Henley 3rd XI produced a spirited response in difficult circumstances at Nettlebed on Saturday, with Hanna and Dyer combining in a superb 95-run partnership before Sulhampstead & Ufton eventually secured a 74-run victory.

With a number of regular players unavailable due to shortages further up the club, Henley fielded a reshuffled side against a strong Sulhampstead 2nd XI. The visitors won the toss and, with the wicket expected to deteriorate as the afternoon progressed, unsurprisingly elected to bat first.

Henley made a solid start with the ball. Garfath-Nebbett again provided control, conceding just 28 from his nine overs and picking up a wicket, while Taylor returned an economical 1-22. Hanna also bowled tightly, his 6.5 overs costing only 32 runs and including two maidens.

Sulhampstead had reached 60 before losing their second wicket and Henley continued to make regular breakthroughs. Walden made 30, Mercer 20 and Aldred 21, but the innings was held together by Saswade.

His unbeaten 79 proved the backbone of the visitors' total. Henley were still very much competing when Sulhampstead slipped to 169-5, but the latter stages of the innings proved costly. Hill contributed 29 before Braithwaite provided a particularly damaging late cameo, striking an unbeaten 35 from only 14 deliveries as the visitors accelerated to 267-6 from their 45 overs.

It was always going to be a challenging chase and, as anticipated, batting became progressively more difficult as the wicket deteriorated.

Henley's reply began badly when Price departed without scoring and, although Atwal attempted to steady the innings with 29, wickets continued to fall around him. At 48-5 the chase appeared to be slipping away and, when Clarke became the seventh wicket with the score on just 69, Sulhampstead looked firmly in control.

What followed, however, was comfortably the highlight of Henley's innings.

Dyer and Hanna produced a magnificent counter-attacking partnership of 95, combining sensible defence with enough aggression to put the pressure back on the visitors. With the surface becoming increasingly unpredictable, the pair showed tremendous application and gradually dragged Henley back into the contest.

Dyer played an important supporting role, making 37 from 48 balls, while Hanna was outstanding. He took the attack to Sulhampstead whenever the opportunity arose and reached an excellent 67 from 70 deliveries, including nine fours and two sixes.

More importantly, the partnership made Sulhampstead work extremely hard for the breakthrough. From a position where the game appeared all but decided at 69-7, Dyer and Hanna forced the visiting captain to search for a way to separate them as Henley moved to 164.

Dyer's dismissal finally ended the stand and, although Hanna continued to battle alongside Taylor, the size of the original target and the increasingly difficult surface eventually proved too much. Hanna was ninth out with the score on 191 before Henley were dismissed for 193 in 41.5 overs.