Carlton Cricket Club (Wakefield ish)

Another club with more history on the Bradford League website than their own

Carlton history

Carlton's side which won the 1973 Leeds League Hepworth Cup

The Early Days
Carlton, meaning “town of the churls” (common agricultural people), is a small and undeveloped village just on Rothwell’s doorstep. Sport has always played an important part in the history of Carlton and its inhabitants. The rural sports fields, set in between acres of picturesque farmland, have been at the heart of the village for more than 150 years.
The earliest known reference to sport in the village goes back to 1867 when a cricket team from Carlton made only 33 runs against a team from nearby Lofthouse. Back in those days cricket was played on Dick Marshall’s field in the far side of Pitfield Road, now Ashton Crescent. He also gave the team a lift to away matches by horse-drawn wagonette for a shilling a head.
1922 saw a huge turn in the sporting fortunes of the village when twelve newly appointed trustees of Carlton Athletic Club bought the current Town Street ground from Major Calverley of Oulton Hall. The new five-acre site was to embrace both football and cricket, a philosophy that still stands today.
The agreed price of £275, a substantial sum in the 1920s, was a great investment for the future of sport in the village for generations to come. Construction of the new cricket ground was a mammoth task and the whole village got involved.
Colliery owners, J & J Charlesworth, offered a welcome loan and funds were raised through house-to-house collections and special concerts. Building materials were brought in from adjoining villages, local farmers supplied turf and willing volunteers provided much needed labour. By 1926 the new cricket ground was ready for action.
Ken Oldroyd, fourth generation owner of Oldroyd’s Farm and President of Carlton Cricket Club for 31 years had seen both the area and the cricket blossom during his reign.
A founder member of the Woodlesford and District League in 1893, Carlton Cricket Club moved to various leagues, but it was the Leeds League that would make their name.

Leeds League success
In 1941 Carlton won their first major trophy when they lifted the Hepworth Cup- the premier cup competition in the Leeds League. In the Roundhay Park Final the club beat Whitwood with Billy Newton starring with 57 runs and a bowling analysis of 7-16.
Although they had twenty years to wait for their next success their record in the competition is nothing short of phenomenal.
There was no team trophy in 1957, but Carlton’s best batsman Arthur Sweet won the League Batting Averages that year.
During the sixties Carlton won the Hepworth Cup in 1961, 1963 and 1967, and the title for the first time in 1965. They were a dominant force in the league and it would continue in the next three decades.
The 1961 Hepworth Cup Final was played at Headingley against Lofthouse. Played over two weekday nights the local rivalry was intense. Lofthouse batted first and scored a competitive 206-6 with occasional bowler Jack Field taking 3-31. The run-chase was always in doubt despite a robust 67 from No.6 Jack Fox, and it was left to the last wicket pairing of Alan Wright and Peter Clayton to make a stand of 28 to take their team to victory by one wicket.
Colin Lumb, who formed a formidable opening attack with Alam Wright had a remarkable season in 1963 taking 94 wickets.
In the 1967 Hepworth Cup final win Derek Mattinson was the hero with a bowling spell of 6-26 against Normanton.
In the seventies they did not win the league but found consolation in the Hepworth Cup by winning it in 1973, 1975, 1978 and 1979. In 1973 they had a cup double by virtue of winning the H J Knutton Trophy. This competition was between senior clubs in the West Yorkshire area containing many fine players, and was considered a prestige trophy to win.
In 1979 Keith Taylor (115*) and Keith Sampson (100*) took part in a record undefeated opening stand of 234 v Woodhouse, but ended on the losing side.
Carlton’s dominant batsman of the seventies was Taylor who won the League Batting Averages in 1971, 1979 and later in 1986. His best season was 1979 when he scored 1.280 runs at 64.0. In between his seventies triumphs his colleague Mick Fletcher also won this award in 1974.
Another individual trophy winner was Brian Ramsden who won the League Wicket-Keepers Trophy in 1976. Ramsden played in 10 Hepworth Cup Finals between 1963 and 1983 keeping wickets in eight matches and on the winning side on nine occasions.

Continued success in the eighties
The team cycle of success continued into the next decade when it got even better. They began the eighties with three Hepworth Cups in 1980, 1981 and 1982 to take the tally to five successive cup wins. There was a double of sorts when in 1981 they also won the Leeds `B’ Division.
The architect of the 1980 cup final win against Colton was David Fairburn who scored an unbeaten 76.
Clearly the overall strength of the club was strong with the 2X1 winning the League & Wood Cup double in 1983 which replicated the same feat in 1965 and 1970.
After winning the Leeds League for the second time in 1985, they reached their pinnacle in the following season when they retained their title and also took the Hepworth Cup to be double winners of 1986. This was the end of trophies for this decade, but the six they won re-confirmed their status of the dominant club in the league.
The decade’s big players were Glen Cooper, who won the League Batting Averages in 1982 and 1987, Keith Sampson who preceded this feat in 1981 with an average of 53.77, and David Cooper who took the League Bowling prize in 1987. Paul Stanyard, who took over 1000 career wickets in the First Team for the club, had his best season in 1981 with 77.
During 1988 the league won acclaim by Nostell Cricket Club’s inclusion of Australian test batsman Dean Jones in their ranks. When they visited Carlton, Jones launched several stunning shots until the gentle medium pace of Malcolm Baddeley deceived him and got him out LBW. Carlton went on to win the match, and later in the season complete the double over Nostell.
The nineties dawned and it was business as usual at Carlton with title wins in 1991 and 1996, and Hepworth Cups sandwiched between in 1992 and 1995. Individual winners were Paul Tasker who won the League Bowling Averages in 1996 and Andrew Court who took the League Wicket-Keepers Trophy in 1976.
The title winning side of 1991 contained the club’s first overseas player in 18-year old New Zealander Evan J Marshall. His native club side was Otago Volts.
The 1992 cup win against Colton featured a match-winning performance from Roy Sampson who took 6-43 to go with his innings of 30 runs. Keith Barrett also excelled with 58.
Batsman Mark Schofield had an inspired season in 1995 scoring 945 runs.

David Ripley’s century in the final

The 1995 Final victory against East Leeds was memorable for David Ripley’s undefeated 133. Ripley, a wicket-keeper/batsman, had joined the club in 1977, as an 11 year old, and went on to play in all the junior age groups. He played at Farsley and figured in the 1983 Priestley Cup Final win against Yorkshire Bank.
Ripley played for Northants in county cricket from 1984-2001 and is now the county coach. In his 307 first class games he scored 8,693 runs at 28.40 including nine centuries, and with the gloves took 678 catches and 85 stumpings. In 1968 he put on 404 runs for the fifth wicket with Mal Loye against Glamorgan.
Ironically, it was not until 1995 when county duties allowed him to make his Carlton First Team debut against local rivals Oulton.
In 1996 Andy Court won the Leeds League Wicket-Keeping award, and Mark Fairburn won the club barring averages scoring 800 runs..
Carlton had won 14 Hepworth Cups and five top flight titles and was one of the dominant forces of the league across several decades. However, the Leeds League began to decline with top clubs leaving or intending to do so. In 1998 the club took the big step to join the Central Yorkshire League.

Move to the Central Yorkshire League
Carlton CC exploded on the Central Yorkshire League scene in 1999 by winning the league’s prestigious Jack Hampshire Trophy. Feeding on their cup tradition they upset all the odds to beat red-hot favourites Methley in the Final.

The 1999 league campaign was spearheaded by Kevin Watson, above, who won the League Bowling Averages. Watson was a mean medium pace bowler who gave nothing away and would later find fame with the all conquering Wrenthorpe. He took over 500 career wickets in the First Team for the club, and had his best season in 2002 with 79.
In 2000, they continued their success story by winning the Division One title, largely based on the runs of Mohaddrin Kadri who topped the League Batting Averages. In addition, Carlton won the Yorkshire Council Supplementary Cup for 2000, and regained it in 2002.
When the Central Yorkshire League inserted a Premier League for their top division, clubs of substance yearned to be in it, and Carlton were no different. However, the higher standard cricket in the Premier League negated Carlton’s chances of replicating their successes in the Leeds League, and they struggled to make an impact and were duly relegated.
The foray into the Premier League in 2004 was notable for a remarkable match in late May against third place Northowram Fields. Skipper Mark Schofield feared his team’s score of 146-8 from 37 overs was 20 runs short, but their opponents were routed for nine. The destroyers were Kevin Watson with 4-5, and Phil Mullins who took 5-4.
Like most of their colleagues in the Central Yorkshire League, Carlton had forays into the Heavy Woollen Cup and in 2005 competed in a close encounter with Bradford League side Saltaire at Roberts Park.
Fast bowler Faisal Khan (5-42) bowled well enough to restrict Saltaire to 232. Carlton spearheaded by Steve Cooper (64) was well placed at 118-2, before falling short at 212.
In 2006 they won the Divisiion One title again, and coupled with this triumph that year was the Yorkshire Council Supplementary Cup in which they were getting a definite taste for.
The stars of 2006 were Cooper, who was the backbone of the batting with 568 runs at 40.57, and Neil Waite and Michael Roberts who took the lion’s share of the wickets, and figured in second and third places in the league bowling averages.A further relegation illustrated the difficulties of competing with the more affluent clubs.
In 2010 they won eleven matches in Div 1 but could not quite break back into the Premier league. Phil Page was the best batsman with 444 runs at 29.60 and a top score of 131*.
It was different in 2011 when promotion was obtained largely down to two individual performers who dominated in their respective field. Page again excelled but went to another level with 971 runs at 64.73 with a top score of 128, and in consequence won the League Batting Averages. This time the bowling had penetration in the hands of Jonathan Rudge, below, who took 46 wickets at 11.17 to take the League Bowling Averages.

The holy grail of the premier league had been reached and eight wins consolidated Carlton’s place in 2012 under the captaincy of Christopher Smith. The best bowler was again Rudge who picked up 32 wickets at 19.28.

Carlton’s finest premier league season
Carlton’s finest premier league season came in 2013 when twelve wins secured a high ranking finish. The bowling had more depth with Chris Leaf (51 wkts) and Rudge (50 wkts) being backed up by spinner Chris Kippax (29 wkts). Kiwi Jaycob Curtling was the pick of the batters with 531 runs.

Another player who played his part was 49-year old Simon Stirling, above, who scored 494 runs at 32.93. Stirling was an explosive cricketer in his pomp able to dictate games with bat and ball. He was quite a swift opening bowler capable of taking the early key wickets, and in 2004 took nine wickets for 2 runs versus Liversedge. With the bat he took on the bowlers with his special brand of power strokeplay.
Stirling was a native of New Zealand who played forty games for Manawatu. He settled in the UK starring for Rawdon, East Ardsley and Wakefield St Michaels, and latterly for Carlton.
In 2014, Carlton had to settle for seven wins in a season with few thrills. The best performers were Curtling who scored 485 runs at 34.64, and seamer James Glynn who took 33 wickets.
In what would prove to be the last year of the Central Yorkshire League, Carlton finished the 2015 season in ninth place. With the advent of the move to the Bradford League Championship, it was appropriate that they ended their era in this league as a Premier league club.
The cricketers that took the eye for Carlton were Stephen Cooper who scored 445 runs at 40.50 and Farrukh Alam who took 44 wickets.
The last Carlton First Team squad to participate in the Central Yorkshire League consisted of: Stephen Cooper, Farrukh Alam, Patrick Hinchliffe, Jonathan Hughes, Joshua Thurwell, Daniel Danby, Tom Taylor, Derrick Hammill, Gary Close.

