BROMSGROVE CC First XI were on the losing end of another run feast last Saturday as they were beaten by three wickets at Birmingham and District division one joint leaders Wellington.

The Boars, who slumped to a final ball defeat to Worcester two weeks ago, posted 264-7 but Wellington also batted well and secured victory with eight balls to spare.

Skipper Nick Husbands believes his side are going through a sticky patch but have the quality to bounce back.

He said: "The batting seems to have clicked and knowing the class we have in our bowling we have just had a couple of off days.

"Another loss is not good but we collected seven points, which is what we would have got for a losing draw. We actually moved up a position in the league so we have had some luck."

Husbands' side batted first with Simon Keyte and Nick Davies (43) putting on 93 for the first wicket in just 23 overs.

The visitors, who were giving a debut to 15-year-old Ben Dudley, then lost three wickets for just 20 runs before Phil Hamilton (37) joined Keyte at the crease.

He timed the ball to perfection with some savage hitting but Keyte, looking good for a century, was surprisingly bowled by Adam Byram for an excellent 79.

Zimbabwean Ross Liddell, returning after eight weeks out with a broken hand, came back with a vengeance to score a fantastic 77.

He scorched the ball to all parts of the ground, scoring nine boundaries in the process, as the Boars ended on 264-7 after 55 overs.

Wellington's reply started quickly as the hosts reached 60 runs in the first ten overs and the momentum kept going with Gavin Byram (62) leading the way.

Kish Patel stemmed the run flow as he took three wickets in nine deliveries to leave Wellington requiring 52 with three wickets in hand.

But wicket keeper Davidson (38 not out) and Clarke (29no) saw the league leaders home with eight balls to spare.