FINCHAMPSTEAD have slipped to third from bottom of the Home Counties Premier League, but skipper Dan Lincoln remains confident his side can climb up the table, writes Dave Wright.

And he is prepared to take the adventurous approach in order to pick up vital bonus points.

Finch lost to new league leaders Tring Park by two wickets in the final over last Saturday, but still picked up 12 points.

“It’s nearly as many you can get without actually winning a game,” said Lincoln, whose men are 14 points clear of second-bottom Oxford.

“Obviously, I want to win each match, but that is not always possible, but even if we get 10 to 13 points we should be capable of getting at least halfway up the table.

“When Tring (chasing 293) reached 220-4 we could easily have allowed them to wrap up the game and we would have taken only six or seven points, but we encouraged them to go for the runs, which they did.

“They lost another four wickets in the process and we could easily have got the other two which would have given us the win.”

Several of the sixes struck by Shelvin Gumbs in his match-winning knock of 66 not out and by David Brent (47) were only inches away from being caught by fielders on the boundary, with Lincoln commenting: “Those are the fine margins you get in cricket. On another day they could have gone our way.”

The captain also felt that Finchampstead’s total of 292-6 from 64 overs was 10 to 15 runs short of par on a good batting strip.

Opener Adam Dewes followed up his 61 at Slough the previous week with an even better knock of 84 off 158 balls and he went on to take four wickets.