Lowerhouse Stroll To Title
CREDIT: JW Photography
Lowerhouse won the Lancashire League Premier Division title for the fifth time and for the first time since 2014 with three matches left to play.
Middleton and Rochdale were relegated to Division 2.
Greenmount and Enfield were promoted to the Premier Division.
Ramsbottom won the Worsley Cup for the tenth time by beating Burnley by 9 wickets at Turf Moor.
Littleborough won the 2020 competition for the first time on home soil after a 29 run win over Lowerhouse.
Todmorden won the Lancashire League Junior Division 1 title with Burnley finishing as runners up.
Colne and Great Harwood were relegated to Junior Division 2.
Lowerhouse were promoted as Junior Division 2 champions and they will be joined in Junior Division 1 by Greenmount who finished as runners up.
Burnley picked up the Junior Cup for the fourth time after beating Norden by 2 wickets in a cracking final at The Reside Estate Agency Stag Park.
Burnley won the 3rd XI League title after beating Enfield by 1 run in a thrilling climax to the season at Dill Hall Lane. The clubs finished level on points after Burnley took 10 points for the win and Enfield 7 points for bowling Burnley out and then getting to within 10 runs of Burnley’s total but the win earned Burnley the title by virtue of more wins during the season (9-8).
Six new captains were appointed since start of last season with ten new professionals being signed including one returning to the league for a second spell.
East Lancs opted to sign an overseas amateur in Australian Hudson Walshaw for the first time in their history.
Thirteen clubs retained their professionals from last season.
There were nine South Africans, two English born players, three Indians, five Sri Lankans, two New Zealanders, two Australians and one West Indian, Jermaine Blackwood at Norden.
The thirteen returning professionals were Jurie Snyman (Accrington), Chirag Khurana (Bacup), Ockert Erasmus (Burnley), Geeth Kumara (Colne), Mohammad Jamal (Crompton), Pramod Maduwantha (Enfield), Thikshila de Silva (Great Harwood), Jacques Snyman (Greenmount), Daniel Salpietro ( Lowerhouse), James Price (Middleton), Anuk Fernando (Rawtenstall), Kieren Grimshaw (Rishton) and Ed Moore (Todmorden).
Former Rishton professional Shaun von Berg signed for Ramsbottom. Lesiba Ngoepe (Church), Bryce Parsons (Littleborough) and Neil Brand (Haslingden) were the other South Africans.
Clitheroe signed Indian Madhav Kaushik and Darwen signed Rishabh Tiwari, who stood in for both clubs last season.
New Zealander Ben Breitmeyer signed for Nelson and his fellow countryman Henry Cooper returned to Rochdale where he was professional in 2017 in the Pennine League.
Sri Lankan Dushan Vimukthi signed for Walsden.
Four clubs, all in the Premier Division, had sub professionals on the opening Sunday.
Early starts were ratified at The Lancashire League’s AGM with all league and cup matches moving to 12:30 all season.
Other rule changes ratified included all clubs will be expected to have two sight screens at each end of the ground.
Teams will bowl with their own ball.
A maximum of two balls per over above shoulder height will be allowed before a No Ball is called.
The Chairman identified minimum standards for Umpires Rooms and walkie talkies were introduced at every club.
In T20 matches the League Rain Rules now apply in rain affected matches.
The 3rd XI League had four divisions of eight teams with fielding circles being introduced for the first time.
On the final rain affected Sunday eight clubs named or fielded sub professionals.
Fifty different players were engaged as professionals in league, cup and T20 matches during the season.
A total of 46 matches finished as No Results.
Four clubs shared top spot in the Premier Division after the first round of games, Clitheroe, Lowerhouse, Walsden and Norden who all picked up maximum points.
On the second weekend it was Lowerhouse and Walsden with Clitheroe taking over after Lowerhouse’s defeat by Littleborough on the third weekend.
From the fourth weekend it was all Lowerhouse.
At the halfway point in the season Lowerhouse had a 24 point lead over Clitheroe.
The lead increased to 40 points clear with seven games remaining after Clitheroe and Walsden were both beaten at the end of July.
Five points in the defeat at Ramsbottom in mid August left Lowerhouse needing seven points to clinch the title against Rochdale on home soil.
A 151 run win sealed the title with three games remaining.
The final margin of 62 points was the biggest since the introduction of 10 points for a win in 1998.
Five clubs picked up maximum points on the opening weekend in Division 2.
Greenmount and Rishton led the way on the second weekend with Crompton and Nelson taking over the following week.
By week four Enfield were 2 points clear of Crompton and Rishton with Greenmount and Nelson close behind.
Rishton and Greenmount were the top two from week six with Greenmount taking over at the top on week nine followed by Church who were on a run of seven successive wins after losing their opening two games.
At the halfway mark Greenmount were still top followed by Enfield and Church.
Greenmount’s run of victories was interrupted by three abandoned games but the club clinched promotion with three games to play and the title on the penultimate weekend.
Victory at Accrington saw Enfield secure promotion with two matches remaining.
Big Four Dominate Stats
In a season where 52 centuries were scored and five players passed 1,000 runs, four professionals dominated the season, all in Division 2.
Bacup professional Chirag Khurana scored 1166 runs at 83.3, including four centuries and six half centuries, and he also took 52 wickets at 15.1 and held 19 catches, the most by a professional.
Khurana hit the second highest innings in league history, 234 at Accrington on May 4th with thirty three boundaries and five sixes. Bacup’s score of 346-6 was a club record. It was also the highest team score on Accrington.
Heaviest run scorer was Greenmount professional Jacques Snyman who made 1231 runs at 94.7, including four centuries and eight half centuries in helping his club win the Division 2 title. His 49 wickets at 10.1 included a league best 7-24 against Accrington.
Thikshila de Silva also had an outstanding all round season for Great Harwood. With the bat he scored 1051 runs at 61.8, including 192 in a new Lancashire League 2nd wicket stand of 306 with Matt Oddie (113*) against Nelson at Great Harwood on August 24th. Great Harwood’s total of 358-5 was the club’s highest in the Lancashire League.
