Bexhill on the brink but determined to finish well

Bexhill overseas player Jake Lewis bowling against Ansty at The Polegrove last weekend. Pictures by Simon Newstead

Bexhill Cricket Club stands on the brink of relegation from the Sussex Premier League, but captain Johnathan Haffenden insists his team is determined to finish the season as well as possible.

Bottom side Bexhill are 87 points adrift of Brighton & Hove, who occupy the final safe spot of third-from-bottom, with a maximum of 90 available from the remaining three fixtures.

Haffenden said: “Unfortunately, the league doesn’t lie. We are where we are for a reason. But we will still be looking to pick up points and we’re still looking to win games.

“We’ve got the derby against Hastings to look forward to (on Saturday September 2) and we don’t want to go the whole season without winning at home.

Bexhill celebrate a wicket during their narrow defeat against Ansty.

“You don’t want to not perform, there’s a lot of personal pride to be had in it. Every one of our batsmen should be looking to score a hundred; you want to be the one who does it for the side. On the bowling front, you want to be the one taking wickets.

“We’ve got a lot of personal goals people want to achieve and if they do that, the team will do well. We’ve just got to make sure we pick up points. When we’ve lost heavily, we’ve literally walked away with nothing.”

Availability issues haven’t helped Bexhill’s cause this summer, and they will travel to third-placed Horsham tomorrow (Saturday) without Liam Bryant, James Walker and Bradley Payne.

Sussex Premier League standings (all played 15 matches): 1 East Grinstead 364pts, 2 Roffey 345, 3 Horsham 292, 4 Cuckfield 285, 5 Middleton 241, 6 HASTINGS PRIORY 228, 7 Preston Nomads 227, 8 Brighton & Hove 211, 9 Ansty 134, 10 BEXHILL 124.