Keighley 214-8

Pudsey Congs 167 all out

KEIGHLEY continued their late season revival with victory over Pudsey Congs at a sun-drenched Lawkholme Lane in the All Rounder Cricket Bradford Premier League Championship One.

Keighley skipper Paul Quinlan lost the toss and was invited to bat first on a wet ground still drying out from the week’s poor weather.

Pudsey were left to regret their decision, though, as openers Luke Chapman and Alex Antoine set about the Pudsey attack with vigour. St Lucian Antoine was especially brutal as he raced to his fifty in no time at all.

The pair kept going and they were soon celebrating a hundred partnership, the first time a Keighley opening pair had done so this season.

With 124 on the board, Antoine was finally trapped lbw for a fine 74; this did not stop Chapman, though, who found a new partner in Louis Horsfield (38). The pair put on a further 61 for the second wicket when Chapman was eventually out, caught in the deep for an excellent 70.

Wickets then fell at regular intervals as Keighley’s middle and lower order attempted to push the score over 225, which would give them maximum batting bonus points, but they were pegged back by Jacques Allen, who took 5-33 and they closed their innings on 214-8 in their allotted 50 overs.

Pudsey’s batters who had toiled in the afternoon heat, fielding for 50 overs struggled to find runs from the start.

Excellent line and length bowling and sharp fielding restricted the visitors scoring rate.

Quinlan wanted to take pace off the ball at one end and quickly introduced Antoine to the attack and he was soon celebrating his first wicket, removing Mohammed Ammar for 14 with a smart slip catch from Horsfield.

Quinlan re-joined the attack bowling a line that the Pudsey batters struggled to get used too, wickets fell at regular intervals and eventually Pudsey capitulated for 167.

This was 47 runs short of their target and handing the Lawkholme Laners their second win on the bounce.

Quinlan took 4-28 off his 15 overs, with Antoine chipping in with 3-36. The only blemish of the afternoon was seeing Antoine limping off with a knee injury, sustained as he was chasing a ball to the boundary.

The victory sees Keighley climb to fifth in Championship One, they make a short trip to Baildon this weekend.

Meanwhile, Keighley's third-from-bottom second string made the short journey to promotion-chasing Bradford & Bingley on Saturday.

Keighley’s stand-in skipper Dillon Birkett won the toss and decided to field first, hoping to dismiss the home side for maximum bowling bonus points.

However, the confident and promotion-seeking Bingley batsmen were having none of it, and they masterly pushed the depleted Keighley bowling attack around, the top five batters all scoring double figures.

Most impressive was George Heartfield, scoring a fabulous 72 in only 54 balls as Bingley closed their innings on 230-7. Pick of the bowlers was Lee Gordon, who returned 3-42.

Keighley’s chase never got going as wickets fell from the start; only the consistent Adam Qurban (25) and Greg Wilkinson (12) getting into double figures as they were all dismissed for a cheap 61, 169 runs short. Muhammed Shakoor was the main thorn in Keighley’s side with excellent figures of 6-11.

Fortunately for Keighley both Ossett and Undercliffe, the teams below them in the Championship also both lost. They face Undercliffe at Lawkholme on Saturday in what will be a huge relegation battle.