Kent Spitfires dramatically collapsed as they were edged out in their high-scoring Metro Bank One-Day Cup game against Durham at Canterbury on Sunday.
Chasing a target of 308, Kent looked like they were coasting to a comfortable victory which would have kept their knockout chances firmly alive when wicketkeeper Harry Finch (104) and captain Jack Leaning (81) delivered a mammoth stand.
But almost unbelievably, Spitfires slipped from 223-2 to 294-9 and ended up losing, finishing their chances of making the 50-over cup knockout stages.
There was a one-minute silence ahead of the game in memory of former England batsman Graham Thorpe, who died on Monday, aged 55.
The home team had made two changes from the side, which earned a three-wicket win at Derbyshire two days earlier. South African overseas all-rounder Beyers Swanepoel and fast bowler Nathan Gilchrist replaced all-rounder Ekansh Singh and namesake Jas Singh.
Swanepoel (1-28) was quickly in the action in front of a crowd of 2,487 on Kent’s community day at the Spitfire Ground. He castled Michael Jones for 12 in the fourth over.
But it certainly appeared a day for batting in sunny conditions as Durham moved to 93-1 before Spitfires skipper Leaning (0-33) brought himself on.
He couldn’t stop opening batsman Ben McKinney from getting to his half-century in 49 balls, though, at the end of Leaning’s first over.
A much-needed Spitfires breakthrough then came in the 19th over when Alex Lees was trapped in front by Australian overseas bowler Charlie Stobo (1-55) to leave Durham 101-2.
Matt Parkinson (1-64) came into the attack and claimed the scalp of Colin Ackermann through his second ball. Ackermann chipped the leg-spinner to Leaning and went for seven.
Durham had progressed to 140-3 by the halfway stage.
Kent made hard work of it for McKinney but he eventually took a single off the final ball of the 34th over, bowled by Marcus O’Riordan (3-36), to bring up his ton in 103 balls – a knock which had included 12 fours and two maximums by that point.
McKinney finally went for a fine 115 in the 38th over when he switch-hit O’Riordan straight into the hands of Stobo in the inner ring to leave Durham well-placed at 207-4.
The same man trapped Scott Borthwick in front for 35 in his next over – and then got Neil Wagner, who chipped to Joey Evison to go for one.
But O’Riordan was forced off the field at the start of his eighth over as he took a blow to the hand.
Young wicketkeeper Haydon Mustard – the son of ex-England player Phil Mustard – and Bas de Leede rode their luck at times and hammered 65 runs in 7.4 overs.
Their fun was ended by teenage all-rounder Jaydn Denly, however, incredibly the ninth home bowler used, trapping Mustard in front for 35 from 24 balls.
In the penultimate over of the away innings, Stewart (1-34), who had a day to forget in the field, dropped a simple caught-and-bowled chance. He did dismiss de Leede for 47 off 36 balls soon after when the 24-year-old picked out Evison on the boundary.
And Denly claimed two further wickets in the last over to finish with fine latter-inning figures of 3-15 from two overs, leaving Durham 307 all out after their allocation.
O’Riordan had started his reply fairly well, only to nick behind off New Zealand international Wagner (2-66) in the fifth over to leave Spitfires 20-1.
Durham looked on top at this stage until Evison eased some of the pressure with three successive boundaries in the seventh over.
But Evison also was caught behind in unfortunate circumstances for 28 as he was strangled down the legside by de Leede (1-46) to leave Kent 40-2 after eight overs.
That brought together Leaning and Finch, who moved Spitfires beyond the 100-run mark with a cover drive four by the latter to conclude the 18th over.
Finch went to his 50 in 59 balls, including seven fours, in the 24th over and Kent were 145-2 at the halfway stage, leaving the game in the balance.
Leaning found the legside boundary from the final ball of the 30th over for his second half-century in a row before Finch sent Jonathan Bushnell (0-36) for consecutive boundaries.
Kent appeared to be cruising to victory and Finch brought his century in emphatic style with a booming straight six off Borthwick (0-29).
Not long after, the 29-year-old went, though, for a magnificent 104 from 91 balls to end the 183-run stand between him and Leaning. His knock had included 13 boundaries and one six before he was excellent caught from Wagner’s bowling by Ackermann.
Leaning followed suit in the 42nd over, bowled by George Drissell (4-38) for 81 off 96 balls, to leave the home side 256-4.
Stewart added just three before he was adjudged lbw from Drissell to leave Spitfires 260-5 – still requiring 48 runs with 6.4 overs to go – and Swanepoel was handed a similar fate off Ackermann’s bowling (1-37) for one.
Unusually, Parkinson was promoted to No.8 and the match effectively appeared up when Denly clubbed one in the air, only for Jones to shell a straightforward chance.
It mattered little, however, with Drissell trapping the 18-year-old in front for 17.
Parkinson was next to go, caught by Jones from Drissell, for six – remarkably, a fifth Kent wicket to fall in little more than five overs.
Stobo and Gilchrist were the men at the crease for the last over, from which 18 runs were needed.
Off the first ball of the over, Stobo turned down a single and then scrambled two.
He attempted to repeat the feat with the next ball but was adjudged run-out for 19 from 13 balls – the last of several controversial umpire calls.
Garrett took seven from the last three balls, although it wasn’t enough.
Finch reflected: “We have had just a bit of a chat there. I’m not sure what we were at the 40-over mark – but I think we would take that every time.
“I guess maybe you could look at if me and Jack could we have taken it on a little bit longer?
“But our lower-end have been outstanding, maybe we just haven’t dovetailed throughout this competition.
“It was very disappointing.”
Kent end their 50-over Group A campaign against Northamptonshire on Wednesday at Canterbury.
