Southampton 61-0 PHC had a Western Counties debut they will want to quickly forget as, in a match lasting a total of 31.5 overs, they suffered a bruising ten-wicket defeat at White Hill field on Saturday.

It all went right for champions Southampton Rangers after winning the toss and asking the challengers to bat first on a grassy wicket. Wickets fell with such regularity after Alfred Carter was dismissed in the third over that this match did not look like lasting until the lunch period.

To add insult to injury, Rangers did not need to look any further than either their opening bowlers or batsmen to get the job done, as Garry Williams and guest player Clarkie Trott ran through the PHC batting in just 19.3 overs and then left it to openers Dexter Smith and Keith Wainwwright to post the winning total in just 12.2 overs.

Trott, who scored 72 not out on his debut for Rangers two years ago, followed up his four wickets in the Eastern Counties last weekend with figures of seven for 13 off 9.3 overs.

That was Trott's best bowling of the season and took his haul for the season to 30 wickets. Williams was the perfect partner at the other end, claiming three for 42 off ten overs.

PHC were in deep trouble at 9-4 after seven overs and were in even deeper trouble seven overs overs later when the score read 23-9. Finally a stand did come as Ty Williams, better known for his achievements as a goalkeeper for the club, and Lyle Millett showed the top order how to graft.

The pair added 36 runs for the last wicket in 15 overs with Williams finally last out for a top score of 27. His two fours and a six were the only three boundaries in the PHC innings, while Millett was next high man with seven. A total of 18 extras enabled them to pass the 50 mark.

Southampton won the match with so much time to spare -- 2.40 -- that competition officials decided to arrange a 15-over-a-side match to entertain the crowd. That lasted only a few overs before rain put an end to that. Smith and Wainwright both hit three boundaries in their unbeaten knocks of 28 and 22 as Rangers booked their spot in the final against Willow Cuts in two weeks.

St. David's players grabbed the spotlight as St. George's routed Somerset by nine wickets in the annual Colts Cup Match yesterday at Somerset.

Somerset were bundled out for 146 and St. George's cruised to 150 for the loss of just one wicket.

Fiqre Crockwell, Rudell Pitcher and Kameron Fox claimed seven of the wickets between them with Crockwell finishing with three for 20, Pitcher two for 22 and Fox two for 44 as Somerset, sent in by the champions, slumped to 73-6.

Maurice Lowe, batting at number eight, led the Somerset batting with 43 from four fours and two sixes while opener Jaja Millett scored 26 and captain Shaun Wade 16.

Chris Foggo, Millett's team-mate in the recent International Youth Tournament, stroked 10 fours to finish 59 not out.

Foggo and Landro Minors (29) put on 83 for the first wicket and then it was left to Sammy Robinson, who stroked five sixes, two fours and a single to go from 11 to 50 in the space of just three overs as Foggo played second fiddle at the other end.