THE champagne corks will be popping at Kirkburton over the next couple of weeks, with their Seconds having wrapped up the Premiership Two title and their Firsts on the verge of winning the Frank Platt Conference.

That will probably come later today when they entertain Shelley at Riley Lane, with skipper Wayne Swift keen to secure the one point they need to be crowned as champions.

“We owe Shelley one after losing to them on the opening day of the season. They only narrowly beat us, but it was an early setback and served as a warning,” said Swift.

“And then, of course, last Saturday was the key win for us when we defeated Kexborough, who were the only side who could realistically have prevented us from winning the title.

“I said at the beginning of the season that my aim was to get us straight back into the Premiership as Conference champions, and not have to consider going into a play-off situation to gain that promotion.

“Apart from that opening-day defeat, we’ve just had a couple of hiccups along the way, at Lepton and Thongsbridge, and I think those were mainly down to the toss because of the conditions.

“But overall, I’ve been very pleased with the way the team has performed.”

Kirkburton have lifted the title (assuming they do get the point they need either today or, failing that, in next week’s match against bottom of the table Linthwaite) without the services of an overseas player, which is something they will probably be looking into for next season’s tilt at the Premiership.

“It has been an all-round team performance, rather than relying on a couple of individuals,” admitted Swift.

“We do bat all the way down to No11, which is something I was keen to ensure before the start of the season.

“I always felt we had to have ability down the order, because it’s no good just relying on the top four. If they fail, it’s vital to have someone to fall back on.”

Swift himself has dropped down the order, from his customary openers’ role, to act as something of a ‘fall-back,’ and, as a consequence, has not scored as many runs as he would probably have been expected to do, but he has no regrets.

“It wasn’t a case of not being selfish, it’s just that I wanted to do whatever I needed to do to win a particular game. I dropped myself down the order, just in case we had a sudden collapse, so there was myself, Matt Garrety and Tom Burkinshaw to steady things up.”

Burkinshaw is a genuine all-rounder and, at times, has scored vital runs, but it has been his bowling, alongside that of strike partner Lesroy Irish, which has played a big part in Burton’s success this season.

“Tom has been a massive ‘game player’ for us this year, and several people have remarked it was like having the ‘old’ Burkinshaw back like when Ryan Robinson was at the club. Perhaps having Lesroy (Irish) at the other end has brought the best out of Tom.

“Although Lesroy cannot go on all day now (he has taken 56 scalps in the League and Sykes Cup, while Burkinshaw has exactly 50), I certainly think having his name on the teamsheet has intimidated a number of opposition batsmen this season.

“With over 100 wickets between them, the bowling has been excellent, with the main two backed up by Matt (Garrety) and spinner Barry Singleton, and one of our younger players Oliver Davidson, who I’ve been calling upon lately since Barry broke a couple of ribs during the league match over at Thongsbridge.”

Much of the run-total has come from the blades of highly-talented young opener Andrew Smith and the experienced South African-born Louis Aspeling, who will both be expecting to top 600 runs this season, with solid support from Jordan Tindle, Garrety, Burkinshaw and, more recently, Smith’s brother Mike and the skipper himself.

“There’s a question mark over Mikey (Smith) for next season, as he is going away to Newcastle University, but his brother Andy is a brilliant prospect, and I am looking forward to seeing him perform in the Premiership next season. He needs that step up in standard now to progress,” added Swift.

“It has been difficult to get out of the Conference. I’ve absolutely loved being captain this year and now I’m really looking forward to taking us into the Premiership next year.

“First we have to beat Shelley and take the title in style without having to rely on beating Linthwaite in the final game – I like to win the big games, not just the easier ones.

“And obviously we’re going to need a couple of players in key areas, which we are already starting to plan for next season, because I want us to be competitive. That’s how I was brought up.

“We are not just going up into the top flight hoping to survive!”