Surprise win for Friarmere

CELEBRATION time for Friarmere as Saddleworth batsman Ian Hague walks after his run-out dismissal

A SUPERB stand of 94 between Asif Qayyum and Nisar Ahmed clinched a surprise five-wicket win for Friarmere over Saddleworth in the Armstrongs Office Furniture Saddleworth and District Cricket League on Saturday.

In a gritty show of defiance, first-season professional Qayyum and number seven Ahmed repelled everything Peter Skuse’s side could throw at them at West View.

They came together with Friarmere wobbling on 60 for five, still 90 runs short of their target with 18 overs to go.

With key batsmen Darren Graham and overseas amateur Zafar Iqbal back in the pavilion, Friarmere’s hopes looked to have all but evaporated against a Saddleworth team pushing hard for runners-up spot.

But Qayyum’s unbeaten 59 from 71 balls — his highest score in the league — and 37 not out from Ahmed carried Friarmere, who started the day second from bottom, over the finishing line with five balls to spare.

The hosts, missing five first-team regulars, initially did a good job in restricting Saddleworth to 149 for nine from 45 overs.

Admittedly conditions for batting were far from ideal — the wicket was slow and low — but Friarmere’s four bowlers still had to put the ball in the right areas.

Performing in tandem, Iqbal chose to bowl medium pace rather than spin and was rewarded with one for 15 from 10 overs, while Danny Meehan also made Saddleworth work hard for any runs with figures of no wicket for 24 off nine.

Iqbal got the vital wicket of paid man Skuse, leg before for four, after opener Ian Hague had been run out for 13.

Saddleworth’s progress was leisurely when stand-in skipper Craig Ramadhin turned to Ben Ingham and Mohammed Azam.

If the batsmen thought they had seen off Friarmere’s danger men, then they had to think again.

Ingham, who has just turned 16, bowled with good control for a leg-spinner so young, while Azam got one or two deliveries to pop off a length and generally gave little away.

Azam removed Adam Lavin for 41, Steven Howard, who chopped the ball on to his stumps for six, and Chris Brazewell for 18 in a spell of three for 50 from 14 overs.

Ingham, meanwhile, recorded a career-best in first-team cricket of four for 50 from his 12 overs. Ramadhin had so much faith in the teenager that he allowed him to bowl the last over with Saddleworth desperately seeking quick runs.

Friarmere were up against it from the word go as Andy Mahmood and Bobby Khan both departed with only 15 runs on the board. Mahmood was playing his first competitive game since Friarmere lost to Saddleworth in a title decider seven years ago.

Graham and Iqbal repaired some of the damage, but when Iqbal was trapped lbw by Skuse, who was exacting revenge on his dismissal, it was advantage Saddleworth.

Steve Holmes bowled Graham for 20 almost immediately and the opener was quickly followed by Ishaq Hussain, who was stumped by Lavin for nine.

Friarmere looked to be heading for defeat, but Qayyum and Ahmed had other ideas.

They initially stopped the surge of wickets and then made sure the run-rate did not climb so high that they had to take too many unnecessary risks.

To be honest, Ahmed never seemed that comfortable but he stuck around, while Qayyum, who hit three fours and two sixes, showed flashes of fine stroke making.

Skuse switched the bowling but the pair continued on the merry way. The impossible had become the probable and it was left to Ahmed to smash Skuse back over his head for his second six to secure victory.