CIRENCESTER slipped to a disappointing three-wicket defeat in a crucial relegation battle at Cam on Saturday and were left to rue the vagaries of the weather, after being forced to bowl and field in constant rain which made life much easier for the home batsmen.

However, although the rain offered some excuse for the setback against the bottom team in Division One of the Readers County League, it failed to fully explain a faltering performance by a Town side whose early batting and bowling lacked conviction.

Put in to bat on a slow pitch the Town lost David Durston, caught at slip with the total on 21 in the ninth over and skipper Andy Cooper soon followed when he was given out leg-before. Dominic Jeffcott and Richard Graham then ground out a stand of 43 in 14 overs, but Graham then fell to a fine low catch at cover point and when Jeffcott was bowled by the spin of Hall, and Andy Reynolds and Mark Clayton were both dismissed by the accurate Mears, the Town were in deep trouble at 81-6 in the 31st over.

Graham Clarke was next to go, trapped leg-before, but the arrival of Mark Hayes to join Dick Tugwell saw the Town's fortunes turn for the better as they took on the Cam bowlers in forceful fashion to put on 58 in the final ten overs.

Hayes struck three powerful sixes in his unbeaten 29, while Tugwell reached 21 before being run out in the penultimate over, the Town's last two wickets falling in the quest for runs with the total on 148 in the final over.

On a pitch that was more than helpful to bowlers, it was a total the Town felt they could defend after tea, but when they took the field, the rain quickly set in and the Cam batsmen showed they were up to despatching anything overpitched and off line to the boundary.

Cooper struck two blows with wickets in his third and fourth overs, but bowling with a greasy ball the Town struggled to contain the run rate as Hall came in to hammer four fours and a six before he was adjudged leg-before in Gee Singh's first over of off-spin.

Tugwell then came on at the other end to pick up three wickets, but the Cam middle order pushed steadily towards their target, enjoying good fortune with lofted shots that failed to find a fielder.

John Turner was brought into the attack with Cam on 120-6 and he raised a glimmer of hope by taking a fine return catch to claim the seventh wicket, but it came too late as the home side ground out the final few runs to secure a hard-earned win.

Cirencester 148: M Hayes 29 not out, R Graham 27, R Tugwell 21, D Jeffcott 20; R Mears 4-20, P Hall 3-31, P Holder 2-38.

Cam 150-7: P Hall 27, S Angell 18, R Hall 18, R Mears 14, S Kalus 14 not out; R Tugwell 3-29, A Cooper 2-33.