Both captains agreed to reduce the game to 36 overs per side with the possibility of rain and thunderstorms being forecasted. Gotham won the toss and elected to put the hosts into bat first, and it seemed to had paid off with Eastwood faltering in their pursuit to set a defendable score. Both Blatherwick and Goddard causing havoc early on with the new ball as opening duo Steve Dockrell and Mark Stocks struggling to put bat on ball.

Stocks particularly struggled with the in-swing and unpredictable bounce, the big-man was soon back in the pavilion when he edged one behind. Ryan Buckley strutted to the crease and despite a shaky start, soon looked at ease as he and Docky looked to kick-start Eastwood’s slow start. The pair did exactly that as Eastwood went from 22-1 from 11 overs to 49-1 from 15 overs. Docky soon departed for 21, Stuart Hill was his replacement to the crease. Hill & Buckley continued Eastwood’s resurgence and emphatically upped the run rate, Buckley being the main perpetrator dispatching boundaries with such elegance. Shortly after reaching his 50, Buckley was unable to further capitalize and he was caught at mid-off.

Leading run-scorer Eddie Wright joined Hill with Eastwood 108-3, Wright continued from where Buckley had finished, dictating further runs from Gotham’s bowling attack. Hill was soon bowled out for 29 and new arrival Mark Carlin followed the same fate also being bowled out for 2. Danny Roberts entered the innings in energetic fashion, continuing to pile the pressure on the visitors by nicking 1’s and 2’s. Wright’s fantastic innings abruptly ended when he was caught for 34. Shaun Stocks proved to be the last batsman for Eastwood in their innings and his small cameo of 8*pushed the score to 190 from 36 overs, Roberts finishing on a respectable 22*.

In their defense, Stocks handed the new ball to spinner Sam Humphries & seamer Martin Worsley but the breakthrough came from a run out courtesy of Buckley. A calamitous mix-up in the middle resulted in Buckley seizing Eastwood's first opportunity of taking a wicket, firing the ball into Roberts's hands to take the stumps. Stocks replaced Worsley in the bowling attack and he soon claimed the wicket of Burton, when he edged behind. Eastwood’s momentum continued when Humphries bowled North and then Stocks got his second of the game dismissing Blatherwick.

Gotham now 4 wickets down in their pursuit and in serious trouble, Wales & Perrell now in the deep-end looking to fight back. Eastwood’s complacency got ahead of themselves again with Wales & Perrell building a steady partnership, reducing the deficit at an alarming rate. Just as the match fortunes seemed to be changing in Gotham's favor, Humphries stepped-up to the mark and Wales was caught superbly by Wright at long-on. Neville then departed after being bowled by Stocks, Humphries then cleverly flicked on an on-drive from his own bowling onto the stumps to dismiss Robinson. Josh Wyer was summoned to the bowling attack and within his first over claimed the wicket of Perrell, a deliberate tactical wide ball found the hands of Roberts, who sharply took the stumps. Wyer then claimed the wicket of Prettyjohn when he nicked behind to Mark Stocks, Eastwood now in sight of a 20-point victory as Gotham slumped to 108-9 with 8 overs remaining. Gotham’s 10th wicket stand resisted until the penultimate ball of the day when Buckley’s spin deprived the bat of Goddard and hit the stumps to win it for the hosts. Jubilant scenes followed with Eastwood recording consecutive wins for the first time since the 2016 season.

Eastwood travels to league leaders Ellerslie on Saturday looking to make it 3 wins on the bounce, but with several key players missing, it is sure going to be a difficult outing.