Bognor salvage draw against league leaders

Cuckfield won the toss and had no hesitation in batting, with Sussex's Henry Rogers quickly into his stride. Although Josh Sargeant accounted for Wesley Marshall and William Nolan, Rogers built steadily with the composed Ollie Graham (54), eventually bringing up an excellent hundred, before falling to Taylor Jaycocks for 128. Some lower order fireworks saw Cuckfield motor to 274-7.

Bognor had the worst possible start, losing Ryan Maskell and Mike Harris for ducks, slumping to 0-2. This soon became 25-5 as Cuckfield wreaked havoc. With no realistic chance of victory, Bognor set up shop to see out the game, as the Cuckfield fielders made their feelings clear.

The chance of batting for a draw was slim, but Theo Beynon-Ayres took it upon himself to set the tone. Resolute in defence and not shy of biting back with a word or two, he brought up a magnificent first half-century for Bognor, a knock of 57 off 163 balls.

At the other end, Ben Woolnough and Josh Seward found form and confidence from their part of the rearguard. Towards the end, the script flipped as Cuckfield worked to prevent Bognor hitting the boundary which would have taken them to an extra bonus point, with Beynon-Ayres falling to the last ball of the match as he tried to hit the four required.

Bognor will hope for a better performance in next week's derby against Middleton, but the attitude of Maskell's side can't be questioned, with the batting display particularly cathartic after a disintegration against East Grinstead the previous week.

Bognor remain fifth in the table, whilst Cuckfield drop to third.