DRAKES HUDDERSFIELD - New cup competition gets off to damp start due to the rain

HOPES that the league's new cup competition for Frank Platt Championship and Cedar Court Conference sides would make an auspicious start were sunk by Saturday's downpour.

The first round of the Oddfellows Cup was reduced to a mixture of bowl-outs and tossed coins to decide the teams going through to the next stage on Sunday, June 27.

Bowl-out winners were Meltham at Almondbury, Armitage Bridge at Clayton West, Emley Clarence at home to Hall Bower, Lascelles Hall at Kirkheaton, Paddock at home to Lepton Highlanders and Kexborough at Shelley.

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The toss of a coin saw Linthwaite go through at Micklehurst and Rastrick put out visitors Thongsbridge.

The entire Premiership programme was washed out for the first time this season and clubs from all three divisions will be hoping for better weather today.

Honley, who won the Premiership title for four successive years until Scholes ended the run last season, lead the way in the Premiership.

Unbeaten after six league matches, Ron Moore's men travel to Golcar in confident mood knowing their opponents have lost three in a row.

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Defending champions Scholes, who host Elland, lost their opening three league matches but predictions of freefall proved premature as James Noble and his men then stitched together four wins in league and cup. They topped the 300 mark in hacking down Broad Oak in the Romida Sykes Cup second round eight days ago, Noble helping himself to a third half-century of the season.

One of today's most fascinating contests sees second-placed Hoylandswaine take on another in-form side, Delph & Dobcross at Haigh Lane. Hoylandswaine are only in their second year in the Huddersfield League but they stormed to promotion from the Cedar Court Conference by 19 points, topping the 100-points mark, and are now chasing successive titles.

Their captain and former Yorkshire county player Alex Morris has hit a rich vein of form with the bat, along with Anthony Marr, Lliam Dickinson and John Ashton, while Yorkshire batsman Joe Sayers rattled up an undefeated 120 in the league win over Holmfirth a week last Saturday.

Delph lost their opening two games but have since won six in league and cup and are looking to improve on their current fifth position.

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Third-placed Shepley, who set a new record score for their ground when they amassed 365-5 against Barkisland on May 16, go to promoted Marsden with a strong chance of making it four successive wins in league and cup.

Skelmanthorpe trail Shepley by just one point and they, too, will be confident of picking up the points at Broad Oak who have shown little sign of improving on last season's tenth-placed finish.