WILTSHIRE 247 (0pts) lost to DORSET 249-5 (2pts) by five wickets

DORSET’S NCCA Trophy fate lies outside of their control despite a five-wicket win over Wiltshire at Warminster.

Luke Webb’s men upheld their end of the bargain, beating the Group Four leaders with a solid display in all three departments.

With Dorset level on four points with Wiltshire, they must now hope Cheshire beat Wilts next weekend by a handsome margin to leapfrog their neighbours on net run rate (NRR).

Wiltshire’s NRR is currently 0.53 stronger than Dorset’s but, given Webb’s side lost their first two games convincingly, to merely be in with a shout of progression to the quarter-finals is an achievement.

READ MORE: Dorset beat Wales by seven wickets - report

Dorset were patient with the new rock when invited to field upon losing the toss.

Seam bowler Matt Burton, who joined Dorset from Wiltshire over the winter, ended with figures of 3-48 as the hosts were dismissed for 247.

Burton’s wickets against his former teammates came after James Degg (38) and Jake Goodwin (53) made hay.

But Hampshire all-rounder Felix Organ (2-47) bowled tidily and, along with fellow spinner Connor Smith (3-48), Dorset began to turn the screw with regular wickets.

Burton came back to blast through the tail but only after Archie Fairfax-Ross (29) and Will Naish (25) produced late cameos to give Wiltshire a defendable total.

Underlining the tail’s sterling effort, Wiltshire’s last four wickets put on 69 in the final 57 balls.

Dorset wrestled back the momentum when openers Webb (54) and Jacob Gordon (21) piled on 80 in 13 overs.

In typical fashion for this game, Wiltshire fought back when Joseph King (2-55) removed both batters.

Dorset were forced to rebuild and did so admirably with their next three partnerships all of substance.

Organ was caught and bowled by Ed Young (2-48) for a brisk 29 but he, along with in-form David Scott (57), put Wiltshire on the back foot.

Scott smashed four sixes and three boundaries in his innings, and effectively took a Wiltshire win out of the equation by the time he perished to Young.

Dorset now needed 45 runs from 82 balls and lit the ignition boosters towards their target courtesy of Finn Gordon’s 46 from 59 deliveries.

Although Gordon was prised out short of his fifty by James Degg (1-21), Alex Eckland (8no) and Will Tripcony (5no) safely guided them home with 29 balls to spare.

Dorset’s attentions will now turn towards Wiltshire’s clash with Cheshire on Sunday (11am), with the quarter-final against the undecided Group Three winners scheduled for Sunday, June 30.