GREAT Yarmouth hosted top- of-the-table Winterton on Saturday and despite a battling performance ended up on the losing side of a low-scoring Norfolk League Division Two encounter.

GREAT Yarmouth hosted top- of-the-table Winterton on Saturday and despite a battling performance ended up on the losing side of a low-scoring Norfolk League Division Two encounter.

Winterton elected to bowl first on what turned out to be a very lively track. Yarmouth's new-ball pairing of White and Sparkes quickly showed that runs would be a premium.

Nine runs had been scored by the seventh over before White struck the first blow, Noble-Parker (4) mis-cueing a pull and Hak holding the skied catch. Nine for one quickly became 10-2 as Sparkes (1-21) removed Clarke (5) the next over with Oxborough making good ground to complete an excellent catch.

Two new batsmen at the crease and Yarmouth sensed a possible upset and that feeling increased when Witheridge (1) gloved one to second slip, leaving the visitors on 21-3.

Key man Roper was joined by Boylan and the pair steadied the ship and started to take the attack to the home bowling as they brought up the 50 in the 19th over. The partnership was then broken as Boylan (9) was run out by a good stop and calm throw from Thompson with Sparkes whipping off the bails.

R Ruddick replaced White and quickly removed Austin (8) and then was unlucky not to remove Roper, his sliced pull falling tantalisingly short of Sole's fingertips at mid-wicket.

Roper and Utting looked to be taking the game away before both fell with the score on 86. First Roper (33) was sent back too late by his partner and was run out. Some more outstanding work in the field by S Ruddick.

Next over Utting (11) was bowled by Ruddick. Yarmouth had stifled the run rate with only seven runs coming from nine overs and had hopes of restricting the league leaders to a double-figure total. But good lower- order play by Percival and T Roper added 23 for the eighth wicket.

Oxborough (2-30) restored order bowling Percival (12) and then with the help of the returning White (3-31) finished off the innings with Winterton on a creditable 122.

The Yarmouth reply got off to a bad start with Fitzsimmons bowled by Larner (1-11) in the second over without a run on the board.

Ruddick and Sole struggled to score. Despite this the pair added 31 for the second wicket.

But wickets started to tumble. uddick (10) edged behind then Hak (10), after two glorious boundaries, looped a catch up off the bowling of Lockhart (1-31). Percival joined in the fun, removing Kapila and suddenly Yarmouth were 46-4.

Thompson joined Sole and immediately took the fight to the visitors, racing into double figures in style. Sole (14) tried to break out of his shackles but feathered a Percival delivery behind to leave Yarmouth at 65-5 and starting to run out of time. Percival was a one-man wrecking machine as he ripped through the Yarmouth order, claiming all of the last seven wickets, even taking his own catches.

Thompson (21) had given Yarmouth hope but when he was bowled with the score on 78 the writing was on the wall. Some defiant hitting from Oxborough and Sparkes saw the home side to 97 but the victory target of 123 was never under threat. Burton Arms MoM: John White (3-31) ably assisted by the other bowlers.