Drakes Huddersfield Cricket League officials are looking for a new sponsor for their prestigious Sykes Cup competition.

It’s the major knockout competition of the league and has been played every year since 1920 – including through the Second World War.

Arrowselfdrive.com, who have their Huddersfield depot at Linthwaite, have backed the Sykes Cup for the past three years, having taken over from cricket equipment suppliers Romida, who have a base in Brighouse.

Arrow will continue to make a £250 contribution to the Drakes League, but the bulk of their sponsorship budget will be spent elsewhere in line with the company’s growth over the past few years.

Members of the League Executive are now sounding out potential sponsors for the Cup, which was won by Barkisland this year in a thrilling final against Scholes at Elland, where a crowd of around 850 turned up.

First winners of the Sykes Cup were Friarmere, and the competition was known as the Sir Charles Sykes Cup until 1972.

The first title sponsors were Hills Surplus in 1973, and they backed the competition until 1982, when the name changed to Hills Supplies.

They backed it until 2002 when Romida took over, providing sponsorship for 10 seasons until arrowselfdrive stepped in for 2013.

It looks like two of the League’s other knockout competitions – the Oddfellows Cup and Earnshaw Cup – will be suspended next year.

That’s because the League are being joined by Mirfield Cricket Club, taking numbers in the Cedar Court Conference to 13 (and the Drakes to 39 clubs).

Drakes League Sykes Cup final - Barkisland v Scholes at Elland CC - Barkisland team celebrate with the cup.

The Oddfellows (for first teams) and Earnshaw (for seconds) were introduced in 2010 to provide extra cricket for clubs outside the Drakes Premiership.

At the time, the Championship and Conference sections each featured just eight clubs.

Since then, Micklehurst and Paddock have left the league, but Cumberworth, Cawthorne, Moorlands, Almondbury Wesleyans, Denby, Denby Dale entered in 2013.

And last season, they were joined by new clubs Thurstonland, Cartworth Moor, Upperthong and Birkby Rose Hill.

Mirfield CC come in for 2016 and Mirfield Parish Cavaliers are waiting in the wings to join the Drakes at the earliest opportunity they can gain release from the Central Yorkshire League (Premier Division).