Into the Bradford League
In a tough Championship B, it proved difficult for Carlton to challenge for promotion and they had to settle for six wins and a seventh position.
Farrukh Alam was their outstanding player, scoring 479 runs at 36.85, and also taking 33 wickets. Tom Taylor topped the division’s wicket-keeping with 29 victims.
A fine accolade for the club was the award of the Tom Mather’s Ground of the Year for 2016.
Carlton celebrated their 150th anniversary in 2017 with various events including a challenge match with MCC, and the publication of a booklet.

On the field they finished in a disappointing 8th after at one time lurking on the fringes of the promotion race. The most productive players were Christopher Wynd (486 runs), Joshua Thurwell (above, 52 wkts at 17.44), and all rounder Will Smith who contributed 331 runs and 27 wickets.
For the second consecutive year Tom Taylor topped the division’s wicket-keeping award with 33 victims.
They made a stuttering start to the 2018 season and had to settle for seventh place, despite some fine performances. On August 4th they beat Bowling Old Lane by 74 runs after scoring an impressive 330-6, with Arman Hussain unbeaten on 123. William Hayton ensured victory with a bowling spell of 6-34, as Old Lane fell short on 256.
Daniel White had a very promising first season after signing from South Milford, scoring 654 runs at 46.71. The best all round performer was Hussain who topped 500-runs with the bat, and took 36 wickets.

Hopton Mills Cricket Club 1989

A New Dawn

In 1989 Hopton Mills Cricket Club was re-born. Of course, cricket had been played at Woodbottom for around a century previously, but 1989 did mark a new dawn. The merger was between Whitley Lower CC (the club whose home was Woodbottom) and Dewsbury & Savile CC (a very famous club, based in Savile Town, Dewsbury).
The merger was a complex affair. Woodbottom was the natural home for the new club, and the new name – ‘Hopton Mills CC’ – paid due respect to the geography and industrial history of Lower Hopton.

Central Yorkshire League

One of the main rationales of the ‘merger’ was the securing of major-league cricket at Woodbottom, and this was achieved when they were successful in their application to join the Central Yorkshire League.
In 1997 Hopton Mills languished in 10th position in the Second Division. Despite this mediocrity they possessed a player in I Ashgar who had a most productive season with bat and ball. Not only did he score 490 runs at 27.22 he also took 61 wickets at 15.33 with a best performance of 6-52 against East Ardsley.
Like most senior leagues the Central Yorkshire League formed a premier league from their top division, and this was the division the more ambitious clubs wanted to compete in.
In 2002 Hopton Mills came close in reaching their goal of the premier league when they finished third in the First Division. They had the services of an exceptional overseas batsman in Mohammed Bilal who scored a staggering 1,435 runs. Even more amazing was his record of eight successive centuries. This proved to be a false dawn for the club as they subsequently went on to drop a division. By 2010 Mills were still eyeing the premier league division but needed to get out of the Second division. However, they did not have the strength in depth despite good contributions from Paul Moorhouse (536 runs), Stephen Bland (527 runs) and Richard Myers (40 wickets).
In 2011 they managed to lure their former seamer Michael Carroll back from Wakefield St Michaels. He had performed the best bowling feat in the entire premier league in 2010 by taking 8-18, and it was anticipated he would spark a revival at Woodbottom. He certainly did,- taking 75 wickets at 9.33- the best haul in the entire division, and inspiring his team to promotion.
Carroll was not the only hero in a season that saw a late winning run with a string of successive victories. The leading batters were Chris Scott who scored 567 runs at 40.50, and Mark Ashton who also topped the 500-runs mark and scored the division’s highest score with 162 not out.
Hopton Mills recorded 12 wins in the First Division in 2012 with all-rounder Samuel Gardiner having a virtuoso season. He scored 685 runs at 52.69 and also took 47 wickets at 16.47. Carroll was the leading bowler with 49 wickets at 14.10.

Promotion to the premier league
At last the holy grail of the premier league was achieved when Hopton Mills secured promotion in the 2013 season with an impressive 16 wins. They sealed promotion by beating Oulton by 38 runs in September with Tahmidul Islam (63 runs and 3-18) and Richard Myers (5-37) being the match-winners.
The batting was built on the sheet anchor batsman Chris Scott who managed 506 runs at 33.73. Carroll was again the senior bowler with 41 wickets at 12.00 including an analysis of 6-7. Another key performance was from Tahmidul Islam who contributed 552 runs and 34 wickets. The 17-year old Islam, who played for Sydney’s Western Suburbs travelled from Australia to play a season for Hopton Mills to advance his development.
Hopton Mills duly qualified for the Yorkshire Council play-offs falling at the first hurdle in the Supplementary Competition when they lost by seven wickets at home to Darfield (South Yorkshire League). Chris Scott made 84 of Hopton’s 195-9 in 45 overs but the visitors romped home with 17 overs to spare.
Significant investment in facilities
2013 marked a significant investment in the club when Sport England provided a grant of £46,200 to build new spacious dressing rooms. Yorkshire player Alex Lees did the honour of officially opening the new facility on May 20th 2015.
The premier league proved to be too tough for them in 2014 with only Carroll standing up to scrutiny with 41 wickets at 17.39.
Determined to return at the first time of asking they were pacesetters for promotion in 2015 with Liversedge. By the half way stage of the season the promotion aim became something very different when news filtered through that the Central Yorkshire League clubs were joining an enlarged Bradford League in 2016. The later aim was to finish as title winners to secure a place in the Bradford League Championship rather than the lower Conference.

The fact that they succeeded was down to a powerful batting side that piled the runs on throughout the season. Stephen Bland won the league batting averages with 485 runs at 44.09, and he enjoyed able assistance from Ashley Mackereth (above, 718 runs), Neil Brown (601 runs) and the consistent Scott (554 runs). Again, Carroll was the most prolific wicket-taker.
The two constants in the Hopton Mills side were Chris Scott and Michael Carroll who could rightfully be described as the backbone of the team in this era.
James Glover finished second in the League Wicketkeeping for the third occasion in four seasons- such was his consistency.
Another major happening in 2015 came when Yorkshire’s former England bowler Ryan Sidebottom officially opened enhanced practice facilities prior to the season’s start on Sunday, January 25. Club officials had secured a grant of £46,000 from Biffa Award to breathe new life into its practice facilities.
With Paul Moorhouse skippering the Second Team to two successive promotions Hopton Mills cricket infrastructure had an undisputed depth.

Drainage problem
Before the season started Hopton tackled a drainage problem at their Woodbottom Ground. In a bid to cure water logging a work force of 20 players and members laid a new drainage pipe the full width of their outfield to get the water away. The trench had to be back filled with pea gravel before the turf was relaid.

Into the Bradford League Championship
On the field, Hopton Mills found the going tough in Championship B and only recorded six victories. Their strength was definitely their batting with South African Louren Steenkamp scoring 514 runs at 30.24, with a top score of 171* against Hartshead Moor. The best of the rest was Ashley Mackereth (349 runs) and Chris Scott (372 runs).
There was little progress on the field in 2017 as the club recorded seven wins to finish 10th in Championship 2. The most productive player was Umar Abbas who took 45 wickets at 20.58, and also scored 350 runs. The ever consistent Scott (527 runs) and Carroll (42 wickets) continued to show their worth to the side.
The club fell a place to eleventh in 2018 despite figuring in some highly competitive games. Despite their erratic form they were a dangerous side, and proved it by beating the two promoted sides.
On July 14th they showed their true ability by beating Keighley by 29-runs. They set a challenging total of 283-7 after Scott (91 runs) and Abbas (76 runs) had shown the way, and then bowled their opponents out for 254 with Carroll taking 5-54. They completed their fixtures with a win over Wakefield St Michael’s and in doing so prevented them from winning the title.
Scott made 604 league runs at 37.75, and Mackereth, Abbas and Mark Ashton all topped 400-runs, while Carroll (44 wkts) was the main strike bowler.

Bowling Old Lane Cricket Club

Updated history from the Bradford League site

As an addition to my original post

Lightcliffe Cricket Club

For a Bradford League team, this is a strange ground.

Entry via a path/snickett/Ginnel/ Gennel/ passage (back or otherwise)/Jennell/Jitty/ Jigger/close/cut/entry/twitchel or alley*

as  shown below.

I've known where it was for years but it's the first time I've actually had the time to find the entrance.

*delete as geographically appropriate

Yes, that patch of red is the pavilion

The early days
Lightcliffe Cricket Club was founded in 1875, playing during its early years at West Field which is now known as The Stray, half a mile away from the present ground. The outstanding player in these years was batsman Seth Foster.
In the early 1890's the club moved to its present ground and in 1894 became founder members of the Halifax District League, in which they competed until 1914, when the Halifax Parish League was formed. In that year they created a Parish Cup record score for a game started and finished in one afternoon, making 419 against Greetland, who were bowled out for 109. Wilfred Aspinall, father of Herbert, scored 138 not out.
The appearance of the ground was little different from today. There were three tennis courts and a flourishing tennis section, which continued until the 1970's and the present pavilion, in red and white, which had been opened in 1922. There were benches all around the ground in the early days to accommodate the big crowds.
A minute of a committee meeting in 1926 records a decision to erect a canvas barrier above the wall on the north-east side of the ground to prevent locals watching matches without paying! This was the final year of Foster's captaincy, and he was succeeded by opening batsman Ronnie Somers, who was also a sharp fielder, as befitted a county hockey player.

Entry to the Bradford League
In 1919 Lightcliffe joined the Halifax section of the Yorkshire Council before entering the Bradford League in 1924, under the captaincy of W. H. 'Bert' Foster, who subsequently became league president. A prominent player was Harold Sharp who was then nearing the end of a long career at the club. He began keeping detailed records of every match from the entry into the Bradford League.
In the inaugural season in 1924 Lightcliffe finished half-way with the outstanding bowler F Pratt taking 31 wickets at the little cost of 8.35 per wicket. The next two seasons followed the same pattern, and in 1926 W Hirst figured strongly in the League Bowling Averages with 32 wickets at 9.84.

Early cup success
In the same year, 1926, Lightcliffe recorded the first of their six Priestley Cup successes, beating Lidget Green by 133 runs. Sam Cadman, a professional from Derbyshire, scored 103 not out, with Somers adding 55 and F T Pool 69. W. Hirst took five for 33 in 30 overs in a Lidget Green total of 183. Hirst was also the leading Lightcliffe bowler in the league taking 32 wickets at 9.84.
Lightcliffe were the first team to score over 300 runs in a final, but their 316 total was less than their semi-final score of 331 against Bradford Park Avenue in the same season.
Two charabancs travelled from Lightcliffe to Bradford Park Avenue for the Cup Final, one of them being paid for by club president Algernon Denham, who also provided two bottles of champagne for the players and committee. The cup was subsequently placed on view in the windows of a number of local shops.
Samuel William Anthony Cadman played for Derbyshire for over quarter of a century between 1900 and 1926. He was an effective all-rounder and scored over 14,000 runs and took over 800 wickets in his first class career.
Another stalwart during the early decades in the league was Harry Taylor, a master at Bradford Grammar School, who opened the batting with Somers and gained a reputation as one of the leading batsmen in the league. He won the league batting in 1928, his first season, with an astonishing average of 60.70. Eight years later in 1936 he won it again with 647 runs at 49.76. In between these years he averaged 49.00 in 1930 and 51.66 in 1935, such was his consistency.
Another outstanding batsman was Tom Patefield who in 1929 came close to winning the League Batting Averages when he averaged 50.86. He also had the highest league score that year with 118 against Eccleshill. This was Lightcliffe’s best league season so far with a top three position.
The following year there was two other batters than Taylor who enjoyed fine seasons. Somers averaged 43.50 with a top score of 124* against Keighley, while Albert Hartley recorded 119* versus Farsley.
Patefield showed his all round ability when in 1934 he became the first Lightcliffe bowler to take all ten wickets in an innings. This was in a Priestley Cup match against Spen Victoria when he took 10-33.
The year 1936 was one of Lightcliffe’s finest seasons despite not bringing any silverware home. They finished second in the league behind Bradford Park Avenue by a mere point, and lost out in the Priestley Cup Final to Spen Victoria who scored 152-6 to Lightcliffe’s 120.
In 1937 they slipped to 4th in the league but went one better in the Priestley Cup by winning the Final against Great Horton. Lightcliffe’s 294 were far too many for Horton who nevertheless battled to 220.