De Silva was the leading wicket taker with 56 at 15.3, including a season’s best by a professional of 8-38 in the home win against Enfield on August 3rd. He also took 7-36 against Accrington and 7-48 against East Lancs both at Great Harwood where he picked up 35 of his wickets.
Geeth Kumara also passed 1,000 runs for Colne, hitting 1061 at 81.6 with three centuries and eight half centuries. He also took 49 wickets at 18.0.
The fifth professional to reach 1,000 runs was Crompton’s Mohammad Jamal who enjoyed his best season in the league with 1035 runs at 64.7, including three centuries and six half centuries.
Enfield professional Pramod Maduwantha had the remarkable average of 111.8 in hitting 894 runs from 19 innings with 11 not outs. He hit two centuries and five half centuries, all of which were unbeaten. Maduwantha also took 51 wickets at 13.8 in helping Enfield win promotion.
Jurie Snyman hit 976 runs at 57.4, including three centuries and three half centuries for Accrington.
The leading amateur batsman in Division 2 was Lewis Wright who hit 825 runs at 45.8 for Enfield, including a club amateur record unbeaten 169 in a club record stand of 251 for the 2nd wicket with Maduwantha (102*) against Nelson at Enfield on August 9th.
The highest team score in Division 2 was Greenmount’s 395-8 against Rishton at Greenmount on August 24th.
The lowest team score in Division 2 was Rawtenstall’s 33 all out at Bacup on August 31st.
Adam Bracewell became Enfield’s leading amateur batsman (9050 runs) and leading amateur wicketkeeper (178 victims) after scoring 24 and claiming two victims against Great Harwood at Enfield on May 18th. He hit 507 runs at 50.7 and claimed nineteen victims, thirteen of which were behind the wicket.
Of the 52 centuries were scored during the season 33 were made in Division 2. In addition to the five players who scored over 1,000 runs, a further 26 players, fifteen in the Premier Division, passed 500 runs.
The leading amateur bowler was Ben Lord who took 53 at 15.8 for Bacup. Rishton’s Ali Sartaj took 47 at 16.4 with Greenmount’s Callum Hunter and Crompton’s Asif Fazal both taking 42 at 16.5 and 20.9 respectively.
The best amateur bowling figures in Division 2 were Sammi Senapathi’s 7-58 for Colne against Bacup at Bacup on August 17th.
Earlier in the season Senapathi dismissed his son Sahan lbw without scoring during Colne’s match at Rishton on June 22nd.
The leading wicketkeepers in Division 2 were Accrington’s Emile Haratbar and Church’s Ben Parkinson who both claimed 23 victims.
The was no doubting who was the top wicketkeeper in the Premier Division.
Lowerhouse’s Joe Martin led the way with 35 victims and he has now played 345 consecutive Lancashire League matches since missing a match in July 2010.
He also became the first Lowerhouse wicketkeeper to claim 100 stumpings.
Chris Burton claimed five catches behind the wicket for Burnley against Crompton at Burnley in the Worsley Cup on May 24th.
Kain Dean claimed 5 victims (4c, 1s) for Crompton against Colne at Crompton on May 25th.
Ed Moore (Todmorden) and Dan Salpietro (Lowerhouse) were the leading professional fielders in the Premier Division with 12 catches apiece.
Three amateurs had 13 catches – Freddie Priestley (Todmorden) in the Premier Division and Ben Lord (Bacup) and Neil Thompson (Nelson) in Division 2.
The leading batsman in the Premier Division was Haslingden’s Neil Brand who hit 879 runs at 62.8, including three centuries and six half centuries. His 150 against Darwen at Haslingden on May 25th was the highest innings by a professional.
The top amateur batsman in the Premier Division was Walsden’s Jake Hooson who hit 827 runs at 55.1, including one century and six half centuries. He also took 33 wickets at 22.0.
Lowerhouse openers Jonny Whitehead and Ben Heap both passed 600 runs.
Whitehead hit 683 at 42.7 with one century and three fifties.
Heap scored 676 runs at 37.6, including two centuries and two fifties.
The pair put on 245 for the 1st wicket against Norden at Lowerhouse on July 13th with both players hitting centuries, Heap also passing 9,000 Lancashire League runs during his innings.
Heap’s 179 was the highest innings by an amateur and the Lowerhouse team score of 396-7 was a club record and the highest of the season in the Premier Division.
Rochdale’s 44 all out against Lowerhouse at Rochdale on June 7th was the lowest score of the season in the Premier Division.
The winning margin of 251 runs was also a club record.
The leading Premier Division professional bowler was Ramsbottom’s Shaun von Berg who took 46 wickets at 18.5, including a season’s best by a professional of 6-23 at Norden on August 24th.
Noah Priestley’s 8-14, including a hat-trick, for Todmorden against Burnley at Todmorden on May 17th were the best amateur bowling figures in the Premier Division.
Darwen’s Oliver Wetton took 44 wickets which was the most by an amateur in the Premier Division.
Jafer Chochan (P) took 4 wickets in 5 balls, including a hat-trick for Middleton v Burnley at Burnley on May 3rd in the Worsley Cup.
There were five other hat-tricks – Noah Priestley Todmorden v Burnley at Todmorden on May 17th, Yousuf Ali Accrington v East Lancs at East Lancs on May 18th, Jermaine Blackwood (P) Norden v Walsden at Walsden on June 13th in the T20 Competition, Lawrence Adlum Bacup v Crompton at Crompton on July 6th and Thikshila de Silva (P) Great Harwood v Enfield at Great Harwood on August 3rd.
There were two outstanding last wicket stands during the season, both in Division 2.
Jurie Snyman (P)(153) and Damian Clarke (1*) put on 107 for the 10th wicket for Accrington against Crompton at Accrington on July 13th.
Two weeks later Brad Boddie (99*) and Andrew Hickey (6*) put on a match winning unbroken 10th wicket stand of 94 for Rishton also against Crompton at Rishton on July 27th.
