By Ralph Dellor

GEORGE DAVIS may have been innocent, but vandals who carved a curious but rude message into the pitch designated for the Oxford University v Middlesex match were definitely guilty. The police were informed but, apart from a trail of broken bottles, there is little evidence on which to base investigations.

The damage occurred on Saturday evening, when the covers were holed and all their tyres slashed, causing damage estimated at UKP 1,000.

Mike Gatting, who needs eight more centuries to complete a hundred hundreds, will be especially hopeful that an attempt to start the match on an adjacent pitch succeeds today.

British Universities Championship Match

Rain restricted play to just 23 overs in the final of the British Universities Championship at Wardown Park yesterday. Durham, put in by Loughborough on a pitch which was wet at one end, struggled to 69 for three.

Openers Luke Sutton and Ben Hutton fell for 12 and 20 respectively and Lancashire's Mark Chilton became a second victim for Andrew Bourke when he was bowled for seven by a beauty. The match resumes today but Loughborough captain Toby Bailey will be unavailable as he has to appear for Northamptonshire in a AON Trophy fixture.

BUSA HALIFAX CHAMPIONSHIP - Final (Luton): Durham Univ 69-3 (23 overs) v Loughborough.