Cheltenham, England, when they beat Cheltenham by six wickets with 3.5 overs to spare.

Scores: Cheltenham 237-7 (50 overs), Devonshire Rec. 238-4 (46.1 overs). The local league champions took the task of scoring 4.72 runs to win into their stride, even after they realised their opponents were not going to abide by the limited overs rule which restricts the number of overs each bowler can bowl -- even though the match itself was 50 overs.

"We played limited overs and they played 50 overs,'' was how manager Gladstone (Sad) Brown explained the mix-up last night.

While Rec.'s five bowlers bowled the maximum 10 overs each, they didn't realise their opponents weren't about to apply the international rules themselves until one of their spinners began to bowl his 11th over.

"We found this out after the 30th over when one of them bowled his 11th over,'' Brown explained. "Some people say they play like this all the time.

We want to know the rules.'' After the Cheltenham openers had bowled six and five overs each they introduced spinners, Graham Flower, who had scored a century in their innings, and M.Bailey. They bowled 17 and 13 overs respectively with the Devonshire Rec batsmen Terry Fray and Albert Steede deciding to wait until the pair went off before accelerating the scoring.

After 10 overs Flower had conceded just 20 runs while Bailey had given up 33 by his 10th over. Steede, apparently not happy to see them continuing, launched a furious attack on their pair on his way to 96 not out which included seven fours and three sixes.

Flower's 17 overs cost 72 runs while Bailey gave up 60 runs in his 13. "When one of them bowled his 11th over we made some inquiries and they said `no this is how we play it','' said Brown. "They also used their own balls and after four or five overs the ball is suitable for spinners only.

"Albert batted extremely well and had a controlled innings. He's nursing a hamstring injury and the only reason he didn't get his 100 was because he was tired.'' Steede's 50 came off 52 balls in 42 minutes while openers Donald Norford and Lloyd Morrison, Fray and James Pace all made valuable contributions.

Norford scored 31 and Morrison 34 as they put on 68 for the first wicket.

Steede and Fray (34) then added 74 for the third wicket before Pace then joined Steede in an unbroken fifth wicket stand of 71, with Pace hitting a six in his 26 not out to win the game.

Earlier Cheltenham, third in their league in the Birmingham area, enjoyed a 94 run start between Zimbabwe's Graham Flower and G.Courtice.

Flower hit eight fours and seven threes during his 150 minutes at the crease before being stumped by wicketkeeper Lloyd Morrison off James Pace for 107.

Erskine Smith was the best bowler for Devonshire with three for 41 from 10 overs while Pace finished with two for 52 from 10 overs of spin. Captain Anthony Amory, who shared the new ball with Leon Place, took one for 52 while Place and Mark Trott both failed to take a wicket.

The field was big enough that the Cheltenham batsmen ran a number of threes.

"Probably the weakest part of our game is field placings and controlled bowling,'' said Brown. "It's good to get this first game under our belt but it should get progressively harder from here once word gets around.'' Devonshire play their second match of the five match tour today when they meet Stourbridge.

They will be boosted by the late arrival of wicketkeeper-batsman Roger Trott who flies in today and should play in Friday's match with Warley.

ALBERT STEEDE -- Scored 96 not out as Devonshire Rec. defeated English side Cheltenham yesterday.