Ten Rawtenstall wickets fell for the addition of just 2 runs at Nelson on August 17th. Eight batters failed to score in Rawtenstall’s 66 all out after the team had been 64-0. Neil Thompson took 6-1 after hitting an unbeaten 73 in the Nelson innings.
Darcey Carter became the first woman to take a Lancashire League wicket when she bowled Great Harwood opener Matt Oddie in Accrington’s match at Great Harwood on June 29th.
Liberty Heap became the first woman to score a century in a Lancashire League related match when she hit 117 for Ramsbottom Women v Todmorden 4th XI at Ramsbottom on August 16th.
The Bacup team in the Worsley Cup tie at Enfield included four Boardman brothers Dominic, Niall, Brady and Patrick in the same senior side for the first time on May 24th.
Emile Haratbar (80*) and Mohammed Tayyib (39*) put on a club record 8th wicket Worsley Cup stand of 110 for Accrington v Greenmount at Accrington on May 24th.
Accrington’s winning total of 262-5 at Colne on August 24th was the club’s highest successful run chase.
Other batting milestones during the season were: Church’s Craig Fergusson (9,000 Lancashire League runs), Lowerhouse’s Charlie Cottam, Ramsbottom’s Tom Parton and Nelson’s Neil Thompson (6,000 Lancashire League runs), Lowerhouse’s Jonny Whitehead, Todmorden’s Andrew Sutcliffe, Crompton’s Mohammad Jamal (P), Burnley’s Liam Bedford and Church’s Sam Holt (5,000 Lancashire League runs), Great Harwood’s Thikshila de Silva (P) and Colne’s Geeth Kumara (P) (4,000 Lancashire League runs), Walsden’s Josh Gale, Nelson’s Lewis Bradley, Rawtenstall’s Rizwan Shafiq, Dean Barlow and Matt Kershaw, Haslingden’s Matt Griffin, Bacup’s Chirag Khurana (P), Lowerhouse’s Paddy Martin, Clitheroe’s Ali Ross, Church’s Josh Scully, Greenmount’s Travis Townsend and Jacques Snyman (P), Ramsbottom’s Ben Pearson and Great Harwood’s Matt Oddie (3,000 Lancashire League runs).
Other bowling milestones: Rawtenstall’s Keith Roscoe (1900 Lancashire League wickets), Enfield’s Simon O’Loughlin (400 Lancashire League wickets), Great Harwood’s Thikshila de Silva (P), Nelson’s Hassan Fazal, Accrington’s Jacob Clarke and Bacup’s Ben Lord (300 Lancashire League wickets).
Accrington’s Alice Clarke and Darcey Carter helped Lancashire Women to victory in the Metro Bank Women’s One Day Cup Final.
Nelson’s Khurram Nazir again played for England Over 40s during the season.
Haslingden’s John Simpson had another great season scoring 1086 runs at 60.3 and claiming 54 victims behind the wicket as captain of Sussex.
Burnley’s James Anderson received a knighthood for his services to cricket.
Anderson continued to play for Lancashire and made his debut for Manchester Originals in the Hundred.
The Clubs
In securing a fifth Lancashire League title and the first since 2014, Lowerhouse‘s winning margin of 62 points was the highest since the introduction of 10 points for a win in 1998. Sixteen wins, three defeats and three no results put 219 points on the board. After losing to Littleborough in the third match, Lowerhouse returned to the top of the table the following week and stayed in front, securing the title with a 151 run win over Rochdale at The Brooks Foundation Ground with three matches to play. Openers skipper Ben Heap and Jonny Whitehead scored over 1300 runs between them. In the home match against Norden on July 13th the pair put on 245 for the 1st wicket with both players hitting centuries, Heap also passing 9,000 Lancashire League runs during his innings. Heap’s 179 was the highest innings by an amateur and the Lowerhouse team score of 396-7 was a club record and the highest of the season in the Premier Division. Whitehead hit 683 runs at 42.7 with one century and three fifties. In all matches he scored 1160 runs at 44.6 with one century and nine fifties. Heap scored 676 runs at 37.6, including two centuries and two fifties. In all matches he hit 907 runs at 34.9 with two centuries and three fifties. Another highlight was the club record 251 run win at Rochdale after bowling the home side out for a season’s low of 44. Joe Martin was the Premier Division’s leading wicketkeeper with 35 victims and he has now played 345 consecutive Lancashire League matches since missing a match in July 2010. He also became the first Lowerhouse wicketkeeper to claim 100 stumpings. All rounder Tom Walker also had an outstanding season. Walker began the season with an unbeaten century in the statement Ron Singleton Colne Trophy win at the home of defending champions Burnley. He took 43 wickets at 16.1 and scored 395 runs at 28.2, earning selection for Lancashire Seconds at the end of the season. Professional Dan Salpietro took 42 wickets at 11.7 and he also hit 342 runs at 28.5 with three half centuries and a dozen catches. Paddy Martin took 39 wickets at 15.5 and scored 200 runs at 50.0. Joe Hawke took 19 wickets at 15.7 and hit 118 runs at 23.6 and Toxy Hussain picked up 18 wickets at 17.4 with 133 runs at 12.1. Henri Cottam hit 330 runs at 20.6 from number three, Francois Haasbroek 228 at 45.6, Charlie Gansler 156 at 12.0 and Charlie Cottam 146 at 18.3. Veteran Chris Bleazard also played three games, moving to within 12 runs of the 17,000 run career mark.
The Holland Cup was won by Todmorden who picked up the trophy as league runners up for the first time since 1986 with ten wins, one tie, six defeats and five no results earning 157 points. The club spent most of the season in mid table until a run of three successive wins at the end of August with the final two matches abandoned. Professional Ed Moore hit 700 runs at 58.3, including two centuries and five half centuries. New signing Jack Edgar hit 628 runs at 44.9 and he took 19 wickets at 29.8. Andrew Sutcliffe was the leading bowler with 31 wickets at 15.8. He also passed 5,000 Lancashire League runs during the season. Noah Priestley took 30 wickets at 15.9, including 8-14 against Burnley, the best amateur bowling figures in the Premier Division. Noah also hit 220 runs at 16.9. Hamza Ali took 25 wickets at 16.0. Charlie Atkinson hit 259 runs at 16.2, Harry Rickard 219 at 24.3, skipper Freddie Priestley 217 at 21.7 and Bilal Abbas 182 at 16.5.
