Irresponsible batting by the home team combined with a steady bowling performance by Southampton's Quinton Burch led to the Western Stars' first limited overs loss in this Green Division match at St. John's field yesterday.

Burch benefited from adventurous stroke play to claim five for 41 from nine overs of medium-pace. The opening bowler accounted for the first five wickets to fall and included in his list were the prized scalps of Arnold Manders and Jeff Richardson.

Manders scored 11 before falling to a brilliant one handed, diving catch by Lyndon Raynor, while Richardson's (7) out exemplified the reckless abandon exhibited by several of the Stars players. With his side in desperate need of a partnership the free-swinging middle-order batsman needlessly hooked a Burch delivery directly into the waiting hands of Stevie Lightbourne fielding at square leg.

Chasing 188 and standing at 82 for five with most of the frontline batsmen back in the pavilion it was always going to be a tall order for Stars to pull out a win. Skipper Gary Brangman (11) engaged in a 21-run sixth-wicket stand with young Hassan Durham (17 not out), but the tail crumbled as Olin Jones and Clevie Wade were introduced to the attack.

Jones finished with figures of two for 22, while Wade took three wickets at a cost of 25 runs.

Earlier Wade had blasted a half century with Jones (24) and Lightbourne (38) also making useful contributions. Wade slammed three fours and four sixes in his knock of 58.

Bailey's Bay 263 Hamilton Parish 130 Noel Gibbons yesterday turned in a good allround performance on the eve of his departure back to professional cricket in Scotland when he hammered 71 and then took four wickets for 32 to lead Bailey's Bay to a 133-run victory over rivals Hamilton Parish at Shelly Bay in a Gold Division game.

The allrounder struck seven fours and four sixes on the big ground and joined Charlie Marshall in a fourth-wicket stand that put on 96 runs. Marshall scored 30. Also among the runs were Clarkie Trott with 46, Irving Romaine 25 and Jermaine Outerbridge 24.

Chris Caisey was the best bowler for Parish with two wickets for 32. Parish lost skipper and opener Ricky Hill (5) with the total on 15 when he was smartly taken in slips by Clarkie Trott off Anthony Braithwaite. Millard Bean (31) and Quinn Outerbridge (9) added 29 for the second wicket and Bean and Dennis Trott (28) followed with 48 during a third-wicket partnership.

But once that stand ended it was all downhill for the Bailey's Bay bowlers with Jermaine Outerbridge spearheading the attack with five for 32 off 8.2 overs and two maidens.

Nationals 157 Devonshire Rec. 158-4 Albert Steede hammered 51 off 66 balls and skipper Anthony Amory struck 29 not out off 42 balls to lead Devonshire Rec. to a six-wicket victory over Nationals at Devonshire in Gold Division play.

Steede joined opening batsman Donald Norford (25) in a third-wicket stand of 69 after Roger Trott (0) and Terry Fray (18) were out, taking the score to 97 when Norford departed. Steede was out with the score on 119 but skipper Amory and Place (15 not out) hung around to the end to steer the team to victory.

Chris Wright, John Ray, Jeff Pitcher and Gary Knight each took one wicket for Nationals.

John Ray the top scorer for Nationals with 35 while Wright followed with 34, opener Jeff Pitcher 22, Nyon Steede 16 and Jason Lewis 13. Ray and Wright added 64 for the fifth wicket, taking them from 4-45 to 5-109.

Place took two for 27, Amory two for 31, Mark Trott two for 38 and Anthony Edwards two for 40.

Willow Cuts 303-8 Social Club (10 men) 96 Runs flowed in abundance at the Royal Naval field as Willow Cuts annihilated the 10-man Social Club, piling on the season's second highest limited overs total (303) in this Gold Division match yesterday.

Vivian Simons led the run chase, just missing scoring a century by, while stylish early order bat Andrew Rollins fell five runs short of the half century mark.

