Antigua and Barbuda's skipper Dave Joseph led his team to their first win of the 2001 Red Stripe Bowl limited overs cricket competition with a destructive batting display as the battle of the bottom placed minnows ended in a 79-run defeat for the South Windwards team.

Batting first after they were sent in, Antigua, after a slow start, recovered to post a formidable 270-8 off their allotted 50 overs to which South Windwards replied with 191-9 when their quota of overs expired.

The Antigua/Barbuda innings resembled a baseball match more than a game of cricket with sixes being hit with great regularity on the small Diamond ground, hosting its first senior regional game.

Some of the hits threatened the safety of the vehicles parked in close proximity of the ground and even the commentators booth seemed suddenly unsafe and open target for the bat wielding players.

It was, like the previous match between Guyana and South Windwards, a spectators treat but unlike at Albion, there were only a handful of spectators who turned up to witness yesterday's game.

By far the most outstanding innings was the 74 made by Joseph, who was voted by adjudicator Robert `Pacer' Adonis as man-of-the-match.

The burly Joseph, produced a display of awesome power hitting which would rival some of the Giants Barry Bonds' home runs of American baseball fame. The former West Indies test batsman belted seven sixes some out of the ground and into the forest of trees nearby, and some over the stands of anxious spectators.

For good measure Joseph also crashed two fours from his 58-ball blitz.

In one eventful over from Camilus Alexander which cost 30 runs, Joseph plundered four sixes and was caught off one of the three no-balls sent down by the young leg-spinner who seemed at his wits end to contain the onslaught.

Later in his innings another powerfully struck hit passed through the hands of Rommel Currency and into his body on the long on boundary.

Currency, to his credit, returned the ball but then sank to the turf and had to be revived by his teammates.

Throughout his onslaught Joseph had as his partner Ian Tittle with whom he added 114 for the sixth wicket in 14 overs.

Tittle's 52 not out included two sixes and two fours from 61 balls after the pair came together with Antigua 111-5 in the 28th over.

Openers Earl Waldron and Wilden Cornwall put on 27 for the first wicket with Waldron scoring 25 and Cornwall 17 while Sean Bailey and Bertel Baltimore, who seemed intent on getting off the mark with a six and did, contributed 24 and 28 respectively.

Greg Skepple chipped in with 15.

John Sylvester, Alexander and Rawle Lewis each picked up two wickets while there was a wicket each for left-arm seamers Kenroy Peters and Deighton Butler.

Southern Windwards were off to a solid start with Devon Smith and Currency posting 67 for the first wicket.

However, Currency, seeking to push the scoring along was stumped by Baltimore off Anthony Lake for 13 and the Windwards rapidly disintegrated despite a solid 35 from Smith who struck four fours and one six from 79 balls.

Only Murray with 14 and Lewis with 16 reached double figures before the last wicket pair of Orlanzo Jackson and Peters spared the Windwards' blushes by adding 54 runs in an unbroken last wicket stand.

Jackson was not out on 30 from 43 balls with four fours while Peters' 22 not out included one four from 44 balls as Cornwall 4-40, Lake 2-26 and Bailey 2-41 helped restrict the Windwards to under 200.

Cornwall bowled Dennis Byam (10), Ronald Mc Lean (07) and Alexander (00) and had Butler caught by wicketkeeper Baltimore to crown a fine all round display.