STUDLEY vice captain Mark Lewis has told his experienced team mates not to waste the fruits of ten years' hard graft on the field by tumbling out of Division Two because they are not rising to the occasion.

With skipper Richard Gregory absent at the weekend, Lewis took charge for a six-wicket defeat against lowly Fordhouses which he described as 'one of the worst performances by a Studley side for five or six years'.

The stand-in captain has appealed to the players who secured the club Birmingham League cricket for the first time in their history to hang onto that status.

"There are six or seven players who have played well over the last ten years to get us to this level - the highest the club has ever been," said Lewis.

"We don't want to waste all that hard work with a poor season."

And Lewis said Studley have to take something out of Saturday's trip to league leaders Cannock (12.30pm start) before embarking on a four-match run which will decide their fate.

"We just can't afford to lose the game against Cannock," he added, "we need to pick up some points on Saturday.

"If you look at the table we are not really in trouble because there are so many teams around us in the same position.

"After the Cannock game we have four of those sides and that run will shape our season."

After losing the toss for the umpteenth time against Fordhouses, Studley made an impressive enough start reaching 101-1 after 28 overs but then it all went wrong.

"That put us in line for around 230 plus," added Lewis, "but then in the middle order we again failed to deal with a spin attack.

"Instead of milking the ball and working it around we decided we needed to play big shots and lost wickets and we struggled to 175."

Defending 178-8, the Washford Fields side allowed their opponents to reach 50 without loss in nine overs and Fordhouses never looked back.

"It was a combination of poor batting, poor bowling and poor fielding," summed up an exasperated Lewis.

The result leaves Studley in the second relegation place, three points behind Bridgnorth.