This Season

After rolling out A&T for 19 in the last round, the draw for Round 2 of the Sunday Premier Cup saw Clifton 3s host Royton 3s, who are also opposition from 4 divisions below Elliot's Sunday Prem table toppers.

After winning the toss and opting to bat, Royton's young openers (both u13s still) made their way out to the middle. Only 3 deliveries later though, young Fawcett was heading back to the changing rooms after being shinned up by Oli Dunn. His replacement also only managed to survive two deliveries before being caught behind by 3s debutant, Fred Breidenbach, with the last ball of the first over.

The Clifton field surrounded young Fred (aged 12) to congratulate him on his first victim in senior cricket, and hopefully what is the first of many senior appearances for Clifton. 

Oli Dunn then took his figures to 3-1 after only 14 balls when cleaning up the number 4 to leave the visitors reeling at 3/3. That was very soon 16/4 as Oli took his 4th following a sharp catch from Dan Jones diving to his right.

Oscar then chipped in with 2 wickets in his next 2 overs with a caught and bowled and a catch from Elliot at mid on. At 19/6 it very much looked like Clifton would be bowling a side out cheaply once again, but they'd already reach double the A&T total by the time Elliot picked up a wicket and Dunny wrapped up his 5-fer with a superb catch from Dan Jones, chasing one back over his head towards the clubhouse.

Dunn loves the 3s Cup with 5-fers in both of his games so far in this competition, showing figures of 10-26 from 15 overs bowled. Pretty impressive.

Royton eventually finished on 83, which had to be applauded when it looked for all the world that they could be rolled for less than 40 for the majority of the innings.

Clifton were always going to chase down a score like that,and they did so with ease via a 26 from Luke Jones and an impressive 49* from Oscar Thorpe, who punished every short ball with his long levers to send the ball racing to the boundary.

Tougher opponents will await in the next round as Clifton look to defend their Sunday Premier Cup title.

The Clifton 2s backed up last week’s comfortable win against Stand with a victory at Worsley CC that was anything but comfortable, taking them into 2nd place in the table and one point behind leaders, Horwich.

The reason for the lack of comfort in this victory was that Dan Jones with 16 was the highest score anyone could muster with the bat, and it’s never going to be a great day when “extras” wins the top bat prize with 21.

Clifton managed to scramble 109 together to at least give them something to bowl at, and a couple of early wickets was essential to make this game competitive. Two boundaries in the first over then another in the next over to get the hosts off to a flyer wasn’t in the script, and at 48/1 it was looking like one of those days.

It was the introduction of the returning Liam Dorsey and Sas Pushparajah as first change bowlers that turned this game around, as 48/1 became 64/6 in the blink of an eye. A masterclass in hitting the spot from both ends suffocated the Worsley batsmen, with no “4 balls” to feast on to relieve any pressure. They were supported well with a strong performance from Chris Thorpe with the gloves, coming in to replace McManus following his call up to the 1s.

Liam Dorsey’s return as captain saw him pick up a fantastic 5-fer from his spell, ending with superb figures of 11-5-18-5. At the other end, Sas finished with 3-20 off his 12.5 overs to bowl the home side out for 87; an outcome that looked almost impossible when they were almost halfway to the total required with 9 wickets still in the shed.

I don’t think you’ll find a pair of first change bowlers that good until you look a fair few divisions higher.

 

 

Clifton 1^st XI produced one of their mostcomplete performances of the season as they brushed aside Monton CC by 133 runs atManchester Road.

Having won the toss, Clifton elected to bat first on a pitchthat looked every bit a batsman's paradise. While the surface promised runs,there was still work to be done and Clifton's top order laid the perfectfoundation for what was to follow.

Stephen McManus and Caleb Donaldson showed patience anddiscipline against some accurate opening bowling, taking the shine off the newball and ensuring Clifton had a platform from which to launch later in theinnings. McManus struck five boundaries in his 27, while Donaldson battled hardfor his 11 before both fell in quick succession with the score on 46.

Their contributions, however, proved far more valuable thanthe scorebook might suggest. With the groundwork done, Gareth Cross took centrestage.

Batting with the authority and elegance that Cliftonsupporters have come to expect, Cross was at his majestic best. Timing the ballbeautifully and punishing anything loose, he compiled a superb 74 from 96deliveries, including nine fours and a six. He controlled the middle oversexpertly and looked set for a deserved century before eventually falling withthe score on 171.

If Cross had dominated the middle part of the innings, SamDorsey then took over in spectacular fashion.

The Clifton professional produced an innings of the highestquality, combining power, placement and skill to dismantle the Monton attack.As wickets and overs became increasingly valuable, Dorsey simply acceleratedthrough the gears, striking six towering sixes and six fours on his way to ascintillating unbeaten century. His magnificent 102 not out from 103 deliveriesensured Clifton finished strongly, with Ben Hamilton adding a useful 9 and ZachFlaxman remaining unbeaten at the close as Clifton posted an imposing 247-4from their 50 overs.

Despite the sizeable target, Clifton knew the wicketremained good for batting and that early wickets would be crucial. They gotexactly that.

Oliver Sleight struck first to remove Jordan Stephens beforeGareth Cross produced a devastating spell that ripped the heart out of theMonton batting line-up. Having starred with the bat, Cross delivered anoutstanding all-round performance with the ball, claiming five wickets andrepeatedly breaking partnerships just as Monton looked to rebuild.

