POTTERNE all-rounder Basil Akram put in a superb performance to help his side claim an eight-wicket victory over Taunton St Andrews and move up to second in the Premier One table.

Akram took 4-37 from his nine overs as Potterne skittled their guests out for 97 and placed themselves in a commanding position to claim their third victory in a row.

Oliver Jackson also took four wickets as Steven Jenkins top scored for Taunton with 27.

In reply, Akram opened the batting and ended up unbeaten on 50 as he and Jake Goodwin (27) did the majority of the damage early on.

With Graham Wiseman falling for a second-ball duck, it was up to captain Neil Clark (18no) to help man of the match Akram knock off the winning runs.

Clark admitted he was expecting a much spicier surface than the one which was presented to him, while heaping praise on Akram for a stellar bowling performance.

Clarke said: “It was a nice weekend, one of the easier ones.

“We bowled Taunton out for 97 on a fairly good deck, to be honest. There wasn’t much wrong with it at all, especially considering all the rain we’ve had.

“Basil Akram and Tahir Afridi bowled really well and then Oli Jackson picked up four. It was a good all-round effort.”

Clark suggested that Akram had been unlucky not to match his bowling heroics in previous weeks and deserves more than the seven wickets he has claimed so far this season.

And with an average of just over 50, the Potterne captain strongly believes those statistics do not fully represent Akram’s contribution.

Clark said: “Basil has bowled well for the majority of the season, but he’s been a bit unlucky not to get a few more wickets.

“There’s been a few dropped catches off him and he’s beaten the bat a few times, but he finally got his rewards on Saturday, so that was good to see.”