Great Ellingham first team beat Kirkley by 10 wickets - confirming their second division status in the Mid Norfolk Sunday League for next season.With victory in their final league match next Sunday at home to Belton they now have a excellent chance of achieving a very creditable third place in their first season in a tightly- fought Division Two.

Great Ellingham first team beat Kirkley by 10 wickets - confirming their second division status in the Mid Norfolk Sunday League for next season.

With victory in their final league match next Sunday at home to Belton they now have a excellent chance of achieving a very creditable third place in their first season in a tightly- fought Division Two.

Ellingham have a huge match on Bank Holiday Monday as they play local rivals Hardingham in the Broke Cup final at Spowston CC with a 1.30pm start.

All supporters are welcome.

On a warm, blustery day skipper Richard Smith lost the toss and Kirkley decided to bat first.

The potentially match-turning Kirkley batsman C Guy (15) started encouragingly before he was bowled by the impressive young Ellingham opening bowler Barry Glover.

Glover continued his excellent recent bowling form to return figures of 3-23 off six overs, and was well supported by his fellow opening bowler Brendan Ledeboer (1-18).

Kirkley had now struggled to 44-4 off their first 11 overs.

Regular Kirkley wickets continued to fall over the course of the next few overs with only J Block (29) and M Daw (18) making significant contributions.

The nagging line and length bowling of Mark Standley (2-22) and the flight and guile of young spinner Carl Oxborough (3-20) proved too much for the Kirkley lower-order batsmen as the side was bowled out in the 24th over for an under-par score of 100.

Ellingham's reply from the regular opening duo of Richard Ewin and gun batsman Adrian Cooper started well and just got better and better as the innings went on.

Both players hit a number of their trademark shots to all parts of the ground as the scoreboard rattled on at a brisk pace with 70 runs scored for the loss of no wickets in the first 10 overs.

The impressive scoring pace continued as the opening pair homed in on victory thanks in a small part to some indifferent bowling from the visitors.

The winning target was quickly achieved in just the 15th over with Ewin unbeaten on a well- made 29 and the ever-impressive Cooper finishing not out on 52, his seventh 50-plus score of a very successful season.

An emphatic 10-wicket victory for Ellingham was fully deserved and has now definitely secured their place in the Burgess Shield second division for the 2010 season.