NATHAN Chambers produced an inspired spell of death bowling as a disciplined performance in the field saw Netherfield maintain their season’s perfect Twenty20 record.

Needing six from the final ball to claim victory, Penrith tail-ender Joe McKinley lofted Chambers to Ben Barrow on the long-off boundary as Netherfield edged a vital win.

Opener Ryan Carruthers proved the main Penrith threat with a powerful 44 as Mark Clarkson, Tom Williamson and Brad Earl all took two wickets apiece as the visitors fell five runs short.

Only skipper Marc Brown made a significant impact as the hosts posted 108-9 from their 20-over allocation, with Karanjit Bansal’s off-spin returning figures of 2-7.

Electing to bat first, Netherfield started in determined fashion with Ben Phillips taking fours off the first and final deliveries of Paul Hindmarch’s opening over.

A third boundary followed to deep backward point before the Australian fell for 19, clean bowled as he looked to heave former Parkside Road all-rounder Greg Hall over mid-wicket.

From this point runs slowed as Jonathon Osborne and Bansal combined to strangle the innings, with the latter snaring Saliya Saman with his first ball, caught and bowled for two.

Bansal, who has played second XI cricket for Nottinghamshire and Worcestershire, then claimed the wicket of John Huck, who picked out Carruthers at long on to depart for one.

At the halfway stage Netherfield were 40-3, with Ben Barrow the next wicket to fall in the eleventh over, run out for 11 after a sharp piece of fielding by Hall.

Brown once again showcased his credentials in the shortest form of the game, smashing Nicky Burns for successive fours through mid-wicket with an improvised reverse sweep bringing a further boundary off Hall.

The 26-year-old then clobbered a six over the square leg boundary before Joe Atkinson departed for nine after top-edging to wicketkeeper Kieron Trevaskis.

A further maximum followed off Burns before Brown holed out to Bansal at mid-wicket, with Williamson edging the same bowler to deep gully for three.

Clarkson and Chambers fell in the final stages of the innings as Netherfield set Penrith 109 to win, with the visitors refusing to hang around in their bid to keep their T20 campaign alive.

Carruthers took centre stage, swatting Saman and Clarkson for straight sixes as well as fours square of the wicket and through extra cover, with Penrith 30-0 off four overs.

Clarkson returned to bowl Bansal for five with the right-arm seamer also dismissing ex-Netherfield and current Cumberland batsman Alex Atkinson without scoring.

Hindmarch bludgeoned a six off Williamson before the slow left-armer had his man as the Tynefield Park professional top-edged to Clarkson at mid-wicket.

Williamson, who returned 2-17 from four overs, then dismissed Burns for one as fellow spinner Earl removed Hall, caught by Chambers at backward square leg for a duck.

With the score 58-5 after ten overs, Osborne hammered a six off Earl before Penrith suffered a major blow as Carruthers clipped the returning Saman to Phillips at mid-wicket to depart for 44.

Osborne was next to go, caught by Chambers off Earl – who finished with 2-19 – before Ben Davidson and Tony Threlkeld added a valuable 15 runs.

Chambers dismissed Threlkeld for the first of his three wickets, which meant Penrith required 15 from 12 balls, as Davidson and Trevaskis took six from the Saman’s 19th over.

After taking four runs from as many balls in the final over, a mix up saw Trevaskis stumped by Huck, which left McKinley with one ball for six with Davidson stranded on 12 at the non-striker’s end.

Despite a clean contact, McKinley picked out Barrow on the long-off boundary to give Chambers his third victim and keep Netherfield on track to retain their TWP Wealth Trophy crown.