Basingstoke & North Hants and arch local rivals Hook & Newnham Basics go head-to-head at the King George V Ground on Saturday, 1230 – the first time the pair have met in a Southern Premier League match since 2017, writes Mike Vimpany.

And Hook are still nursing the bruises from those derbies seven seasons ago – former Hampshire & Kent pace bowler David Griffiths wrecking their batting in both matches and finishing with an amazing combined return of ten wickets for a mere 28 runs.

Basingstoke defend the only SPL1 unbeaten record of four straight wins and go to the KGV minus left-hand opener Matt Deadman, but with a handy 11-point lead over Andover and 14 clear of Hook.

They lost Dubs Wood first ball against Calmore Sports at May’s Bounty, but gradually pieced the innings together through Deadman (22) and Ash Neal (29).

A second consecutive fifty by Dean Nurse (58) solidified the mid-innings, but it was the eighth wicket stand of 80 between Brad Neal (46 not out) and Neil Shelar (33) that pointed Basingstoke to a competitive 260-9 (Ben Fisher 3-69).

Ben Johns (42)and Will Brewster (30) gave Calmore a 74-run start, but the reply stalled when Joe Oates nipped out both batsmen, Brewster bizarrely stumped off a wide.

Fisher (46) and Sam Moss (28) kept the pot boiling, but Wood (3-29) took three wickets in his second spell to contain Calmore to 233-8.