Bentley Drains Bradford Premier League Week 5 and Priestley Cup Round-Up

Just as they did against Farsley last week, St Lawrence wrapped up victory quickly. They bowled out Jer Lane for 115 and despite losing three wickets before scoring and another one run later, they eased to a five-wicket win.

Josh Priestley steadied the St Lawrence nerves in a fifth wicket stand of 82 with overseas player Ankit Sharma (34) before steering them home as he finished 59 not out.

Sharma (3-31) and Archie Scott (3-36) had set up their team’s fourth victory of the season as only opener Adal Islam (47) countered their threat.

St Lawrence now have 80 points and are seven ahead of Woodlands whose match at Townville was one of the four Premier Division games to be abandoned,

Bradford & Bingley are now third on 66 points after they also evaded the rain and completed a five-wicket win over Cleckheaton at Wagon Lane.

The visitors were quickly reduced to 14-4 by a lively opening burst from Sri Lankan Udith Patabadige (4-18).

Khizer Qadeer hit two sixes and five fours while making 60 but lacked support as Cleckheaton were bowled out for 130, spinner Reece Cockshott finishing with 3-24.

Bradford & Bingley were guided towards their victory target by former Baildon opener Hector Bowerman who made 56.

The clash between Woodlands and Townville – which promised to be the game of the day -was abandoned at the tea interval.

Put into bat, Townville recovered from 36-3 to make 239-9. Overseas player Sanoj Darshika (60) stabilised the innings before Conor Harvey and Kieran Collins took the attack to the Woodlands bowlers.

Harvey was at his destructive best as he struck five sixes and 10 fours while making 81 while Collins made 41 against his former club. Noah Priestley was the best of the Woodlands bowlers with 3-29 from his 15 overs.

Steve Bullen hit this season’s highest Premier Division’s individual score of 162 as his team piled up the biggest total of 362-4 against Pudsey Congs before their game was rained off.

Bullen’s innings featured nine sixes and 14 fours, and he featured in two century partnerships. He added 117 for the second wicket with Ed Brown (52) and 161 for the fifth wicket with Scotland under-19 batter Max Chaplin, who impressed as he hit three sixes and nine fours while making his highest first team score of 92 not out from 53 balls.

The best bowling performance came from the Premier Division’s leading wicket taker Morley’s left-arm spinner Jude Roberts. He took his haul of wickets for the season to 19 with 6-65 against Methley.

Roberts put the brakes on the Methley scoring after 120-run opening stand between Taylor Cornall (59) and Kyle Welsh (59). Jake Smart (47) was the only other batter to make an impression as Roberts and Muhammad Junaid (3-45) combined to bowl out Methley for 229.

Carlton’s overseas player Aqib Shah provided the highlight of their rained-off game at Farsley. Shah made 112, an innings featuring five sixes and 10 fours and rescued his side from 97-5 as they posted a total of 239. Muhammad Tariq weighed in with 38 as spinners Seamus Nazir (4-84) and Joe Pocklington (3-36) proved to be the best of the home bowlers, Farsley were 48-1 when play was abandoned.

Division One

Skipper James Lee scored a century, and James Massheder hit a six from the final ball as Bankfoot chased down an Undercliffe score of 300-3 to record a thrilling two-wicket win at Intake Road.

Lee hit four sixes plus 15 fours as he made a magnificent 128 from 103 balls and he was joined in a crucial third wicket stand of 203 by opener Hamza Shahzad (98)

Despite late wickets from Mohammed Suleman (3-54) and Sunny Matharu (3-64), Bankfoot secured victory and climbed to second place in the table.

The tone for the match was set by Undercliffe’s openers Awaise Hussain and Hayden Mortimer who shared a partnership of 182.

Mortimer hit two sixes and 10 fours while making 102 while Hussain’s 101 featured nine fours. Overseas player Faizan Zafar built on their foundation by blasting 58 from 38 balls.

Ossett are fourth as they continued their fine start with a commanding 120-run victory over Batley. After slipping to 9-2, Ossett recovered brilliantly through an outstanding unbeaten 115 from Haseen Bashir and Saminda Ganwarige (63), whose third wicket partnership of 140 transformed the innings and carried the hosts to 249-7.

