Portsmouth & Southsea clinch Southern Premier League East group title

They defeated Waterlooville by five wickets to pip Liphook & Ripsley to the East group title by just three points.

P & S won all five of their completed group games, with the other two - including one against Liphook - rained off.

P & S will now host West group winners Bashley Rydal 2nds at St James’ next Saturday.

Turrell bagged four cheap wickets as Waterlooville were dismissed for 135 after the visitors elected to bat first.

Benfield, continuing his fine form, then smacked a half-century as P & S collected a five-wicket victory.

Waterlooville were given a 56-run start by openers Namish Verma (28) and Archie Reynolds (25).

But after that only Max Goddard (24 off 17 balls) and Matt Shaw (14) reached double figures.

Turrell, the last of the six P & S bowlers used, bagged 4-16 off 7.5 overs as the visitors slithered from 110-4 to 135 all out.

Benfield and Jack Davies (16) put on 43 for the first Portsmouth wicket and the former ended up hitting 10 boundaries in his 80.

P & S only needed five runs for victory when he was eventually bowled by Ashan Silva.

Benfield has scored at least 23 runs in all his competitive league and cup games in 2020, topped by 136 against Purbrook in an East group encounter.

He had started his delayed summer by hitting 62 in a friendly against Havant.

Silva took 3-13 off his seven overs but P & S still had seven overs and one ball left when they notched the winning runs.