Local cricket: Weekend round-up from around the Yorkshire leagues

Yorkshire ECB

HOPES of a bumper final day to the Yorkshire League after 80 years were dampened by the rain which washed out three of the six matches, but those remaining produced some tense finishes in low-scoring affairs.

Champions York, the most successful club in the league’s history, looked as though they might finish with a defeat when Sheffield Collegiate restricted them to 128-9 despite the efforts of Richard Brown (32) and an eighth- wicket stand of 54 between Nick Kay (22) and Tom Pringle (27). But Chris Burn and Adam Whatley were soon among the wickets and Whatley took 5-36 as Collegiate slumped to 79-9. Henry Eldred (38) and Matthew Dixon (15no) staged a last-wicket rally of 29 but York still clinched the win by 20 runs.

James Logan was the Yorkshire Academy hero as they beat Castleford to move up to third. With the Academy bowled out for 117, it took a fine 12-over spell of 7-15 from Logan – taking his season’s wicket tally to 49 – to clinch a 23-run win.

At Driffield Nick Hardgrave produced a season-best 7-24 as Doncaster were kept to 122-9, in which Gareth Cox made 36 and Felix Odell 31.

A half-century stand between Ben Kohler-Cadmore (49) and Sam Drury (37no) led Driffield to a seven-wicket win.

Next season will see four ECB leagues in the county and league chairman Steve Ward admitted to feeling some sadness at the end of the Yorkshire League era but added: “It is the start of a new adventure. It will bring new clubs in at this level and hopefully raise the quality of club cricket in the county even higher.

“The Yorkshire League is no longer a closed shop – more clubs can aspire to play against top quality opposition on some of the best pitches in the county.”

Bradford

YOUNG pace bowler Ben Jenkinson took 6-22 as Morley rounded off their Division Two championship-winning campaign with a 77-run win over Hartshead Moor.

The 18-year-old’s performance enabled him to replace team-mate Dave Nebard at the top of the Division Two bowling averages with 41 wickets at 9.88.

In contrast, Nebard suffered at the hands of Hartshead Moor’s Laurence Brooke and finished with 1-75 from seven overs on a day when rain again had a big say.

Morley’s match was one of four to go ahead as a reduced-overs contests while two, Bankfoot v Idle and Brighouse v Gomersal were abandoned without a ball being bowled.

Brooke hammered eight sixes in his 74 off 61 balls. His innings was the highlight of Hartshead Moor’s 135 all out. Morley had earlier made 212-8 in their 35 overs with opener James McNichol again leading the way. The 20-year-old made 85 and was backed up by wicketkeeper Luke Heinemann (41). The best of the Hartshead Moor bowlers was Arun Balaubramanian with 5-55.

Sadaqat Zaman (5-25) and Zeeshan Haider (3-30) helped secure a 43-run win for Bowling Old Lane over Yeadon.

Old Lane dismissed their opponents for 70 after making 113-9 in their 20-over contest. Captain Amjid Hussain was their top scorer with 49. Nick Darfield (3-16), Altaf Mohammad (3-34) and Michael Hunter (3-38) shared the wickets to fall.

Spen Victoria’s openers Adal Islam and Bilal Ejaz put on 103 as they put their side on course for a nine-wicket win over Windhill, who will have to apply for re-election along with Idle.

Islam made an unbeaten 72 while Ejaz scored 47 as Spen won a match reduced to 27 overs per side with 27 balls to spare.

Yorkshire Champions Trophy - Final

YORKSHIR ACADEMY have won the Black Sheep Yorkshire Champions Trophy for the first time.

They chased down a Methley total of 220-9 to win by six wickets with four balls to spare at Elsecar

The player who guided them home was batsman Mosun Hussain.

He made an unbeaten 85 which enabled the Academy to secure their second cup win in successive weekends following their Yorkshire League Cup final win over York seven days earlier.

Nobody will have been more satisfied with the young Academy side’s win than their captain Matthew Waite, who learned his cricket with Central Yorkshire League club Methley.

His side certainly judged their run chase well. Ryan Gibson gave the innings early impetus before Hussain and opener Elliot Callis shared a crucial second-wicket stand of 112.

