PAUL Payne will not rest until his side’s survival in the Dorset Premier League is mathematically guaranteed.

The Weymouth skipper saw his side’s home clash against Stalbridge washed out on Saturday, along with Dorchester’s encounter against Fern-down Wayfarers, who still sit two places below the fourth-bottom Seasiders with just one game of the season remaining.

However, Payne’s men could not be facing a stiffer test in their final match of the campaign, which will see them take on reigning champions and current league leaders Parley at Redlands next Saturday while Ferndown go to Stalbridge.

With just 1.04 average points separating the two sides, Payne is fully aware that his men still have work to do if they want to be sure of playing in the top-flight again next summer.

He said: “There was no chance of the game going ahead and it was a big shame especially as there is now only one game of the season remaining.

“It is a long off-season so losing two games in a row like we have done in the past fortnight is very frustrating but we need to ensure we are fully focused now on next Saturday’s big game against Parley.

“We have not played a lot of cricket recently so we will have two good net sessions this week to ensure we are in good touch come the weekend.

“I haven’t done the sums but I don’t think we are mathematically safe yet so it is important we approach the game in the right way and ensure we put on a good performance.”

Dorchester captain Martyn Richards is desperate not to see the cricket season come to an end without a single ball being bowled.

The county town side, and the majority of the Dorset League’s other teams, have now suffered back-to-back rain-offs. And with just one round of fixtures left to play, Richards is praying for better weather.

Reflecting on Saturday’s postponement at home to Ferndown Wayfarers, the skipper said: “There was no chance of it getting any better so we had to do the sensible thing and call it off at 10.15am on Saturday morning.

“That’s now two weeks in a row and it’s really disappointing because we want to end the season on a high.

“Fingers crossed the weather is okay next week when we go to Marnhull for the last game of the season because it would be even more disappointing if the same happened next week.

“Hopefully we’ll go there and sign off with a win.”

Beaminster, Bridport and Portland Red Triangle also saw their respective matches fall foul of the wet conditions. The islanders’ second string did beat the weather but not the opposition as they went down by three wicket at Stalbridge Thirds.