RAIN put paid to a productive finish to Herefordshire's Minor Counties Championship match against Berkshire at Finchampstead on Monday.

A complete washout of Sunday's play ensured that the game turned into a one-day affair and further rain saw the match fizzle out into a draw with five points for each side.

The weather may well have saved the county from defeat, however, as Berkshire were 52-0 off just eight overs in reply to Herefordshire's total of 223 all out when the heavens opened again.

The home county had earlier won the toss and put their visitors into bat, with the outfield still very wet from the weekend's rain.

Nathan Round hit his maiden half-century batting at number five and was star of Hereford-shire's innings with an unbeaten 63, while both Rob Hughes and Ismail Dawood added support.

Captain Harshad Patel was delighted with 20-year-old Round's performance and said: "He played really well and kept the innings together - it's nice to see that someone like Nathan is coming through."

Patel fell early at 12-1, but fellow opener Hughes (36) and Dawood (33) put on 64 runs before Dawood became the first of five victims for slow left-arm spinner Neil Fusedale.

Hughes' dismissal by Fusedale at 93-3 brought Round to the wicket but, after Paul Lazenbury (28) and Karl Pearson (23) departed, the tail quickly subsided from 191-6 to 223 all out.

Fusedale was instrumental in Herefordshire's decline with 5-55 from 27 overs, while ex-Middlesex and England veteran spinner John Emburey weighed in with 2-49.

In reply, Berkshire's opening pair of Gary Loveday (22 not out) and Lee Nurse (12 not out) smashed their way to 52, chasing 224 off a minimum of 37 overs, when the rain came at tea.

The players had already been previously forced off for 10 minutes before by a shower, but the fresh downpour condemned an already sodden pitch and the match was officially called off at 5.55pm.

l Herefordshire under-25's game with the RAF at Uxbridge on Tuesday was also a victim of the weekend weather.

Their next match will be against the Royal Navy at Portsmouth this Sunday.