Methley made the Academy batsmen work for their runs with off spinner Eddie Walmsley bowling his ten overs for just 17 runs.

Callis contributed a patient 55 before becoming a victim of Mohammed Bashir (3-47), who was the most-successful Methley bowler.

Methley, who chose to bat first after winning the toss, were given a bright start by captain Richard Foster (49) and Marcus Walmsley (30).

Luke Bullingham (34) and Chavez Younes (34no) added useful runs but the Academy bowlers kept checking the run rate by picking up wickets at useful times.

James Logan (3-32) and Waite (3-51) were the main wicket takers.

Central Yorkshire

METHLEY completed a league and cup double for the second successive season by retaining the Premiership title with a 103-run win against Birstall.

Marcus Walmsley (104no) put on 157 with Richard Foster (76) and shared an unbroken 74-run stand with twin Ed (34no) as Methley reached 231-1 before declaring after 34 overs.

Mustafa Bashir (3-23), Marcus Walmsley (2-27) and Joshua Sullivan (2-27) limited Birstall’s reply to 128-9. Robert Pearl (33) and Craig Wood (31) led Birstall’s scoring.

In the final Premiership before next season’s merger with the Bradford League, Methley finished one point ahead of Wakefield Thornes, who beat Hunslet Nelson.

Faisal Irfan (3-11), Matt Varley (3-42), Ravindra Palliyaguruge (2-25) and Mahmood Rasool (2-21) routed Hunslet for 107 which included a sixth-wicket stand of 53 between Will Stiff (34) and Robert Barker (26).

James Wolfenden (35no), David Toft (34) and Joe Cook (28no) guided Thornes to an eight-wicket victory in 11.2 overs but it was not enough to see them crowned champions for the first time.

Nick Bresnan (51no) and Conor Harvey (36no) shared an unbroken 88-run stand and Jack Hughes claimed 4-39 as Townville beat Wrenthorpe by six wickets in a 30-over game.

Wrenthorpe’s James Glynn hit 62 off 26 balls and Neil Bourke struck an unbeaten 42.

Hopton Mills clinched the Championship with a 10-wicket win against Wakefield SM.

Richard Atkinson (10) was the only batsman who reached double figures as St Michael’s were skittled for 51 by Ashley Mackereth (4-14), Andrew Grey (3-4) and Michael Carroll (2-13).

Hopton openers Mackereth (30no) and Neil Brown (26no) knocked off the runs in 5.2 overs.

Huddersfield

RELEGATED Moorlands ended a disappointing debut season in the Premiership on a high note by beating Shelley.

In a 38-over match, Michael Padgett (5-14) and Australian Chris Lloyd (4-34) routed Shelley for 102, replying to 155-9.

Delph and Dobcross won by nine wickets at Skelmanthorpe, who were skittled for 102 by Wasim Qasim (6-30) and Chris Laker (2-2).

Delph overhauled the target in seven overs, with opener Arron Lilley smashing five sixes and seven fours in an unbeaten 68. His half-century came off 19 balls.

Opener Simon Kelly hit an unbeaten 74 off 62 deliveries to reach 1,000 runs for the season in Honley’s nine-wicket win against Elland in the Premiership’s only other completed game.

Kelly and Aaron Crispe (19no) shared a match-winning unbroken 81-run stand after Elland were bowled out for 102 by Alec Jakeman (4-24) and Australian off-spinner Crispe (3-5). Niall Lockley (35) led Elland’s scoring.

Champions Scholes were 77-0 from eight overs at Hoylandswaine when rain ended play.

There was no play in the Barkisland v Golcar, Shepley v Slaithwaite and Kirkburton v Broad Oak matches.

Matthew Henshaw hammered 17 sixes in a whirlwind 147 as Almondbury Wesleyans made 257-8 in a 20-over Championship game against Lascelles Hall, who were toppled for 135 by Henshaw (3-27) and Calum Shipman (3-21).

Joshua Scott (44), Matthew Simpson (33) and Aqeel Mukhtar (4-15) were Lascelles’ best men.

An unbroken 119-run stand between Matthew West (82no) and Jaycob Curtling (55no) steered promoted Armitage Bridge to a nine-wicket victory against Holmfirth in a 33-over game.

