Driffield pool efforts to get their game on

ONCE again Driffield Town deserved immense credit for beating the weather – and opponents Castleford – on a day when every other game in the league was washed out.

Driffield maintained their remarkable record of making a start in all their matches during a season devastated by the high rainfall.

A club spokesman described the playing area as “just like a swimming pool” 24 hours before play was due to begin, but a drier Saturday, combined with club members’ commendable efforts, ensured the match went ahead.

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Castleford failed to reach three figures for the fifth time this season as they were bowled out for 82 in 44 overs, Jonny Wells resisting to some extent with 24. Right-arm pace bowler Tom Chippendale grabbed three wickets for 20 runs, and spinner and captain David Brent took 3-25.

Driffield, whose only defeat since losing to Harrogate by eight runs at Barnsley on May 19 was a 48-run setback at Harrogate a month ago, overhauled Castleford’s total in the 32nd over to win by six wickets, Ricky Woodmansey top-scoring with an undefeated 23.

The victory lifted Brent’s men above champions York into fourth place.

Leaders Harrogate, whose home game against Barnsley was one of the casualties, have won all their league matches this season but there has been no play in three of their last four fixtures.

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League chairman Steve Ward said: “My heart goes out to clubs who rely on matches to generate much-needed income. Most clubs in the league have had 40 per cent of their games either unfinished or cancelled altogether this season.

“I am getting rather anxious about the Yorkshire League Cup. A few clubs have lots of pressure on their grounds. It will take a bit of juggling to get games in before the end of the season.”

A date for York’s second-round tie against Rotherham has yet to be arranged because of the home side’s run in the ECB National Club Championship.

The semi-finals were originally scheduled for yesterday but await a new date.

Leaf’s opening-over hat-trick to no avail

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METHLEY stepped up their Premier Division title bid by beating bottom team Wakefield Thornes in the top-flight’s only completed match.

Oral Blackford (4-29) and Matthew Waite (3-14) were Methley’s match-winners in a low-scoring 38-over game at Little Church Lane.

Marcus Walmsley (32), Nick Connolly (28) and Kristian Ward (28) gave Methley a solid start but they collapsed to 135 all out after losing their last eight wickets for 51 runs.

Josh Shaw (4-17), Jared Warner (2-33) and Matthew Varley (2-15) were Thornes’ main wicket-takers.

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Thornes’ reply was soon in trouble as they slumped from 20-1 to 35-7. Mathew Jordan (19) and Robert Stephenson staged a fightback by putting on 34 for the eighth wicket.

Stephenson (27no) and Derek Colquhoun (9no) then shared an unbroken last-wicket stand of 31 as Thornes finished on 105-9 to salvage a batting point and deny Methley maximum points.

Methley’s win lifted them to third place, seven points adrift of leaders Wrenthorpe.

Captain Gary Fellows hit an unbeaten 31 as champions Wrenthorpe reached 54-2 from 12.2 overs against Hunslet Nelson before the game was abandoned.

Hunslet’s Michael Lambert claimed 2-23.

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Carlton’s opening bowler Chris Leaf (3-12) grabbed a hat-trick in a rain-ruined match against Batley.

Batley’s Akshay Brahmbhatt (4-38), Huzaifa Patel (3-30) and Ayaz Seedat (2-39) bowled out Carlton for 165 after Phil Page (42) and Steve Cooper (17) had put on 60 for the first wicket.

Batley’s reply started calamitously when Leaf sent them reeling to 0-3 in the first over by bowling Mustafa Bhatti and Mohammed Bashir and then having Brahmbhatt caught by wicketkeeper Tom Taylor. Batley were 25-4 from 12.2 overs when rain ended play.

Townville’s South African Wade Lezar (2-18) and Ritchie Bresnan (1-15) sent Mirfield PC collapsing from 25-0 to 33-3 before the rain intervened.

Hussain lifts gloom with century blast

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Manningham Mills opener Farakh Hussain stormed to an unbeaten 106 off 70 balls on an afternoon when rain again played havoc with the programme.

Only four games started in Division One and all of them ended up being abandoned before a positive result could be achieved.

With all of Division Two’s games being washed out without a ball being bowled, it made for another depressing afternoon.

But among the gloom there were some shafts of light. Hussain’s explosive century with 11 sixes and four fours was one of them. His effort took Mills to 157-5 in reply to Bradford & Bingley’s 174-8 when play was abandoned with seven over to go. Alex Atkinson (47) was Bradford & Bingley’s top scorer.

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Hussain shared an opening stand of 100 with Masood Ahmed (34), which was one of three century opening stands.

The best was the 148 between Cleckheaton captain John Wood (82) and Tim Jackson (58) as their side were cruelly denied victory over unbeaten league leaders Woodlands.

Wood hammered eight sixes and four fours and was supported by Jackson as Cleckheaton made 229-9 from 42 overs.

Woodlands lost early wickets and were deep in trouble at 68-6. They were saved by a mixture of Grant Soames’s defiance and the weather. Soames, who heads the Division One batting averages, made an unbeaten 46 to go with the 4-46 he took earlier with his off-spin. Woodlands were 126-8 when a downpour spoiled Cleckheaton’s afternoon.

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The third opening pair to share a century stand were Pudsey St Lawrence’s Mark Robertshaw (70) and Adam Waite (83), who put on 122 against Farsley as their side made 204-4 in 38 overs.

Despite a rousing 50 off just 35 balls from Joe Greaves, which contained six sixes, Farsley were 112-5 when play was abandoned.

Saltaire were poised for a third win of the season when their game with Lightcliffe was abandoned.

They needed 40 from seven overs with seven wickets in hand when the rain came. Nawaz Sardar (42no) and Fahid Rehman (39no) shared an unbroken fourth-wicket stand of 75.