By NICK GUTHRIE

CYMS Cougars have maintained their unbeaten start to the Pinnington Cup season with a four-wicket win over Newtown at Lady Cutler 3.

The Tigers made 170 but it was a relatively straightforward chase for the competition leaders as they reached the target six down with 17 balls remaining.

Dave McAlsiter again starred, following his century against Macquarie with 87 while Brian Carroll was the standout with ball once more, finishing with 2-16 from seven overs.

Kel Blackett and Warrick Finlay had earlier top scored for Newtown, making 42 and 41 respectively while Don Skinner also chipped in with 30.

Cougars skipper Darryl Thompson took three wickets while his son Josh took two.

Troy Tracey took the new ball with Carroll and he too applied plenty of pressure, finishing with the figures of 2-22 from his eight.

The Tigers then had six different wicket-takers of their own while Tracey was the next best after McAlister, hitting the winning runs and finishing 21 not out.

o o o

A blistering spell of bowling from Rugby's seamers has led them to a 42-run win over South Dubbo, ensuring they keep the pressure on CYMS at the top of the table.

Defending 9-171 the Rugby opening pair of Randeep Pannu and Garry Goodman tore through the Hornets' top order to leave them reeling at 6-27.

Henry Railz (32), Jeff Shanks (29 not out) and Nathan Astri (21 not out) salvaged a bit of pride for Souths but they fell well short in the end, finishing at 9-129 from their 40 overs.

Rugby had earlier posted their competitive total thanks to a team effort with the bat with Glenn Shepherd (39 not out), Rod Leonard (35) and Dale Watmore (23) all contributing.

Young spinner Sam Fraser continued to show his potential as he took 8-53 for Souths.

With a big total to chase Souths needed a good start but they never got the chance as Goodman (4-21) and Pannu (3-27) claimed the first six wickets inside eight overs to set their side for victory.

o o o

A strong all-round performance with the ball led RSL-Colts to a comfortable six wicket win over Macquarie at Lady Cutler 4.

Colts rolled the Blues for just 93 with spinner Jakke Gardiner (3-18), Tom Atlee (2-14) and Jono Woodbridge (2-15) doing the bulk of the damage.

Brant Mann was the only Macquarie batsmen to post a meaningful score, making 40.

Graeme Morton continued his good run of form in the run chase as he reached 51, with his first five scoring shots all being boundaries.

Vinay Kapila took 2-18 for the Blues but Colts cruised to the low total in just 14 overs.