DEAN Waller hit his second century in succession but couldn’t inspire Leigh-on-Sea to victory over lowly Wickford in Shepherd Neame Division Two.

Waller was inspired with the bat once again but his team-mates failed to show up, with just James Pettitt and Joe Sexton reaching double figures in an otherwise dismal batting performance.

Leigh looked odds on to win after Wickford’s first six wickets fell for just 61 runs. But number eight batsman Adam Deller hit 57, which proved to be the decisive knock in the innings.

And Waller said his team was sticking together, despite no getting the win which would have lifted them out of the relegation zone.

“We play as a team and lose as a team,” he said. “It could have been any of us that got the runs as it wasn’t a bad surface.

“We did all the hard work in the field but we couldn’t chase 184 which is really disappointing. It wasn’t a bad toss to lose and I was pleased to field. We bowled really well and Paddy Groves got his career best figures and James Pettitt did well as well.

“They were 61-6 and their young lad got in and some runs and he showed us how to bat on it. If you stay there you will get runs, but we didn’t hang around long enough.

“It was a bad day at the office.”

The result leaves Leigh second from bottom, eight points ahead of Wickford although victory next weekend would likely see them climb out of the relegation places.

Wickford had won the toss and elected to bat but their early order was demolished by Paddy Groves (4-19) and Pettitt (2-16). However, the tail wagged impressively and Deller (57) and Dan Pryke (24) hit crucial knocks which edged Wickford to 184 in 46 overs.

Iain McDonald (one) and Harry Slack (three) failed to spark at the top of the order but in came Waller to anchor the innings, reaching 101 off 71 balls, including nine fours and six sixes.

But they fell 27 runs short of their desired total, all out in just 35 overs. Wickford’s Jamie Went excelled with 5-39 in 10 overs.

Old Southendian & Southchurch were also beaten although it took a big effort from Gidea Park & Romford to get the result.

Having lost the toss, Aaron Lucas’ men were put into field and they reached 245-6 in their 50 overs, with Max Craddock (42), David Johnson (67), Matt Wilson (45) and Chris Bunce (29) all scoring well.

Aaron Lucas (18) and Adam Rendall (21 not out) anchored the innings well to put them in a strong position heading into the Gidea Park innings.

The Old Boys picked up an early wicket but Jamal Francis (99) and Shawn Findlay (90 not out) were in great shape as they picked up the points, surpassing the total for the loss of just four wickets.

Old Southendian dropped to 39 points off the top two and the promotion places following the defeat, with Belhus, Gidea Park & Romford and Oakfield Parkonians opening up a sizeable gap at the top.

Horndon-on-the-Hill were beaten with the final ball in a thrilling match at Harlow Town.

The visitors elected to bat and Horndon made a solid start to their innings with Jack Walsh (43) and Tom Stone (22) impressing.

But it was Damien Sweet (83) who hit the highest score for Horndon as they closed on 274 in 48.5 overs.

Harlow Town needed a good start and that was what they got, with 86 runs on the board before Ashley Alderson was dismissed for 44.

But Dan Baldwin (42) and Joe Holland (40) impressed as they edged closer to the total set by Horndon.

In the end it came down to Daniel Farmer (32) and Scott Alderson (35) to hit the winning runs, with what was the very last ball of the match.

Belhus’ grip on the top of the table was loosened by chasers Oakfield Parkonians.

Having elected to bat, Belhus’ top order failed to spark for one of the first time this season, with key man Joe Joyce absent.

Ryan Wells hit 31 and Martin Guilbert 42 not out but Belhus were all out for just 163.

Oakfield Parkonians lost just four wickets in their reply, with Paran Kelley hitting 49, and Jibran Azam 36 as they surpassed the total in just 32.1 overs.