Simons, batting at number eight, lashed out for eight fours and eight sixes in his top score of 98, participating in stands of 88 and 76 with Trevor Dickinson (35) and Winslow Williams (32). Meanwhile, Rollins had eight fours in his entertaining knock, he and fellow opener Dwayne Basden (27) put on 78 for the first wicket. Number three bat Kevin Fubler also made a useful contribution of 27.

Francis Grenardo was the most effective Social Club bowler, grabbing three wickets while Roddy Thompson and Desmond Smith had two, but Smith's came at high cost with 51 runs being made off his five overs.

Cecil Tucker (40) and Lee Raynor (22) were the only Social Club batsmen to reach double figures as they slumped badly to 96 all out. Never really in the match they were at on stage 14 for six.

Rodney Fubler and nephew Richard Basden mowed through a fragile lineup sharing in six wickets. Joseph Matthews, Kevin Fubler and Williams each claimed one apiece.

St. George's 160-8 Warwick (10 men) 77 Even without any significant contribution from Cup Match players Wendell Smith, Graham Fox, Clay Smith, David Adams or Kenny Phillips, St. George's still managed to beat short-handed Warwick comfortably by 83 runs in the Green Division match at Wellington Oval yesterday.

The match didn't start until 2.00 because of a wet wicket which reduced the contest to 35 overs each team.

With the St. George's captain batting himself at number 11 and Fox, Phillips and Clay Smith at eight, nine and 10, teenager Ross Dowling took the opportunity to shine with the bat after youngsters Troy Hall and Ryan Steede had put on 43 for the first wicket in 12 overs.

Hall scored 22 while Steede hit 16 before Dowling led the batting with five fours and a six in a top knock of 44. A run out denied him his first 50 of the season. David Adams scored a useful 18 in the middle order as Warwick captain Hoyte Zuill was their best bowler with two for 28 from six overs.

Lewis Foggo, keeping wickets in the absence of Dean Minors, collected five catches behind the stumps and then gave the gloves to youngster Jason Anderson before turning his arm over for a couple of overs and getting the wicket of Zuill with a return catch to end the match and give the home team their second limited overs win over the season.

With both Phillips and Adams taking a break with the ball, Greg Foggo led the St. George's bowling with four for 14 from eight overs including three in one over while Hall, his new ball partner, finished with two for 19.

Cleveland 268-3 Som. Bridge 152 Century stands for the first and second wickets set up Cleveland's winning target at Sea Breeze Oval as Wayne Smith, after a series of low scores, smashed his first century of the season in the Green Division match.

It was a day for the Smiths to shine with the bat for Cleveland as Wayne scored an unbeaten 107 after hitting 10 fours and three sixes. He shared in an opening stand of 107 with Grant Smith who scored 65 from eight fours and two sixes and then added a further 120 for the second wicket with Carlton Smith who had three fours and four sixes in his knock of 63.

Allan Douglas and Del Hollis then both finished unbeaten on 15 as Cleveland Cleveland's allotted 46 overs ran out. Brian Gibbons, David Jones and Tony Cheeseman took one wicket each for Bridge.

Opener Robin Swan was high man for Bridge with 49, from eight fours, while O'Neil Virgil hit 44 to provide the other main contribution in the batting.

Bridge batted out their 46 overs before Corvette Lambert was stumped by Douglas on the last ball of the match.

Douglas finished with three stumpings late in the Bridge innings as Grant Smith completed a good allround performance by taking three for 21 from nine overs. Johnny Richardson claimed two for 26 in nine overs while Del Hollis, who opened the bowling with Cory Lowe, took two for 36 from 10 overs.

*** Wet wickets at St. David's and Somerset prevented any play in the matches between St. David's and Police and Somerset and Flatts yesterday as limited overs competition returned for the first time since June 14.

CENTURY MAKER -- Cleveland opener wayne smith hit a century yesterday at Sea Breeze Oval when he scored an unbeaten 107 to lead his team to a 116-run win over Somerset Bridge. Watching him score another boundary are wicketkeeper Junior Durrant and slip fielder Alfred Carter.