Mattishall and Stow produced one of the games of the season in Division One – and it was just a shame that one of them had to end up on the losing side.

In fact a thrilling encounter that saw over 700 runs scored in 100 overs could easily have ended in a tie, only for Mattishall to clinch victory off the penultimate ball, with their last two batsmen at the crease.

Stow must have felt confident of strengthening their position at the top of the table after piling up an impressive 353-9, with Will Denny making 146.

But the Mattishall batsmen were not intimidated by the huge total and Gordon Chetwood took centre stage with an unbeaten 134 as they clinched an amazing win. The veteran batsman saw the hosts over the line in the company of fellow old stager Paul Beaumont, who had the honour of hitting the winning runs.

With Lowestoft and Thetford both losing, Stow clung onto the leadership, but it's now incredibly tight, with just four points separating the top six teams.

Acle will be hoping to go top today when they visit Horsford A after a superb 10th-wicket stand helped them beat Thetford at the weekend.

With their side struggling at 128-9 Josh Rowe (109) and Andrew Spaxman then put on 107 to set a challenging target. Ryan Conway made 80 in reply but Thetford were all out for 180.

In the top flight Downham Town finally had something to smile about after a poor start to the season when they recorded an emphatic win over joint morning leaders Cromer.

A side used to challenging for the title – and often getting their hands on the silverware – went into the match at the bottom of the table following four straight defeats.

But with New Zealander Nick Kelly playing a starring role it was a very different story this time around.

The 22-year-old all-rounder put the home side firmly in the driving seat with a magnificent 129 including 20 fours and three sixes that helped them make a daunting 316-6 in their 50 overs.

That was more than enough to see off Cromer, despite a brave 55 from Simon Chipperfield that featured five sixes. They were all out for 154 and after a second straight defeat are now third in the table behind new leaders Brooke and Sprowston.

Brooke made it four straight wins while condemning struggling champions Fakenham to a fourth defeat in five, after setting a challenging target of 261-7 (Matt Carver 64, Matt Collinge 50).

Despite the best efforts of Will Dunger (62) and Harry Blackiston (56) their visitors ended up falling 35 runs short.

Young Australian Damon Eagon made 90 as Sprowston reached 196 against Diss before bowling out the opposition for 156 (Tom Rose 4-21).

Brooke lead the way with 105 points from the five matches, with Sprowston 18 points behind.

Beccles' long wait for a win is finally over

Beccles got their Division Two campaign up and running with a first win of the season – although there was a sting the tail after the match.

The Suffolk side were deducted two points because of a slow over rate, but would still have been pleased with the way they saw off Great Witchingham A by 65 runs.

Alex Wright (72) and Chris Robson were the star men as they made 218 before bowling out the Witches for 153, with Wright weighing in with 3-30.

Bradfield and Vauxhall Mallards are joint leaders on 107 points after both won again at the weekend.

Chris Scannell made 103 of Bradfield's total of 234-5 as they beat Swardeston B by 23 runs while Connor Green (90) and Neil Clarkson (4-34) shone in Mallards' 68-run success against Bradenham.

The top of the table encounter in Division Three was a surprisingly one-sided affair, with Old Buckenham A beating Winterton by nine wickets.

Tom Alexander guided the Bucks to victory in spectacular fashion with an unbeaten 114 that featured no fewer than 24 fours after Winterton had been dismissed for just 158 (Devon Brannigan 54).

There was a high-scoring game in Division Five as leaders Bircham beat Cromer A by 88 runs at the Norton Warnes Ground. Their total of 331-7 was built around Will Pillinger's 102, while Alex Woodrow made 103 in Cromer's reply of 243-4.

The two recently promoted sides in Division Six went head to head and it was Hockwold who came out on top, ending Happisburgh's 100pc record with a three-wicket triumph. Ray Bland's unbeaten 76 saw the visitors past their target of 192 after Jamie Carter's earlier half century.