LLANARTH welcomed third placed Welsh Asians to the LCG expecting a big threat to their unbeaten record following the visitor's scalp of second placed Radyr the previous week.

M4 traffic issues delayed the opposition's arrival though wags suggested had skipper Heath attempted to claim the toss he would have lost it.

When the delayed toss did take place Heath failed again and WA chose to bat first on a damp, slowish track. Banaras and Lomax (2-13) bowled very tidy opening stints, Lomax tormenting Hasan before putting him out of his misery with an inswinger taking the top of off before Aslam drove loosely at his first ball to be taken at cover.

At 40-2 from 15 overs James was introduced into the attack and struck with his sixth ball, castling Aziz. 

Opener Ahmad had batted well thus far, striking five crisp boundaries in an otherwise watchful knock but James first induced him to edge through the slip cordon before he feathered a catch to fifth choice keeper Vaughan, who kept beautifully throughout, an over later.

When Swati perished in the same over WA were 55-5 and James had three scalps. Rehman attempted a counter-attack striking a maximum and a boundary before chancing his arm again only to be well taken by a tumbling Wharton.

James completed his maiden five wicket haul with the first ball of his eighth over and five became six with the last ball of the same over when the WA captain was snared in the gully. Man of the moment James began his penultimate over sniffing a Conference tie, awarded for seven wicket hauls, and a huge lbw appeal was agonizingly turned down off the final delivery. He would not get another chance as perennial Conference tie collector Powell (2-23) grabbed the final pair of wickets denying his team mate a smart piece of formal wear and reducing WA to 95 all out. Whether James would know what to do with a tie would be a question for another occasion but nevertheless his 6-30 represented a terrific spell of bowling. 

Following a sumptuous tea, Conference Player of the Month for July, Lomax opened with Baxter, the pair keen to make it a dozen straight wins for the Trees and maintain the only unbeaten record in South East Wales.

Baxter could have been strangled down the legside immediately and indeed should have been taken at point when his loose cut stroke flew through the hands of the fielder stationed there. They were chances that WA would regret as once settled eight boundaries flew from his bat in the space of just 20 deliveries. Lomax was becalmed to begin with, perhaps contemplating how to spend his Player of the Month voucher, but when Khan replaced the accurate Rehman at the Road End he was hammered into the car park dangerously close to both the captain's and chairman's vehicles.

Baxter (48*) edged just past his own club record for League runs in a season, raising the new mark to 811 with a possible three innings to go, as Lomax (43*) pushed the total to 90-0 before ending the match with another big six that shattered a tile on the Village Hall roof.

The thumping 10 wicket win took Llanarth to within 26 points of sealing the title however as next week the Trees face second placed Radyr where any sort of victory will ensure silverware and the popping of champagne corks.