SHELLEY Second team provided Huddersfield with their only piece of Inter-League glory this season, after a brilliant Crowther Cup final victory over Bradford League side Keighley.
It was the first time in 11 years that a Drakes League side had taken one of the Heavy Woollen District’s trophies, and their three-wicket success in a closely-fought contest at Morley was richly-deserved.
In the main event, Delph & Dobcross went the furthest, getting as far as the quarter-finals but then lost to Wickersley.
Sadly, there was no Yorkshire Leagues Knockout this season, and in the Heron White Rose Trophy, Huddersfield lost in the sem-finals to the Aire/Wharfe League at Lascelles Hall, while the Joe Lumb team, holders from the previous year, finished runners-up in their section and then lost the Jack Lee Trophy to Nidderdale in the play-offs.
Back in the Drakes League, there were a total of 77 centuries hit during the season, with Hall Bower and Lascelles Hall giving up six tons apiece, and Micklehurst, Meltham, Delph, Kexborough and Skelmanthorpe shipping five tons each, while just THREE of the 30 clubs did not concede a single century: Holmfirth, Marsden and Rastrick.
Eight batsmen went through the 1,000-run barrier (one more than last season), the leading individual run-maker was Golcar’s Steve Whitwam with five fabulous centuries (he had a sixth in the Heavy Woollen) as he notched 1,208 runs with a top effort of 172 against Lascelles Hall.
And considering he also took 59 wickets with his spinners, he must be high on the list when League officials come to select the Jack Gledhill all-rounder trophy winner, which ‘Cobber’ has lifted for the last two years in succession.
Elland’s Ryan Robinson was also on song this season with three tons (top score 161) in a 1,108 tally, while Micklehurst’s Aussie-born all-rounder Dennis Lonergan had 1,060.
The glorious eight were completed by: 4 Sarfraz Ahmed (Skelmanthorpe) 1,043; 5 Muthu Pushpakumara (Shelley) 1,037; 6 Javed Iqbal snr (Holmfirth) 1,026; 7 Amit Dani (Skelmanthorpe) 1,012; 8 Bruce Cruse (Delph & Dobcross) 1,003.
Similarly, eight bowlers achieved 60 wickets or more, which was not a bad return considering the amount of rain-hit games this season (a total of 88, two less than last year) led by Homlfirth’s Javed Iqbal junior who bagged 84 victims, followed by Paul van den Berg (Clayton West) 83; Kamran Mirza (Deph & Dobcross) 75; Harlon Haye (Honley) 72; Ritchie Howarth (Honley) 70; Andrew Clarke (Skelmanthorpe 69; Amit Dani (Skelmanthorpe) 63; Bilal Khilji (Emley Clarence) 61.