Monton's overseas professional Tharushan Iddamalgoda wasunable to make an impact, while Cross also removed key batters Joe Kershaw and TomWilloughby as the visitors slipped steadily behind the required rate. Sleightprovided excellent support, claiming three wickets and maintaining relentlesspressure throughout his 15-over spell. Ben Hamilton then wrapped up the inningswith two late wickets as Monton were dismissed for just 114 in 31 overs.

The margin of victory could have been even greater. Cliftonwere excellent in the field for long periods but will know they need to be moreclinical when opportunities arise, with four catches put down during theinnings. Against stronger opposition those missed chances could prove costly,although on this occasion they had little impact on the final result.

Ultimately this was a dominant display from Clifton. McManusand Donaldson provided the platform, Cross delivered a masterclass with bothbat and ball, and Dorsey's magnificent unbeaten century provided the headlineact in a comprehensive victory.

The 1st XIs first ever visit to Brooksbottom ended in disappointment after a poor quality game ended in defeat in a low scoring game.The former North Manchester League club are now the highest placed of the clubs that merged from that league to form the GMCL and the team and facilities reflect their enhanced status.

For the spectator, the cricket did not reflect that enhancement, with some poor batting, shot selection and running between the wickets being compounded by some curious umpiring and home team fielders who felt it necessary to scream appeals at the umpires from positions including deep square leg and third man, every time the ball passed the bat or hit the pads.

Sam's batting line up, with the exception of Gareth Cross(41) who ploughed a lone furrow, crumbled to 93 all out with only Parikh managing to reach double figures. The team rallied in the second half and four Brooksbottom ducks briefly threatened a Clifton win, but professional Ullah guided his team home to a four wicket win with Gareth Cross completing a decent personal day with 4-39.

There is no doubting the talent in this side, but their confidence is currently in their boots and they are finding it hard to see where the next win is coming from….Saturday at home would be just the tonic.

With the hangover from Zach's 21st celebrations the night before slowly wearing off, the youthful 2s made their way to Roe Green for a challenging cup tie against a side 2 divisions higher. A real test of wherethis side are at lay in front of them.

After finally winning a toss for the first time this season - Clifton opted to bat - and sent out youngster Luke Jones (14yrs old) to accompany Ethan Kite (16yr old) to face the music of their opening quicks.

A solid start came to an end in the 7th over when Luke (9) snicked off after doing the hard work with Ethan to get 25 on the board for the first wicket stand. Dan (5) then came to the crease and really struggled to show his usual fluency, when not really timing anything and finding fielder after fielder, before chipping one back to the overseas spinner to leave the visitors 36/2. McManus (15) made his way out in an unusual no.4 spot but wascleaned up before he could really get going. Lewis Keogh (6) also fell early to a caught behind, before Sam (0) missed a straight one first ball to leave Clifton 84/5.

An outstanding partnership of 73 from Ethan and Dunny then put Clifton back into the contest, as they took on the Roe Green attack at every opportunity. Ethan's fist pump on reaching 50 let you know what it meant to him. Ethan's (66) superb innings finally came to an end when slicing one up to be caught at short third.

157/6 then became 158/8 as Oscar Thorpe (1) and Elliot Hogben (0) were both cleaned up in back-to-back balls from the returning opening bowler, Jacob Prill, leaving young Charlie Seddon to face the hat-trick ball. A solid forward defence took care of that one. Ollie Dunn's (40) great knock finally came to an end, but a late flurry of hitting from Charlie (7) and Tom Worthington (14*) put 181 on the board and gave the bowlers something to defend.

It took a flick to square leg from a full toss to pick up the first wicket, and that pretty much summed up the second innings, as it was the batsman giving away their wickets rather than the bowlers earning them. Tom (0-16 from 7) bowled with control up front, but the bowlers just weren't on it as a whole, with too many bad balls that gifted runs. It wasn't the Clifton bowling attack we've been used to with the second team this season. 24 wides tell its own story.

It was an encouraging performance to post 180 with the batwhen the side had some key players missing, with the usual run scorers having off days, against a strong bowling attack. But this side will have to bowl much better than that to have a chance of competing at a higher level in the coming years.

Clifton's Derek Kay Cup campaign came to an abrupt end on Sunday as Premier 2 side Westhoughton CC produced an impressive all-round display to secure an eight-wicket victory at Manchester Road.

Winning the toss and electing to bat, Clifton never really found the momentum or intensity required against a well-drilled Westhoughton side and the performance lacked the focus, grit and determination that has become a hallmark of this Clifton side in recent seasons.

There were promising starts throughout the innings, but nobody was able to convert. Zach Flaxman got Clifton moving with a quick 12 from just nine deliveries before Caleb Donaldson (32) and Ben Hamilton (32)rebuilt steadily, taking the score to 69 before Donaldson became the first of three victims for Nathan Blair. Hamilton continued to look comfortable before falling for 32, while Jordy Higham's enterprising 21 briefly threatened to inject some urgency into the innings. However, wickets fell at regular intervals and Clifton were unable to establish any meaningful partnerships during the second half of the innings.

The visitors' bowlers maintained excellent control throughout. Blair's three wickets provided the initial breakthroughs beforeSaeed Ali ripped through the lower order with outstanding figures of 5-13 from5.4 overs. Ross Sutton also played a key role, conceding just 18 runs from hisnine overs. Clifton were eventually dismissed for 159 in 41.4 overs - a total that always looked below par on a good batting surface.