The Hartley years
Albert Hartley had a phenomenal run in the Priestley Cup in 1937 scoring 63*, 56*, and 43 in the lead up to the Final where he scored a massive 131 off the Great Horton bowling. Somers also excelled with the bat scoring 82 runs, while Charlie Young did the damage with the ball taking 5-43.
Things became turbulent at Lightcliffe with an unfortunate relegation in 1938, to be followed by a rapid return as Champions in 1939. Hartley showed his class again as he topped the league batting averages with a remarkable average of 54.60. Taylor was still producing the goods not far behind with an average of 53.50.
Lightcliffe's most prolific cricketer, Hartley, made his debut in 1925 as an 18-year-old. During his career he played 572 games, scoring 10,490 runs, taking 1,028 wickets with his left-arm spin and also took 306 catches. He missed occasional seasons when he was professional at other clubs, most notably Nelson, where one of his predecessors had been Learie Constantine.
After 1939 things went quiet at Lightcliffe with little advancement in the cup and a decline in standards in the league to such an extent that they had to apply for re-election to the league in 1948.
Bucking the trend was F Jakeman who topped the League Batting Averages in 1946 with 597 runs at an average of 49.75 with a top score of 111.
Herbert Aspinall played his first game in 1940 and went on to make 501 appearances before he finished in 1967. He was captain from 1949 until 1966; however, he was much more than a player. As long-serving secretary and league representative he supervised all aspects of the club with a military efficiency. He was also groundsman for the last two decades of his life.
Hartley returned to the club in 1949 and had his best all-round season scoring 607 runs at 33.72 and taking 79 wickets at a little over 12 apiece. He was a contemporary and close friend of the dapper Charlie Young, who played from 1928 to 1949, and was captain towards the end of his career.

Priestley Cup won for third time
In 1950 promotion was obtained with Hartley taking 50 wickets at 10.32. This achievement was overshadowed by the winning of the Priestley Cup for the third time in 24 years. Batting first Lightcliffe suspended their innings at 154-4 and bowled East Bierley out for 153. What appears to be a narrow win in the records books is nothing of the sort as Lightcliffe could have re-commenced their innings as the rules allowed at the time. Roy Booth top scored with 50*, but it was Hartley that frustrated the Bierley batting taking 3-50 in 16 overs.
A leading bowler of a previous generation Joe Hirst, whose sons, Donald and Raymond, were at Lightcliffe from 1948 to 1951, were both members of the 1950 cup-winning team, as was Albert Smith, the former league president.
Lightcliffe made a fair tilt at the First Division title in 1952 finishing second. It was inevitable that Hartley would be the star bowler with 60 wickets at 13.85, but he also performed the all-ten feat for the first time taking 10-36 against Keighley. The top batsman was Roy Booth who averaged 64.50 with the bat.
In the early years of Aspinall's captaincy the batting and wicket-keeping skills of Roy Booth was a feature of the side. Booth played for both Yorkshire and Worcestershire. A product of Golcar Cricket Club, where he lived most of his early life, he was professional with Lightcliffe from 1948–53 and 1955.
A specialist wicket keeper, he took 948 catches and completed 178 stumpings in a career that spanned two decades from 1951 to 1970, with 468 first-class appearances. Booth came late to first-class cricket, not making his debut for his native Yorkshire until he was 24, and was a fringe player in the Yorkshire team until the retirement of Don Brennan t the end of the 1953 season. He was then first choice for Yorkshire in 1954, but lost his place in 1955 to Jimmy Binks.

Struggling times
After 1952 Lightcliffe struggled to survive in the First Division with predominantly lowly positions throughout the decade until relegation in 1959.
Despite the struggles All-Rounder George Bottomley won the League Bowling Averages in 1954 with 39 wickets at 9.71. He made his first-team debut in 1933 and played for the club for 29 years. Like Hartley, he occasionally played elsewhere as a professional; indeed, when he was at Pudsey St. Lawrence he played against Lightcliffe in the 1955 Priestley Cup final.
As a footballer Bottomley had the chance to sign for Herbert Chapman's Arsenal but took his boss's advice and made a career with local carpet firm T.F. Firth and Sons. He stood down as club chairman in 1998, but continued to be an active member of the committee.
True to form and given Lightcliffe’s cup tradition they confounded the critics by winning the Priestley Cup again in 1955. They put their poor league form behind them to overhaul Pudsey St Lawrence’s 142 in the Final to win by 4 wickets.
The signing of Donald Garside in 1955, a young wicket keeper from Triangle in the Halifax League, was an inspired move. He was a sound and consistent wicketkeeper in a career lasting from 1955 to 1979, with 554 appearances made. He won the F Milton Watmouth League Wicket keeping Trophy in both 1965 and 1979. It is a testimony to the skill of Garside that, in 1979, his final season, he also won the Stan Longbottom ' Safe Hands' Trophy for most stumpings in the league.

The three W’s at Lightcliffe
In the late 1950's and for most of the 1960's Lightcliffe had its own 'Three W's' to rival Worrell, Walcott and Weekes. These were Alan Warren, Brian Whitham and Harry Waterhouse. Warren and Waterhouse were consistently heavy-scoring batsmen. Warren won the league averages in 1965 with 768 runs at 54.87 - second was Lewis Pickles, then at Pudsey St. Lawrence, with an average of 41.78. Off-spinner Whitham, who played friendly cricket into his seventies, took 529 wickets in his first ten seasons at the club.
For Whitham the years circa 1966/1967 saw him at his zenith at Lightcliffe. In 1966 he finished second behind Derbyshire’s Les Jackson in the league averages with a haul of 57 wickets, with one of every four overs he bowled resulting in maidens. The following year Whitham won the Fastest Fifty Award with a strike rate timed at one wicket every 20 balls.

The consistent Pickles

Lewis Pickles, doyen of opening bats, joined Lightcliffe in 1970, and played for 16 seasons, often making as important a contribution with his off-spin as with his runs. During the seventies the, leg-spinner Vijay Modgill, and off-spinner David Atkinson bowled many of Lightcliffe's overs to great success.
Lewis Pickles played as an opening batsman for Somerset for just over three seasons in the mid-1950's. He had made appearances for Yorkshire's Second Eleven, before featuring in a couple of games for Somerset in 1955 He cemented a regular place as opening batsman for the 1956 season. He did well enough to win his county cap, scoring 1,136 runs at an average of 24.
He made a top score of 87 against the bowling of Lancashire. The 1957 season proved more difficult for Pickles, with more competition for batting places after the arrival of Bill Alley. Alley often opened, and Pickles' uncertain form saw him play in less than half the first-class matches. Pickles left the county's staff at the end of the season, returning to Yorkshire where he played League cricket for Pudsey St Lawrence and from 1970 until 1985 for Lightcliffe, where his off-spin was a useful adjunct to his status as an opening batsman.
From 1963 Lightcliffe had 14 seasons in the First Division, their longest spell in the top flight. A cornerstone of this side was Martin Radcliffe, remembered not only for his 10,000 career runs, but also as a fine cover-point. Indeed, he was once compared, on the old Home Service, with Sir Jack Hobbs as a fielder in that position. With Bruce Deadman and Peter Westerby he led the way in an athletic fielding side. All three were captains of the team at some point.
Although Lightcliffe never challenged for the big league honours in the sixties they re-ignited their cup tradition with a fourth Priestley Cup in 1964. Lightcliffe reached 200-8 in the Final after a brave knock of 43 by veteran Herbert Aspinall. The target was just about enough for victory as East Bierley came very close on 188-9. Lightcliffe’s undoubted man of the match was G D Beaumont who added 33 priceless runs to the total before bowling 15.3 overs for 4-32.
Roger Stead's career spanned six decades, having made his debut in 1968 when he was a tearaway young fast bowler. With maturity his pace decreased, but not his ability to hit massive sixes. He went on to captain the side for many years in the 1980's and 1990's.
Times were difficult on the field in the seventies with survival the name of the game. Eventually they were relegated in 1976 only to return with a bang when promoted in 1978.
During the struggles Lightcliffe continued their fine cup tradition by reaching two Priestley Cup Finals. Unfortunately, they had lost the habit of usually winning on these big occasions. In 1972 they were well beaten by Undercliffe when posting a poor score of 148-8 and only taking one wicket defending it.
It was different in 1977 when as a Second Division club took big spending Manningham Mills all the way in a very close affair. Former Yorkshire & England batsman Phil Sharpe was the difference between the two sides scoring 97 in a total of 198-6. Radcliffe carried the fight with a classy 72 but could not quite see his team home as they fell six runs short.
A member of Lightcliffe’s losing side was David Robert’s who won the Fastest Fifty Award in 1977, which replicated Whitham’s feat ten years previously. Another member of that side was leg-spinner V K Modgill who took career best figures that year of 10-45 against Eccleshill.
1978 Radcliffe became the first Bradford League amateur to score 1,000 runs in a season. At the time this was a rare achievement; in fact, he was only the seventh in the history of the league to reach 1,000 runs and most of the others had been Test cricketers. His 1,003 runs came with an average of 52.78 with a top score of 123.

