New Farnley close to ending wait for Bradford Premier league title honours
AFTER a few near misses, New Farnley are on the brink of a first Bradford Premier League Premier Division title.
They easily disposed of Cleckheaton on Sunday, while Woodlands were suffering a dramatic batting collapse in a 110-run defeat at third-placed Jer Lane.
The upshot of Sunday’s games is that New Farnley need just three points from their final game – at home to Woodlands on Saturday – to take the silverware.
Jer won the toss and made 236, with opener Mosun Hussain making 31 before Abubakar Dawood (60) added 74 for the fourth wicket with Cosmond Walters (26), captain Yasar Ali hitting 67 not out off 47 deliveries, including five fours and five sixes, and putting on 81 for the ninth wicket with Osama Ahmed (21).
Leg-spinner Brad Schmulian took 5-65, and Woodlands were 111-3 after Tim Jackson scored 35.
Tom Clee scored 34, but his dismissal was part of a shutter of victims, spinner Amir Hussain causing havoc with 6-12 as seven wickets fell for just 15 runs.
Cleckheaton were dismissed for 141 at Lawns Lane, Fletcher Coutts bagging 4-26 and Gurman Randhawa 4-32.
New Farnley openers Aidan Langley (29) and Steve Bullen (42) then put on 72, and captain Alex Lilley (47no) saw them to an eight-wicket win inside 30 overs.
There was also significant movement at the bottom, with the experienced Ed Brown (83no) and Matthew Duce (46no) taking Bradford & Bingley to a six-wicket win with seven balls left at Pudsey St Lawrence as they chased down 277-5.
Jacob Slator (82) and Callum Goldthorp (50), who put on 104, had laid the earlier platform, while Mark Robertshaw (42), Charlie Best (63), Josh Priestley (62no) and Charlie Parker (48no) contributed for Pudsey.
That win took Bingley to 206 points, while Ossett – who are at Wagon Lane on Saturday – have 204 and Cleckheaton 196 ahead of the final weekend as they bid to avoid relegation alongside Pudsey Congs, who host Cleckheaton.
The top individual performance of the day was Joe Pocklington’s 204 not out (21 fours, 11 sixes) as Farsley defeated Methley by 193 runs – an innings which took the batter over 1,000 league runs for the season.
Chris Holliday also reached four figures with 53 not out for Townville, who defeated Congs by four wickets.
In the Huddersfield League Premiership, Moorlands beat Scholes by 40 runs in a clash of the top two, and are six points ahead with two fixtures left.
Moorlands were 95-8 but Jonathan Rudge (24) added 45 vital runs with Daniel Moorhouse (20), who then took 4-25 as Scholes were dismissed for 100.