NETHERFIELD leg- spinner Marc Hadwin took six wickets for 23 runs, including a hat-trick, and still finished on the losing side in the derby match with Kendal at Parkside Road on Monday, writes Richard Daniels.

The visitors upstaged Hadwin's potential match-winning display with a remarkable comeback for a 23-run victory, It earned them a second 15-point haul after beating Chorley on Saturday, to go top of the table.

Kendal won the toss and one safe prediction in a match that confounded them was they would bat. However, South African Charl Langeveldt struck with his second ball, having Ikram Ullah held by Chris Parry at second slip.

Kevin Howarth took advantage of being dropped in the professional's next over to add 52 for the second wicket with Terry Hunte until bowled for 16 by a Peter Lawson delivery that kept low.

While Hunte remained visibly disdainful of Lange-veldt's pace, his main scoring strokes came from the other end. A personal half-century came up after carving Lawson for a six and two fours in one over as Kendal reached 100 off 17 overs, making a forecast of a 200-plus total entirely reasonable.

Hadwin changed all that. He removed Hunte after an aberrant cut in front of the stumps for 53 with the score on 106. Then New Zealander Graeme Aldridge followed next over when Langeveldt's shout for lbw succeeded The score had moved to 120 when Hadwin achieved his hat-trick in the 26th over. Off the first ball, Ben Simm top-edged to mid-on; then Phil Thornton (35) miscued for Mark Daly to hold a fine running catch at mid-off. Hadwin's joy was complete when he rapped Trewenneck on his pads for an easy lbw decision.

On a roll, Hadwin added another victim in his next over, Prime taking a fine diving catch at mid-wicket to oust Chris Miller and leave Kendal expectations crushed at 122-8.

Hopes were pinned on Tony Yasin, but after a Langevelt bouncer struck him on the neck, he fell to the profess ional, but was to have his revenge. Hadwin then bowled Stuart Parkin for his sixth wicket and Kendal were all out for 145 in the 34th over. Hadwin had 6-23 off 8.5 overs, while Langeveldt took 3-55 off 17 overs.

Netherfield's reply was twice interrupted by rain and they lost Craig Walmsley and Ryan Brown for 11 apiece, as opening bowlers Parkin and Howarth both took a victim.

But Netherfield's self-doubt began to show when Parry (33) hooked Howarth into Miller's hands on the boundary and Langeveldt sent lofted a drive for Yasin to clasp at mid-off, to make it 66-4.

Even so, Mark Daly steadied nerves and they reached 87 after he hit three consecutive fours off Howarth to move on to 21. The turning-point came in the next over when Prime set off for a stupid single and Daly was run out.

Aldridge typified Kendal's spirit as he returned to the attack to have Prime lbw and took a fine caught and bowled chance to remove Grahame Clarke.

At 105-7, Kendal sensed victory and off-spinner Chris Miller had his say, accounting for both Graeme Dodds and Lawson. The final wicket fell when a deflated Hadwin was run out as Ullah retrieved the ball from behind square leg and landed a direct hit. Howarth led the bowling spoils with 3-29, supported by Aldridge (2-32) and Miller (2-26).

Kendal have won five derby games on the bounce according to skipper Trewenneck, who was a Netherfield stalwart for nigh on 20 years, and once again this was a vintage clash.