A century of wickets
Left armer Mike Bore took 103 wickets that season at 9.36 to win the League Bowling Averages. Bore played his early cricket with Hull Town C.C, before making the Yorkshire Federation side in 1966. He played with Leeds C.C., taking 9-21 versus Doncaster Town in 1968, before moving to Bradford Park Avenue, taking 7-9 against Bowling Old Lane in 1970. He also assisted them to win the Priestley Cup in 1973.
Bore made his debut for Yorkshire in 1969. He played for his native county until 1977, when he moved to Nottinghamshire where he played past the age of 40 until 1988. A doughty campaigner on the county circuit he took 372 first-class wickets at 30.22 with a best of 8-89. He conceded 2.43 runs per over, bowling a mixture of accurate swing and seam. He was a noted rabbit with the bat, with a highest score of just 37* in 158 innings, and an average of 8.24. He took 139 wickets in one-day cricket.
Relegated in 1980 they made a fair chase for promotion in 1982 finishing third with G Binks taking an impressive 77 wickets at 12.57.
Pickles had lost his prolific batting streak but became a 30-wicket a year man in the 1983-1984 period, during two mid-table campaigns for Lightcliffe.
The next momentous year came in 1985 when Lightcliffe won the Second Division title by 5 points followed by Laisterdyke. If bowlers win matches medium pacer John Foster quite possibly won Lightcliffe the title that season. He bowled 106 maidens in 275 overs taking 51 wickets for 12.33, and in doing so he won the league bowling averages by a margin of 0.01. He was well supported by John Pickles (39 wkts) and express fast bowler Shahid Mahboob (60 wkts). The batting in 1985 complemented the bowling with Andrew Battison (683), John Pickles (517) and, Simon Booth (669) scoring plentifully.
Imran Mahboob built a reputation as a fearsome fast bowler when he took 89 wickets for Hartshead Moor in 1982 which included a 10-39 analysis against Idle. Mahboob actually played Test cricket for Pakistan and once added 144 in a crucial partnership with Imran Khan in a one-day international against England at Headingley.
John Pickles graduated into a genuine all rounder during his 1980-87 tenure at Lightcliffe playing for Worcester seconds whilst at Alsager College. Mahboob played Test cricket for his country and added 144 in a crucial partnership with Imran Khan in a one-day international against England at Headingley. But it was as a fearsome fast bowler in league cricket he was known and in 1982 he took 89 wickets for Hartshead Moor.

Fading fortunes
Lightcliffe were relegated in 1988 and accepted their fate as a Second Division club as they entered the nineties.The outstanding performer in the early part of the decade was batsman Richard Walker who scored 830 runs in 1990 at 41.50. The following year he became only the second Lightcliffe batsman to score 1,000 runs in a season. His haul of 1,005 runs at 62.81, with a highest score of 131* catapulted him to second in the League Batting Averages.
Another worthy performer was spin bowler Graham Austin who took 64 wickets in 1990 and 47 in 1991. The unthinkable happened in 1993 when Lightcliffe had to apply for re-election after a season of four wins, and sixteen defeats. They did recover and even made the top division again in the same decade only to be relegated the following season.
In 1994 there was a stark improvement on the field with a powerful batting line-up containing Richard Nichols (723 runs), Sean Humphreys (584 runs) and the emerging Nick Pyrah (761 runs). Only a cutting edge in the bowling department negated a promotion push.

Similar seasons in 1995/1996 saw Pyrah (603 runs) lead the batting in 1995, while Nick Whitaker (816 runs) was the highest scorer in 1996. Alex Stead, above, first made an impression in that year scoring 606 runs.
All-rounder Alex Stead was taken onto Yorkshire’s books and played his peak years in league cricket at Pudsey St Lawrence. He really came to the fore in 2004 there when he enjoyed his best season scoring 635 runs and taking 32 wickets. Stead played in two First Class matches for Yorkshire with a top score of 28.
In 1997 Alex’s father Roger toiled hard to take 45 wickets to finish 4th in the League Bowling Averages, but more importantly helped to take his side to promotion. The leading batsmen were Pyrah (418 runs) and Humphreys (367 runs).
This success was short lived as they lasted just one season in the First Division. A brave attempt to return the first time of asking in 1999 failed as they ended in fourth place with Humphreys (453 runs) again excelling with the bat. Humphreys was one of the most prolific run scoring keepers in the league in the late nineties.

Indian Test batsman makes his mark
However, it was Indian Test batsman Mohammed Kaif who caught the eye for Lightcliffe scoring 1,139 runs for an astonishing average of 81.35, and in doing so won the League Batting Averages.
Kaif’s early international career was considered patchy, with the occasional outstanding performance backed up by ordinary batting. His most famous feat was helping India chase down 326 with 87* (off 75 balls) in the 2002 NatWest Series Final. The effort earned him his first Man of the Match award. In the series against Bangladesh in late 2004, he was named Man of the Series for his consistency in all the three ODI's.
Kaif earned himself a Test cap against South Africa when he was 20. Although dropped after some ordinary performances, he made a good comeback to the Test side against Australia late in 2004 scoring two half-centuries. He was a very fast runner between the wickets and an excellent cover fielder; most notably his agility and throwing accuracy. He also has the world record of five catches in a World Cup Match. His 13 Test matches have garnered 624 runs at 32.84.
Medium pacer Roger Stead finished second in the League Bowling Averages in 2000 with 41 wickets at 12.37. Again Pyrah was the pick of the batters with 574 runs.
In 2001 Lightcliffe won the Verity Section of the two-league second division after a virtuoso season from their overseas player M Nazir. He averaged 54.57 with the bat and took 67 wickets. In the higher division the following year his talents were diminished as his side was relegated.
In an era of increasing professionals in league cricket it was admirable that they kept knocking on the door of the First Division. Despite the success of their overseas player they relied on a sizeable nucleus of loyal local lads boosted by aspiring talent from the junior section. Two such players were Michael Brooke and Nick Pyrah who built the best opening stand in the league in 2001 with 220 runs.
A few lack lustre seasons in the Second Division followed with the star performer Jonathan Wilson who scored 709 runs in 2003, and would invariably reach 500 in a season. The best of the bowlers were L Smith who topped 50 wickets twice and Richard Tesseyman who took 54 wickets in 2003.

Re-election plea
Fortunes on the field were sinking fast and in 2006 Lightcliffe suffered the indignity of applying for re-election after finishing in the bottom two.
Lightcliffe may not have been splashing their cash on players but they made an expensive undertaking to secure land behind their pavilion for a car-park. A slip road opened in 2006 on Wakefield Road opposite the Sun public house. This leads to a rural retreat around the perimeter of the ground to a splendid grassy space for cars. This has increased their potential as a club.
In 2007 Rodney Heyhoe was awarded the Sir Leonard Hutton Trophy for services for cricket. Heyhoe as groundsman has the arduous task of ensuring that the ground is prepared for over 100 games a season. He first came to Lightcliffe Cricket Club, wearing short trousers, in the early 1950's to be coached by Major Wade, who organised junior cricket at the time. Heyhoe played first and second team cricket as an attacking batsman.
His duties have been league representative and club secretary apart from the prodigious amount of time and craft into the upkeep of the field, buildings and machinery. The quality of his work was known in wider circles and he had recognition with sundry national awards.
Thrills were few at Lightcliffe on the field – with Jonathan Wilson continuing to be the key batsman. In 2009 Richard Nichols, who scored 710 league runs, recorded the highest opening stand in the league that season with Umar Salim who helped him put on 185 runs. Nicholls also had the league’s largest individual score for 2009 with 157*.

The arrival of Chris Taylor
Former Yorkshire batsman Chris Taylor came to the club in 2010 and scored 1,436 club runs in his first season. This beat the club record of 1,323 set by Indian Test batsman Mohammed Kaif in 1999. Taylor’s 1,182 league runs at 78.80 secured for him the Second Division League Batting Averages, and also the distinction in reaching the 4-figure mark quicker than any other batsman in Bradford League history (14 innings). Despite Taylor’s efforts Lightcliffe finished third after looking good for promotion.
After ten seasons in the second division Lightcliffe, under the captaincy of Jonathan Wilson, gained promotion as champions in 2011.
The title win in 2011 was after a remarkable last-day dual with Saltaire who were on the same points at the top. Maximum points for Lightcliffe would deliver them the title no matter what Saltaire happened to so. As it happened Saltaire scored a massive score against Windhill to grab the maximum points in a canter. Lightcliffe struggled on a very slow wicket at Great Horton and appeared to be in a hopeless position to score 225 and clinch full batting points.
Ironically the tide was turned when they took a massive tally off a Suleman Khan over who had previously been miserly. Coincidentally he who would sign for Lightcliffe the following year. The rest is history as Great Horton capitulated with the bat.
Taylor retained the Second Division League Batting Averages with a remarkable average of 95.77 from 1,284 runs. He was joined by his brother-in-law Alex Stead, who returned to his home club, after eight seasons at Pudsey St. Lawrence and scored 672 runs to go with his 31 wickets. With the left-arm spin of Chris Greenwood and the all-round skills of Josh Wheatley who took 51 wickets, Lightcliffe were a formidable team in 2011.
For years Lightcliffe were regarded as the quintessential English club who put on fine teas and stuck to the fine tradition of all-amateur status. All this was changing as decent sponsorship was found to bring in players with county associations.
Yorkshire second teamer and first team prospect Alex Lees was brought to the club in 2012, to join the effervescent all rounder Charlie Roebuck.
Roebuck, a right handed batsman and right arm medium pacer, played one first-class match in 2010 for Yorkshire. This was against India A in June 2010, when he scored 23 runs in his only innings. His association with Yorkshire goes back to 2007, when he played for the Yorkshire Academy in the Yorkshire ECB Premier League, and the Yorkshire Second XI. He then moved to Kirkburton before signing for Lightcliffe. He later played for Durham Second XI.
Lees scored 677 runs at 37.61 for Lightcliffe in 2012 and quickly established himself at Yorkshire in 2013 as opening batsman. In 2014 he was named Young Cricketer of the Year after scoring 971 Championship runs at an average of 44.13.
Another notable signing was Bradford born pace bowler Moin Ashraf who started at Great Horton before entering the Yorkshire Academy to play Yorkshire League Cricket. A tall lad with a flowing action and run-up he played Championship cricket for Yorkshire, but particularly excelled in the shorter version of the game being part of Yorkshire’s bid for the Champions League Twenty/20. Depending on his county commitments he was available spasmodically, but he did play an influential role in the 2013 Priestley Cup run.

Back challenging at the top
If the intention was to nicely consolidate in 2012 they quite conveniently found they were embroiled in a last-day title clincher between Woodlands, East Bierley and themselves. At one stage of the day the league championship trophy was being driven on Huddersfield Road towards Lightcliffe. Woodlands were making a right mess of it against a weakened Bradford & Bingley side who were chasing a small score. With Matthew Duce at the crease and going well only 5 runs were required with 4 wickets in hand. Incredibly they didn’t score another run- Grant Soames taking the last wicket from a long-hop caught on the boundary edge.
Taking away the disappointment of missing out on what would have been their first title win of the top division, they had enjoyed a fine season. The much underrated Jonathan Wilson finished fourth in the league batting averages with 411 runs, while other run-getters were Lees (677) and Taylor (597). Great Horton overseas recruit Suleman Khan was the pick of the bowlers with 48 wickets.
If 2012 had a bittersweet ending 2013 fulfilled all Lightcliffe’s new ambitions in these renaissance years. New recruit Oliver Robinson proved to be a charismatic cricketer with bat and bowl, and his exploits earned him a Yorkshire contract. In the league, Lightcliffe never really challenged but they were comfortable competing with all the big noises in the league. Chris Taylor was not always available but when he was he recorded 500 runs at 50.
Other heavy scorers were Roebuck (657), Robinson (444), Stead (705), and Khan (444) who were also the premier bowler with 51 wickets. Amongst the array of ready-made stars an exciting young talent emerged in young left arm spin bowler Daanyaal Ahmed who impressed enough to win the league’s Young Spin Bowler of the Year Award.