South Yorkshire

ASTON HALL have been crowned champions.

On Saturday, Joe Barker (45) and Rob Ward (42no) helped Nick Smit (76no) to put on 209-5 in 34 overs in the final game against Conisbrough.

When Conisbrough batted, Josh Coulson put in another excellent spell of 10-3-14-3 and Steve Ludlam returned 3-29 to keep them down to 140-8, giving Aston the five points they needed to stay unassailably ahead of Treeton.

As consolation, Treeton beat Whitley Hall though they did not make things easy.

In a game reduced to 35 overs, Chris Siddall (95no) and Matthew Milburn (50) took Whitley Hall to 207-4.

Treeton have the best opening pair in the league and Charlie Roebuck struck 46 off 23 balls out of 78 for the first wicket before Steve Foster held the innings together with 66 as they won by four wickets, with five overs to spare.

Treeton finished second fourpoints adrift with Whitley Hall third.

The other promotion place to the new Yorkshire League South went to Wickersley. They were unable to play against Elsecar on Saturday because of the weather and neither were Darfield and Hallam.

Tickhill must have been grumbling about their one-wicket loss to Darfield, because had they won, they could have claimed the last promotion place from Wickersley.

To prove the point, they hammered Coal Aston on Saturday by 10 wickets, bowling them out for 78 before Steve Reid and Dominic McGough knocked off the runs in eight overs

In the only other game to beat the weather, Houghton Main held on to beat Wath by one wicket, scoring 141-9 before dismissing them for 140.

Aire Wharfe

A SPARKLING century from Jamie Pickering helped Otley beat Beckwithshaw and climb above them to claim the title on a final day of the season that produced thrilling finishes in all three divisions.

Defending champions Otley led for most of the second half of the season only for Beckwithshaw to go ahead with two games left. Ben Morley (39) gave Otley a solid start before Pickering smashed 10 fours and six sixes in racing to 109 not out off 60 balls.

Beckwithshaw’s hopes of passing the 172-3 target dimmed when they slumped to 16-2 and even though Ben Quick (22no) and Miles Buller (32no) were defiant they could not stop a 55-run defeat.

There was a similar shoot-out to see who would join Horsforth out of Division Two with Pool only a point behind Skipton.

Sam Wilkinson took 5-12 as Skipton were dismissed for 94 with Steve Carling scoring 52. John Goldthorp hit 27 but Pool were 69-6 before Wilkinson and captain Ben Platt helped them grab promotion by three wickets.

Four clubs had the chance of promotion from Division Three and leaders Addingham were the first to take their place, Rob Ellis (5-50) and Nathan Harford (4-32) bowling out Hall Park for 136. Will Atkins (76no) and Ben Brierley (31no) clinching the win.

Jatinder Singh hit six sixes in scoring 57 as third-place Calverley reached 167-9 at Bardsey, who fell for 116.

Second-placed Olicanian gambled on batting their full 50 overs and Dave Britton made 54 not out in their 219-7 at New Rover. Harry Smallwood (4-17) and Scott Sanderson (3-11) reduced the hosts to 99-9 but with Rover not having as many overs, each side gained three points plus bonuses, leaving Olicanian one wicket and four points short of promotion.

York Senior

THE Premier Division title race looks set to go down to the final round of matches after rain denied Sheriff Hutton Bridge the chance to clinch the title, and four out of the seven matches saw no play at all.

Only Acomb, who have a game in hand, can catch the leaders but they will need to win both their remaining matches to have a realistic chance of lifting the crown.

The penultimate round of fixtures paired the two together and hosts Acomb were in trouble on 99-7 chasing 165-9 when the match was abandoned. Adam Fisher (31) and Alexander Ibbotson (28) were made to work hard for their runs in testing conditions as hosts’ captain Andy Tute took 4-32. He then led from the front scoring 27 of his side’s total before rain brought a halt to proceedings 18 overs into the home sides reply.

Acomb take on Heworth in a re-arranged match and visit Stamford Bridge on the final day whilst Sheriff Hutton Bridge travel to Clifton Alliance on Saturday knowing 17 points will secure them the title.