If the home side hoped to apply pressure with the ball,those hopes were quickly extinguished by an aggressive Westhoughton top order.Jamie Bates launched a ferocious assault, smashing 55 from just 29 deliveries with seven fours and four sixes before becoming one of only two wickets to fall.

Any chance of a Clifton comeback disappeared as overseas professional Saeed Ali took centre stage. Having already dismantled the Clifton batting line-up, Ali then produced a masterclass with the bat, striking an unbeaten 62 from just 38 balls. His innings was full of clean hitting andintelligent stroke play, ensuring the chase never lost momentum. Ali was well supported by Akbar Ur Rehman, who finished unbeaten on 34, as Westhoughton raced to 163-2 in just 17.2 overs.

For Clifton, Ben Hamilton and Finlay Testa claimed a wicket apiece, but the bowling attack struggled to find consistency against a confident and aggressive batting display.

Credit must go to the visitors, who thoroughly deserved their victory. Their professional Saeed Ali delivered a match-winning performance with both bat and ball, while the entire side played with energy and purpose throughout.

Clifton will now look to put this disappointing cup exit behind them and refocus on the challenges ahead in Premier Division.

On Thursday evening, the Clifton hordes travelled to StandCC to see a masterclass in six hitting from Ali Hassan, grabbing victory fromthe jaws of defeat for the 1s. A couple of days later, it was the turn ofClifton to welcome Stand's 2nd XI under blue skies yet again, as this earlysummer heatwave continued.

After Macca lost the toss for the 748th time in succession,the Stand skipper opted to have a bat, a decision that didn't look too cleverwhen they found themselves 2/2 after just 13 balls, with Sas (2-22 from 7) andTom (1-14 from 7) picking up one each from really poor shots straight tofielders. Stand began to rebuild, and it took until the 14th over - and thelast from Sas' spell - for the 3rd wicket to fall when the No.4 heard the deathrattle behind him.

39/3 quickly became 41/4 with the introduction of OscarThorpe (2-15 from 5) down the hill, thanks to an outstanding one-handed catchfrom Sas low to the ground. In his next over, Oscar clattered the stumps, andit was looking ominous when Dunny (1-19 from 6) then picked up his first scalpin the next over to leave the visitors 56/6.

Tight spells from Dan (0-15 from 6) and Ethan Kite (1-15from 6) contained the visitors, but it was the introduction of Owen Hogben(3-14 from 5) that wrapped up the first innings to leave Clifton with a targetof 122, which was never going to be enough with the depth of the home battingline up.

Macca and Ethan stepped out with confidence and got thechase off to a flyer, with every bad ball - and there were plenty - being sentto the boundary or over it. The 6th over being smashed for 20 pretty muchkilled the game as a contest, as Macca went 4, 6, 4, 6 in succession in anexhibition of clean ball striking. A passing comment from a few visitingsupporters of "these are miles too good for us" summed it up nicely.

The runs continued to flow, with Clifton 97 without lossbefore McManus (55) flicked one to square leg to end a brutal innings. 7 ballslater, Ethan (35) followed him back to the shed after a fine knock. With only22 required to win with about 80 overs left to do it, the hosts managed to losea couple more wickets in Owen (7) and Lewis (4) before the chase was wrapped upby Dan (8*) and Sam (0*).

A comfortable win for the 2s and gets them back on trackafter a disappointing defeat at Heywood last weekend.

The unbeaten Clifton 3s welcomed neighbours Prestwich on Sunday afternoon, who arrived at Manchester Road from one junction up the M60 to be greeted by a freshly cut outfield and blistering blue skies.

Prestwich won the toss and of course opted to have a bat.

The early exchanges involved tight, wicketless spells from Tom (0-20 from 7) and Dunny (0-15 from 8). Lewis Keogh and Elliot Hogben came on and the set batters went after them early doors before they pulled it back to put the brakes on. It wasn’t until the 28th over - with Prestwich 97 without loss - until Clifton made the first breakthrough when Luke Jones bowled another youngster (who had replaced the “retired hurt” opener who was struggling with 5 from 30). Four overs later Luke claimed another victim where a full toss was edged to Sam Winstanley at cover.

Sam came into the attack himself and quickly took the big scalp of opener, J. Mercer, who had to depart an agonising 8 short of his century following a great knock from the lefty.

Four more wickets fell in the last 5 overs, as Clifton finished well to restrict the visitors to 175/7 when 200+ was on the cards with Sam, Lewis and Luke all picking up two wickets apiece to sandwich a runout between Elliot and Sam.

The chase then got off to a poor start with AJ bowled fourth ball, and it didn’t get much better as Luke (4), Sas (8) and Sam (4) all fell to leave Clifton up against it at 26/4. It was then that Lewis Keogh joined Owen Hogben at the crease and they put on a masterclass of rebuilding and developing a partnership to get the home side back in the game.

It was a partnership of ever growing maturity from the young pair, resulting in well deserved half centuries for them both in a 103 run pairing. Lewis (56) was first to fall, with Owen (60) hanging around until the end to see his side across the line with just over three overs to spare.

It’s now 4/4 for the 3s in the Sunday Prem, and Elliot’s men look like they’ve got the right balance of giving young players a platform and supporting them with some experience in the side. There’s no need to panic with the loss of early wickets anymore as this middle order is stacked with runs to take games deep.

Another enjoyable Sunday watching the 3s in roasting hot conditions. Long may it continue.

