Top flight is hard school

Cricket:

THE Lake Garage CLL is well into its second season as a two-division cricket league, but the evidence suggests that little has changed.

Looking at the current league tables and the final standings of 2012, there is an uncanny resemblance.

Walsden were champions then and are top of the Premier Division now. Heywood and Norden were in the top four and remain so today, while Rochdale are in the same fifth position.

Littleborough have improved from eighth to third, but they now have Chris Schofield in their ranks so a rise up the table was inevitable.

Looking at the local clubs, Oldham are bottom of the 16 teams in the CLL instead of 15th, Royton are up to sixth from 10th and Werneth eighth from 13th.

Crompton are down one to 12th, but are currently on an upward curve.

The one major discrepancy is Milnrow, who were third two years ago and are now ninth.

They, however, are top of the Championship and are upwardly mobile.

Three of the four teams who contested the semi-finals of the Wood Cup this season were from the Premier Division and the fourth, Unsworth, had beaten two clubs from the Championship in Crompton and Oldham to get through.

Fortunately for those at the wrong end of the table, only one club will be relegated this term following the CLL’s acceptance of Heyside and Elton.

It will be particularly interesting to see how Heyside fare next summer.

Fourth in the Saddleworth and District League at present, they expect to make a serious impact and my information is that promotion at the first attempt is assumed rather than hoped for.

We shall see on that one, but one thing is for sure: the top clubs in the Premier Division won’t be resting on their laurels.

The relegation from, and expected immediate return to the Premier Division of Milnrow and, quite possibly, a reverse situation for Werneth suggests the CLL’s switch to a two-tier system may be creating a band of yo-yo clubs too good for the top flight, but not strong enough to stay there once they arrive.

It seems inevitable that if promoted sides are to survive and prosper they will have to strengthen.

The danger is that could be achieved by bringing in players from other leagues, leaving the next generation of young hopefuls kicking their heels in the second team.

THE quarter-finals of the Twenty20 Competition will be held tomorrow (6.15pm) after being washed out last Friday.

Draw: Norden v Crompton; Littleborough v Werneth; Unsworth v Rochdale; Royton v Monton and Weaste.