CRICKET: Hadleigh & Thundersley will still be in the Essex League Premier Division next season after pulling off a final day escape act.

Hadleigh picked up the eight points needed to ensure survival against Buckhurst Hill in their last outing of the campaign.

And skipper Sam Handley is delighted to have stayed up.

“It was a crazy and nerve wracking day from start to finish,” said Handley.

“We thought we needed to win to stay up and it was only at the innings break that we realised that eight points from bonus points in a loss will be enough to keep us up.”

Hadleigh were ultimately beaten by 26 runs against Buckhurst Hill.

But their second innings score of 258 was enough to avoid relegation.

And Handley remains full of praise for his team.

“We have had a really young and inexperienced side all year,” said Handley.

“We knew this year would be a challenge due to a lot of availability issues highlighted last winter.

“This year was all about bringing through some youth talent and trying to stay in the league and I’m so proud of my lads the way they fought till the end.

“The win the week before at Hornchurch might be one of the best I’ve ever experienced winning by two runs.

“It gave us a fighting chance on the last day of the season.”

But Handley admitted it was tough to keep tabs on what was needed during an eventful afternoon of games.

“I was told by the opposition when I walked out to open the batting that 250 in reply would be enough points to guarantee safety but I wasn’t sure whether to believe them or not,” said Handley.

“In all honesty I didn’t even know if we were completely safe when we got to 250.

“It wasn’t until I got a call from a couple of the other Premier League captains telling me that we were safe, that we started to celebrate.”

But attention will now turn towards ensuring Hadleigh are higher up the table next season.

“It was a year where we knew the availability issues would be difficult but young talented players such as Billy Corps, Ethan Rogers and more having stand out years in the ones this season has allowed us to rebuild our team, said Handley.

“With our new nets we have the best facilities in the county and a new youth player progression programme that will allow us to keep allowing young talent to test their abilities at the highest of club cricket in the country.”