ONE of the most violent assaults ever witnessed at Exhall and Wixford blasted Sunday's hosts out of this year's npower Village Cup, writes Mervyn Collins.

Ansley captain Ahsan Sayed smashed an incredible 109 not out as the visitors amassed 291-4 off their 40 overs.

Amazingly, Exhall's run rate bettered the Nun-eaton side's throughout their reply and, when they were finally dismissed after 35.1 overs, their total of 218 was five ahead of the visiting sides at the same stage.

However, that was when Sayed started his demolition job with Steve Kerby being smashed over his head three times in the 36th over to lift Ansley to 233-4 and the skipper to 67.

Two more maximums were taken off Andy Marsh before Sayed's reverse sweep efforts off two John Park balls in the next over only added seven to the total.

Leon Gates then suffered at Sayed's hands conceding three 4s and a 6 as the destroyer-in-chief completed his century off just 46 balls.

It could have been so different had John Simpson or Gates managed to lay a hand on Sayed's towering hit in the 33rd over - a fielding lapse in keeping with Exhall's torrid afternoon in the field.

There was little hint of the mayhem to follow when Ansley reached 85-2 at halfway but, Sagir Mohammed's hard-hit half-century proved the catalyst for Sayed's swashbuckling century, and hopes of a return to Lord's for the 2004 finalists appeared a distant dream at tea.

That dream threatened to turn into a nightmare when four of the home side's top six batters were back in the pavilion with only 32 on the board.

Opener Matt Gwynn and Martin Park doubled the reply before Park was clean bowled by Sayed, whose brother Qasim had earlier removed Kerby, Simpson and Scott Carmichael.

Andy Marsh and Gwynn then took the score to 124 before the former's attempts at another big hit saw his stumps shattered. Gwynn followed two overs later for 45 when Exhall still required 155.

Lee Chambers reduced that by 22 in the space of four deliveries and, the equation after 31 overs, was 109 off nine.

Chambers fell two short of 50 attempting another maximum leaving a limping Gates to launch an impossible final assault that also saw him clean bowled and Exhall to reflect on a second successive Warwickshire and Leicestershire Group Final defeat.