Priestley Cup winners
But it was in the cup that they achieved greatness again when they brought it back up Wakefield Road for the first time in 49 years. Nobody could say that they did it the easy way having to negotiate Woodlands in the way they did. Chasing a score in excess of 200 they were effectively out for the count with ten overs to go until Robinson turned the game on its head with a brilliant innings.
The outcome of the 2013 Final at Farsley when they were paired with Hanging Heaton was based largely on the toss as overnight rain had seeped on to the square rendering it difficult for the first batting side. Hanging Heaton were asked to bat and danger batsman Gary Fellows was an early casualty as his side struggled against the pace of Ashraf who took 3-32 in his ten overs.
As the wicket dried out James Stansfield (88) gave the score some semblance of respectability at 189-9. But, Suleman Khan with 2-35 off his ten overs ensured they would not reach the 200-mark. Lightcliffe won at a canter with all their batters scoring solidly in a score of 197-3. Stead top-scored with 45, while Robinson made an entertaining unbeaten 41. Skipper Chris Taylor was magnanimous in victory as he took hold of the prized silverware.
In years to come the historians will refer to Lightcliffe circa 2010- 2013 as the `Chris Taylor years’. Not only did he score an enormous pile of runs, but he had used his contacts in cricket to recruit for the betterment of Lightcliffe Cricket Club.
His tenure of eight seasons at Yorkshire was a frustration in many aspects because of the lack of first-team playing time, although he saw plenty of action in the Second XI. Taylor initially broke through into the first team and made his debut in the County Championship winning season of 2001. His opportunities were limited, although he impressed in the first XI, most notably in 2004, but soon found himself back in the Second XI after he was replaced by Joe Sayers and Andrew Gale In November 2006,
Taylor signed for Derbyshire on a two-year contract, and, within a month of the start of the season, he had hit two centuries, one against Glamorgan and the other against his old club, Yorkshire, in a match winning innings at Headingley. He became the first Derbyshire cricketer in their history to score a century on his first-class and One-Day debuts for the club.
At the end of his first season at Derbyshire, Taylor had made five first class centuries, was named `one day’ player of the year, and finished second in the National `One Day’ averages. On 17 September 2007, he was re-signed by Yorkshire on a three-year contract. Taylor was hampered with a hamstring injury for most of his first season, but on his first appearance of the season he struck a six off the last ball to win the Twenty/20 match against Leicestershire.
Despite consistent performances in Yorkshire's Second XI, Taylor found no opportunity in the first team. At the end of the 2009 season, Taylor decided to call time on his career in a mutual decision with Yorkshire. He finished his career with five first-class centuries to his name, a County Championship winners medal, and scored twenty five Second XI hundreds. Taylor started the Pro Coach Cricket Academy with Andrew Gale and in 2011, set up the All Rounder Cricket Store, opposite the Headingley ground.

Faltering times
Lightcliffe were expected to build on their cup win and cement their place as one of the top clubs in the league in 2014. However, a series of early season departures actually put their top flight place in jeopardy. Charlie Roebuck moved to Kirkburton, followed almost immediately by Taylor’s announcement that he would concentrate on his business interests. All rounder Oliver Robinson’s Yorkshire duties negated his appearances, while the same could be said for Moin Ashraf.
An early damaging defeat at Woodlands suggested they would struggle, but Suleman Khan and Alex Stead jointly saved their season and buried any thoughts of relegation.
Khan scored 715 runs at 42.06 with a top score of 128, while Stead recaptured his career peak form with 766 runs at 42.56 with a top score of 152. Khan was also the most penetrating bowler with 40 wickets at 16.10. The varied exploits of Khan brought him the 2014 Sir Learie Constantine All Rounders Trophy.
It was much of the same in 2015 with a flirtation with relegation for much of the season. Taylor was expected to play more but incurred an early season injury which ended his campaign. Again the salvation came in the shape of Alex Stead (724 runs) and Suleman Khan, who scored 736 runs at 40.89 and also took 33 wickets. Khan retained the Sir Learie Constantine All Rounders Trophy and in doing so equalled Ian Austin’s feat of an earlier decade.
Lightcliffe surprised the pundits by reaching the Priestley Cup Final for the second time in three years after beating fancied teams Cleckheaton and Pudsey Congs on the way. The actual Final was a disappointing affair with Bradford & Bingley easily winning by 106 runs.
It was a difficult season in 2016 for Lightcliffe, with Chris Taylor announcing his retirement part way through. For a time they hovered precariously close to the relegation placings ending 22 points clear in 9th place. The best performer was Stead who anchored the batting more often than not with 792 runs at 49.50, while Khan’s usual consistency shone through as he scored 592 runs at 37.00, and also took 36 wickets.
It was a similar season in 2017 with seven wins and 11 losses taking them to 8th position. There were highs and lows, with the former being very much in evidence when they scored 355-5 against a Bradford & Bingley side that ran into a rampant Alex Lees. The left-hander, who was going through a rocky time with Yorkshire, broke the league’s highest individual score record by scoring an unbeaten 227 in 153 balls, which contained ten sixes and 21 fours. He had a total of four innings during the season averaging 128.33. In total contrast they capitulated in the league to Farsley by 229 runs and suffered the indignity of being bowled out for 27.
Alex Stead was again the rock of the batting with 549 league runs at 31.88, while the other substantive contribution came from Matthew Baxter who also topped 500-runs.
Lightcliffe U19’s enjoyed the accolade of being joint Yorkshire Under 19 T20 Yorkshire Champions for 2017.
Another accolade for the club came with the Tom Mathers Ground Award at the Bradford Premier League Dinner.
After losing their first three league matches in 2018, Lightcliffe went on a 5-match winning run which promised an impressive season. However, they struggled towards the end of the season and ended in ninth place.
Suleman Khan proved to be their talisman cricketer more often than not, contributing 551 runs, and also taking an impressive 46 wickets at 20.17. Stead again topped 500-runs.

East Ardsley Cricket Club

East Ardsley history

The East Ardsley team that won the Conference title in 2017

The early origins
The Village of East Ardsley was first recorded by the Domesday Book of 1086 as Erdeslau, and later in 1285 titled Ardeslawe.
East Ardsley once had a diverse economy, including agriculture, textiles, railways and coal-mining. Its coal mine closed in 1968 – the same year that the nearby Middleton closed.
Not a large village, the early cricket history of the club is not easily researched, but clearly in modern times they participated in the Central Yorkshire League after entry in 1949.
The forming of the Central Yorkshire League in 1938 came about through a perplexing trail of evolving leagues that included the early West Riding Central League. The Spen Valley League and the Heavy Woollen League contained clubs that would participate in the unwieldy Yorkshire Council, in an ever changing league landscape.

Limited success
East Ardsley had limited successes in the Central Yorkshire League, and their forays in the Heavy Woollen Cup were not noteworthy until 1949. That season they progressed to the semi-final after an impressive 4-wicket victory against Cleckheaton, before going out to the eventual winners Ossett.
It was ultimately a very successful season as W Bedford led East Ardsley to the 2nd Division title with W Hall carrying off the league batting averages.

Heavy Woollen Cup Final
Two years later in 1951 they defied all the odds by reaching the Heavy Woollen Cup Final. East Ardsley produced a major shock in the semi-final by comfortably defeating multi-winners Ossett who they dismissed for a paltry 45 runs. East Ardsley had batted first setting a suspended score of 157-9.
At Savile Town in the final the strong Hanging Heaton side defeated East Ardsley in commanding style watched by around 3,000 supporters. The Dewsbury Reporter referred to the ‘execution’ of East Ardsley and wondered how they had ever reached the final. The fact is that East Ardsley had accounted for some notable scalps en route to the final but had then met a team that on its day was undoubtedly the finest in the area at that level of competition.
In 1956 East Ardsley sprang another surprise in the quarter-final of the Heavy Woollen Cup by passing Batley’s score of 176 with four wickets in hand. Batley subsequently lodged a protest that East Ardsley had fielded an ineligible player but the objection was overruled. Dewsbury, the favourites, duly beat East Ardsley by 38 runs in the semi-final.
In league cricket, East Ardsley found it difficult to establish the club as a top flight outfit and relegation beckoned, before another 2nd Division title win occurred in 1964.
The catalyst for this triumph was G Farrar who won the league bowling averages taking 76 wickets at 10.13. This replicated his feat in 1960 when he took 58 wickets at 7.56.
In the 1975 Heavy Woollen Cup First Round East Ardsley dismissed Batley for 41 and went on to win by seven wickets. They then proceeded to create the shock of the 2nd round with a crushing victory over Almondbury. Set a modest target of 133, the Huddersfield League side was dismissed for 37. As in the previous round, Andrew Wood with 6-17 and Alan Weir with 4-17 were the East Ardsley heroes. The local papers made a great play afterwards that East Ardsley were all-amateur.
The quarter-finals were less dramatic with East Ardsley’s gallant cup run coming to a predictable end at the hands of the powerful Heckmondwike side who amassed 239-5, as East Ardsley were dismissed for 88.

Volatile existence
East Ardsley’s problems competing with the affluent clubs were magnified by their volatile existence between the top flight and Division Two in the eighties
Despite this, they enjoyed the silverware earned by winning the 2nd Division titles in 1982 and 1986, under the respective captains of B Newboult and M Pearson.
In 1987 an individual honour came to the club in the shape of the Tom Senior Wicketkeeping Cup that Paul Pearson duly won.
By 1997 East Ardsley were in a rut in the second division recording seven wins and thirteen losses. The best performer was undoubtedly Simon Sterling who took 60 wickets at 16.63, and also scored 554 runs at 30.78.

Simon Stirling

Stirling, above, was an explosive cricketer in his pomp able to dictate games with bat and ball. He was quite a swift opening bowler capable of taking the early key wickets. With the bat he took on the bowlers with his special brand of power strokeplay.
Stirling was a native of New Zealand who played forty games for Manawatu. He settled in the UK starring for Rawdon, East Ardsley and Wakefield St Michael's, and latterly for Carlton. The next best East Ardsley performer in 1997 was Michael Pearson who took 45 wickets at 19.67.
Like most senior leagues, the Central Yorkshire League created a Premier league, with the second sphere renamed the 1st Division.

Back in the top flight
In 2003, East Ardsley won the Division One title to break into Premier League the following season. Indian left-hander Manoj Joglekar was a major influence with the bat.
In the title clinching match in late August, East Ardsley beat Liversedge by a resounding 117 runs. Paul Court took 3-15 as Liversedge fell for 61 replying to East Ardsley's 178, which included 61 from Geoff Hunt.
East Ardsley made history in 2003 when they entertained Aston Hall in their first ever Yorkshire Council play-off match, duly winning the match by 41 runs.
Shane Lee, whose league form was good that year, compiled a century, hitting 102 before being run out. He found a willing ally in Geoff Hunt who scored 51 out of a commanding third-wicket stand of 116, allowing their team to reach 208-6 by the end of their allotted 45 overs.
The East Ardsley bowling proved good enough in defending the score as Aston Hall were dismissed for 167 with Paul Court taking 4-35, and Mark Heald 4-82, Michael Pearson 1-20 and Glen Larson 1-14.
East Ardsley consolidated into the Premier league in 2004 with David Battye taking 65 wickets, and Joglekar scoring 774 runs. The Premier League era lasted a further two seasons until 2006 when they were relegated.

