Great Preston consolidated their position at the summit of Division Three with a hard-fought 25-run triumph against promotion rivals Scholes. A stellar bowling display from James Conlon and Ethan Walker restricted Scholes to 214 all out, falling short of their target of 240 in 37 overs.
Conlon’s impressive figures of 5-69, along with Walker’s 3-24, dismantled Scholes’ batting lineup, despite valiant efforts from Shafaqat Ali (72) and Greg Keywood (55), who fought hard but failed to turn the tide in their favour.
Great Preston owed their competitive total of 236-8 to a crucial second-wicket partnership between Oli Baron, who remained unbeaten on 76, and Ethan Walker, who contributed 64 runs. Sam Wright also made a valuable contribution of 37, while Keywood emerged as the most potent threat with the ball, taking 3-56.
With second-placed Altofts sitting out this round of fixtures, Great Preston extended their lead to a commanding 21 points. Spen Victoria, sitting in third place, finds themselves five points further adrift after registering the day’s quickest victory.
Spen Victoria’s dominance was evident as they bundled out Gildersome & Farnley Hill for a paltry 37. James Russell starred with the ball, claiming remarkable figures of 6-16, while Chris Allen provided excellent support with 3-9. Spen Victoria then chased down the target with ease, losing just two early wickets on their path to victory.
Windhill & Daisy Hill also enjoyed an emphatic eight-wicket win, thanks to Shoaib Iqbal’s exceptional spell of 6-25, which skittled out Brighouse for a mere 96 runs. Khalid Jawal’s unbeaten 31 and Haris Butt’s undefeated 46 ensured a comfortable triumph for Windhill & Daisy Hill.
In a thrilling encounter, the last-wicket pair of Cavan Connolly (22) and Waheed Ahmed (21) orchestrated a remarkable comeback for Wakefield St Michael’s, rescuing their team from a precarious position of 84-9. Their unbeaten partnership of 39 guided St Michael’s to a nail-biting one-wicket victory over East Leeds. Earlier, Connolly had impressed with the ball, taking 3-30 to complement Syed Bukhari’s figures of 4-35, as East Leeds were dismissed for 123.
Adwalton currently occupies the fifth spot in the league standings, trailing second-placed Altofts by a mere seven points. They secured a comprehensive seven-wicket win against Crossbank Methodists, successfully chasing down their opponents’ total of 190. James Colbourn top-scored with 64, supported by James Lord (42) and Matt Donohoe (32). Zaib Ali (56), Will Smeaton (39), and Dean Hans (36) were the main contributors for Crossbank Methodists. Adwalton’s key bowlers, Imran Patel (4-67) and Colbourn (3-56), played crucial roles in restricting their opponents’ batting lineup.