The Clifton 2s fell to their second defeat of the season in a disappointing afternoon on the vast playing field of Heywood; failing to chase down what looked like a below par total of 149.

On a warm and sunny afternoon, the hosts chose to bat, but were quickly in trouble at 8/3 after Tom took a wicket with his third ball (caught Elliot), Oscar cleaned up the other opener in his third over, before a run out from Lewis Keogh an over later left the hosts reeling. They rebuilt with a 50 partnership, before the introduction of Jordy with his Aussie off spin brought two wickets in as many overs. Jordy picked up another wicket during his 14 over spell, whilst Lewis Keogh picked up 2-23 from his 5 over spell, with only half them runs coming off the bat.

A chase of 150 should be bread and butter for this batting line up, and it looked to be a walk in the park with Clifton 55/1 having Macca and Dan at the crease with plenty of batting still to come. What followed wasn’t pretty. Dan (25) lost his off stump from a cutter that fooled him, shortly followed by Jordy (0) heading back to the changing rooms for an early shower. Sam Winstanley (4) and Lewis Keogh (0) then came and went quickly and Clifton were suddenly in trouble at 72/5. Luke Jones (0) was then run out with the ball deflecting of his bat onto the stumps whilst trying to make his ground. Very quickly it was 91/7 when Oscar (5) and Charlie Seddon (0) were both caught.

A late rally from the captain Macca (55) to get Clifton within 32 of the win gave the travelling fans some hope, before being caught leaving the hosts 1 wickets to claim victory. Tom Worthington lbw on 4 sealed it.

A fantastic and gritty knock from the captain wasn’t to be enough, as after the second wicket fell, nobody could stay out in the middle with him.

An acquaintance from Denton mentioned in conversation how much the standard of cricket has improved year on year in the Premier Division and how errors are punished mercilessly unless you are on top of your game, and so it proved as the firsts went down to another heavy defeat on Saturday.

Bowling one or two bad balls each over and dropping catches invariably leads to large totals and the disappointing thing about Denton Wests 273 all out, was the weakness exhibited by the middle order and tail which scored 74 runs for eight wickets showing that, if the early batsmen had been snuffed out, the result could have been much different.

The difference in the second innings was how difficult it was to remember Jordan Williams bowling a single bad ball in his fifteen over spell. It didn't help when Caleb asked Jack to run 22 yards up the hill in sweltering conditions after he hit the first ball of the innings straight to point.

Batsmen continued to perish in pursuit of the challenging total as only Caleb (64) managed to pass the fifteen run mark and eventually another disappointing day at the office concluded with a 135 run defeat.

The thirds started their defence of the Sunday Premier Cupwith an away day at the Gin Pit against their thirds who play two divisionsbelow Elliot's Emergent Entities.

It was difficult to tell which was the Premier Division teamas the Pitmen roared out of the traps, sending back Anuj, Ollie and Ethan withonly 16 on the board. For the second day in a row, Sam rode to the rescue withanother composed half century and, supported by Lewis (26), Dan (35) and Owen(20) they took the score to 182-8. It needs to be recorded at this point, thatin an all too rare moment of sportsmanship these days, A&T stalwart PaulHiggins recalled Owen to the wicket after he'd been given out to a deliverythat wouldn't have hit ten sets of stumps, for which he received a warm anddeserved round of applause from the sidelines.

At this point, the game turned into a jaw droppingspectacle, starting with Oscar's strike with the very first ball of theinnings. Looking through the history books, Clifton's lowest recorded score wasseven all out, a feat registered some 83 years ago in 1943, and as the homeside's batsman crumbled, it looked like that score could be challenged as thescore advanced from 0-1, to 1-2, 1-3, 1-4 and then 3-5.

The remaining batsmen ground out the odd run to move to10-9, before Ethan kindly obliged with eight wides before having Mr Higginscaught by the skipper with the scoreboard showing just 19. Ollie finished withthe remarkable figures of 5-5, with Oscar weighing in with 3-5 and Ethan 2-8,with none of those runs coming off the bat as the 3rds progressed to round 2 bythe margin of 163 runs.

The total of seven all out can therefore return to therecord books intact, apart from noting that the team that battered theunfortunate Cliftoners that day in 1943, were none other than Astley &Tyldesley.

East Lancs Paper Mill’s first team were welcomed atManchester Road by overcast conditions, and a weather forecast looking about asappealing as a weekend in Rhyl.

The visitors won the toss and chose to bat, with Sas beinggiven the new ball for the first time from the scoreboard end. After a steadyenough start of 25/0 from the first half dozen overs, it was a sharp piece offielding from Dan Jones that delivered the breakthrough; sliding at cover topick up one handed and into Owen’s gloves to take the bails with the openershort of his ground.

The visitors rebuilt nicely and were 79/1 after 18 overs,when the introduction of Dan Jones to replace Sas delivered the breakthroughfrom his 3rd ball, caught by his little brother at mid on. The overseas thencame to the crease on the back of his 150 odd a few games ago, but was put downon 2 off Keogh’s bowling, in a rare lapse from stand-in keeper Owen Hogben whoappears to catch better without gloves on.

It was then another sharp run out from Elliot Hogben toremove the other opener Caulfield (71), with the visitors eventually posting187 from their reduced 37 overs, with the highlights being a couple of specialshots from the overseas; flicking Jordy into the houses before driving him for6 over mid off. Dan Jones was the pick of the bowlers (2-33 from 9 overs), withSas Pushpajarah also bowling better than his (0-34 from 10) figures suggested.

