Burnham Sports have targeted at least three wins from their final five league fixtures of the campaign to avoid relegation from the T.Rippon Mid-Essex League first division.
Sports lost their latest match by seven wickets away to Little Baddow last weekend and only Little Waltham are below them in a league of ten where two teams are demoted at the end of next month
On the plus side, though, the three clubs directly above them - Ingatestone, Herongate and Writtle - remain within catching distance and Burnham’s run-in does not feature any matches against the top sides.
This Saturday, they entertain Herongate (start 1.30pm) and a convincing win would be enough to jump above them.
Jamie Hamilton, skipper of Sports, said: “Our destiny remains in our own hands and we’ve got the players capable of getting us out of this hole. Our batting has been our problem all season and we need to dig deep to resolve that.”
Burnham’s struggles with the bat were emphasised last weekend when Baddow dismissed them for a paltry 61 in 22.3 overs.
Sports slumped from 29 for one to 30 for six as Shetty (five for 24) and Vasu (four for 31) caused chaos.
Robin Whittaker (19) and Joel Whittaker, his older brother, were the only batsmen to manage double figures.
Baddow needed just 11.3 overs to overhaul Burnham’s meagre tally, although Robin Whittaker (two for 20) and Ali Allchin did share three wickets between them during this all-action period. Andy Harris made 41 not out after being given an early life.
Meanwhile, Burnham’s 2nd XI, themselves facing a relegation fight in division eight, were gaining a vital 95-run win over Southend-based Trojans 2nds.
After deciding to bat, Sports reached 73 without loss thanks to Andy Stephens (43) and Steve Sims (33) but after that pair departed in quick succession they slipped to 85 for four.
Paul Green (69) and David May (26) then shared in a prosperous fifth-wicket partnership, though, before Chris Rich, Tim Lornie and Roger Perrin chipped in with late contributions. Green’s well-paced innings included ten boundaries.
Banks briefly threatened to blast Trojans back into contention but his side struggled for any momentum once he had played on to Brian Leech (11-2-40-2).
Perrin (12-2-32-3) was again hard to fault despite a nagging foot injury, while May (four for 15) took advantage of their initial strikes.
Neil Wade again impressed behind the stumps, while Perrin and Greg Campion also held onto smart catches.
This Saturday, Burnham’s 2nds make the short trip to their Woodham Mortimer counterparts.
On Sunday, Sports played Great Waltham at home in a league fixture and were thumped by 130 runs.
Waltham accumulated 201 for eight from their allotted 40 overs, with Matt Mears (one for 26 from eight overs) and Joel Whittaker (two for 15) doing their best to contain them.
Sports then crumbled to 71 all out - Wade being the only batsman to chalk up double figures.