Top-two sides battle to stay in contention

THE league reaches the halfway stage tomorrow with the leading duo facing tricky away matches.

Leaders Blyth have a trip to fourth-placed Blagdon Park, who need to win to keep pace with the table-toppers.

The inconsistent hosts have a doubt over the availability of their wicketkeeper Stuart Dick, who missed their last game with a finger injury. Blyth, who flirted with relegation all last season, will hope to continue with their impressive first-half form.

Last season’s relegated team Whickham host an unchanged Backworth side who trail the leaders by only 21 points.

Backworth openers Alan Robson and Ben Sutton did enough last week to secure their places, breaking two records with their 341-run partnership. Potent strike duo Chris Miller (25 wickets) and Chris Liddle (22 wickets) will look to continue their good form.

Whickham, in sixth place and 48 points behind their visitors, need a victory to keep alive their hopes of a title challenge.

GEMs – also aiming to stay close to the leaders – make the trip to Corbridge. The Chopwell side, 59 points off top spot, boast the top two run-scorers in the league in Javed Mirza and all-rounder Zhoaib Shahid – who also has 28 victims this season to lead the wicket-takers list, two ahead of David Ebdale and Mirza Balal Baig.

Corbridge have the lowest batting and bowling points in the league and lie just above the bottom two.

Blue Flames, like GEMs, have an easier match on paper as they welcome Stobswood.

Victory for tomorrow’s hosts would keep them among the challengers while Stobswood will look to end their recent form which has dragged them into a tightlygrouped bottom six.

There’s an important match for both sides tomorrow as Ashington Rugby welcome Cramlington in a crucial clash at the bottom.

Last season’s runners-up Ashington lie only 22 points off the relegation zone, with Cramlington only two points better off.

Both Matthew and Lewis Tanney are carrying injuries but are still expected to feature in an unchanged Ashington line-up.

The bottom two meet tomorrow as Berwick host Warkworth. Level on points at the bottom, whoever wins their third match of the season could potentially move out of the drop zone. IAN APPLEBY