With Duckworth Lewis then adjusting the total required to195 from 33 overs, Clifton’s wounded animals from last week’s defeat at Egertonwould have a job on their hands, and were very quickly staring down the barrelof another heavy defeat when the revised top 3 of Jordy (5), Dan (0) and Sas(0) were all back in the shed inside 3 overs with the scoreboard at 10/3.

A superb partnership of 67 from Lewis Keogh and SamWinstanley gave Clifton a kiss of life, before Owen Hogben (30) joined Sam atthe cease and picked up where Lewis (33) left off, putting together a 73 runpartnership to leave Clifton needing 45 to win from the last 9 overs and inwith a real chance to pull this one out of the fire. Young Luke Jones then cameto the crease and made his intentions clear, putting his 4th ball over thefence and into the houses, clearly trying to emulate Sam Winstanley’s flurry ofmaximums as the chase neared its finale.

The chase was complete with back to back boundaries and asingle from Luke (23*), with each of those shots being met with great cheersfrom both the clubhouse end and the lads gathered outside the changing rooms.The relief and fight of pulling this one out of the bag there for all to see.

The clear highlight was the exceptional innings of 87* fromSam Winstanley. An innings of clean ball striking and taking the game deep withtwo big partnerships.

For this side to chase down 195 in 29 overs (4 overs stillto spare), in those conditions, with so many players missing, and the top 3with the bat all failing, once again highlights the strength in depth availablefor this second team who really want to be pushing for promotion again thisseason.

It's fair to say that the days of Sir Garfield Sobersstroking the ball magnificently around the vast green sward of RadcliffeCricket Club are a distant memory, but the events of Saturday put thingssharply into perspective.

Sobers graced the arena for five seasons between 1958 and1962 and led them to the CLL cup and league double in 1961, but the club hasfallen on hard times since then and club officials are working hard to retrievethe situation. Edgworth, on the other hand, are a club on the up, and eyewateringly expensive ground improvements meant that their ground was unfit, andRadcliffe's Racecourse ground was available to stage the game.

The Racecourse (yes, it was once a prominent horse-racingvenue established in the 1840s on the private estate of the Earl of Wilton) hasseen better days but still shows the potential to become a gem of a cricketground. Sadly, the square has suffered from years of lack of love, and itbecame obvious from the first over, bowled by Ollie Sleight, that it was goingto be a difficult day for batsmen of both sides. So, it proved as the balldeviated in all directions as Edgworth struggled to 46-4 when Gareth Cross sawthe umpteenth delivery rear up off a length and whistle past the batsman's ear.

The very next over, Ollie repeated the trick and the ballcrashed right through the Edgworth professional's helmet grid and into his eye.At this point the Umpires decided to call it a day and with both captainseventually in agreement, the match was abandoned to the whim of the GMCL boardto decide the outcome. For the record, Ollie took 3-30 and Gareth 1-15.

A trip to Little Pools on a brisk but sunny afternoon beckoned for E dot Hogben and his merry men from Clifton; taking on an inexperienced looking Heaton side.The home side chose to bat and struggled early doors to do anything other than play and miss or leave the ball outside off, as Ethan Kite was too quick for them at times, while Dunny’s swing from the other end had them in knots.It took until the 13th over and the introduction of Lewis Keogh to make the breakthrough with an edge carrying through to the new 3rd team keeper in the Captain’s younger brother. Keogh kept probing and by the 22nd over he had his 3rd wicket to have Heaton at 82/3, before Luke Jones came on to somehow rob the next three wickets in what was far from his finest spell of bowling.The Heaton tail was made up of youngsters who understandably struggled to get the ball away, and eventually finished on 125/9 from their 40 overs.It was a target that should always have been comfortable for this Clifton batting order, topped by Luke and Oli Dunn. Luke (14) was the first to fall when throwing the hands at a wide one to be caught at point. Dan Jones then joined Dunny in the middle where a 42 run partnership put Clifton in full control of the contest, before Dunn (21) had to go and take his pads off.That presented a rare opportunity at No.4 for youngster Charlie Seddon, who took full advantage with an unbeaten knock of 29, highlighting once again the depth of talent within the Clifton juniors. A composed 55 not out from the experienced youngster in Dan Jones supported Charlie throughout, as the pair of them put on a partnership of 72 to win the game that the Heaton bowling attack had no answers to. The 100% winning run continued.

