SPITFIRES slid to their second successive home defeat in totesport Division 2 as Derbyshire Phantoms returned to Maidstone for the first time in a decade to haunt them.

Only last month Kent crushed Derbyshire in a Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy tie in the East Midlands, but this time the tables were completely turned as Phantoms made Kent look incredibly ordinary in all departments.

Having scored a mammoth 304 for three from their 45 overs Derbyshire set about putting in an intelligent performance in the field that had the locals leaving their seats and heading home just 30 overs into the Kent reply.

To be fair to Derbyshire, they thoroughly deserved their second Division 2 win of the campaign, whereas Kent may need to go back to the drawing board and consider selection policy and, at this rate, even the captaincy issue as skipper David Fulton continues to struggle for one-day runs.

Having lost Rob Key leg before in the fourth over of the reply, Kent re-grouped admirably though Andrew Hall and Martin van Jaarsveld who took the score on to 63.

Hall cantered to his second successive league 50 from 47 balls but lost his former South African team-mate for 11 when be played over and across a ball from Ian Hunter.

Hall pulled his 11th four to post Kent’s century in the 19th over from Andy Gray but the wheels then fell off the Spitfires bandwagon.

Next ball hall worked across a straight one to be bowled then, three deliveries later, Walker’s cameo 21 ended when he top edged to the keeper.

Fulton nudged his way to 13 before clipping back a return catch to Jonathan Moss, but it was the introduction of spinner Anthony Botha that ended Kent hopes.

With only his second ball the little spinner enticed Darren Stevens to hole out to long-on then, in his next over took off to his left to take a return catch off Simon Cook.

In between times, Niall O’Brien ran himself out in comical fashion, ensuring the late hitting of Amjad Khan and Justin Kemp was little more than cosmetic.

As lustily as Kemp batted, it was all too little, too late.

Earlier Derbyshire’s record league score, which beat their existing best of 292 for nine against Worcestershire at Knypersly 20 years ago, was based upon the solid foundations of a season’s best opening stand of 155 in 24 overs between Michael Di Venuto and Stephen Stubbings.

Di Venuto gave just one half-chance on the way to his first league half-century of the summer, a rasping clip to square leg when on 28 that Darren Stevens did well to parry overhead to save a boundary, otherwise it was carnage.

Spitfires struggled in the field, their were fumbles galore and overthrows to boot, while the bowlers struggled to bowl one side of the wicket let alone find a consistent length.

Without doubt this was a good pitch, ironically just 10 feet or so from the wicket docked eight points by pitch inspectors’ 72 hours earlier, and the outfield was rapid, but Kent would have wanted to bowl and field much better than this.

Spectators, clearly still smarting at last weekend’s capitulation to Durham, showed their frustration with taunts of “You’re rubbish Kent” as Derbyshire continued to pile on the agony in excess of a run-a-ball.

Having proved expensive in his first stint Martin Saggers returned to make the first breakthrough, trapping Stubbings leg before on the full as he marched down the pitch to drive having hit 10 boundaries in his 66.

Di Venuto, who used to enjoy playing against Kent during his time at Sussex, marched on to his fourth one-day century for the Phantoms in just 80 balls and with 1 dozen fours and a six, it was an object lesson in placement and controlled hitting.

The Australian left-hander teamed up with James Bryant to add 56 in seven overs including the team 200 inside 115 minutes before his luck ran out allowing Stevens a leg before success as Di Venuto worked across the line.

There was still time aplenty for Bryant to score his maiden league 50 from 46 balls and for Moss to clatter 44 from 44 balls as Spitfires failed to plug the gaps in the field.

Stevens was just about the pick of the attack wit one for 44, but the experiment of making up the fifth bowler with Kemp and van Jaarsveld proved mighty expensive.