cumnor by four wickets in yesterday’s Oxfordshire final in the npower Village Cup.
Shipton will now visit Welsh side Ynystawe/Hfvvviig in the first national round on Sunday, July 4.
Having bagged 200 to defeat Tiddington in the previous round, opening batsman Hemming made 103 to take his to the brink of victory.
But he did have a big slice of luck, however, as a delivery from Cumnor captain Sam Jones nicked his off stump early on, but did not dislodge the bails.
Hemming held together Shipton’s reply as they made hard work of chasing Cumnor’s below-par 173 all out.
Despite a quick-fire start with Hemming hitting boundaries at will, Shipton were made to fairly work hard.
They eased to 95-2 after 20 overs, but then lost Steve Bates and Jason Hunt in successive overs.
Hemming was finally out lbw to Jones the ball after bringing up his ton with a crashing boundary, leaving wicket-keeper Paul Jennings to hit the winning runs.
His century came off 103 balls, with 13 fours and one six.
Ayaz Khan bowled with pace and aggression on a spinner-friendly pitch, while Adam Cook showed great control in his nine overs.
Cumnor won the toss and chose to bat in seemingly good conditions, but were never able to really cut loose.
Jimmy Nielsen fell early on when he carved a simple chance to Paul Hemming at point, while youngster Jamie Lee was bowled by Jon Hartley.
Cumnor’s run rate was too slow and they crawled to 63-2 at the halfway point thanks to tidy spells from Craig Lambert and Chris Panter.
They fared better after this, but every time they gained an advantage, they tended to shoot themselves in the foot.
Having plundered 15 runs off one Shaun Miller over, Cumnor then had star man Cook run out thanks to a Miller throw off the next ball.
Khan showed his hitting prowess with a huge six over mid on, then mistimed another attempt to Steve Bates at deep square leg.
Veteran Tony Munsey was run out without scoring, much to his annoyance, but the guilty party, Jamie Douglas, did at least go on to make 50.
Carl Thompson also fired a couple of sixes before nicking one behind to Paul Jennings and so it went on.
Off-spinner Hartley finished with the best figures for Shipton, who then attacked the chase with gusto.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here