The drive up the A666 from Clifton to Egerton had the car wipers in over drive, as the heavens opened in style. Not a chance we’ll be starting on time. But on arrival, the pavements were relatively dry and Egerton appeared to have missed the deluge that battered Manchester Road around midday.The sheet was taken off the strip to unearth a green top they would be proud of in New Zealand, making the toss look hugely important, especially with more rain forecast later in the afternoon. Of course Egerton won the toss and stuck Maca’s men into bat; it was going to have to be a day to earn your runs on this deck.Three overs later, Sam Winstanley (4) chipped one up to be caught inside the ring, then Lewis Keogh was smashed on the pads in front of all three first ball to leave the visitors staring down the barrel at 26/5 as the rain started to fall.After more than 2 hours of playing darts, Grant and Ethan put on their armbands and headed back out to the middle to try and survive the wet deck. Sawdust re-supplies will be required on Sunday. At the end of the 8th over, Ethan chipped one up to mid wicket to make it 30/6. Young Luke Jones then came to the middle and settled in quickly, as Grant tried to accelerate before falling for 15. Barty (8) followed shortly after afterwards.A superb 50 run partnership then followed from Luke (32) and Tom Worthington (27) with Tom putting the bad balls away in style, while Luke batted with maturity beyond his years to try and bat out the overs and put something on the board to defend; falling just three balls short of batting the reduced overs, with 117 on the board. A decent fightback.With Duckworth Lewis then working its magic to reduce the target by 20, defending 98 was always going to be a challenge. But it was rendered pretty much impossible with the way the opening bowlers started off, with two or three bad balls every over getting the treatment. Only Ethan Kite came away with any credit from the bowling attack, with a superb 3-9 off his 3.1 overs and he appears to be bowling quicker by the week.A day to forget all round and hopefully one to put behind them as just “one of them days” where everything goes wrong. They’re a much better side than they showed on Saturday, and will be aiming to right a few wrongs at Manchester Road this weekend. Beware of the wounded animal.

After starting the season with two wins from two, the 2s took to the field on Saturday to try and make it a perfect three from three.That’s a lot of 2, to and twos!

Woodbank arrived at Manchester Road and opted to have a bat, following a successful flip of the coin that landed on yet another superb Drew Hogben prepared deck. Young Oscar struggled to find his rhythm in the early exchanges, and Woodbank were off to a flyer at 36/0 from the first 5.

Lewis Keogh replaced Oscar up the hill, shortly after Tom had cleaned up their opener at the other end. Lewis also struggled to find his line, with too many wides to build pressure and the visitors scoreboard kept ticking over. Tom took another two scalps in his next two overs to leave Woodbank on 54/3 after 10 and bringing Clifton back into the game, Tom finishing with 3-34 from his 11 overs.

Keogh shortly made it 68/4 uprooting the middle stump, before Dan Jones and Elliot Hogben came on to turn the screw. Dan took a wicket in his first over and finished with economical figures of 1-11 from his 7 over spell. A 70 run partnership was broken by a caught and bowled from Owen, who then wrapped up the tail to finish with impressive figures of 4-14 from his 6 overs at the death.

The story of the bowling however was the 48 extras given away (31 of them wides), which gave the Clifton batsmen a fair bit of catching up to do before a ball was hit in anger.

The chase didn’t get off to the best of starts when stand-in opener Sam Winstanley was bowled for 4, but a partnership of 93 then followed between youngsters Ethan Kite (36) and Dan Jones (77) to put Clifton in the driving seat. The game was then sealed with what is becoming a regular middle order contribution from Owen (19*) and Lewis (20), and Oscar Thorpe finished it off with 12 from 8, but not before smashing one back down the ground that ended as a nasty one into bowler Olivia Kay's face. Thankfully she was up and ok after not too long and was looked after by the Clifton Nightingales in Megan and Karen. Gladly she was still able to laugh off the quip that it was technically a dropped catch !

So another 6 points for the 2s which leaves them top of the table, an impressive start given the number of regulars missing (5 in total) from the previous Saturday’s line-up. Much tighter lines will be required from the bowlers however, if this unbeaten start is to continue. The batting depth will be tested properly at some point otherwise.

The seconds' idea of excitement was somewhat different to that used to describe the firsts' cup exploits, as they cruised to a second round tie with the good citizens of Roe Green.

After a steady start in which the openers accumulated 33 in ten overs, a nagging bowling attack ground down the Milnrow batting order, taking wickets at increasingly regular intervals and reducing the side from Division 5 East, that had lost its first game a day earlier, to 108 all out.

Sam Winstanley took the main chunk of the plaudits with his spell up th'ill earning him 5-34, but all the bowlers performed well including Lewis Keogh who remained wicketless despite bowling his seven overs for just 11 runs. Despite being far from perfect in the field, this was a statement performance from the team which had been deprived of three key players immediately prior to the game starting. 

The reply started in steady fashion with Big Mac and Ethan Kite going shot for shot in the early stages. Ethan's ability to drive the ball straight to fielders persists however and it was noticeable, as the skipper pulled away, how his shots were going between fielders, rather than warming their hands. Two boundaries in successive balls brought up the fifty in the 10th over and seventy was achieved in the 15th with a four and a six as the skipper approached a half century. It was then that he unleashed a veritable StevieMacflurry of seven boundaries in 10 balls that yielded 32 runs to finish the game and bring his individual score to an impressive 80no with Ethan left gazing in wonder, stuck on 19no at the other end.

So, a ten wicket win inside 18 overs complimented the first's victory and saw both sides into round two for the second successive season.

There is very little to be said about this performance other than, "file in bin and move on to next game". 

The firsts bowed out of the National Knockout with the negatives just outweighing the positives in a decent contest on the coast at Formby.

After losing Jack Stanley early doors, Zach, Caleb and Sam raced along to 87-2 in just 13 overs before Caleb mistimed a pull shot and was caught. Sam continued Saturday's form, playing shots all around the wicket in a partnership of 58 with Ben Hamilton but when both were out within the space of two overs, there was 145 on the board with 13 overs still to go.

Instead of rebuilding, the middle order then tried to smash every ball into the sea and it just wasn't going to happen with the next three wickets falling for eleven. This meant that Ollie, Fin and debutant Owen, could not play freely and had to take their ones and twos to use up the overs, when that is precisely what those middle order batsman should have been doing. As it transpired, they did that job extremely well, batting with maturity and managing to take the game to the last over whilst adding 37 valuable runs.

