It needed a Reading FC footballer to give his cricket team a semblance of solace on Saturday.

Navin Desseneike is on the books of the Championship side, and his 14 runs for Perivale Phoenicians in Middlesex Championship Division One against promoted Ickenham may have seemed small beer.

But apart from Naveed Syed (27) and Arshad Khan’s late 18 runs - PP were left woefully short of a modest total as they crumbled to 74 all out.

It could have been worse.
 At one stage, Phoenicians were 15-6 chasing 118.

Delivery man: Faisal Sahebzada for Perivale

Danial Khan produced a decent return of 4-21 off 17.3 overs to suggest this was going to be Perivale’s day.

However, the loss of Rhit Murthy in the first over paved the way to a second defeat on the trot.

Ealing won the toss on a wicket that was a little wet under the surface, and had no hesitation in bowling first in their Middlesex League Division One clash with Twickenham.

Elliot Opie bowled an excellent opening spell (4-39) before youngster Arthur Godsal replaced him, picking up the crucial wicket of opposition captain Carlos Nunnes.

Line up: Ealing CC

The two spinners - Kristian Martin and Leigh Parry - bowled very well for the second week in a row, and Twickenham were reduced to 180 all out.

In reply, the Ealing openers, Oliver Wilkin (56) and Chris Wakefield (36) batted superbly, taking the game away from Twickenham. When they both eventually fell the game was all but won, with Robert White (49) and David Holt (28no) making sure.

There was a winning draw for Shepherd’s Bush in Division Two, but no luck for Acton and Brentham in the same league.

Bush were tantalisingly close to a second win they got to 243-5 at stumps, just five short of Enfield’s total reached in 53 overs.

Captain Jack Brydon played his part hitting 75, before Ian Massey (65) and Tom Felton 71no just felt short of the winning score.

Acton were nowhere near Hornsey’s 229-8, but thanks to a second captain’s innings just about survived.

Hannadige Soysa’s 79 including eight fours and a pair of sixes, was the glue that kept Acton intact to salvage a single-point losing draw .

Brentham were all out for 110 against Wembley, but the opposition also struggled. They just about made the slim total for the loss of eight wickets in a game that could have gone either way in the closing overs.