HOLDERS Wadebridge and St Austell booked their places in the last eight of the Hawkey Cup as group winners on Tuesday night with emphatic victories.

Wadebridge headed down to Wheal Eliza to take on St Austell Seconds and despite a poor start which saw opening bowlers Hayden Coad (3-27) and Jack Mallet (2-26) reduce the Swans to 47-4, they still managed to reach 179-7 thanks to 47 from just 28 balls from skipper Kelvin Snell and an unbeaten 41 from newcomer Richard Atkinson.

Determined to ensure no slip-ups, Wadebridge opened the bowling with Kiwi speedster Ryan Jackson and James Turpin, and it was a long way back for the home side when they fell to 27-3.

Mallet showed why he’s so highly-fought of with 22 and Qasim Jamal added 12, but their final total of 124-9 was made possible by Steve Raven’s blistering 37 off just 16 balls which included four massive sixes.

He was bowled in the last over by Atkinson who completed a fine first team debut since moving to the area with 3-19 off his three overs. Fellow leggie Ross McLachlan took 2-31 from his four.

Just up the A390 at St Blazey, St Austell’s Sri Lankan star Nadeera Balasooriya produced one of the great Hawkey Cup knocks of recent times after South African Henro Bouwer’s ton of his own had given the home side a big chance.

Earlier, Bouwer opened the batting with skipper Rory Dixon and while Dixon made an excellent 50 from 34 balls, Bouwer powered his way to 109 off 68 balls with 11 fours and six sixes in a total of 173-4.

While that knock was special, what came next will live long in the memory.

Switch-hitting at will, Balasooriya coming in at three following the departure of Gianluca Longo for a duck, struck 19 off the 33 balls he faced to the boundary as he finished 103 not out off just 33 balls.

At the other end, skipper Alex Bone provided the perfect foil with 62 not out from 34 deliveries with eight fours and three sixes as they set up a home quarter-final with neighbours Grampound Road.

Wadebridge will tackle Newquay who had seen off St Blazey in the other Group D match.