Batley began aggressively in reply, with Roheil Hussain hammering 39 from just 14 balls, but the innings collapsed spectacularly once Tom Jenkinson entered the attack. Just seven days after taking 9-11 for his club’s second team against Brighouse, Jenkinson produced another devastating spell, claiming 5-16 from seven overs as Batley were dismissed for 129.

At Barnsley Road, Sandal produced one of the batting performances of the weekend before rain denied them the chance to push for victory against Lightcliffe.

Sandal made 318-6, driven by Jonathan Boynton (71), Sohail Hussain (59), and a stunning late assault from Denson Narayan, who smashed an unbeaten 47 from only 21 balls. Earlier, Sasindu Malshan (39) and Sam Owen (37) had laid the platform. Lightcliffe had reached 57/1 from 14 overs, with Hasan Raza unbeaten on 33, before the weather ended play.

Birstall and Yeadon were also frustrated by the weather after an entertaining contest at Leeds Road. Birstall totalled 213, with Sharoon Siraj leading the way superbly with 76 and Waseem Liaqat adding a rapid 48 late in the innings. Yeadon’s attack was led by Adeel Ashraf (5-30) and Muhammad Sarwar (4-70. Yeadon had moved to 27-0 from nine overs chasing a revised target before rain arrived to force an abandonment.

Hanging Heaton looked well placed for victory against Baildon before rain intervened at Bennett Lane. Baildon were bowled out for 118, with Zahir Abbas producing an excellent spell of 5-27 from nine overs, well supported by Tom Lindsay (3-34). Hanging Heaton then moved comfortably to 59-1 from 11 overs before the weather ended play.

Crossflatts also suffered frustration after posting 227-8 against East Bierley before rain prevented any reply. The innings revolved around an excellent unbeaten 78 from Umayr Hewitt, supported by Tahzeeb Arshad (31) and a late counterattack from Muhammad Raza who made 32 not out from 16 balls. East Bierley’s attack was led by Asad Raza (4-59) and Danny Cross (3-38), but the worsening weather ensured the points were shared.

Division Two

Keighley produced the most ruthless bowling display of the afternoon as they dismissed Windhill & Daisy Hilli for the season’s lowest score of 25 on their way to a crushing nine-wicket victory.

Skipper Simon Bailey producing extraordinary figures of 6-4 from 7.3 overs, including five maidens, while Zeeshan Qasim claimed 4-20. Only Nasir Chowdrey (8) and Bobby Khan (7) offered any resistance as wickets tumbled throughout the innings.

Keighley then raced to 27-1 in only 2.2 overs, with Muhammed Imran smashing an unbeaten 26 from 10 balls to complete an emphatic victory that takes them to the top of the table.

Northowram Fields are second after another disciplined victory, defeating Bowling Old Lane by three wickets.

Bowling Old Lane were dismissed for 104, despite Mehrban Khan battling for 48, as Northowram’s attack delivered another outstanding collective display. Sam Gardner led the way superbly with 4-31, while Hazrat Abbas (3-40) and Ahsan Alishan (2-4) ensured regular breakthroughs.

The chase was not entirely straightforward, with Shoaib Iqbal responding brilliantly for Bowling Old Lane with 4-43, but Shahzaib Khan’s unbeaten 41 guided Northowram to 107-7 and another important victory that keeps them among the division’s front-runners.

Great Preston dropped from first to third when rain prevented them from capitalising on making 349-6 at Gomersal.

The innings was dominated by a magnificent unbeaten 150 from Jack McGahan, who struck 22 fours and four sixes in a superb 122-ball innings. He shared a stunning sixth-wicket partnership with James Conlon, who narrowly missed a century with 98 from 69 balls, including six sixes. Gomersal’s attack struggled to contain the scoring despite Zaib Ali taking 3-64.

Hunslet Nelson produced a dominant all-round performance to overwhelm Altofts. Batting first, Hunslet piled up 315/7, driven by another outstanding innings from Australian Luke Ajani, who hammered 94, while Ibrar Younas blasted 65 from 42 balls and Andy McIntosh added 34.