Eleven wins, seven defeats and four no results took Walsden to third place with 155 points. Jake Hooson the top amateur batsman in the Premier Division with 827 runs at 55.1, including one century and six half centuries. He also took 33 wickets at 22.0 and picked up 10 catches. In all matches he hit 969 runs at 64.6 with two centuries and six fifties. Professional Dushan Vimukthi hit 511 runs at 36.5, including six fifties. He also took 39 wickets at 17.2 with 10 catches. Joe Gale hit 382 runs at 27.3 and took 24 wickets at 30.9. Stevie Barker picked up 22 wickets at 18.9 and he also hit 162 runs at 16.2. Wicketkeeper Ollie Davidson claimed 20 victims. Nick Barker hit 379 runs at 23.7, skipper Josh Gale 313 at 20.9 and Ellliott Gilford 248 at 22.5.
A strong start to the season helped Clitheroe to finish in fourth place with 154 points after eleven wins, seven defeats and four no results. The club topped the table twice in the first three weekends and were never out of the top four all season, spending most weeks in second place. Professional Madhav Kaushik left half way through the season having hit 437 runs at 54.6. Cole McConchie stood in for seven games, taking 10 wickets at 29.7 and hitting 267 runs at 38.1. Ali Ross had another fine all round season with 553 runs at 36.9 and 27 wickets at 19.2. Marcus Sharp took 18 wickets at 17.0, including a match winning 5-28 at Todmorden. Lucas Murphy picked up 23 wickets at 24.7 and Sam Halstead took 15 at 22.9. Coby Campbell hit 271 runs at 20.8 in his first full season, Sam Mulligan returned to the club to hit 199 runs at 19.9, Peter Dibb hit 195 at 17.7, new skipper Charlie Dewhurst made 150 at 15.0 and Joe Bolton 101 at 20.2.
T20 Cup winners Littleborough moved up to fifth place with nine wins, one tie, eight defeats and four no results earning 151 points. Professional Bryce Parsons had a fine season, scoring 529 runs at 40.7, including one century and three half centuries. He also took 45 wickets at 12.3 from 18 Lancashire League matches before returning home in August. Skipper Ryan Miskella was also in fine all round form with 32 wickets at 22.0 and 312 runs at 24.0. Lewis Willman took 36 wickets at 20.8 and Harrison Chew picked up 19 at 16.9, including a match winning career best 6-29 against Clitheroe. Zac Perren was the club’s leading amateur batsman with 526 runs at 40.5, including four half centuries and a career best unbeaten 113 in the win against Clitheroe. Dan Stevens hit 405 runs at 2..8 in his first season at the club and Matt Hernon hit 266 at 26.6 and claimed 20 victims behind the wicket. Niall Boyle (138 runs at 19.7), Ben Williamson (126 at 18.0) and Louis Russell (101 at 12.6) also chipped in with useful runs.
After a slow start to the season which saw just two wins from the first six matches, last season’s runners up Darwen finished in sixth place with 145 points from nine wins, one tie, seven defeats and five no results. Oliver Wetton was the Premier Division’s leading bowler with 44 wickets at just 10.8. Dave Bowden took 32 at 15.3 and the Davies brothers 18 apiece with Jack averaging 17.7 and Reece, who took over as captain in mid season, 24.6. Professional Rishabh Tiwari arrived late, went home for three weeks in June and left for good in mid August. He played 14 Lancashire League matches hitting 463 runs at 38.6 with one century and two fifties. He also took 21 wickets at 12.0. Kamran Anwar hit 383 runs at 27.4 with one century and two half centuries, Scott Friend made 340 runs at 22.7, Reece Davies 176 at 12.6, Reece Willets 142 at 10.1 on his return to the club, Abdur Rehman 133 at 13.3, the only ever present Jack Davies 128 at 9.8 and Sam Painter 111 at 11.1. Wicketkeeper Mark Friend, who began the season as captain, claimed 24 victims and hit 216 runs at 15.4.
Worsley Cup winners Ramsbottom were seventh with ten wins, nine defeats and three no results winning 140 points. After a poor start on their return to the Premier Division which saw just two wins from the first nine matches, a golden August saw five successive league wins, including a second win over champions Lowerhouse, and the Worsley Cup Final victory at Burnley. Professional Ramsbottom’s Shaun von Berg was the leading bowler in the Premier Division with 46 wickets at 18.5, including a season’s best by a professional of 6-23 at Norden. Von Berg also hit 265 runs at 16.6 and he took 46 wickets at 18.5 in 21 Lancashire League matches. He also took 10 wickets at 14.3 in helping Ramsbottom win the Worsley Cup. In all matches he took 69 wickets at 16.1 and he also hit 535 runs at 24.3. Tom Parton was the club’s leading batsman with 668 runs at 47.7, including seven half centuries. In all matches, Parton hit 869 runs at 21.1 with nine half centuries. Worsley Cup Final ‘Player of the match’ JJ Fielding hit 567 runs at 31.5 with one century and three fifties. He also picked up 14 wickets. In all matches JJ hit 1034 runs at 36.9 with two centuries and six fifties. Ben Pearson hit 404 runs at 23.8, Brad Fielding made 189 at 13.5 and Tom Yorke-Robinson 178 at 16.2. Skipper Harry Caton made 347 runs at 21.7 and he also claimed 20 victims behind the wicket. Joe Holderness picked up 24 wickets at 29.0 and he also hit 126 runs at 14.0, Matt Burdaky took 24 wickets at 27.3, JJ Fielding 14 at 33.9 and Alex Olpin 10 at 22.3.
