Wet weather during the week forced all other matches to be called off before the scheduled start of play but East Maitland Park was given the green light to go ahead.

The round 12 fixture got under way as per the regular program with Wests scoring 139 from their allotted 50 overs before making early breakthroughs to have Easts 2-20 in the fourth over.

But a storm ripped through the area shortly after 3.30pm and washed away any chance of completing the game.

“It [the storm] was an absolute cracker,” Western Suburbs skipper Andrew Trappel said.

“There were some massive lightning strikes and within five minutes of being off the ground we would have had an inch-and-a-half of rain.

“Rain and hail were coming down so hard that it was going through the grandstand – if you were in the grandstand you were soaked.”

In the lead up to this, Easts had won the toss and sent Wests in to bat on a rain-affected wicket. The visitors crept along to be 5-69 at the second drinks break (34th over) with Mark Edmonds (16) and Rob Weildon (19) the mainstays.

But it was Matt Sanders who provided some entertainment and added valuable

runs late in the innings with a hard-hitting half-century.

Sanders struck five fours and three sixes on his way to 54, scoring most of the team’s total in the final 16 overs.

“He [Sanders] batted really well for us,” Trappel said. “He scored 50 off the last 10 overs and helped us to 140, which was a good effort really.

“It was probably worth more like 190 because the outfield was so long.”

Sanders was eventually dismissed by medium-pacer Ryan Broadley, the best performer for Easts with 3-3 from two overs, on the last ball of the innings.

Jason Allen (2-11) and Dan Killen (2-31) took two wickets each for Easts while Dallas Crane, Brendan Allen and Shannon O’Hara chipped in with apiece.

In reply, Brendan Mills (0) and Alex Hicks (7) fell early for the home team while Andrew Vickery was unbeaten on 11.

Dustin McGrath (1-18) and Josh Threadgate (1-3) were the wicket takers.

Play was subsequently abandoned with the match drawn and the competition points split, which was the same story for the three other washed-out fixtures.

This means Wests have all but wrapped up second position on 37, with five points separating them and Kurri Weston (32) in third, while fourth-placed Easts (29) remain locked in a battle for semi-final spots with City United and Raymond Terrace (26) hot on their heels.