David Battye’s remarkable consistency

Up to April 2004, Battye, then aged 49, had played in 869 league and cup games for seven Central Yorkshire League clubs and had taken an astonishing 1,629 wickets, in 34 seasons.
Battye, who took his 1,000th wicket playing for East Ardsley against Ossett in 2004, moved to the club after helping Wrenthorpe, for whom he claimed 416 wickets in eight seasons, win their first championship in 2003.
Battye began in Batley's junior team in 1970, making his senior debut two years later, and played for Gomersal, Chickenley, Morley, Birstall, Wrenthorpe and Wakefield St Michaels before joining East Ardsley.
The club retained their Premier league status for two more seasons before returning to Division One in 2007. They were not content to languish for ling in the lower division and in 2008 they finished in runner-up opposition and in doing so secured Premier league cricket for 2009.
East Ardsley was always in contention for promotion and by June 2008 had given notice of their intentions with an emphatic victory against Moorlands. Tom Marsden (107 no) and Mujahid Hameed (65 runs) shared a 125-run stand as East Ardsley posted 251-4 and Christian Musgrave then snapped up 6-36 as Moorlands were bowled out for 159 in reply.
In the defining game East Ardsley travelled the short distance to Carlton knowing that four points would be enough to secure promotion in second place. After winning the toss and inviting Carlton to take first knock, it took 22 overs for Ardsley to get the breakthrough, but through disciplined bowling the reliable Mark Heald struck.

Duncan Arnolda
Wickets then fell at regular intervals as Heald, Chester and Sri Lankan Duncan Arnolda all took three wickets. Carlton was eventually all out for 110, and they then proceeded to knock the runs off without much difficulty as Arnolda (46 not out) and Hameed (57 not out) strolled home. The six points assured the club of second place.
Arnolda, a right arm fast medium bowler, and right handed batsman, had had a fine First Class career in Sri Lanka with a career best of 129* with the bat, and a best analysis of 5-64.
East Ardsley also reached the Yorkshire Council Supplementary final, where they came up short against a strong Rotherham Phoenix side, from the South Yorkshire League.
Ardsley managed to bowl them out in the 44th over for 201 after Phoenix elected to bat first in the final played at Birstall CC. But despite good performances with the ball from Tom Chester, Mark Heald and Hameed, the batting was a let down and they lost by over a hundred runs.
Back in the Premier League in 2009 they were unable to sustain the challenge and were promptly relegated.
However, the season was not without its highlights- the first maximum point victory came when they beat Wakefield Thornes. East Ardsley bowled them out for 108 with Tom Chester taking 4-19 and West Indian paceman Wilden Cornwall having figures of 3-45. Hameed scored 42 as Ardsley coasted to a six wicket win.
Another convincing win was against Mirfield Parish Cavaliers when Hameed (103 runs) and Marsden (71 runs) chased the runs down in a 8-wicket triumph with Cornwall taking five wickets.
Cornwall, a genuine all rounder, was a First Class cricketer in the West Indies, recording a top score of 111, and achieving a best analysis of 6-53. He also excelled in List A matches with both bat and ball.
The last regular East Ardsley line-up in the Premier League consisted of: Tom Marsden, Mujahid Hameed, Danny McTiernan, Wilden Cornwall, Bilal Ejaz, Ashley Pearson, Dace Chester, Gary Jennings, Christian Musgrave, Spencer Horsfall, Julian Smith, Tom Chester.
In 2010, Mujahid Hameed dominated Div.1 cricket winning the League All Rounders Trophy, and also the two league batting awards with an aggregate of 862 runs at 47.83. With the ball he took 31 wickets.
The team, led by Mark Heald who was the chief wicket-taker with 47 at 13.13, never really threatened a promotion challenge suffering eleven league defeats despite the efforts of Hameed.
Fortunes fell even further with just five league wins in each of the following two seasons. Heald was by far the best bowler with tallies of 32 and 31 wickets, while only Andrew Langley and Geoff Hunt showed any semblance of real form with the bat.

Ashley Pearson , above, led the team in a far better campaign in 2013 with Queensland batsman Matthew Dolan excelling with the bat scoring 785 runs at 52.33. David Battye, who took 41 wickets, appeared to have a new leash of life at 58, with his accurate `little seamers’.
In the next two seasons Battye’s star shone even brighter as he won the League Bowling Averages both seasons. In 2014 he took 39 wickets at 10.08 with an economy rate of 2.23 runs per over, and in the following season took 51 wickets at 7-41 with a best analysis of 8-29.
Although 2014 was a disappointing season from a team point of view, the following year saw a rise to third position in the Division One Championship. The best batsman for 2015 was Ashley Pearson who scored 400 runs at 30.77.

Into the Bradford Conference League
Events took a rapid turn during the 2015 season with news that the Central Yorkshire League clubs would be absorbed into the new Bradford Premier League structure for 2016, with East Ardsley taking their place in the Conference.
The Club made a bright start to the Conference League season and remained on the edges of the title race throughout the season. When it was decided that two teams would be promoted into the Championship for 2017 there must have been a little frustration at the club that they finished just ten points behind second place.
The batting was solid with Luke Sandy (386 runs), Ashley Pearson (338 runs) and Tom Daniels (334 runs) the mainstays, with Adam Pearson carrying the main threat with the ball, taking 42 wickets at 15.64.

Promotion to the Championship
East Ardsley’s better strength in depth in 2017 ensured they would not miss out on promotion this time. They surged in front from the start winning their first seven matches before surprisingly losing to Adwalton. Towards the end of the season Wakefield St Michael’s deposed them as league leaders and it all hinged on the last match between the two as to who would finish as Champions.

St Michael’s batted first and scored 172-7, and East Ardsley was in all sorts of trouble after a wretched start to their innings which saw them at 7-3. Overseas batsman Haseen Bashir, above, pulled them out of trouble with an unbeaten 83, and with Ashley Pearson (36 runs) inched their way to a three-wicket victory. Bashir’s influence on the title success was immense- he won the League’s Batting Averages with 659 runs at 65.90.
Richard Vigars, a shrewd mid-season signing from Brook Walton added stability to the batting with 410 runs at 31.54, while Ashley Pearson played a key all-round role scoring 322 runs at 32.20, and taking 38 wickets. Battye was the lynch pin of the bowling claiming 49 wickets at 9.76 with an economy rate of 2.14 per over. Off spinner Mark Heald, below, took 31 wickets at 14.52.

After a promising start to the 2018 league campaign, East Ardsley’s form was erratic, and although competitive throughout, was at one stage close to the bottom two.
They were involved in some memorable matches- the best being their tied match with Altofts. Chasing 253-4 they were struggling on 7-2, and then 28-3, but as long as Bashir remained at the crease they still had a chance. The tail started wagging and as they edged closer, Bashir was out for 96, and they were ultimately bowled out for 253 with just two balls remaining.
Bashir (468 runs) was again the leading batsman in the league, and likewise Battye was the best bowler with 34 wickets.
The National Village Cup was a nice distraction for East Ardsley as they beat Streethouse and Welton, to reach the National stage where they beat Addingham.
In the last 16 they met Falkland CC from Scotland, and were defeated by 75 runs.Falkland won the toss and chose to bat first, and they finished on 215 for 6. East Ardsley failed to threaten Falkland’s total, much of that down to the disciplined bowling of the Scots.

Spen Victoria Cricket Club

Spen Victoria history

Spen Victoria celebrate their stunning 1990 Priestley Cup final win

The early days
The club was formed in 1862 and was originally associated with the Cleckheaton Wesleyan Chapel whose home ground was at Whitcliffe Road. All of the members of that inaugural team had to attend chapel regularly to play and this meant they often struggled to field a side.Although 1862 is often cited as a ‘birth date’, the club was formally established in 1865, by six men: George Wright, George Hardwick, Sam Haley, Alfred Starkey, James Strafford and Robert Corry.

In 1865 the club moved to its current home at Spen Lane in Gomersal and they decided to call themselves Cleckheaton Victoria. In the following year they engaged their first professional, Mr B Doughty. The ground was purchased in 1902 and the club decided to build the existing pavilion and clubroom. It was officially opened in 1909.
Spen’s ground with its high banking has an auditorium feel to it with grandstand views facing excellent facilities. In modern times it’s enjoyed the hosting of many prestige finals- Heavy Woollen Cup, Black Sheep Yorkshire Champions and latterly the Priestley Cup Final.
Spen in their formative years played in the Yorkshire Council and won the Heavy Woollen championship three times, in 1914, 1927 and 1930. They also won the Sunlight Cup – now the Heavy Woollen Cup – in 1896 but were defeated in the finals of 1887, 1895, 1889, 1905, 1914 and 1920.
In 1887 Spen scored 472 in a 2nd Round Heavy Woollen Cup match against Dewsbury Clerks. This remains the second highest-ever score in the competition. In the final they lost to Dewsbury & Savile by a record runs margin for a final of 271 runs.
The 1895 final which Spen lost to Batley by 12 runs remains the lowest aggregate score (100) for two completed innings in a final.

Into the Bradford League
It was in 1931 that Spen joined the Bradford League and they finished runners up in their first season. Spen’s AC Rhodes topped the Bradford League batting averages with 46.88.
After a disappointing second season they very nearly won the ultimate prize in 1933 when they lost the league title play-off by 16 runs to Bradford Park Avenue.
The 1933 side was built around W Halstead who averaged 66.66 with the bat, and C Harrison who took 40 wickets at 11.90.

A more famous name in the side was Yorkshire and England batsman Wilf Barber, above, who played for his county from 1926 to 1947. He also played two tests for England in 1935 against South Africa. An opening batsman with an excellent batting technique, Barber often batted in the middle order. He scored 16,402 runs in first-class cricket at an average of 34.28 with 29 centuries.
During 1934/35 Spen were half way down the table but possessed a quality bowler in G Mellor who took 9-40 in a match against Farsley in 1935.
The club recorded its first Priestley Cup triumph, despite its lowly league position, when Harold Mortimer led them to a 32-run win over Lightcliffe in 1936. Spen batted first and scored 152-6 which proved sufficient for victory.
Spen improved their league position in 1937 with third place when Mortimer proved himself to be one of the leading batters in the league with an average of 45.44.
First test player at Spen

The first Test player at Spen was Edwin St Hill, above, a fast bowler who appeared during 1937-1939. The Trinidad fast bowler was a prolific wicket-taker in the first class competition in the West Indies and made two Test appearances.
In 1939 Spen reached the Priestley Cup Final for the second time in three years, but succumbed to Eccleshill who chased 197 in a canter winning by nine wickets.
Spen had the distinction of providing the season’s highest individual score in the league twice in the space of four years:
1937 Fred Wharton 133 v East Bierley
1941 Miles Coope 149* v Undercliffe

County bowling attack

Despite the determined efforts of the consistent Clifford Sykes, Spen were relegated to Section B in 1942. Rather than being a disaster it proved to be the springboard to the club’s finest hour. Armed with probably the strongest bowling attack in their history spearheaded by Derbyshire and England paceman George Pope and Yorkshire left arm spinner Arthur Booth, they romped to the Division B crown. Booth took 78 wickets and Pope (71).
Pope was a right hand batsman and played 312 innings in 205 first class matches, with an average of 28.05. He made eight centuries, with a top score of 207 not out. He was a right-arm fast-medium bowler, and took 677 first class wickets at average of 19.92, and a best performance of 8 for 38, amongst his 40 five-wicket hauls. Pope was Derbyshire's leading all-rounder in both 1938 and 1939, achieving the all-rounder double of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets in 1938. He played in one Testt match for England.
After Hedley Verity was killed during the war, Yorkshire lacked a slow left-arm bowler when cricket resumed and Booth was recalled. He played in two first-class matches in 1945 and then became a first-team regular in 1946, the first full post-war season, at the age of 43. Yorkshire won the County Championship that year and, in all matches, Booth took 111 wickets at an average of 11.61. He received his county cap and was top of the season's national bowling averages.
Back in the top flight, Spen then enjoyed their greatest ever season in 1944 and achieved a feat only a handful clubs had done previously. They won the Division A and Priestley Cup double as Booth and Pope again weaved their magic for a side which was shrewdly led by Sykes and included the talented batsman Arnold Hamer who scored 605 runs. Pope grabbed 67 wickets supported by Booth who took 61. Pope was the star of the Priestley Cup final. He top scored with 76 and took six for 36 as they defeated Yeadon by 72 runs.
After the war Spen experienced leaner times. They were relegated in 1949 and their plight worsened further when they had to seek re-election in 1953.
This was despite having one of the most consistent batsmen in the league in G Brown who topped 500 runs twice and became one of the mainstays of the team throughout the decade. A L Taylor had an exceptional season in 1952 scoring 628 runs.

