John Chambers scored an impressive 55 for Wanstead Pic: Salim Akbar

Chambers leads the charge to Derbyshire

Wanstead captain Arfan Akram hailed his side’s “fantastic achievement” after they became the first Essex League team to reach the final of the ECB National Club Championship.

Wanstead enjoyed a six-wicket victory at Havant to book themselves into the final, where they will meet York in Derbyshire on September 16.

And their skipper admitted the match was a lot tougher than the scorecard might suggest.

Akram said: “Some people might look at the six-wicket win and assume it was a walk in the park, but the reality was far from it.

“We really had to be at our best to overcome a very good Havant side.

“It’s the first time we’ve gone beyond the semi-final stage, which we last reached in 1992, so it’s a fantastic achievement and speaks volumes for the progress we’ve made as a club.”

After winning the tossHavant decided to bat first, but were restricted to 156 all out with visiting bowler Joe Ellis-Grewal enjoying an excellent display with figures of 6-18.

In reply, Wanstead overcame the loss of Akram with just four runs on the board to reach their target after 40.1 overs, with 40-year-old John Chambers (55) and 17-year-old Rehan Hassan (54) leading the way.

Arfan said: “Havant made full use of home advantage with their four spinners, but we knew that we needed to try and keep them below 180.

“To restrict them to 156 all out was nothing short of superb. Ellis Grewal bowled with a lot of control and intelligence, while it was one of our best performances in the field this season.

“We knew we faced a mammoth task to try and chase their score down and losing me early wasn’t part of our strategy!

“But Chambers and Hassan batted brilliantly and my brother Adnan and Petrus Hattingh helped us over the line.

“I’d also like to thank our supporters who came down for the match and were brilliant.”