One of the early season pace setters Norden spent three weeks in second place before falling away to finish eighth with 124 points, winning and losing nine matches with four no results. New signing Tahir Maqsood was the club’s leading bowler with 37 wickets at 15.0 including a match winning 5-15 at Rochdale. Jack Taylor had a fine all round season with 415 runs at 27.7 and 21 wickets at 26.5. Dominic Humphreys had his best season with the bat after being moved up the order to open the batting, hitting 413 runs at 29.5 and holding a dozen catches. He also picked up 10 wickets at 16.2 and hit an unbeaten match winning century at Walsden in the T20 Competition. Professional Jermaine Blackwood had a disappointing season with 384 runs at 29.5, including two half centuries and 22 wickets at 31.1. New signing Finn McKeown hit 242 runs at 17.3, Oliver Yates made 202 at 15.5, new skipper Lee Crabtree 110, Alex Willis 104 at 11.6, Sam Butterworth 100 at 14.3 and Oli Holt 100 at 10.0. Dean Lord picked up 16 wickets at 30.9, including a match winning 5-49 at Norden.
The champions for four of the five previous seasons Worsley Cup Final runners up Burnley slipped down the table to ninth place after winning seven, losing ten with five no results winning 123 points. After winning three of their first four league games, Burnley went eight games without a win to slide down to next to bottom of the league. Professional Ockert Erasmus hit 519 runs at 39.9, including four half centuries, and he also took 39 wickets at 16.1. Harry Snowden took 24 wickets at 27.6, including a match winning 8-51 against Norden. He followed up with another career best unbeaten 43 the following week in the win at Littleborough in making a personal best 154 runs at 25.7. Qasim Shah hit 364 runs at 21.4, Liam Bedford made 264 at 16.5, Matt Roberts 203 at 13.5, Dan Pickup 191 at 21.2 and Adam Hodge 155 at 14.1. Skipper Chris Burton hit 150 runs at 12.5 and he also claimed 18 victims behind the wicket. Bharat Tripathi hit 118 runs at 9.8 and he also picked up 22 wickets at 25.3. Tom Lawson also chipped in with 138 runs at 12.5 and 10 wickets at 29.6 and Fergus Bailey took 19 wickets at 29.4.
A run of five successive defeats in August saw Haslingden slip down the table from sixth to tenth place with eight wins, ten defeats and four no results winning 116 points. Professional Neil Brand was the leading batsman in the Premier Division with 879 runs at 62.8, including three centuries and six half centuries. His 150 against Darwen at Haslingden on May 25th was the highest innings by a professional. He also took 29 wickets at 18.4. Another highlight was Alex Coleman’s unbeaten 119 in the opening day win over Middleton. Skipper Matt Griffin hit 569 runs at 28.5, including 104 in the win at Middleton and Lucas Bargh hit 353 at 19.6 in his first full season in the team. Matt Sudworth chipped in with 277 runs at 16.3 and Leighton Friend made 173 at 12.4. Sean Hunsley hit 224 runs at 17.2 and he also picked up 21 wickets at 30.0. Wicketkeeper Connor Reed claimed 20 victims. Oliver Lord took 17 wickets at 26.9, Oliver Cameron picked up 15 at 27.2 and Joe Hayton 13 at 27.7 on his return to the club.
Three wins in the first nine matches was followed by only one of the remaining thirteen which condemned Rochdale to relegation from the Premier Division for the first time. Four wins, a tie with Darwen, fourteen defeats with three no results gave Rochdale 81 points. Skipper Oli Makin had a fine all round season with 41 wickets at 23.4 and 348 runs at 21.8. The club’s best bowling performance was Steve Oddy’s 7-41 in the win at Darwen at the end of July. Professional Henry Cooper hit 411 runs at 27.5, including three half centuries and he also took 20 wickets at 28.1 from 17 Lancashire League matches, arriving in May and leaving in August. Michael Harling hit 250 runs at 15.6 and he picked up 14 wickets at 36.6. Dylan Poscha had his best season with the ball taking 15 wickets at 34.3. Jacob Pauline also took 12 wickets at 25.8 and he hit 118 runs. Harry Butterworth scored 275 runs at 18.3 and he also claimed 12 victims behind the wicket. Ben Chapman (210 runs at 23.3, Tom Gilbertson (192 runs at 12.8), Andy Harrison (169 runs at 9.4) and Haris Hussain (117 runs at 13.0) also chipped in with the bat.
Relegation back to Division 2 after two seasons in the Premier Division was the fate of Middleton after three wins, seventeen defeats with two no results left the club with just 70 points. Two of the wins were against defending champions Burnley. Professional James Price hit 769 runs at 48.1, including one century and seven half centuries. Skipper Andy Gregoriou scored 481 runs at 24.1, Hussain Shahid hit 155 at 14.0 and Keelan Shipley made 186 at 14.3 with 13 victims behind the wicket. All rounders Rehan Udwadia (417 runs at 34.8 and 16 wickets at 32.0), Tom Rutter (17 wickets at 25.7 and 105 runs), James Tierney (391 runs at 23.0 and 16 wickets at 40.4) and Rhys Tierney (279 runs at 16.4 and 15 wickets at 41.5) also chipped in. Dale Highton picked up 15 wickets at 39.7 and Muhsin Muhammad took 10 at 37.8, including 4-36 in the win at Burnley.
The Division 2 title was won by Greenmount who chalked up sixteen wins, with one defeat and five no results winning 213 points. Four different players hit centuries and the club’s 395-8 against Rishton was the highest team score in Division 2. Professional Jacques Snyman made 1231 runs at 94.7, including four centuries and eight half centuries. His 49 wickets at 10.1 included a league best 7-24 against Accrington. Skipper Travis Townsend hit 595 runs at 42.5 with one century and three fifties. He also took 10 wickets at 32.2. Andy Kerr made 478 runs at 36.8 with one century and two fifties and new signing Cameron Mapstone hit 361 runs at 72.2 with an unbeaten century at Great Harwood. Tom Heaton hit 218 runs at 13.6, Gavin Nicholl 217 at 24.1 and new signing Evan Dobson 118 at 10.7. New wicketkeeper Jacob Norris claimed 16 victims. Callum Hunter had an excellent season with 42 wickets at 16.5, including 6-43 against Rishton. Noah Birtwistle’s 14 wickets at 5.6 included 6-33 against Rawtenstall. Amal Dalugoda took 21 wickets at 17.6 and another new signing Ismael Patel picked up 11 at 56.3.
