Cricket: Skelmanthorpe cutting gap on leaders

Aug 24 2009 by Mel Booth, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

CUTTING GAP ON

SKELMANTHORPE are cranking up the pressure on Premiership leaders Scholes.

The Lidgett Lane side are now just nine points behind after a crushing 80-run win at Honley.

They now have a home double header against Delph & Dobcross and Clayton West before visiting Scholes on Saturday, September 5, for what promises to be a crucial showdown.

Before then, Scholes – who picked up five points at Broad Oak thanks to a quality unbeaten century from Iqbal Khan – have to visit Elland on Saturday and then take on Sykes Cup winners Golcar at Chapelgate on Sunday.

Skelmanthorpe underlined their excellent current form with their win at Honley, posting 185-8 before dismissing the hosts for 105 – Ritchie Howarth being unable to bat through an injury which restricted him to just 5.5 overs.

Qaisar Rashid was the batting star for Skelmanthorpe, hitting nine boundaries in his 80-ball 73 and sharing in a 79-run stand for the second wicket with Tim Sykes (42).

Scott Dyson added a valuable 30 while Ibrar Ali collected four for 64 and Matthew Wood chipped in with a couple of wickets.

Honley must have fancied their chances, but they had reckoned without the accuracy of Craig Glover and James Crossland.

Crossland devastated the top order, leaving Honley 44-5, and with Glover in supreme form the task was then always going to be too much for the four-time champions.

Glover finished with five for 44 from 20 overs while Crossland had four for 50 from 16.

At Broad Oak, Ben De Araugo hit an unbeaten 97 as the home side totalled 201-6, Stephen Rushworth falling one short of a half century and Tom McCreadie finishing with a breezy 26 not out.

But Khan’s imperious knock took Scholes to a six-wicket win, sealing victory with the last of his 19 fours (he also hit a six) in his 102 not out.

Skipper James Noble had anchored the innings with 35 while teenager Mark Floyd played some fluent drives in his 38, sharing an 85-run fourth-wicket stand with Khan.

Tim Rees hit an unbeaten 62 to steer Shepley to a five-wicket win at Holmfirth, where the home side were dismissed for 118 despite 60 from Derbyshire batsman John Sadler.