IN THE Southern Premier Division, Ventnor made the trip to New Milton and were narrowly beaten.

The Islanders won the coin toss and elected to field, but it was the hosts who shaded the fixture by just four runs.

Bowlers Dineth Thimodya (4-32), Ben Attrill (3-31) and Charlie Calloway (2021) did well to limit New Milton to 166 runs.

But the Islanders, led by Alex Lloyd (44 not out) and Tom Friend (35), couldn’t find their groove, and fell just short, despite clinching victory by just a single wicket in their previous fixture.

Meanwhile, in Hampshire League Division One, Ryde lost on the road to Old Basing by five wickets.

Ryde won the coin toss and elected to bat, and club captain Ashley Goldsmith hit a spectacular 55 to set the standard.

Benjamin Shannon (39) did well, too, but the hosts limited the Islanders to a modest 204 runs.

Old Basing retained their composure to beat Ryde with five wickets to spare.

In Hampshire League Division Three, Shanklin and Godshill got the better of Locks Heath – winning by 43 runs.

Captain Ben White hit an incredible 101 not out, and – coupled with Ross Le Sueur (60) and others – registered what proved to be an unassailable 278 runs.

M Lambourne (4-25) denied the visitors any momentum, and Locks Heath were limited to 235.

In Hampshire Division Four, Jordan Galsworthy (80) led his Ryde II team to victory over a visiting Southampton Travellers team.

Lee Hailes (73 not out) and Robert Hobbs (47) helped their side to 263 runs and the visitors couldn’t match them – Mark Tuckwell (2-22), Luke Jones (2-40) and Ian Hailes (2-44) and all taking scalps.

Fellow Division Four side, Ventnor II, meanwhile, made short work of a travelling Kerala side – winning by eight wickets.

Mark Fletcher (74 not out) led the charge, and Hugh Calloway (30) applied some gloss to the scoreboard.

Kerala elected to bat first and posted a meagre 139 runs thanks in large part to Dominic Brihmani (4-44) and Sam Read (2-18).

In Division One of the Island League, Newport beat Northwood handsomely by 146 runs.

The hosts won the coin toss and elected to bat first, with Stu Gurney (74), Adam Wilson (68) and Thomas Dye (59) all contributing toward a formidable 264 runs.

Callum Witham (2-25) and Nick Stafford (2-43) did their best to stem the tide.

In response, Northwood hit 118 all out, with Witham (32) the only stand out performer.

Fellow Division One side Ventnor III, on the other hand, were well beaten by Shanklin and Godshill II – losing by six wickets.

The hosts won the toss and elected to bat first but were restricted to 247; Mark Price (115 not out) and Adam Goulding (95 not out) doing most of the damage.

Shanklin’s Steve Priddle (80), S Billington (56 not out), and D Cobb (37) helped the visitors overcome the deficit with six wickets to spare.

Gary Cooper (2-59) was all that stood in their way.

In Division two, Cowes were awarded points when Northwood II were forced to concede, while Newport II beat Ryde III by 108 runs.

It was the hosts, Ryde, who won the toss and elected to bat first, but the league strugglers were limited to just the 60 runs – Max Poynter (5-11) taking scalp after scalp.

In response, Northwood hit 163 through S Steinmetz (62 not out) and Paul Attrill (31), with James Williams (3-30) doing the most to spare his side’s blushes.

Pictures by Dave Reynolds.