The other team to win promotion was Enfield who return to the Premier Division after one season in Division 2 after winning thirteen, one tie, four defeats with four no results winning 189 points. An opening day win over Church was followed by defeat to Colne but Enfield’s win at Greenmount was the only defeat the eventual champions would suffer all season. Adam Bracewell became Enfield’s leading amateur batsman (9050 runs) and leading amateur wicketkeeper (178 victims) after scoring 24 and claiming two victims in the win against Great Harwood. He hit 507 runs at 50.7 and claimed nineteen victims, thirteen of which were behind the wicket. Professional Pramod Maduwantha had the remarkable average of 111.8 in hitting 894 runs from 19 innings with 11 not outs. He hit two centuries and five half centuries, all of which were unbeaten. Maduwantha also took 51 wickets at 13.8. Lewis Wright was the leading amateur batsman in Division 2 with 825 runs at 45.8, including a club amateur record unbeaten 169 in a club record stand of 251 for the 2nd wicket with Maduwantha (102*) against Nelson. Simon O’Loughlin took 25 wickets at 22.7, Hamza Arshad picked up 24 at 22.9 and Zac Jackson 18 at 18.7. Pete O’Farrell hit 259 runs at 21.6, Alfie Cook 193 at 12.1, Tiarnan Hamill 172 at 172.0 and Joe Demaine 150 at 13.6. New signing George Mills was promoted to the first team late in the season and hit two half centuries in his 155 runs at 51.7.
Three successive wins got Crompton off to a flying start to help the club finish in third place with 152 points after nine wins, one tie, eight defeats and four no results. Professional Mohammad Jamal enjoyed his best season in the league with 1035 runs at 64.7, including three centuries and six half centuries. Asif Fazal was the club’s leading all rounder with 42 wickets at 20.9 and 362 runs at 20.1. Harry Dean hit 227 runs at 18.9 and took 12 wickets at 27.6 and Sam Rigby hit 156 runs at 12.0 and took 21 wickets at 29.3. New signing Saif Bhojani hit 536 runs at 29.8, including one century and two fifties, at the top of the order. Denis Louis hit 330 runs at 20.6, Will Jackson made 132 at 11.0 and skipper Simon Wright 108 at 10.8. Jaime King took 30 wickets at 18.3, including 6-48 in the win against Bacup, and Adam Good picked up 24 wickets at 25.4.
A run of six wins from seven matches at the end of the season took Colne to fourth place with 150 points with twelve wins, seven defeats and three no results. Professional Geeth Kumara hit 1061 runs at 81.6 with three centuries and eight half centuries. He also took 49 wickets at 18.0. New signing Yasir Ali hit 528 runs at 31.1 with four half centuries, Kenton Rhodes made 423 at 24.9, Ismheel Shakeel 313 at 16.5, skipper Tom Bradshaw 203 at 16.9, Shahbaz Rashid 128 at 18.3 and Lewis Rimmer 124 at 11.3. Sam Tillotson had his best season with the bat, hitting 355 runs at 22.2 with two fifties. He also claimed 20 victims behind the wicket. Sammi Senapathi had his best season with the ball, taking 34 wickets at 20.1, including a match winning 7-58 at Bacup. New signing Faisal Hussain picked up 27 wickets at 31.7 and Matt Walker took 17 at 33.0.
Five wins from the first six matches took Rishton to the top of the table where they stayed for three weeks before finally finishing in fifth place with 150 points with ten wins, eight defeats and four no results. A match winning unbroken 10th wicket stand of 94 between Brad Boddie (99*) and Andrew Hickey (6*) against Crompton was one of the highlights of the season. Sixteen year-old Adam Hussain had an outstanding all round season, hitting 453 runs at 26.6 at the top of the order with three fifties, and taking 19 wickets at 24.0. Professional Kieren Grimshaw hit 675 runs at 61.4, including six half centuries and he also took 41 wickets at 18.9, including a career best 6-26 in the win against East Lancs. Ali Sartaj, who stood in as captain for much of the season when Matt Leathert was injured, took 47 wickets at 16.4, including a match winning 6-36 against Rawtenstall. He also chipped in with 109 runs at 10.9. Brad Boddie hit 542 runs at 49.3, including four half centuries and he also picked up 15 wickets at 38.3. Richie Fox had his best season with the bat, hitting 407 runs at 25.4 and Muhammed Khan made 189 at 13.5.
Kelan Florentine took over as Church captain following successive defeats at the start of the season and the club went on a run of seven successive matches to go up to second place. The team only won three of the next thirteen to finish with 148 points from ten wins, eight defeats and four no results. Florentine hit 391 runs at 32.6, including four fifties and he picked up 26 wickets at 21.4. Professional Lesiba Ngoepe hit 377 runs at 34.3, including three half centuries, and took 27 wickets at 19.6 in sixteen Lancashire League matches before returning home injured in August. Sub professional Hashan Dumindu hit 212 runs at 106, including an unbeaten 146 in the win over East Lancs. He also picked up 13 wickets at 9.4. Mo Bhada took 35 wickets at 12.7 and scored 179 runs at 22.4 before leaving to turn professional. Ben Parkinson had a fine season with 320 runs at 18.8 and his 23 victims made him the joint leading wicketkeeper in Division 2. Craig Fergusson hit 288 runs at 18.0, Adam Hewitt made 227 at 13.4, Josh Scully 219 at 13.7, Sam Holt 188 at 14.5 and Rohaib Hussain 122 at 11.1. Veteran Andrew Bentley returned at the back end of the season to add 13 wickets at 13.3 to his career tally of 691 wickets for the club.
