Fakenham were involved in an excellent game on Saturday which ebbed and flowed, produced over 500 runs and saw 18 wickets fall.

In the end they were relieved to come out on top against fifth place Brooke to add another 25 points to their tally and strengthen their grip on fourth place in the Alliance Premier Division.

Invited to bat on a hot day, and no doubt lured in by the sight of a 30 yard boundary on one side, Fakenham were expecting to pile up a big score and after the early loss of Harry Bammant a partnership of 63 between Ben Harvey (22) and Keegan Monahan-Fairlie helped rebuild the innings.

Luke Caswell joined Monahan-Fairlie at the crease and although runs were hard to come by in the face of some good bowling, Fakenham gradually put themselves into a strong position. However from 142-2 the expected onslaught did not quite materialise as Monahan-Fairlie was run out for 75 and John Ewart (13), Will Dunger (25) and Harrison Futter (17) all came and went. Caswell also departed after a patient 75 and Fakenham finished on 263-8, with a slight feeling that a few runs were left out on the field.

Brooke started brightly before Caswell and Lloyd Marshall found their line and length. Marshall bowled straight through his stint, with his 10 overs going for 33 while Caswell snared opening batsmen Seager lbw (8) and David Coyle took the wicket of Ben Watson (26), leaving Brooke 80-2.

Coyle and Ash Layer managed to further restrict the flow of runs while also picking up wickets at crucial stages, limiting Brooke to 122-5 off 30 overs with Zimbabwean pro Tinotenda Mutombodzi having passed his 50 and looking dangerous. With the game seeming secure for Brooke at 216-5 a moment of brilliance from Bammant swung the whole tilt of the game as an outstanding piece of fielding and a direct hit from the boundary ran out the Zimbabwean for 83 and gave Fakenham hope.

Coyle brought himself back on and took the big wicket of Habershon (57) caught and bowled to leave Fakenham believing they could snatch the game. With 30 runs required off four overs with three wickets in hand it should in theory still have been Brooke’s game especially when they hit two sixes off successive deliveries. However Monahan-Fairlie (2-31) and Yin Lo (1-44) had different ideas as they picked up the final wickets to secure a thrilling 13 run win with just four deliveries to spare.