Oldham aim to end Norden dominance

SO CLOSE . . . Oldham’s Mel Whittle cannot believe it as Milnrow’s Greg Jennings survives a dangerous delivery during Saturday’s game at the Pollards.

A PACKED weekend of CLL cricket gets under way tomorrow (6.15pm) with the quarter-finals of the John Willies Lees Twenty20 Competition.

The recent rain has had a major say in this Friday-evenings competition, with last weekend’s fixtures virtually wiped out and bowl-outs and coin tosses needed to establish winners and losers.

In such circumstances, there have been plenty of hard-luck stories, but the identity of the last eight had to be established somehow and those teams who survived will be praying for the weather to hold tomorrow night.

Of the two local sides through to the knock-out stages, Oldham appear to face the tougher task.

Mel Whittle’s men play Norden - winners of this competition for the two years it has been staged - and further bad news for the Pollards outfit is that their opponents have home advantage.

The tight Woodhouse Lane ground is notoriously difficult to defend in this discipline of cricket and, in the swashbuckling Hashim Malik, Norden boast a batsman who can settle a game in a handful of overs.

Malik was in great form as Norden destroyed subsequent Wood Cup winners Heywood by 113 runs in last year’s final on home turf.

Oldham have little to lose, then, and possess their own big hitter in professional Chinthaka Jayasinghe, who could make Norden’s small boundaries look rather meaningless if he gets his eye in early on.

Royton, enjoying a fine season under Guy Lovell, also face dangerous opponents in Unsworth, for whom paid man Wayne Madsen’s wicket is always vital.

Madsen is a manipulator of the ball, rather than an out-and-out blaster, but he will be looking to bat most of the overs so Royton will have to get their field placings right.

Unsworth also possess one or two batsmen who like to get bat on ball in decisive fashion but so, too, do Royton, for whom professional Luke Procter, overseas amateur Simon Harmer and Dion Taljard are all capable of clearing the boundary ropes with regularity.

Add to that a strong and varied bowling attack and the hosts’ loyal followers must be confident of progression to the semi-finals.

Tomorrow’s other matches see Monton and Weaste entertain Milnrow and Walsden host Heywood.




WHICH team will grasp the nettle in this year’s title race?



Well, the contest is wide open with only nine points covering the top seven clubs with half the fixtures completed.

Reining champions Rochdale are not among this septet and look likely to relinquish their crown, but local sides Crompton and Royton are firmly in the mix.

These two teams have been suffering the same affliction as everyone else near the top.

Just when a nice little run of victories seems likely, along pops an unexpected defeat to put a dent in their chances.

Of their main rivals, leaders Radcliffe have a solid professional in Usman Tariq, but their line-up should hardly strike fear into the opposition.

Norden, last year’s runners-up and boasting an in-form paid man in Jean Symes, are clearly strong contenders, a remark which also applies to Heywood, whose chances hinge on the continued success of their top four batsmen and effectiveness of young fast bowler Steve Cheetham.

Unsworth have impressed in recent weeks and have a willing professional in Wayne Madsen, while I have a strong suspicion that seventh-placed Monton and Weaste are capable of more than they have been showing.

However, none of these five teams are superior to Crompton and Royton – certainly on the evidence so far – and if our local sides can harness belief with the obvious talent they possess, one or both can be right up there at the end of the season.