Ten wins, nine defeats and three no results gave Great Harwood 142 points and a seventh placed finish. Professional Thikshila de Silva had an outstanding all round season scoring 1051 runs at 61.8, including 192 in a new Lancashire League 2nd wicket stand of 306 with Matt Oddie (113*) against Nelson. In total he hit three centuries and four half centuries. The team’s total of 358-5 was the club’s highest in the Lancashire League. De Silva was the leading wicket taker in Division 2 with 56 at 15.3, including a season’s best by a professional of 8-38 in the home win against Enfield. He also took 7-36 against Accrington and 7-48 against East Lancs both at Great Harwood where he picked up 35 of his wickets. Matt Oddie had his best season, hitting 678 runs at 39.9 with an unbeaten century and three half centuries. Siraj Ahmed hit 327 runs at 25.2, Alex Kennedy made 283 at 16.6, Kasir Masood 231 at 15.4, Caleb Greenhalgh 226 at 11.9 and veteran Allan Armer 116 at 23.2. Captain Stuart Maher took 33 wickets at 17.9, including his 900th league wicket for the club. William Armer picked up 23 wickets at 20.3, Kasir Masood 11 at 16.2 and Danny Briggs 10 at 41.0.
Eighth placed Bacup finished with 139 points from ten wins, nine defeats and three no results. Professional Chirag Khurana scored 1166 runs at 83.3, including four centuries and six half centuries, and he also took 52 wickets at 15.1 and held 19 catches, the most by a professional. Khurana hit the second highest innings in league history, 234 at Accrington on May 4th with thirty three boundaries and five sixes. Bacup’s score of 346-6 was a club record. It was also the highest team score on Accrington. Captain Ben Lord also had an outstanding season with personal best performances with both bat and ball. He was the leading amateur bowler in Division 2 with 53 wickets at 15.8. He also scored 231 runs at 19.3, including an unbeaten career best 56 on the opening day against Crompton and held 13 catches the joint most in Division 2 by an amateur. Lawrence Adlum also had his best season with both bat and ball, scoring 379 runs at 19.4 and taking 15 wickets at 20.9, including a hat-trick at Crompton. Matt Collinge hit 295 runs at 15.5 and he also claimed 18 victims behind the wicket. Chris Gansler also chipped in with 199 runs at 14.2 and ten catches. Jack Bradford took 13 wickets at 33.0 and scored 225 runs at 15.0 and Dominic Boardman took 14 wickets at 16.2. The Bacup team in the Worsley Cup tie at Enfield included four Boardman brothers Dominic, Niall, Brady and Patrick in the same senior side for the first time.
Three successive wins from the opening three matches took Nelson to the joint leadership in early May but four wins from the final fourteen games saw the club finish ninth with 135 points from nine wins, ten defeats and three no results. One of only two ever presents in the team, Nabeel Ahmed hit 455 runs at 25.3, including his maiden Lancashire League century, 107 at Greenmount. The only other player to play all 22 games was Shahzaib Raja who hit 146 runs at 14.6, including a career best unbeaten 60 and he also took 19 wickets, including a career best match winning 5-10 at Church. Professional Ben Breitmeyer hit 271 runs at 16.9 and he also picked up 31 wickets at 29.8, including 6-54 in the win against Accrington. Neil Thompson’s 336 runs at 21.0 and 31 wickets at 13.9 featured a match winning performance in the remarkable match against Rawtenstall at Seedhill on August 17th. After hitting an unbeaten 73, Thompson took 6-1 as Rawtenstall collapsed from 64-0 to 66 all out. Khurram Nazir also took 4-9, finishing the season with 31 wickets at 19.5. New signing Hassan Fazal took 27 wickets at 26.0 and scored 371 runs at 20.6. Lewis Bradley (263 runs at 20.2), Abid Ul Wahab (212 runs at 35.3), Gul Sabir (207 runs at 17.3) and Matt Pettinger (185 runs at 12.3) also chipped in with the bat. Veteran skipper Michael Bradley added another 18 victims to his league wicketkeeping record number which now stands at 816.
A season of three thirds would best describe Accrington‘s season which saw the club finish tenth with 94 points from six wins, fourteen defeats and just two no results, the fewest in Division 2. Just one win came from the first eight league matches with Yousuf Ali taking a hat-trick in the win at East Lancs. The club went through June and July without a win with two no results punctuating a run of eight defeats. A change of captain brought a change of fortune with five of the last seven matches under Jacob Clarke being won, including moonlit wins in the final two matches against Rawtenstall and Great Harwood. Accrington’s winning total of 262-5 at Colne on August 24th was the club’s highest successful run chase. Professional Jurie Snyman hit 976 runs at 57.4, including three centuries and three half centuries. His league best 153 against Crompton at The iMEP Arena featured a last wicket stand of 107 with veteran Damian Clarke (1) which was the highest ever in limited overs matches and the second highest in the history of the Lancashire League. Snyman also took 30 wickets at 25.5. Emile Haratbar was the joint leading wicketkeeper in Division 2 with 23 victims. He also hit 340 runs at 22.7 and featured in a club record 8th wicket Worsley Cup stand of 110 with Mohammed Tayyib (39*) when he hit a career best unbeaten 80 against Greenmount. made him. Darcey Carter became the first woman to take a Lancashire League wicket when she bowled Great Harwood opener Matt Oddie in Accrington’s match at Great Harwood on June 29th. Jacob Clarke was the club’s top wicket taker with 33 at 23.1, including three five wicket hauls. He also scored 356 runs at 22.3 with two half centuries. In fact six amateurs hit half centuries during the season – Ali Hasham (306 runs at 20.5) and Nathaniel Young (218 runs at 13.6) both had two with Jon Hayhurst (163 at 11.6) and Abbaas Ahmad (113 runs at 11.3) both having one in addition to Clarke and Haratbar. Graeme Sneddon also hit 244 runs at 13.6. Asad Kahn picked up 18 wickets at 34.4 and new signing Oliver Lowe took 14 wickets at 32.8.