They also possessed two excellent bowlers in Harry Hoyle, above, who took 30 wickets in 1952 for a cost of 12.33, and spinner Ernest Lodge who took 45 wickets in 1951 for an average of 12.27.
Hoyle was an effective off break bowler, and a very handy middle order batsman. After retirement he would do virtually every job open to him at Spen.

Percy Watson makes immediate impression

Seam bowler Percy Watson, above, joined the club in 1954 from Salts, after being recommended by Pope. He made an immediate impression taking 84 wickets at 12.13 and helping his side to third in the league. The next year they remained in third place when Watson had an even better season taking 91 wickets at 10.86. The 1954 team is pictured below.

Another top performer of the 1955 team was E Fisk who showed what a good all round player he was scoring 462 runs and taking 38 wickets.
Ironically, Watson was less effective in the 1956 promotion team taking 49 wickets, with J A Carter assisting him with 35 wickets. Carter went on to be a regular 30-plus wicket man right up to 1963 when he had his best season with 48 wickets.
Another achievement in 1956 came when they reached the Priestley Cup final after a terrific run in the competition. Pudsey St Lawrence scored a modest 152 mainly because of an inspired Watson who took a hat-trick. Spen’s batting pulled up short on the day finishing on 131.
Spen became something of a yo-yo team as relegation followed promotion and again in the years 1957 to 1961.
The key players were S Platt, W Brown, E Fisk, J A Carter and of course Percy Watson who took wickets in profusion no matter which division he was in:

1957 66 wickets at 13.09 Division 1
1958 46 wickets at 11.86 Division 2
1959 81 wickets at 11.71 Division 2 Won League Bowling Averages
1960 69 wickets at 12.71 Division 2
1961 46 wickets at 14.20 Division 1

Watson was deadly accurate and bowled big in swingers at leg stump with three short legs waiting to pounce for the catch. He always preferred to come down the hill from the Spen scorebox end for maximum effectiveness.
In 1962 Spen suffered the indignity of having to apply for re-election for the second time in 11 years. This was despite the efforts of Watson who recorded the best ever Bradford League bowling figures in history of ten for 11 against Yeadon. He ended the season with 70 wickets at 14.13.

Arnold Hamer sparks revival
Things improved in 1963 when Arnold Hamer was lured back to the club and he consequently won the League Batting Averages. He was in peak form that year scoring 909 runs at 69.92 with a top score of 147*.
Hamer, a right-handed opening batsman for Derbyshire, made 15,465 runs at 31.17 in 295 first-class matches. He had a highest score of 227, and made 19 centuries. He scored 1,000 runs in 10 consecutive seasons. He was also an off-break bowler, and took 71 first class wickets at an average of 33.28. He retired from First Class cricket in 1960.
An outstanding cricketer at Spen in 1964 was the little known R Thompson who scored 394 runs at 30.31 and also won the League Fielding Trophy.
Watson continued to take wickets prolifically with sixty in 1964, fifty-seven in 1965 and sixty-two in 1966. In the latter season he was joined at Spen by John Woodford, who was destined to be the club’s most influential player in the next three seasons.
In 1967, the soon to be Yorkshire batsman John Woodford had a fine season at Spen scoring 580 runs at 36.25. The following season he won the Bradford League Batting Averages with 612 runs at 61.20, and in 1968 scored 589 runs at 53.54 with a top score of 99*.
Woodford played for Yorkshire from 1968 to 1973 and appeared subsequently for Northumberland in the Minor Counties Championship. He was a right-handed batsman, who scored 1,204 first-class runs in thirty eight matches with a highest score of 101, his only century. In seventy four one-day games he compiled 951 runs at an average of 21.61, with a best score of 69 not out. Although he only took four first-class wickets, he was more successful in the limited over format, snaring 79 victims with his medium pacers at 21.01.
Woodford’s magnificent season of 1968 helped Spen return to the top flight as Division Two champions. All rounder Peter Rix was equally instrumental in this triumph performing well enough to win the Sir Learie Constantine All-rounder Award after scoring 573 runs at 40.93 and taking 35 wickets.
There was no steady consolidation in the First Division in 1969, team pictured below, when Spen surprisingly challenged for the title missing out to Bingley in second place three points behind. An individual award was won that season when Geoff Hodgson took the League Wicket Keepers Trophy.
Spen’s cup run took them to the Priestley Cup Final when they capitulated to their title rivals Bingley by nine wickets after being bowled out for 109.

The lack lustre seventies
The seventies were a lack lustre decade at Spen with solid performers A Tickle, J Crowhurst, D Beaumont, D Hirst, A Baxter and A Simpson keeping them afloat until relegation in 1977.
Tickle in particular was a consistent performer topping 500 runs in three consecutive seasons with 766 his best in 1973. Crowhurst had his most prolific season in 1978 with 742 runs.
There was another Division Two title triumph in 1979 after. Spen had assembled a workmanlike side that played together in unison. They proved be good enough to pip their top five rivals who were all separated by a mere five points. The best performers were J Brogden (490 runs), C O’Rourke (473 runs), R D Clark (460), J Fordham (520) and R Emsley (49 wickets).
Lancastrian Chris O’Rourke was a classy wicket-keeper/batsman who made one First Class appearance for Warwickshire in 1968.
The 1980s were hectic times at Spen with relegation in 1982, 1985 and 1988, and promotions in 1983, 1987 and 1989. In 1990.

Iqbal Qasim disappoints
In 1980 Pakistan Test cricketer Iqbal Qasim was Spen’s overseas player. He disappointed the faithful by just scoring 343 runs, and not managing to make the league averages with the ball. This was odd as Qasim was top class enough to end his career with 171 wickets in his 50 Test matches, at approximately 3.5 wickets a match.
Qasim’s accurate bowling at test level saw his economy rate at a low 2.21. He pushed the ball through quicker than normal, not extracting great turn, but deceiving batsmen through variations in pace and trajectory. He is most notable for spinning Pakistan to victory in the 5th Test at Bangalore of the 1987 India-Pakistan series, and thus securing Pakistan's first series win on Indian soil. He took 9/121, including the key scalp of Sunil Gavaskar for 96 in the last innings of the game.
Another overseas player who failed to impress was 21 year old Lalchand Rajput who scored 382 runs in the 1982 relegation season. Rajput had a distinguished career as an opening batsman for Bombay, and at one time was considered one of the best openers in India after Sunil Gavaskar. However, he did not translate his promise and success at the domestic level to the international arena where he played in two test matches.
In contrast the little known G Cardall had a vintage season in 1981 scoring 828 runs.Another Indian overseas player with a limited performance was Jimmy Sangani who scored 392 runs in the 1983 promotion season. Shaheed Butt was another Indian recruit who had mixed results at Spen.
Local players of note were N Davies, D Weston, I Phillips, J Heaton and R Ford who all topped 500 runs at least once in a season.

John Burton was reliable with bat and ball enjoying his best all round season in 1982 when he scored in excess of 400 runs and also took 32 wickets. Another good all round performer was Andy Baxter, above, who made 437 runs, and took 54 wickets in 1987.
The pick of the local bowlers was G Binks who had wicket hauls of 54, 49 and 44 in consecutive seasons from 1983.
Indian Abdul Jabbar was signed for the 1986 season and he was a great success. Not only did he win the League Batting Averages for Division Two with 923 runs at 61.53, but he also finished second in the bowling with 50 wickets at 10.94. His Learie Constantine All Rounders Award was something of a formality given this record. Despite this effort Spen only climbed to half-way in the table.
Curiously when Spen won the Division Two title in 1987 Jabbar’s performance wilted with just 326 runs at 32.60. Jabbar’s First Class career reaped 4,270 runs at 40.66. He was used as an occasional bowler, with a career best of 4-63.
The new overseas player for 1988 was Mansoor Akthar had had played for Pakistan at Test level before joining the club. He played in 19 Tests and 41 ODIs from 1980 to 1990, partnering Waheed Mirza in a world-record opening stand of 561 in 1977. The partnership is still the best for the first wicket in first class cricket. He scored one test century and three half-centuries, with a highest score of 111 against Australia in Faisalabad.
Akhtar made a great impression at Spen in 1988 scoring 965 runs for an average of 50.79, and became a draw for the neutrals with his classy batsmanship. Despite this he could not prevent relegation in a season when Chris Pickles first made an impression at Spen with 440 runs.
Promotion was achieved at the first time of asking in 1989 with Indian Tosh Arothe scoring 622 runs. The highest run-getter was Simon Horkin (637 runs) who had a fine sheet anchor reputation.

Solly Adam leads team to glory

Glory was back at Spen Lane in 1990 under the leadership of left arm spin bowler Solly Adam, above,. It was a talented side which included three players who were to go on to play first class cricket, John Wood (Durham and Lancashire), Tim Walton (Northants and Essex), Mike Smith (Gloucester and England), and Indian Tosh Arothe.

Finishing third in the league, Steve Foster (879 runs), Andy Bethel (764 runs) and Arothe (619 runs) were the main run-getters, while Adam (49 wkts) and Wood (32 wkts) took the lion’s share of the wickets.
But, it was in the Priestley Cup where the silverware was won, when inspired by the fast bowling of John Wood, Spen crushed Pudsey St Lawrence to lift the Priestley Cup.
The 1990 Priestley Cup Final was eagerly anticipated by the neutral who flocked to Wagon Lane to see Spen do battle with a very good Pudsey St Lawrence side. Instead, it turned out to be a comprehensive defeat for St Lawrence who never looked like overhauling Spen’s handy 231-7.

However, the neutrals could marvel at a wonderful fast bowling display from Spen’s John Wood, above, who destroyed the batting with a haul of 7-20. It was a controlled and very hostile spell of fast bowling that indicated a county career in the future.
Mike Smith became an effective swing bowler for Gloucestershire and played a single Test for England Headingley in 1997 against Australia. Graham Thorpe dropped Matthew Elliott at first slip while on 29, for what would have been Smith's first (and only) Test wicket. Elliott went on to make 199 and Australia won comfortably by an innings. He never played for England again, but remained one of the most consistent swing bowlers on the county circuit until his retirement in 2003.