The final total of 193 was lightweight however, when a more disciplined approach could and should have set a target in excess of 220.

Formby's reply started with their openers struggling a bit and playing and missing on a regular basis. As they began to look more assured, an umpiring decision and a farcical dropped catch took the game away and despite a great spell of 1-22 off Ben Hamilton's eight over spell, the batsmen gradually took charge and eased their way to land Sam's men with a second seven wicket defeat within the space of two days.

Once again, there were positives in the performance, but there was also some poor cricket on display which needs to be ironed out before the season slips away.

Clifton 3’s welcomed rivals Greenfield to Manchester Road in what many had tipped to be a challenging encounter. Greenfield were crowned champions of the GMCL Sunday Premier League on the final day of last season, losing once and tie-ing once to the Kingfishers in the league. Clifton also knocked Greenfield out of the cup at the Semi Final Stage, so there is no love lost between the two sides.At the toss, Elliot Hogben elected to bowl first. A decision that didn’t take long to be rewarded, Lewis Keogh opening up from the bottom end crashed his first in-swinging delivery into the front pad of the Greenfield skipper. A spell of masterful bowling followed from Keogh (25-2) and Dunn (15-3) to reduce the top order to 45-5.

The camping chairs and cool boxes were brought back down out of the loft on Saturday morning - the flasks were left for another day - as the travelling support made their preparations for a trip up to Horwich under clear blue skies, in the hope of seeing Maca’s men make it 2 from 2 to start the season.

After winning the toss and opting to bat, the Horwich openers survived a testing opening spell from Tom and Oscar who both managed to get the ball to move around but without reward.The introduction of Dan Jones from the Rivington Pike End (well that’s what you can see over that side anyway) came with a hat-trick opportunity, having taken 2 wickets with his last 2 balls to clean up the tail last Sunday. Maybe if Jordy knew it was hat-trick ball he wouldn’t have put down a regulation chance at second slip.

A few overs later the breakthrough was made, when Dan drew an edge and Owen took a one handed screamer high to his right at slip. That was a rare moment of brilliance in the field in a day of too many dropped catches and below par ground fielding. Something this side really needs to improve onto put together back to back promotions.

New signing Sas joined the attack from the “Ice Cream Van End” and impressed from ball one with his pace and control. He removed the opener just short of his 50 then the number 3 to leave Horwich 115/3. Dan picked up another with a catch at point from Tom, before a sharp piece of fielding out on the boundary from Owen to run out his college mate, Jack Murray. Jordy returned from Australia as a newly formed off spinner, bowling nicely to finish with 1-48 from his 12 over spell, leaving Clifton a target of 197 to take the points back to Manchester Road.

To say the Horwich opening bowlers were a little loose would be a tad polite. Three head height no balls bowled from the Rivington Pike End mixed in with a flurry of wides, helped the chase get off to a helpful start.

Steve and Sam both helped themselves to 12 runs apiece before falling, then a 62 run partnership from Dan and Jordy put Clifton in control of the chase. When Dan (38) departed, Owen came to the crease to hold up an end while Jordy pushed on and played with a little more freedom before falling for a well made 68. With 20 left to win the match, Oscar (4) Lewis (10) and Sas (7) got it over the line with 8 balls to spare.

Horwich looked like a strong side, especially with the bat, but they were let down by their opening bowlers which cost them the game. 12 wides and 3 no balls from the opener's 4 overs (which was 3 overs too many if I was captain) followed by 9 wides and 4 no balls from the first change bowler gave the Clifton target a very helpful boost.

Compare that to just 6 wides and zero no balls from Clifton’s bowling attack and there is the difference. The leg side wides rule for this season will have a pivotal role to play in who is promoted from this league come September.

The firsts went down to a seven wicket defeat against a strong looking Horwich side on Saturday who proved their mettle the following day by trouncing Liverpool in the National Knockout.

Despite passing two hundred in only the second game of the season, it never really looked enough as the unseasonably hot April weather, along with Drew's expertise, had produced an excellent batting surface and a fast outfield. There was a welcome first half century for Caleb Donaldson and a positive run-a-ball 62 from skipper Sam in a total of 218-5 that was actually below par for the conditions as the strike rate faltered in a middle overs bloc that produced only 70 runs in 24 overs, strangled to a degree by some tight bowling that never allowed the batsmen to dominate.

Former Cliftoner Joe Brown perished early doors in the Horwich response, but that was all-she-wrote as far as bowling and fielding domination went as the Horwich batting line up eased comfortably to victory by seven wickets with three overs to spare.

It's been a tough opening for Sam's lads, with two of the best looking outfits on the fixture list in the first two games, but there were positives to report from both games with, hopefully, some easier contests on the horizon in the coming weeks.

The three pronged spin attack looks as though it could create problems in the right conditions and Gareth Cross will always take wickets. Ollie and Fin have only one wicket to their names so far, but that will quickly change as they get into their stride. With Caleb seemingly adapting to the conditions well and Sam looking in good nick with the bat, when the side clicks, they will be a match for anyone in the division on the day.

 

It was a tale of two drinks breaks at Clifton on Sunday asthe 3rds opened their campaign against Denton West. Batting first, the Westopeners survived a couple of scares before dominating the bowling to the tuneof 83-0 at drinks, moving the score to exactly 100 before Sam Winstanleyfinally broke through.

