FOLLOWING Veryan’s withdrawal from Division Two East just weeks before the start of the season, the league has been rocked by the news that Pencarrow have followed suit leaving just ten teams in the third tier.

Over the winter, key players Scott Barrott and former Cornwall batsman Nic­­k Carter left, and with others unavailable or injured they have decided their playing ranks were to sparse to compete, leaving the likes of Launceston and South Petherwin with a maximum of 18 games and four Saturday’s without cricket.

In a club statement issued through the league, Pencarrow said: "Over the last five years Pencarrow has seen incredible success. Investment in the ground, equipment and facilities as well as providing a solid financial foundation.

“Unfortunately it wasn’t a good winter for us on the player front, a perfect storm if you like, with over 50% of our regular first team moving on coupled with recent departures and availability issues.

“The committee have made a tough decision to withdraw our current Div2 side and focus on the remaining membership, the bulk of which make up our current 2nd XI. We will also be focusing our efforts on our youth cricketers with a firm eye on the future.

“This is certainly not the end and we’ll come back fighting but for now we need to knuckle down and get through this transitional period.”