Saturday's Graham Jewson Harrison-Allen Bowl Final was called off just at a time when current first division leaders St. Ishmaels were in a position to press home the advantage of having a 23 runs lead in the first innings to pick up the coveted Bowl for the first in the club's history. Three times in the match the new kids on the block, Tish, seized the initiative after experienced campaigners Carew had taken an early hold of each of the three innings, started before the match was abandoned. County Club officials had been keeping an eye on the weather forecast and with the agreement of both teams the final got under way at the slightly earlier time of 12.15 pm. At the start of the match, Carew's experience of playing in so many Bowl finals gave them the advantage with excellent bowling by both Tim Hicks and Darren Thomas keeping a tight reign on the runs. Fourteen-year-old Andrew Salter was caught by Wayne Cannon at mid-off, off the bowling of Darren Thomas who bowled his overs to such good effect that he took one for 13 in his allotted six overs. Tish were 32 for one after 12 overs, but gradually took control of the innings through excellent batting by all-rounder Jonathan Pawlett, ably supported by skipper Peter Bradshaw. After a quiet start, Pawlett took the bowling by the scruff of the neck in a blistering innings of 82 which included eight sixes and three fours from just 49 balls. Eventually, his marvellous innings ended when he was deceived by a full-length slower ball from Simon Wood who had been hit for two huge sixes from the previous two deliveries. Peter Bradshaw scored 35 before he was run out and although Tish lost two other wickets in the quick scramble for runs, the total of 137 for 5 gave their bowlers something to defend. Tim Hicks bowled tightly and only conceded 17 runs in six overs and there was a wicket each from Simon Wood and spinner John Canton. Much depended on the Carew opening partnership and the openers did not disappoint. Ian Sefton and Nick Scourfield set off like a train and 47 runs had already been scored when in the middle of the seventh over Sefton played a lofted off drive from the bowling of Jonathan Pawlett and was taken at long off by Andrew Pawlett having scored 27 from 19 balls. Eighteen of the runs had come in boundaries with one six and three fours. Scourfield attempted to steady the ship after Wayne Cannon and Simon Wood fell cheaply, but when Scourfield himself hit a full toss from spinner Daniel Flynn to Jonathan Pawlett at mid-wicket in the 16th over Carew's resistance crumbled. From 92 for four when Scourfield was dismissed for 41, Carew collapsed and were bowled out for 114 to trail at the tea interval by 23 runs. After an uncertain start, Daniel Flynn had a controlled spell with his off-spinners to finish with 3 for 17, Andrew Williams took 2 for 34 and 17- year-old James Salter 1 for 21. Carew got off to a cracking start when Tish came out for the second innings. Peter Bradshaw fell leg before wicket to Tim Hicks before he or his team had scored a run and Michael Symons fell with a total on 15 when he was caught by Simon Wood at mid-wicket off the bowling of Tim Hicks who bowled a lively spell from the clubhouse end. However, Jonathan Pawlett proved to be the stumbling block for Carew once again and he received excellent support from Stewart Kimpton as the pair added 62 for the third wicket. Pawlett scored 49 with two sixes and two fours to bring his match tally of sixes to 10 and Kimpton was 23 not out when the rains came at the end of the 16th over. Tim Hicks was the pick of the Carew bowlers in the St Ishmaels second innings and finished with figures of two for 24 from his six overs. There was no relenting in the weather and the umpires had no alternative other than to abandon the match. Taking into account the Tish lead of 23 runs in the first innings, when the match was abandoned with Tish 77 for 2 after 16 overs in their second innings, the First Division leaders had a lead of 100 with eight wickets in hand. If Tish had been able to continue their second innings as they had finished off their first innings Carew could have been chasing a winning target in excess of 150 runs to win the match. Although they had the batsmen capable of scoring that many runs and the wicket played well, the outfield was slow with the ball not running so it would not have been an easy task. We will never know what may have happened and the replay which has been scheduled for Sunday August 12 will be a different match and there may well be a different situation and Carew could come out on top. Very often the team on top the first time around are out of the game when a cup match is replayed. A number of Harrison-Allen Bowl finals have indicated this over the years and in this season's quarter-finals, Lawrenny were staring oblivion in the face when they were saved by the rain in a match against Narberth. When the match was replayed, Lawrenny got on top and came within a whisker of reaching the final before Carew won a last ball thriller in a semi-final at Whitland. Tish showed in the abandoned final that they are a good all round team who play with spirit and determination. They lead the Division One table on merit, closely followed by Carew and Cresselly, with all three clubs having a genuine chance to be the 2007 league champions. From the way Tish played at Cresselly on Saturday, Carew will know that they will have to raise their game to take over the Division One leadership from Tish and also to win the Harrison-Allen Bowl for the 10th time in their history. With fixture congestion a real problem, the Pembroke County Cricket Club issued a statement after the match through county secretary Bill Marchant who said: "The Pembroke County Cricket Club wish to confirm that following the abandonment of the Harrison-Allen Bowl final last Saturday that the replay has been rearranged for Sunday, August 12. The start of the replay will be 12.30 pm. "Admission will be free to all persons presenting match programmes purchased for the abandoned final. For new entrants, the price will be £5 for adults, £3 for OAPs, with children under 12 admitted free. "The final of the Alec Colley Cup, originally scheduled for Sunday, August 12, will now take place on Sunday, August 19, at the ground of Pembroke Cricket Club." The postponement of the Dyrham Services Alec Colley Cup final to Sunday, August 19, may also affect two other cup competitions. The Tavernspite Alan Brown Cup scheduled to be played at Whitland has already been postponed three times so that the Pembrokeshire Association of Umpires and Scorers will have to decide along with the Whitland club whether it will go ahead that day at the same time as the Alec Colley Cup final at Pembroke, or be postponed possibly to the first Sunday in September. Sunday, August 19, was also the date selected for the final of the Ken Morris Cup at Narberth in the inaugural season of the competition involving clubs who have three teams in the Imperial Garages Pembroke County Cricket League. Again, the organisers will have to decide whether to go ahead on August 19 depending on which teams are in the final or to postpone it until a later date. With Narberth Cricket Club sharing facilities with Narberth Rugby Club, a date in September may not be easy to arrange. Whatever happens with the other cup competitions, Observer Sport will keep readers informed. Had the Bowl final ended when it was abandoned, the man-of-the-match adjudicators, Denis Chiffi and David Isaac, would have had little difficulty in selecting Jonathan Pawlett as the John Cole man- of-the-match. The question for Carew and for cricket supporters throughout the county is whether Pawlett and his team mates can reproduce their performance displayed last Saturday on the new date of Sunday, August 19.