The Devon League Premier Division title is still in the balance, even though Tiverton Heathcoat beat North Devon by 117 runs in their top-of-the-table clash at Instow.

Defending champions Heathcoat (221 points), who have overcome a rocky mid-season spell, now lead North Devon and in-form Sandford (212) by nine points, with Bradninch fourth on 207 with three games to go.

But those last three weekends contain some potential crackers - Bradninch meet North Devon this Saturday, while Heathcoat host Sandford on August 27.

Clyst St George have opened up a 10-point lead at the top of the B Division after beating title rivals Bovey Tracey by 107 runs at Bohea Field.

Dan Kendall hit 51 and number seven Stephen Bourke 57 off 41 balls in Clyst's 237-9, before three wickets apiece for Parminder Singh and Andy Donovan helped to dismiss Bovey for 130.

Clyst now have 246 points, from Tavistock (236) and Bovey (230).

The C Division East race is set for a thrilling climax.

Uplyme & Lyme Regis (221) lead the way after a 77-run win over Braunton when Mark Batey scored 94, Jack Lamb-Wilson 59 and Tyler Wellman 46 in their 253-5, and Wellman also took 4-27 as Braunton were dismissed for 176.

Sandford 2nd XI (211) are 10 points behind, with Sidmouth 2nds (207) third and late arrivals Ottery St Mary (200) fourth.

Uplyme go to Sandford this weekend and Sidmouth on Aug 27.

Ottery's former Devon opener Neil Davey hit 83 of their 266-7 as they beat Sidmouth by 122 runs.

Exmouth 2nds may be out of it, but they remain a dangerous side - they chased down Alphington & Countess Wear's 230-9, winning by five wickets with Bob Dawson unbeaten on 43, after Harrison Folland (30) and Codie Strydon (49) made contributions.

Selected fixtures, Premier: Bovey Tracey v Sidmouth; B - Bideford v Clyst St George; C East - Sandford II v Uplyme, Upottery v Ottery St Mary, Braunton v Exmouth II, Sidmouth II v Alphington.

*When the Devon League's committee sits down to review the parched, run-filled summer of 2022, the thorny subject of extras, and specifically wides, must surely be on the agenda.

What it deliberately introduced as 'a very strict and consistent' interpretation of the 'wide ball' rule has produced an avalanche of extras.

Extras of 30-plus are commonplace, they're very often the second or third highest score, and sometimes even top, especially in the lower divisions.

In last Saturday's C Division West game between Teignmouth & Shaldon (285-7) and South Devon (283-6), extras accounted for 110 of the 568 runs 'scored'!

You can blame it on the bowlers or the league's insistence that any ball which passes on 'the leg side of the batter and the leg stump, wherever it first pitches' is a wide.

But either way, is the current situation what the league really had in mind?