Laycock: It will be a good final

Holders Booth beat visitors Copley by five wickets yesterday while Royd won by 36 runs away to Thornton to set up an all-Calder Valley affair at Blackley on Sunday, August 6.

Booth skipper Richard Laycock, who hit an unbeaten 74 as his Premier Division leaders atoned for a defeat away to the same rivals 24 hours earlier, is certain it will be a memorable final.

“Two of the best teams in the league will be playing and we always have good games against Royd,” he said.

Copley, beaten in last season’s final by Booth at Sowerby St Peters, posted 234 for nine with 81 from Rishikesh Bhuskute and useful contributions from Mohammed Seraj and hard-hitting Chris Dennison.

Laycock didn’t bowl on Saturday, after a recent appendix operation, but he and the returning Nigel Horsfall strengthened a home attack still lacking Moazzam Ayub.

Laycock said they were happy to restrict Copley to under 250, having feared the visitors might have totalled approaching 300 at one stage.

Steve Senior, who will be facing his former club in the final, was an early casualty and Booth looked up against it at 58 for three and 90 for four.

However, Laycock and Jon Midgley added 140 with the latter hitting five sixes from his last eight balls before being out for 72 with only two more runs needed.

Mytholmroyd scored 231 at Thornton and dismissed their Premier Division rivals for 195.

The Crossley Shield final will be between Warley and Triangle on August 20.

Warley beat Sowerby Bridge by 81 runs yesterday, a second wicket stand of 135 between Ben Schofield (83) and Dominic Oates (66) helping them to gain the ascendancy.

The visitors to Walton Street totalled 213 and Bridge collapsed from 41 without loss to 54 for five in reply. They were eventually all out for 132 with Craig Brennan and Faheem Khatana taking three wickets each.

Warley are bidding to win the second teams’ knockout competition for the fourth successive year but they could have a fight on their hands against a Triangle side who blitzed visitors Bridgeholme by 300 runs.

Triangle batted first on their Grassy Bottom ground and although opener Gary Rodger had to retire on 44 with a pulled calf muscle, that only opened the door for Tony Sykes and Kurtis Whippey to lash the Eastwood side’s bowlers.

Sykes made 109 and Whippey 186 not out, the pair hitting 25 sixes between as Triangle totalled 411 for four.

Shell-shocked Bridgeholme managed only 111 in reply with former first team paceman Whippey taking six for 43.