Four wins, fifteen defeats and three no results saw Rawtenstall finish in eleventh place with 80 points. Two of the four wins were in successive matches at the beginning of June over Nelson and Crompton. Professional Anuk Fernando hit two centuries and three half centuries in making 761 runs at 44.8. He also took 34 wickets at 30.6. Keith Roscoe was the club’s leading wicket taker with 19 at 18.8, including his 1900th Lancashire League wicket, inspite of missing ten matches mostly through illness. Cameron Holder, who took over as captain in June, picked up 17 wickets at 22.0, Rizwan Shafiq took 15 at 29.1 and Marley Askew (21.1) and Imran Abid (60.3) picking up 11 apiece. Skipper Dean Barlow hit 147 runs at 29.4, including a match winning unbeaten 76 against Nelson in his final match for the club. Matt Kershaw hit 290 runs at 36.3, Shafiq 257 at 21.4, Tabassum Aziz 170 at 17.0, Abid 167 at 15.2, Ben Roscoe 150 at 10.7, Tom Egan 138 at 10.6 and new signing Josh Parker 108 at 12. New wicketkeeper Leighton Le Carpentier claimed 20 victims and he also hit 172 runs at 11.5.
The bottom club was East Lancs who last occupied the spot in 1911. There were seventeen defeats, four no results and just a single victory against Nelson leaving the club with 37 points. The club decided to use an overseas amateur for the first time rather than a professional. Australian Hudson Walshaw was a popular figure as he immersed himself into life at the club. Walshaw took over as captain after four games. He hit 284 runs at 17.8 and took 24 wickets at 31.5. In the win over Nelson he took 5-47 and then hit 55. Sheraz Ahmad took 21 wickets at 24.1 and he also hit 208 runs at 16.0. Arbaz Khan (27.5) and Abu Hotiana (29.1) also chipped in with 11 wickets apiece. Asad Shahid hit 227 runs at 16.2, Haris Saleemi made 205 at 12.8, Sohail Mohammed 190 at 14.6, Junaid Waris 177 at 11.8 and Arbaz Khan 102 at 12.8. Young wicketkeeper Yusuf Pardesi claimed 13 victims from 16 matches.
League Awards
Lowerhouse all rounder Tom Walker was named the winner of The Milton Lord Trophy as JW Lees Lancashire League Under 23 Player of the Year at the Lancashire League’s Annual Dinner at Rochdale CC.
Walker also won the Under 23 Award for Most Wickets in the Premier Division.
Ramsbottom’s JJ Fielding won the Bill Harrison Trophy for Best Under 23 Performance along with the Under 23 Award for Most Runs in the Premier Division.
The Division 2 Awards went to Rishton’s Adam Hussain for Most Runs and Greenmount’s Callum Hunter for Most Wickets.
The Tankards went to Ben Heap for his 179 against Norden for Lowerhouse, Noah Priestley for taking 8-14 against Burnley for Todmorden and Chris Burton for taking five catches behind the wicket for Burnley against Crompton in the Worsley Cup with Crompton’s Kain Dean picking up the award jointly for his five victims against Colne.
Great Harwood picked up the Joe Collier Trophy for Sportsmanship with Clitheroe’s Charlie Dewhurst winning the Alick Ormerod Award as Best Captain.
Duncan Warburton and Ken Fergusson were again joint winners of the Umpire of the Year award.
Sagar Trivedi picked up the Wally Ashley Trophy as runner up.
Nigel Tench won the Peter Hargreaves Trophy as best Junior League umpire.
Walsden’s Jake Hooson won the award for Most Runs in the Premier Division with Darwen’s Oliver Wetton winning the Most Wickets and Lowerhouse’s Joe Martin picking up the Wicketkeeping Award.
In Division 2 the Wicketkeeping Award was won jointly by Church’s Ben Parkinson and Accrington’s Emile Haratbar with Enfield’s Lewis Wright winning the award for Most Runs and Bacup’s Ben Lord the award for Most Wickets.
| Schedule of Award Winners 2025 | |||
| Individual Performances (Tankards)Â | |||
| Premier League | Batting Performance | Ben Heap (Lowerhouse) | 179 v Norden at Lowerhouse on 13th July |
| Bowling Performance | Noah Priestley | 8 – 14 v Burnley at Todmorden 17th May | |
| Wicketkeeping Performance | Chris Burton (Burnley) 5 catches in cup v Crompton | Kain Dean (Crompton) 4c 1st v Colne May 25th | |
| Premier League | Most Runs | Jake Hooson (Walsden) | 827 runs |
| Most Wickets | Oliver Wetton (Darwen) | 44 wickets | |
| Wicketkeeping | Joe Martin (Lowerhouse) | 35 dismissals (25 Ct 10 st) | |
| Senior Division 2 | Most Runs | Lewis Wright (Enfield) | 825 runs |
| Most Wickets | Ben Lord (Bacup) | 53 wickets | |
| Wicketkeeping | Emile Haratbar (Accrington) and Ben Parkinson (Church) | 23 dismissals each (18 ct 5 st) & (15 Ct 8 st) | |
| Under 23 Award | Most Runs Premier League | JJ Fielding (Ramsbottom) | 567 runs |
| Div Two | Adam Hussain (Rishton) | 453 runs | |
| Most Wickets Premier League | Thomas Walker (Lowerhouse) | 43 wickets | |
| Div Two | Callum Hunter (Greenmount) | 42 wickets | |
| Milton Lord Trophy | Overall Under 23 Player | Thomas Walker | |
| Bill Harrison Trophy | Best Under 23 Performance | JJ Fielding | |
| Umpire Awards | Senior League Winner | Harry Saul Trophy | Ken Fergusson /Duncan Warburton |
| Senior League Runner Up | Wally Ashley Trophy | Sagar Trivedi | |
| Junior League | Peter Hargreaves Trophy | Nigel Tench | |
| Sportsmanship Award | Joe Collier Award | Great Harwood | |
| Alec Ormerod Trophy | Best Captain Award | Alick Ormerod Award | Charlie Dewhurst |
CREDIT: Lancashire Premier League
With thanks to Nigel Stockley and the Lancashire Cricket League