Formidable opening batsmen

Steve Foster, above, formed a superb opening batsman partnership with Andy Bethel who would go on to untold glories with Pudsey Congs. Foster achieved virtually every team and individual honour open to him at Gomersal, Hanging Heaton and Treeton, while left hander Bethel was the archetypal sheet anchor batsman who gave his side good starts and was capable of large innings.
Spen’s wicket keeper Gary Brook had claims along with Undercliffe’s Chris Burns to be the league’s finest behind the stumps, and later enjoyed a fine career during Pudsey Congs halcyon days. In 1990 he won the F Milton Watmough Wicket-Keeper Trophy while at Spen.
For the next two years in 1991 and 1992 Spen were a top.four side with another overseas player who produced the goods. Vinod Kambli, a fledgling left hander who had set a world record opening stand with Sachin Tendulkar in Bombay schools cricket, lit up Spen Lane in 1991 and made his Test debut against England the following winter hitting a double century in his third Test. He finished with a fine Test record of 17 caps producing a high batting average of 54.20.
Kambli scored 943 runs at 58.94 in 1991 at Spen, and he followed this with 683 runs at 48.79 with a top score of 123 in 1992.
Bethel continued his form with the bat topping 500 runs in both years. He had further run aggregates of 514, 712, 761 and 851 before leaving for Pudsey Congs. Twice he figured in the league’s highest opening partnership for Spen with 221 runs in 1994 with Chris Pickles, and 277 runs in 1998 with Wasim Jaffer.

The Chris Pickles years

Despite the profusion of oversees class at Spen one man – opening batsman Chris Pickles, above, – dominated the 90s. The former Yorkshire all-rounder was a prodigious run scorer and topped 1,000 in three consecutive seasons from 1994-96. Used mainly as a bowler for Yorkshire, Pickles tore into the league batting from the first ball and was a big attraction. His 176 v Pudsey St Lawrence in 1995 was not only the league’s highest for that year, but it epitomised his power when he was on top of his game.
Few batters in the league had a 4-year sequence comparable with the one Pickles had at Spen:
1993   901 runs at 40.95 HS 134 42 wickets
1994 1155 runs at 57.75 HS 143
1995 1313 runs at 59.68 HS 176
1996 1023 runs at 46.50 HS 141
The next big overseas signing came in 1994 when Indian leg break bowler and left handed batsman Seraj Bahutoule delivered the goods in fine style. He scored 800 runs at 57.14 and also took 47 wickets. His performances in the Indian First Class game propelled him into the Test team where his two appearances met with mixed results.
A very young Rohan Gavaskar also played at Spen. Unlike his father he never played in a Test match, but was considered good enough to have played in eleven one-day internationals. He played first-class cricket for Bengal, scoring 5,073 runs in 75 matches at 51.24.
There was an array of good seamers at Spen in the mid to late nineties- Andy Yates, Andy Cutts and David Jones a capture from the Yorkshire League who took 63 wickets in 1995.
The most consistent batsman apart from Bethel and Pickles was former Sheffield Collegiate player Ed McKenna who scored 742 runs in 1996.

Heavy Woollen Cup win

The club had waited a while for trophy success and it came in 1996 when they won the Heavy Woollen Cup. Spen piled up 242-7 at Liversedge against a very good Windhill outfit who replied with 147. Windhill would win the trophy the following year, but in 1998 Spen prevailed again with a convincing 144-run win against Hanging Heaton. Chris Elstub, above, came of age in the final destroying Hanging Heaton’s batting with an analysis of 5-40. In the Spen innings Jaffer scored a magnificent century.

Wasim Jaffer impresses
When Wasim Jaffer scored 586 runs in 1998 three of his team mates actually scored more- Bethel (851), Ed McKenna (617) and Tosh Baker (588).
Following a prolific school career, including an innings of 400 not out as a 15-year-old, Jaffer made his entry into the first-class cricket and scored a triple-century in his second match. This innings of 314 not out helped set a series of firsts for Mumbai. It was the first occasion that a batsman had made a triple century for Mumbai away from home and, in putting on 459 runs with his opening partner Sulakshan Kulkarni; the pair became the first from Mumbai to pass 400.
Jaffer in total scored 13,735 First Class runs and played in 31 Test matches with a top score of 212 in an average of 34.10. He played many of his later years in the Huddersfield League.

Record breaker Grant Lambert

After relegation in 1999, Spen returned to the top flight at the first attempt as runners-up to Undercliffe in 2000. That promotion owed much to one man, Australian all-rounder Grant Lambert, above, who had scored 828 runs and taken 38 wickets in the relegation season. He was so disappointed at seeing the club relegated during his first season that he set about restoring their top flight status in stunning style.
Lambert literally ripped up the Bradford League record book in the 2000 season. He set a new league scoring record of 1,683 runs, beating the previous best by over 200 runs, hitting a record seven centuries, and made the highest score of 170 against Manningham Mills. Lambert finished the season with an incredible average of 120.21 to easily top the league batting averages. For good measure he topped the bowling averages too with 31 wickets at 7.77 each. His award of the Jack Hill All Rounders Trophy was a formality.
Lambert was engaged for a third season in 2001 and despite having to return set off for home in August to take up a contract with New South Wales. He scored 688 runs and took 38 wickets to help Steve Bethel’s side re-establish themselves in the top flight.

Lambert had a mediocre First Class career with New South Wales taking part in 25 matches. However, in 2007 he broke a 63 year old record for the most runs in a Sydney Grade Cricket season. Playing for Fairfield-Liverpool against Northern Districts at Rosedale Oval, Lambert scored 94 to take his season total to 1458 runs. This moved him 45 runs ahead of Bill Alley's record of 1413 runs set in the 1943/44 season. Lambert reached the mark in 20 innings, which included six centuries and five 50s, at an average of 104.14.
The 2002 season saw the club engage Pakistani fast bowler Rao Anjum as their overseas star. He topped their batting (421 runs) and bowling (59 wkts) averages in a season when Spen’s young side finished ninth after an inconsistent campaign.
Anjum starred with the bat in 2003 with 759 runs at 39.95 as Spen surprised everybody and finished second behind Pudsey Congs. The best all round performance came from left-arm spinner Gareth Davies who took 45 wickets and also contributed 449 runs with the bat.
Anjum was included in the Pakistani team for the one-day series against India and made his Paktel Cup debut seven months later. He was also included in the Pakistani squad to the 2007 World Cup. He played three games, and took 5 wickets, but despite a decent haul, his inability to bowl at the death stood out. He was signed by Surrey as their overseas player for the first part of the 2010 English season.
Spen were a very competitive outfit and they proved it by their Heavy Woollen Cup runs. They reached the final twice in successive years but were defeated.
2003 Spen Victoria 145-9 Mirfield 148-3 at Liversedge
2004 Woodlands 233-8 Spen Victoria 197-9 at Liversedge

Yorkshire contracted opening bowlers
In 2004 the Yorkshire contracted pair Chris Elstub and Tosh Baker really began to make their mark. Elstub took 43 wickets and scored 515 runs, while Baker scored 455 runs.
John Wood, who had enjoyed a county career with Lancashire and Durham, had a solid all round season scoring 503 runs in aggressive style, and also plundered 32 wickets.
In 2005 disaster struck at Spen after losing many of their experienced side they were relegated after winning only two matches. The big marquee signings were a thing of the past as they cut their cloth accordingly relying on home products. The best two were opening bowlers Elstub and Baker who they had previously blooded together in the late nineties.
However, the over reliance on these two fine cricketers came home to roost. Elstub contributed 474 runs in 2006, and also took 55 wickets which allowed him to win the League Bowling Averages for this section. He was almost as prolific the following year but could not prevent his side having to apply for re-election. This calamity would have seemed implausible a decade earlier.
Elstub played six matches for Yorkshire between 2000 and 2002, primarily as a right arm medium pacer. He took nine wickets at 39.55 with a best of 3 for 37. In ten one-day matches for Yorkshire and the Leeds/Bradfprd UCCE he took 12 wickets at 24.16, with 4 for 25 his best performance.
Elstub moved to East Bierley and retired early with injury problems. Baker, who had returned to the club after spells at Wrenthorpe and Woodlands, carried the fight for Spen but mainly with the bat as he conceded his bowling days were over. Impressive hauls of 730 and 724 during 2009 and 2010 were insufficient to drag his team into the promotion race.

Baker, above, had truncated First Class careers for both Yorkshire and Northants during the period between 2001 and 2005. Played mainly as a right arm fast-medium bowler he played many times for Yorkshire Seconds without breaking into the county side. He did however play four List A matches for Yorkshire in 2001, three in the Benson & Hedges Cup and one in the National League. His solitary appearance was for Northants was against Leicester at Grace Road in 2005. He took the wicket of Darren Robinson caught and bowled for 139, at a match cost of 55 runs.
During these lean times in Spen’s history they could still attract good overseas players and 2008 Naem Ud Din Qazi recorded 818 league runs.
In 2010 Will Smith had a fine season taking 37 wickets and also scoring 412 runs.
Two excellent All Rounders made their mark at Spen in 2012. Former East Bierley player Robert Burton scored 658 runs and took 45 wickets, after taking 50 in the previous year, and spinner Ben Platt took 41 wickets and scored 631 runs.
From a status of mediocrity Spen eventually assembled a team that would genuinely challenge for promotion under Dan Shuffe in 2013. Most pundits disregarded them but suddenly they overtook the second-placed side New Farnley and built a lead of 29 points at an advanced juncture of the season. A late collapse of form by Spen rendered their promotion push a failure, but it had been something of a renaissance season.

Experienced seamer Robert Burton, above, was the catalyst for this challenge winning the League bowling averages with a tally of 80 wickets at 9.34. Shuffe proved to be the mainstay of the batting with 716 runs, while left arm spinner and aggressive middle order batsman Ben Platt provided the balance for the team with 48 wickets.

Struggling times
After losing Matthew West, Shuffe and Platt for the 2014 season Spen struggled all the way. Only Roberts Burton’s efforts saved them from re-election as they avoided the indignity by the small margin of seven points. He took 49 wickets at 14.04, with a top performance of 8-35. He also contributed 372 runs in middle-order.
Experienced Peter Jackson, who was set to play second team cricket, proved to be the best batsman with 416 runs, while Abid Awan took a healthy 46 wickets at 14.96.
Fortunes improved in 2015 with a respectable mid-table sixth place after ten wins and nine losses. The dominating factor in this revival was the exploits of new signing Adal Islam whose all round ability proved crucial. Islam’s medium pace contributed 44 wickets at 14.14 with a best analysis of 7-21. He also piled up 648 runs with the bat. The next most productive cricketer at Spen was Bilal Ejaz who scored 515 runs at 39.62.
A loss of players for 2016 saw Spen struggle down in 10th place in Championship B with just six league wins, the highlight being a victory against high-flying Wrenthorpe. Oliver Davison was the only batsman to top 500-runs, while Rob Warriner was the outstanding bowler with 35 wickets at 23.20.
Further reliance on young players saw them struggle even worse in 2017 when they finished bottom of Championship Two. They won only five league matches, and it was not until their final fixture that they showed their true potential. Batting first against Carlton they scored an impressive 267-3 with Oliver Davison (132*) and Peter Jackson (75) cashing in, before bowling out their opponents for 113.
Despite their disappointing season, three batsmen in Davison (478 runs), George Deegan (454 runs) and Jackson (359 runs) all averaged in excess of 30. The bowling lacked penetration with no player managing as many as 30 league wickets.
It was very much the same in 2018, when they finished 12th out of thirteen sides, having won only three league matches. The best victory was towards the end of the season when they beat Carlton by 129-runs. Although Nathan Cant had a modest season with ball, he took 6-29 on this occasion, as Carlton was bowled out for 53.
The best performers in a principally young side were Oliver Davison (533 runs) and Joe Wood (305 runs & 26 wkts).