Southampton Rangers 237-8

Cleveland County 108

Visiting Cleveland County proved no match for Southampton Rangers at Southampton Oval yesterday as the home team romped to an emphatic 129-run win to step up their chase for league honours this season.

Led by a blistering half-century from opening bat Dion Stovell, Rangers piled up a challenging total before veteran swing bowler Ryan Belboda produced another miserly spell that left the visitors for dead.

Stovell smashed 11 boundaries in an aggressive knock of 74 achieved off 64 balls in 110 minutes and helped lay the foundation for his team's innings via a 71-run opening stand with former Cleveland player, Curtis Jackson, who chipped in with a useful 36.

Stovell dominated the stand, spraying the ball to all parts of the ground as Cleveland paid the price for sending their hosts into bat on a pitch possessing few demons.

He slapped eight fours and three sixes off a wayward Cleveland attack that tossed down 29 extras, including 14 wides.

Stovell also added 63 runs for the second wicket after Jackson departed along with Gerald Simons who scored 32.

Rangers were comfortably cruising along at 186 for four but were quickly reduced to 232 for eight as Cleveland medium pacer Shaki Darrell collected the prized scalps of Simons and skipper Malachi Jones (one) in his second spell.

He finished with team-best figures of three for 50.

Cleveland struggled from the outset in their reply as Rangers' opening bowling pair Jones and Belboda made early inroads with the new ball to have the visitors in tatters at 15 to five.

Jones made the initial breakthrough when he had Courtney Trott (one) caught by Janeiro Tucker at forward short leg and two balls later he trapped Steven Douglas jr (two) plumb lbw.

Belboda then tightened the noose in the very next over as he made a complete mess of Charles Richardson's (one) stumps before inflicting the same dose on Allan Douglas jr (0) who stood his ground in bewilderment after being judged leg before.

Belboda then claimed the wicket of teenager Damali Bell in his third over before player/coach Janeiro Tucker (two for 27) inserted himself and left-arm spinner Dwayne Leverock (two for 41) into the attack to bring the curtains down.

Former Warwick skipper Kian Butterfield led the Cleveland resistance with 27 with Darrell (20) and Patrick Stamp (22) also making positive starts against a disciplined Rangers attack that took only 26.5 overs to dismantle the opposition.