Pro Abbas takes five wickets in Church derby win
CRICKET SHELDAN KEAY
CHURCH Cricket Club claimed bragging rights against neighbours ENFIELD after a four-wicket win at Blackburn Road in their Lancashire League Phase Two B Division match.
Enfield batted first after winning the toss, but were lacking that one big score from one of the players to help them post a significant total.
Six batsmen were dismissed for totals between 10 and 17, with the team ending their innings on 100-8 after 50 overs.
Professional Zain Abbas was the pick of the bowlers for Church, taking figures of 5-12 during his 15 overs.
Church had to work hard in their response. Opener Bilal Abbas top scored with 20 but some of his teammates were dismissed cheaply.
They reached their total though, ending on 102-6 after 32 overs to secure the win.
Church are in second place after the win, with Enfield remaining top of the Phase Two B Division table.
RISHTON also picked up a victory over one of their local rivals after a 39 run triumph against GREAT HARWOOD at Blackburn Road.
Rishton won the toss and decided to bat first, and had professional Saeed Anwar to thank for helping them post a respectable total, as he hit 81 from 124 balls as Rishton finished on 177-9.
Great Harwood looked to be on course to pushing their opponents close after a good start left them 76-2.
The team collapsed though, with the team then going to 108-8. An unbeaten 20 from Yousuf Ali at the back of the order tried to steady the ship, but his teammates were dismissed and Great Harwood finished 138 all out, handing Rishton the win.
Rishton are fifth, with Great Harwood one place below them.
ACCRINGTON came up short as they suffered a seven wicket defeat against Bacup at Lanehead.
Bacup won the toss and decided to field first, and it appeared to be a good choice as they managed to restrict Accrington during their innings.
Kieren Grimshaw top scored with 56 for Accrington, but the rest of his teammates failed to offer any major scores and they ended their innings on 126-8.
Matthew Ramshead performed well with the ball for Bacup, dismissing multiple batsmen and finishing with figures of 5-40.
Bacup’s run chase was straightforward, thanks mainly to 46 from professional Ernest Kemm.
Tim Farragher (26), Matthew Schofield (19) and Matt Thompson (16 not out) also contributed to help Bacup reach the target in 35 overs.
Bacup are now in third place in the Phase Two B Division, with Accrington in fourth.
Elsewhere in the Lancashire League, Haslingden picked up a big win in the Phase Two A Division after a 100 run victory over East Lancashire at Alexandra Meadows.
East Lancs won the toss and decided to field first, and it looked to be a good decision as the majority of the Haslingden batsmen struggled, with only two men managing to reach double figures.
One of them was opener Phil Hayes, who led from the front by hitting an unbeaten 64 from 103 balls.
Other than Alex Coleman (18), Hayes’ teammates struggled alongside him, with Haslingden eventually bowled all out for 135
It seemed to be an achievable target for East Lancs, but an extremely poor performance with the bat ended their hopes.
Shahrukh Khan (13) was the only player to reach double figures, with four players failing to score a single run as the team were bowled all for a very poor 35 in 17 overs.
Nick Benton was the star man for Haslingden, finishing with superb figures of 7-15, while Lewis McIntosh chipped in with 3-19 to help their side pick up a big win.
Hlingden remain ninth in the Phase Two A Division table, while East Lancs are now joint seventh.
Ramsbottom were also victorious in their Phase Two A match as they beat Neson by six wickets at Acre Bottom.
Nelson batted first, and found themselves in a decent position when professional Devon Conway (45) and David Crotty (31) helped the team to 71-1 at one stage.
A collapse soon followed though, with all of the other batsmen failing to reach double figures, meaning Nelson were bowled all out for 127.
Dale Gabriel (3-18) and Jon Fielding (3-34) took three wickets apiece for their side, while Josh Dentith (2-18), Jake Neary (1-16) and Matt Burdaky (1-16) also chipped in.
Despite losing a few wickets, Ramsbottom eased to the win, with professional Grant Thomson hitting an unbeaten 61 alongside Tom Parton (39) to help the team reach their target in 31 overs.
Ramsbottom are in sixth place, with Nelson one position above them in fifth.
Rawtenstall suffered a five wicket defeat against Colne at the Worswick Memorial Ground.
Rawtenstall won the toss and decided to bat, with Tabassum Aziz making a half-century and Rizwan Shafiq scoring 24 as the team finished 152 all out.
Colne began well and were 31-0, but a small collapse would have given Rawtenstall hope when they then fell to 43-3. Matt Walker came in and hit an unbeaten 61 from 52 balls to put the match beyond doubt though, with Colne reaching their target after 26 overs.
Rawtenstall remain rooted to the foot of the table after just one win, with Colne one place above them.