There followed the most remarkable collapse as Sam followedup with wickets in all his next three overs before Owen Hogben joined in thecarnage with a couple falling in one over. Sam finished with a creditable 4-15off his eight overs, whilst Owen's eight cost 31 for his three wickets as tenwickets fell for 34 runs with no batsman apart from the openers managing doublefigures.

The Clifton reply was a stuttering affair to say the leastwith the early batsmen seeming to think that they had to play shots off everydelivery as if they were on a July shirt front rather than an April greentop.Their reward for their inauspicity was a scoreboard which read 16-4 before Owenand Ollie Dunn started to graft their way to a match winning partnership of 70that oozed maturity and patience.

It took a dodgy lbw to separate them with Ollie fallingdubiously for an excellent 38 off 63 balls. Owen kept his head and with LewisKeogh struggling to find the middle of the bat, they chipped away at the run aball target. Suddenly, Lewis found the sweet spot and launched fourteen runsoff three balls to end any hopes of the visitors providing a close finish.

Owen went on to complete an extremely mature 59 not out,finishing with a mighty six over the machine shed with a full fourteen balls togo, securing what looked early on, to be an improbable five wicket victory.

 

Darcy Lever won the toss and elected to bat first on a pitchthat looked in excellent condition, especially after the dreadful wet winterwe’ve endured.

Clifton’s opening bowlers, Worthington and Thorpe, started alittle loose but quickly found their rhythm and lines. They claimed a couple ofearly wickets and set the tone for what became a very disciplined teamperformance in the field. The other bowlers used in Jones, Keogh, Dorseyand Dunn, all took wickets as well, contributing to an excellent all roundbowling display.

Darcy Lever scored at a steady rate of around four an overbut were never able to accelerate. Clifton chipped away with regular wicketsthroughout the innings.

The standout for the visitors was Toseef Khan, who played avery competent innings of 95. Had he been dismissed early, things could havebecome very difficult for Darcy Lever.

In reply, Clifton chased the target down quite comfortably,though there was some early season rustiness with the bat. 

Skipper Steve McManus opened the batting and made a solid 40before chasing a wide one, while the middle order showed a couple of poor shotselections. Owen Hogben and Lewis Keogh then saw us home, both finishingunbeaten on 22.

Whilst it was a good all-round team performance to securethe first victory of the season, there is still room for improvement in thefield. Clifton dropped three chances and I’m sure we will look to tighten up onthis in coming weeks.

A strong start to the campaign nonetheless, well playedlads!

The 1^st XI 2026 season got underway at Roe Greenon Saturday, and if this opening fixture is anything to go by, it promises tobe a campaign full of drama, quality, and just the occasional talking point.

Clifton travelled with a strong-looking side, boosted by thereturn of Gareth Cross, who wasted no time reminding everyone of his all-roundvalue. With the ball, Cross was outstanding, finishing with 5-53 from his 15overs and consistently asking questions of the Roe Green batting line-up.Supported well by Oliver Sleight (1-33) and Ben Hamilton (3-35), Clifton keptthings tight for large parts of the innings.

Roe Green’s innings never truly broke free and Clifton hadworked themselves into a strong position, reducing the hosts to 114-8 andappearing firmly in control.

It was at this point, though, that the game began to shift. TobyLester added a late flourish with an aggressive 38 from just 33 balls, combinedwith a few costly overs towards the back end, allowed Roe Green to push on to156 all out. A total that felt slightly above par given the position they hadfound themselves in earlier in the innings.

Unfortunately, Clifton’s reply got off to the worst possiblestart. Two wickets fell without a run on the board, and a few raised eyebrows withthe LBW decisions adding to the usual early-season debate and when the scoreslipped to 9-4, the visitors were left with a mountain to climb.

Once again, Gareth Cross led from the front, producing afighting 34, while Joe McCann offered solid support with a well-crafted 25. Thepair helped steady the innings and gave Clifton a foothold in the game, butjust as momentum began to build, Roe Green struck back.

Andy Hough proved particularly effective for the hosts,claiming 3-21, while Luke Williams (3-28) and Toby Lester (2-17) ensured thatClifton were never able to fully recover from their early setbacks.

In the end, Clifton were bowled out for 107, falling shortby 49 runs.

While the result didn’t go Clifton’s way, there were plentyof positives to take from the performance. The return of Cross, contributionsfrom McCann, and long spells of controlled bowling all point to a side shapingup well for the season ahead.

With a few lessons learned, particularly around capitalisingon key moments and tightening things up at the death, Clifton will look tobounce back quickly as the 2026 season quickly gathers pace.

Interesting Fact: Australia has over one millionwild (feral) camels and exports large numbers to Saudi Arabia.

 

Churchill's Super-Poms Jordy Higham and Ryan Ayres almostsingle handedly dismantled table toppers Ex-Students in the Latrobe ValleyGrand Finals semi final, to set up a Grand Final with Morwell CC next week.Churchill's 170-7 included 93 not out from Ryan and 35 from Jordan with onlyone other player managing double figures. Jordy hit three boundaries and Ryanan impressive fourteen. The ex-Students innings totally disintegrated in theface of Churchill's bowlers with Ryan taking 5-10 in 15.1 overs as the homeside were routed for just 41, handing them only their third defeat of theseason after beating Churchill home and away in the regular season.

 

Scorecards:

Jordy & Ryan - Here