In reply, Altofts collapsed dramatically against a devastating spell from Sam Thewlis, who ripped through the innings with superb figures of 6-14 from 6.2 overs, while Ibrar Younas added 3-52 as the hosts were bowled out for 107.

At Hartshead Moor, rain denied the hosts a likely victory after a fine bowling display against Spen Victoria. The visitors were bowled out for 164, despite Alex Midgley’s resilient unbeaten 54, as Lewis Lomax tore through the innings with exceptional figures of 6-44 from 14 overs.

Spen collapsed from 50-1 to 73-7 before recovering late in the innings. Hartshead Moor were then reduced to 8-2 from nine overs through a superb opening spell from James Russell (2-1) before rain arrived to force an abandonment.

Buttershaw St Paul’s and Streethouse produced another high-scoring contest, although the match was washed out after Streethouse posted 282-9. The innings revolved around a remarkable unbeaten 98 from Zamurad Khan, who hammered 11 sixes in a breathtaking late assault, while Ismail Patel added 69 earlier in the innings. Buttershaw’s bowlers were led by Hamdaan Khan (4-55).

Division Three

Hopton Mills completed a well-judged run chase to win a high-scoring encounter at Wrenthorpe.

The home side piled up 297-7 from their 50 overs, built around a magnificent 124 from Alfie Holden, who struck 17 fours and two sixes from 140 balls, while Patrick Forrest added 74 in an opening partnership worth 167.

Hopton Mills responded superbly. Connor Heywood blasted 62 from only 32 balls, including five sixes, before the chase was taken over by an outstanding unbeaten 77 from Khurram Shehzad and 50 not out from Ben Haigh which was supported earlier by Stephen Bland (41), Hopton Mills surged to 299-5 in only 43.2 overs to complete a superb victory.

East Leeds climbed off the bottom of the table after chasing down 252 to defeat Liversedge who are now propping up the table.

Liversedge’s innings featured half-centuries from Hamzah Hafeez (63) and Matthew Crowther (52), while Wasim Nazir added 45 to a total of 252-5.

East Leeds replied strongly through Amraze Mahmood, whose excellent 63 anchored the chase, while James Watling added 50 and Muhammad Shayan Umer struck a rapid 33. East Leeds eventually reached 255-7 with three balls remaining, despite Waqas Asaad’s fine spell of 3-52 from 12.3 overs for the visitors.

Wakefield St Michael’s and East Ardsley also produced a tightly contested encounter before East Ardsley completed a successful chase.

St Michael’s posted 207 all out, with contributions spread through the order including Rana Khan (35) and Ubaid Zia (34). East Ardsley’s innings was driven by a superb unbeaten 81 from Ben Smith, who struck 13 boundaries in a match-winning effort after early wickets had reduced the visitors to 81-4. Waheed Ahmed (3-48) and Syed Shah Bukhari (3-45) led Wakefield’s bowling effort. East Ardsley reached 208-8 to secure victory by two wickets. Earlier, Hassaan Mohammad produced excellent figures of 5-70 from 15 overs for East Ardsley.

Leaders Adwalton secured one of the most convincing wins of the afternoon with an eight-wicket success over Crossbank Methodists.

Crossbank were dismissed for 115 as Mitch Thomas led the way with 4-46 from 10 overs. Thomas then completed an outstanding all-round display with an unbeaten 41, while Lewis Lockwood smashed 39 from only 22 balls as Adwalton raced to 116-2 in only 18 overs.

At Scholes, bowlers dominated throughout as the hosts completed a comprehensive victory over Brighouse. The visitors were dismissed for 96, despite Yasir Mehmood (27) and Jijesh

Balan (24) offering resistance, as Scholes’ attack ripped through the middle order. Greg Keywood produced excellent figures of 4-35 from 13 overs, matched by Christian Jackson’s 4-21 from 11.3 overs. Scholes then chased comfortably through Jackson’s unbeaten 32, reaching 98/3 in only 13.3 overs.

