Broughton march into last eight

Western Bureau:

Westmoreland's champions, Broughton Cricket Club, became the first western qualifiers for the quarter-final phase of the 2011 Social Development Commission's (SDC) National Community Twenty/20 Cricket Competition on Sunday, when they upstaged Allsides by 53 runs in their top-of-the-table Zone C clash at Bounty Hall, in Trelawny.

By virtue of their win, the Paul Palmer Jr-led Broughton now have maximum six points from two games and are assured of one of the group's two quarter-final slots. The Allsides team will now have to beat Elgin Town, who joined them in second place with their 55-run win over Farm Heights, if they hope to advance.

Explosive start

Batting first against Allsides in the opening game of the double-header, Broughton got off to an explosive start with openers Andre Andrews and Myron Wilson posting 80 runs for the first wicket. They hit a slump after Andrews, who got 44; and Wilson, who got 21, were dismissed.

However, after seeing skipper Palmer, Dixieth Palmer and the veteran Cleveland Davidson being dismissed cheaply, they recovered to make 174 all out as Nathan Reid, with 21; Nicholas Gordon, who got 14; and Clive Thomas, with 11, propped up the tail.

Bowling for Allsides, Jason Rankine with three wickets for 22; and Neoka Baker and Denton Robinson, with two wickets each, were the top bowlers.

In reply, the Allsides team, who suffered a three-over penalty for turning up late, tried hard, but had too much to do as they battled to 121 for seven wickets off their 17 overs. Skipper Oral Rankine, who struck three sixes and four fours, top-scored with 37 runs for the Allsides team

Bowling for Broughton, Palmer (Dixieth) was the pick of the bowlers, bagging four wickets for 22 off four overs to give his team victory.

In their win against Farm Heights, the Elgin Town team batted first and raced to 164 all out off 19.4 overs. Edgar Planter, who struck four massive sixes; and Omar Roman, who got 36; were the leading scorers.

Ramon Manderson and Tyrone Johnson, with four for 25 and three for 28, respectively, were the top bowlers for Farm Heights.

In their turn at bat, the Farm Heights team struggled all the way and were dismissed for a paltry 109 off 15 overs. Only Dalton James, who top-scored with 22, and Johnson, with a breezy 16, showed any real resistance.

The final round of games will be played this weekend at the Little London Oval in Westmoreland, the home ground of the Broughton team.

- A.F.