Cumbria duly completed their first win of the NCCA Championship season when they beat Northumberland by eight wickets at Tynemouth.
Although looking to be firm favourites, needing to score 135 on the final day, skipper Michael Slack had expressed some degree of caution over what was perceived as a difficult pitch.
Those concerns might have seemed justified when Alex Grainger was out of the fourth ball of the without nothing added to the overnight score.
Slack, however, was prepared to grind it out and he added 31 with Ben Davidson before his Carlisle team-mate was bowled for 17.
Joined by Brodie Glendinning, the Cumbria skipper had sound company and together the pair saw Cumbria through to the win on 137-2 after 46.3 overs.
Fittingly it was Slack who hit a boundary to reach his unbeaten half century and to seal the eight wicket victory. Glendinning played his part, too, with an unbeaten 46, which included seven fours and a six.
It completed a double over Northumberland, having beaten them in the T20 while the NCCA Trophy game was abandoned without a ball being bowled.
It’s a quick turnaround for the Cumbrians as they start a three-day game against Cambridgeshire on Sunday at Barrow.
Scores: Northumberland 177 and 205 lost to Cumbria 248 and 137-2.