Premier Division leaders Pudsey St Lawrence delivered a powerful batting display as they romped into the last eight of the Bentley Drains Priestley Cup with a crushing 244-run win at Morley.

Their formidable total of 355-5 was the highest of the day and featured centuries from Mark Robertshaw and Ricky Priestley as they shared a third wicket stand of 215.

Robertshaw made an unbeaten 161 from 143 balls while Ricky Priestley struck 106 from only 89 deliveries. Robertshaw finished with 20 fours and three sixes while Ricky Priestley struck a six and 13 fours.

Josh Priestley (42) added to the suffering for the Morley bowlers as he blasted a rapid 42 in the closing overs of the innings.

Morley never recovered from losing early wickets in reply and were dismissed for 111, with Oliver Stace taking 3-22.

Another outstanding batting display came at Red Lane where Carlton’s Aqib Shah hit a century against Farsley for the second successive day.

He followed up his 112 in yesterday’s league encounter with a magnificent 159 from 137 balls. His innings contained 16 fours and four sixes as Carlton reached 281-9. Support came from Naveed Malik (30) while Farsley’s most successful bowler Mukdas Mohammad (3-47).

Carlton then completed a dominant performance with the ball as Muhammad Tariq ripped through the top order with 4-8 from 10 overs. Skipper James Glynn (4-17) carried on the good work as Farsley were bowled out for 97.

Crossflatts’ hopes of causing an upset at Cleckheaton were shattered by a dramatic batting collapse which saw them lose their last nine wickets for just 25 runs.

The Division One side looked to be heading for a challenging score when Abs Dawood (71) and Scott Etherington (70) shared a second wicket stand of 135.

Khizer Qadeer claim 4-8 from five overs and Josh Sullivan (4-57) as Cleckheaton dismissed Crossflatts for 204.

Cleckheaton’s response was dominated by overseas batter Muhammad Ammar who struck an unbeaten 93. He was joined in an unbroken fourth wicket stand of 134 with Aaron Ratnalingam, who finished unbeaten on 51 as Cleckheaton sealed a seven-wicket win.

Holders Townville comfortably accounted for Batley after bowling the visitors out for 149. Matthew Race wrapped things up with 4-12 from 7.3 overs after Tom Chippendale (3-11) had posed early problems.

Townville then eased through thanks to an outstanding second wicket partnership of 141 featuring Sri Lankan Sanoj Darshika (78) and captain Jonny Booth’s unbeaten 50, which took them to the brink of their eight-wicket victory.

Woodlands recovered from 124-7 to post a total of 208 as they defeated Methley by 90 runs. Woodlands were indebted to a patient 50 from Tim Jackson and an aggressive 51 from Muhammad Bilal.

Methley’s bowlers competed well with Jake Smart (3-44) and Finlay Rooke (3-41) producing the best figures. Methley were bowled out for 118 with spinner Henry Pearson producing match-winning figures of 5-38, supported by Bilal (3-17).

Jer Lane and New Farnley both progressed with comprehensive wins over Division One opposition. Jer Lane beat Hanging Heaton by 105 runs while New Farnley cruised to a 10-wicket success against Baildon.

Jer Lane posted a score of 201 thanks to the efforts of Muhammad Wasim Khan (45), Mohammed Abbas (40), and Raqeeb Younas (33no).

Spinner Amir Hussain impressed with 5-27 from 8.5 overs as Hanging Heaton were dismissed for 96.

Division One strugglers Baildon chose to bat first against champions New Farnley and were skittled out for 84 at the Barry Jackson Ground.

Spinners Adam Ahmed (3-15) and Gurman Randhawa (3-12) shared six wickets before Alex Lilley (39no) and Ryan McKendry (30no) completed an unbroken opening stand to seal a ten-wicket win.

Bankfoot are the only Division One side in the last eight after a convincing eight-wicket win over their promotion rivals Yeadon.

Usman Maqsood (4-27) and Jeevan Singh Kathuria (4-12) bowled superbly to dismiss Yeadon for 101, before Hamza Shahzad blasted 50 from just 36 balls as Bankfoot raced to 104-2 in only 13.2 overs.