Thongsbridge have been knocking on the Premiership door for the past four seasons and are desperate to finally lift the latch this time.
Buoyed by their victory in the Total Indoor Cricket Solutions T20 Shield final, they go into the last three matches of the season top of the Jedi Sports Championship standings.
And skipper Richard Wagstaff and his team are determined to hold off the challenge of Moorlands, Meltham and Rastrick and finally book a place back in the Drakes top flight.
Having been promoted from the Cedar Court Conference (third division) behind Armitage Bridge in 2011, Thongsbridge have finished third, fourth, fourth and third in successive Championship campaigns.
They are now itching to join Armitage Bridge again among the big boys and realise they need to finish the season well to maintain a three-point advantage over the rest.
They’ve not been helped by Zimbabwe leg-spinner Brandon Mavuta returning home this week to play for his country’s A team, but there’s a fierce determination in the camp to achieve promotion this time and reward a lot of hard work both on and off the field.
Long-serving player Ben Raven-Hill, who captained the team to Shield success in the absence (at a wedding) of Wagstaff, believes they are ready to make the step up.
“After near misses in the Shield and the Oddfellows Cup previously, we have taken momentum from the T20 success this time and we’re desperate to get promoted,” said Raven-Hill, who leads the batting with 607 runs at 43.36.
“I don’t think you ever know if you are ready (to go up), but we’ve wanted it for a long time and it’s slipped away from us each time.
“One thing I know for sure is that when we play better teams, we play a lot better as a team.
“A lot of our cricketers are very talented and maybe haven’t reached the level they should have.
“Someone like Ben Howitt, for instance, who was man-of-the-match in the T20 Shield final, is capable of doing the business in the Premiership, and we all want to get there.
“We would certainly give it our best shot if we got up, and we would go hard all the time, and you only have to look at Armitage Bridge to see what can be achieved.
“They’ve been an absolute credit and we would love to do something similar to what they’ve done.”
Keeper Richard Marshall is fast approaching 500 runs, while Mavuta has contributed 344 in addition to his 58 wickets – the third best haul in the whole league behind Shakir Muhammad at Delph (65 at 14.58) and Nazar Hussain at Mirfield Parish Cavaliers (60 at just 9.65).
Experienced Zafar Iqbal has been the attack spearhead with 33 wickets, while Tom Raven-Hill hs 25 and young Will Reeves 24.
Howitt has 19 wickets to add to his 236 runs.
“Brandon came to us this season fresh from the Under 19 World Cup and he’s proved a phenomenal leg-spin bowler,” added Ben Raven-Hill, 26.
“He is a really, really good performer, puts pressure on the batsmen and keeps it tight.
“He has taken a lot of wickets as a result and it’s a tremendous achievement to take 58 wickets – his performances here not going unnoticed by the national selectors!
“I firmly believe he would have taken 70 wickets – there’s no reason to think otherwise – and in addition to his bowling, he’s been an absolutely superb fielder.
“He really is a fantastic athlete and he’s contributed tremendously well this year.”
Mavuta captained his country in the U19 World Cup and has played one first-class match, for the Mid West Rhinos against Matabeleland Tuskers. He took eight wickets.
Improved facilities are there for all to see at Miry Lane, with Raven-Hill lauding chairman Alan Moore and a hard-working committee.
“We have people behind the scenes who are interested in putting time and money into improving our facilities and into encouraging young players,” he explained.
“As many as nine of our first-team have played junior cricket at Thongsbridge and that’s what we want to build on.
“You have to bring players into the club, but they have to be the correct players and ones who buy into our Thongsbridge way.
“We are keen to improve still further both on and off the pitch, with plans in place for a new clubhouse and sight screen, and we have a lot of juniors coming down to practice on a Friday night, which is great to see.
“In the last few years we haven’t perhaps challenged as much as we would have like with the age-group sides, but we’ve put up a fight this time in some of the sections and we’ve brought through the likes of Will Reeves, who has done really well.
“He is hopefully one of many who will come through, and we really are a club going in the right direction.”
See the All Rounder Sykes Cup presentation:
