Pudsey Congs v Hanging Heaton

At Britannia Ground

Saturday September 10th, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Swinnow School (Bill Taylor)

Match report by John Taylor

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Pudsey Congs rounded off the season with a win, beating Hanging Heaton by 4 wickets at the Britannia Ground. 

In conditions which were best described as blustery – fallen leaves streaming across the field and grey, steely clouds skidding across the sky – and a damp looking pitch, it was perhaps no surprise that when the toss was won Hanging Heaton were made to bat first.

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Two depleted teams squared up; with Naved back home in Pakistan and Alex Hewitt again missing due to injury it was the unfamilar pair of Andy Siddall and Gareth Phillips opening the bowling.  Siddall struck in the first over – a wicket maiden – Rob McFarlane caught in the slips by Babar Butt.  The early optimism was tempered in the second over when Mark Lawson took a fancy to the bowling of Phillips, smashing two sixes and a four.  Siddall restored some control with another maiden, and in the fifth over struck again – Lawson excellently caught by Joe Goodchild to give Siddall the remarkable figures of 2-9 from 3 overs (although two boundaries had somewhat inflated runs conceded). With first change bowler Ed Walmsley picking up the wicket of Dawood, lbw for 14 to leave Hanging Heaton on 59-3 the fourth wicket pair of Fraser (42) and Bresnan (52) shared a 65 run stand to attempt a rescue effort.  Thereafter the slower bowlers made scoring difficult and precipitated a batting collapse which saw the last 7 wickets fall for only 31 runs.  Hanging Heaton were bowled out for 155, leaving Congs a target of 156 from 53 overs. Ed Walmsley was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4-49 from his 15 overs, with two wickets each for Glenn Roberts, Babar Butt and Andy Siddall – who took great delight in asking for his figures at tea, which was taken at the ridiculously early time of 2.25pm.

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Despite starting with two maidens in reply Congs appeared to be making light work of their target, and had reached 71-0 after 15 overs.  Mark Lawson had what he thought a certain appeal for a catch against Mark Gill turned down, although shortly afterwards was rewarded with a successful lbw shout against Gareth Phillips.  A nervous few overs saw 4 wickets fall for 20 runs, including one daft shot and three more lbws to leave Congs on 102-5 – proving as ever that a run chase by Congs in 2011 is never straight forwards. However, with Gill holding down one end to finish on 79 not out from 119 balls it took another 14 overs to score the further 54 runs needed for victory.  Congs were the winners by 4 wickets with 12 overs to spare. The result meant that Congs finished the season in fourth place in the table, albeit a massive 61 points behind champions Woodlands.

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Hanging Heaton 155 (46.4 overs) (Nick Bresnan 52, Joe Fraser 42, Edward Walmsley 4-49)

Pudsey Congs 156-6 (40.4 overs) (Mark Gill 79no, Mark Lawson 4-46)

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Pudsey Congs 17pts bt Hanging Heaton 5pts by 4 wkts

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Pudsey St Lawrence v Pudsey Congs

At Tofts Road

Saturday September 3rd, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Joan Marsh

Match report by John Taylor

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Pudsey Congs suffered their second defeat of the season to Pudsey St Lawrence, this time going down by 5 wickets at Tofts Road.

On what from a distance looked a green tinged pitch, Mark Robertshaw, the new St Lawrence captain, won the toss and elected to field. Following on from their experiment in the Priestley Cup final it was a surprise to see Chris Marsden opening the bowling from the top end – a decision that was rewarded with a wicket from the fourth ball, Gareth Phillips caught behind without scoring. Congs then struggled for the next few overs, with only 3 runs from the first five overs.  A 122-run partnership between Mark Gill and Babar Butt for the second wicket boosted the scoring, and with the score 122-2 with 19 overs left a defendable total looked on the cards.  With Adam Patel next in, the third wicket partnership was worth 47 from 55 balls – but as always with the Congs batting a large however was hovering around the corner. This week it took the form of an embarrasing run out, Patel unable to make his ground after setting off down the wicket.  A combination of some poor shots and another run out meant that Congs had lost 5 wickets for 30, and at 201-7 with 3 overs left another promising innings looked to have disintegrated.  A final flourish by Ed Walmsley in the last over saw two successive sixes and boosted the final total to 226-8.

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The first over of the second innings set the tone for the St Lawrence reply – 8 runs, only one of which came off the bat.  With Andy Siddall opening from the town end the depleted Congs bowling attack was brutally exposed.  However, with Adam Waite bowled by Naved in the third over, followed by Hester lbw to Siddall, Congs looked to be back in the game with the Lawrence 38-2.  Two more quick wickets – Robertshaw lbw to Naved and Marsden caught in the slips by Bairstow off Naved – left the game in the balance and St Lawrence 49-4.  This would prove to be as good as it got for Congs. A match changing 158 run partnership between James Smith (100 not out) and Gareth Clough (56) for the fifth wicket swung the game towards St Lawrence, and despite an excellent catch by Walmsley to get rid of Clough and a few late jitters whilst Smith negotiated the 90s it was plain sailing for St Lawrence.  In the end they reached the target with 35 balls to spare, and (as in the game at the Britannia) Congs were left to wonder what might have been had they another 30 or 40 runs to play with.

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The results mean that Congs, illogically, climb a place in the table to fifth.  The highest they can hope to finish is third should they collect maximum points from the final game, whilst hoping that a host of results go their way.  The last game of what has been an up and down season is at the Britannia Ground starting at midday next Saturday against Hanging Heaton.

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Pudsey Congs 226-8 (50 overs) (Babar Butt 93, Mark Gill 46, David Stiff 3-30)

Pudsey St Lawrence 227-5 (44.1 overs) (James Smith 100no, Muhammad Naved 4-88)

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Pudsey St Lawrence 19pts bt Pudsey Congs 7pts by 5wkts

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Pudsey Congs v Baildon

At Britannia Ground

Saturday August 27th, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Andrea David Booth

Match report by John Taylor

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Pudsey Congs recorded their first league win since July 23rd in a low scoring affair at the Britannia Ground; with other results going against them it also confirmed that their opponents Baildon would be relegated to Division Two.

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On a damp looking pitch and falling leaves blowing across the ground the scene was more the end of September rather than August Bank Holiday.  The full 20 point win sought by Baildon always looked a tough ask in these conditions.  This was confirmed when Congs won the toss and asked them to bat, the wicket proving very difficult to score on. With runs difficult to come by and few wickets falling there was little work for the scorers.  Indeed at 38-2 after 25 overs it was difficult to remember a game where so few runs have been scored in the first quarter.  Things suddenly kicked into life though, and Baildon thrashed 17 from three overs; the last of these could have been so different with a missed stumping and dropped catch in consecutive balls – mistakes that could have proven costly in such a low scoring encounter.  Indeed the 100 was only reached in the 44th over, and the final score of 133-8 was only reached thanks to a hectic 10 overs which brought 48 runs. Glenn Roberts was the most economical of the bowlers (3-35 from 15) together with Mohammmed Naved (3-43 from 15); Eddie Walmsley might want to suggest catching practice for his team mates, as his figures of 1-36 could easily have included a couple more wickets.

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In contrast to Baildon, Congs made a flying start and were already 50 without loss after only 12 overs.  It would take another 32 overs to get the additional 84 runs needed.  With the required run rate providing no particular problem the game ebbed and flowed – first with periods where the batsmen were well and truly on top and then the bowlers dominating.  As so often this season Congs produced a mini-collapse, the result of a combination of tight bowling and poor shots – from 62-1 to 79-5 in only 5 overs. A 27 run partnership for the sixth wicket between Andrew Bairstow and Josh Atkinson steadied the ship, before Bairstow was unnecessarily stumped.  Atkinson then patiently anchored the final stages of the innings, finishing with 32 not out from 80 balls, Congs reaching the required total in the 44th over for the loss of 6 wickets.

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Again the points system conspired to frustrate Congs, who despite winning dropped a further place in the table to sixth.  The current points system means that Congs having won 11 matches to Undercliffe’s 9 now sit one point behind them.  Despite this the current table does set up nicely next week’s clash with Pudsey St Lawrence – congratulations to them on their Priestley Cup victory on Bank Holiday Monday.  Only 18 points separate the two sides going into what is likely to be another closely fought contest.

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Baildon 133-8 (50 overs) (Glenn Roberts 3-35, Muhammad Naved 3-43)

Pudsey Congs 137-6 (43.2 overs) (Gareth Phillips 41, Josh Atkinson 32no, Richard Atkins 4-64)

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Pudsey Congs 15pts bt Baildon 4pts by 4wkts

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Pudsey Congs v Farsley

At Britannia Ground

Saturday August 20th, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Eric Thompson

Match report by John Taylor

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Pudsey Congs fell to their second straight defeat – suffering one of their heaviest defeats of the season at the hands of local rivals Farsley.  After winning the toss and electing to bat, Farsley made a quick start and were 43 after only ten overs for the loss of one wicket. Two big partnerships ensured a mammoth total for Farsley, the second wicket adding 89 and the third 153.  The main performers were Joe Greaves, making 114 from 135 balls, and Lorenzo Ingram, making 110 not out from only 70 balls; the bowling figures were something to forget for Congs.  In an innings completely dominated by the bat Farsley posted 305-5 from their 50 overs.

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In reply Congs lost two early wickets and never really appeared to be in the hunt.  Farsley had been free scoring throughout their innings with Congs finding it difficult to exert any kind of control; the second innings was the opposite, and Congs were always behind the required run rate.  In the end, with the top score being only 39 Congs were bowled out for 221.

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Farsley 305-5 (Joe Greaves 114, Lorenzo Ingram 110no, Andrew Duckworth 42)

Pudsey Congs 221 all out (44.3 overs) (Josh Atkinson 39, Adam Patel 38, Gareth Phillips 32, Eugene Burzler 31, Ian Philliskirk 4-79, Lorenzo Ingram 3-49)

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Farsley 20pts bt Pudsey Congs 6pts by 84 runs

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East Bierley v Pudsey Congs

At South View Road

Saturday Aug 13th, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Ghulam Raffique

Match report by John Taylor

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A defeat at the hands of East Bierley and the outcome of other results ensured Congs ended the day in fifth place, slipping behind both Farsley and Bierley.  On a pitch that had had no chance to dry out following rain during the week Bierley won the toss and Congs were made to bat first.

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In what proved to be an exceedingly slow half, in terms of scoring rate and especially the over rate, Congs made another poor start and were only 12-2 after 10 overs.  With Congs on the wrong end of a 6-0 scoreline for lbw’s, the only bright spots of the innings were two patient 50 run partnerships.  The first of 57 for the third wicket was between Adam Patel (45 from 65 balls) and Babar Butt (31 from 46 balls) before both received the finger of doom from the umpire.  With runs hard to come by and wickets falling regularly it was left to Glenn Roberts (39 not out from 31 balls) and Alex Hewitt (10 not out from 34 balls) to bat out the last nine overs and add exactly 50 runs for the unbroken tenth wicket. Congs finished on 187-9 from their 50 overs.

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With Bierley making a fast start it was important to get early wickets and Naved bowling Gavin Hamilton for one did the trick.  Thereafter it got progressively easier to score, and Bierley were 61-3 after only 12 overs. Andrew Rennison’s innings of 51 from 75 balls took the game away from Pudsey; when he should have kicked on and won the game with ease he played a ridiculous shot to be caught by Adam Patel and no doubt giving his lower order a few jitters.  Bierley then conspired to make hard work of getting the remaining 34 runs – Dawood run out, and then several gilt edged chances to gift Pudsey the game.  The first was a dropped catch at mid-on, and then a run out – the throw veering away from the stumps – and the possibility of a late order collapse was on the cards.  It was not to be, and Bierley eventually secured a 4 wicket win with four and a bit overs left.

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From the spectators point of view this was a typical end of season game, with a damp pitch and little to play for in the league.  Indeed the match seemed to just drag on and on, with slow over rates a particular sticking point.  With Congs in fifth the season is in danger of petering out with only four games left this season.

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Pudsey Congs 187-9 (50 overs) (Adam Patel 45, Glenn Roberts 39no, Babar Butt 31)

East Bierley 188-6 (45.4 overs) (Andrew Rennison 51, Thomas Owens 34)

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East Bierley (17pts) beat Pudsey Congs (6pts) by 4 wickets

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Undercliffe v Pudsey Congs

At Intake Road

Saturday Aug 6th, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Exeeco Ltd

Match report by John Taylor 

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Pudsey Congs and Undercliffe shared the points after an exciting finish resulted in a tie at Intake Road.  Following persistent and heavy rain during the morning, play didn’t look likely.  However, once the rain had stopped the covers were removed and the ground was soon fit, only for the rain to start again and the covers to go back on.  In the end play was only delayed by an hour, the match reduced to 39 overs per side with Congs batting first.

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Congs made a very slow start, and were soon in trouble with Gareth Phillips run out in the second over with the score on 2.  The next wicket to fall seemed a touch unfortunate; Babar Butt was on the wrong end of an excellent one handed catch by Thomas Hudson at square leg with the score on 24.  A third wicket partnership of 51 was dominated by Adam Patel (47 from 52 balls) before five wickets in five overs left the innings in tatters.  Indeed Congs looked in danger of being bowled out with 12 overs left and the score at 90-7.  Another excellent one handed catch in front of the clubhouse dismissed Burzler and prevented a certain six.  Then a reviving ninth wicket partnership between Ed Walmsley (32 not out) and Mohammed Naved (30) added 58 in 49 balls and was only broken in the final over.  Two sixes in the last over from Walmsley further boosted the total and Congs finished their 39 overs on 180-9.

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In reply Undercliffe made a steady start and had 40 from their first 10 overs when their first wicket fell.  As is so often the case two wickets fell in quick succession and thereafter the scoring rate slowed, so that with 20 overs left the required rate had already risen to 6 runs an over.  With 10 overs left and 79 still needed Congs looked favourites to take the points.  A fourth wicket partnership of 58 between Nawaz Sardar (41 from 33 balls) and Ben Heritage (44) then swung the game back towards Undercliffe, before Burzler was brought back from the Intake Road end to take the crucial wicket of Sardar. New batter Ammer Mirza kept Undercliffe up with the required rate and shared a 44 run stand with Heritage for the fifth wicket.  This was only broken in the final over of the game, when Undercliffe looked odds-on to beat Congs for the second time this season.  With only five runs needed the last over was always going to be dramatic, and it was made doubly so in the scorebox where the view of the game was severely impaired by the sun now shining low in the sky directly in line behind the pitch. Undercliffe scrambled three singles off the first three balls, before Heritage attempted a big hit and was caught somewhere in the sun – confusion about who caught it, quickly followed by a run out on the fifth ball with more confusion over who threw the wickets down.  All of this followed by a phone call from a concerned cricket chairman relating to the number of balls left, who was no probably left none the wiser and no doubt hastily looking for a scorer who can at least count to six. Only a single came from the last ball meaning that Undercliffe closed on 180-6, with apologies to any wrongly identified players – the most crucial, exciting last over was utterly spoilt by not been able to see any of it properly.

The result keeps Congs in third place in the league ten points behind second placed Cleckheaton, but now only three points in front of fourth placed Farsley.  Five matches left in the league means that there are a maximum 100 points at stake, and with Woodlands now 33 points clear at the top the rest seem to be battling for second place.

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Pudsey Congs 180-9 (39 overs) (Adam Patel 47, Edward Walmsley 32no, Muhammad Naved 30, Ashley Metcalfe 4-38)

Undercliffe 180-6 (39 overs) (Ben Heritage 44, Nawaz Sardar 41, Muhammad Naved 3-52)

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Pudsey Congs (11pts) tied with Undercliffe (12 pts)

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Pudsey Congs v Clearwater St Lawrence

At Britannia Ground

August 4th, 2011

Match report

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A visit by Clearwater St Lawrence brought the curtain down on the Congs less than stellar 2011 Twenty/20 campaign. The visitors defeated the Congs by 29 runs in the final group two match to qualify for the last eight as runners up behind Farsley.

The match was decided over 12 overs after rain ended play with Congs on 99-5 after 12.2 overs in reply to Pudsey St Lawrence’s total of 205-5. After 12 overs St Lawrence had scored 126-2 to Congs 97-5. That means the holders will now be away to Group Four winners Hanging Heaton and it rules out the prospect of a third successive final between St Lawrence and Bradford & Bingley.

The Congs finished a distance fourth in the group, 12 points behind the leaders, better luck in 2012.

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Pudsey Congs v Cleckheaton

At Britannia Ground

Saturday July 30th, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Mr MB Knight and Mrs B Wells

Match report by John Taylor

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Cleckheaton ended Congs’ winning run of five straight league wins. Winning the toss and electing to bat Cleckheaton, and John Wood in particular, made a fast start and had 34 on the board from only 8 overs.  The ninth over brought a double breakthrough for Congs – Wood run out by a direct hit from Glenn Roberts attempting a quick single and then Mark Cummins caught by Babar Butt in the slips fending off a bouncer from Naved.  In the 13th over another half chance presented itself, with Marcus Walmsley, at that stage still yet to score, hitting one down towards fine leg, which fell just short of the fielder before taking a wicked bounce to find its way over the boundary.  The next over brought another wicket, Jackson caught behind chasing a wide ball, leaving Cleckheaton 57-3.

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A couple of overs later Ian Nicholson was lbw to Ed Walmsley, making the score 63-4.  James Lee then rode his luck, twice hitting Walmsley for 4 just out of reach of the fielder at cover at the very edge of the circle – the benefits to the batsmen of the 30 yard circle, as had the fielder been set a couple of yards further out both chances would have been sitters.  With the partnership developing, Naved was brought back and provided a wicket from his first over – Walmsley adjudged to be caught behind.  In Naved’s second over back he tempted Lee into playing a shot at a short pitched bouncer which produced an excellent catch by Bairstow diving full length behind the stumps, the third of Bairstow’s six victims which included one stumping.  The game was taken away from Congs after that with a partnership of 39 for the seventh wicket – Mally Nicholson in particular batting well until he was ninth out, top edging a full toss from Naved miles up in the air to be caught behind by Bairstow.  Naved finished the innings with two in two and five wickets, leaving Cleckheaton all out for 183 with two overs to spare.

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In reply Congs suffered a disastrous start, and their innings never really recovered.  Four wickets went down in the first 10 overs, two bowled and two lbw, to leave them tottering at 40-4.  A brief rescue attempt was begun by Andrew Bairstow (34) and Ed Walmsley (11) – Bairstow surviving a big lbw appeal, and Walmsley enduring some rather pointless short pitched bowling which he looked content to duck under and which never looked like either intimidating him or getting him out. With Bairstow and Walmsley bowled in quick succession the game was up at 85-6, and with Glenn Roberts lbw to Cummins with the score on 95 it was now a matter of how long the Congs tail could survive.  With Hewitt and Naved both providing catching practice for Cleckheaton’s fielders it was left to Joe Goodchild and Dale Spink to try and salvage a bonus point.  A gritty and determined partnership lasted 35 balls and added 17 runs – the biggest cheer of the game was when they ran through for a single to take the score to 125.  With Cleckheaton in danger of being embarrased by the pair Lee was brought back, bowling Goodchild first ball to leave Cleckheaton the victors by 58 runs.

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Overall another disappointing batting performance couldn’t capitalise on the position the bowlers had provided.  The game turned out to be a carbon copy of the match played earlier in the season, although this time with the result reversed.  The result consolidates Cleckheaton in second place 19 points behind leaders Woodlands, with Congs in third a further 17 points behind.  The battle for the title would now seem to be a two way fight between Woodlands and Cleckheaton, with the crucial match on 20th August when they clash at Moorend.

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Cleckheaton 183 all out (47.3 overs) (Mally Nicholson 45, Marcus Walmsley 36, Muhammad Naved 5-47)

Pudsey Congs 125 all out (37.1 overs) (Andrew Bairstow 34, James Lee 4-48)

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Cleckheaton 18pts bt Pudsey Congs 6pts by 58 runs

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Pudsey Congs v Whitley Hall

Black Sheep Yorkshire Champions Semi Final

At Britannia Ground

Sunday July 24th, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Phil & Trish Hewitt

Match report by John Taylor

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Whitley Hall of the South Yorkshire League have progressed to this season’s Black Sheep Yorkshire Champions Final following a comprehensive 7 wicket victory over Pudsey Congs at the Britannia Ground.

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On a glorious sunny day and in front of a packed crowd Congs won the toss and elected to bat first.  They made an impressive start, and were already 50 after only 11 overs when their first wicket went down. Scoring continued a pace, and at one stage a total of 270 to 280 didn’t look out of the question.  However, the combination of some poor shots and some tight bowling from Whitley Hall in the middle of the innings put the brakes on.  The Congs innings was held together by Adam Patel (63 from 79 balls), with some late hitting from Mohammed Naved contributing a further 40 from 25 balls.  At the interval the final total of 236-7 appeared to be around 40 to 50 runs short of a winning total.

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Congs’ much reduced bowling attack was always going to struggle in a game requiring at least five bowlers – with Eugene Burzler injured at Manningham Mills the previous day and Alex Hewitt away with university.  However, Naved bowled the opener Alex Welsh off only the second ball to leave Whitley 0-1 and the game looked on.  The unfamiliar sight of Andy Siddall opening the bowling at the opposite end proved the point regarding the bowling shortage – although in total six bowlers would be tried, and at least two others were available but not used.  Whitley overcame their disastrous start and from then on were always ahead of the required run rate, anchored by an innings of 53 from 118 balls from Chris Siddall whilst Neil Longhurst (92) and Jim Tasker (55) both scored at slightly better than a run a ball. Late in the innings it appeared that the game rested on how many overs Naved had left to bowl, which became an often asked question around the scorebox – the answer always being one less than last time you asked.  With 10 overs left the game was still in the balance, although with 42 needed and wickets in hand Whitley were always favourites.  In the end there were 16 balls to spare when they reached their target, winning by 7 wickets.

Good luck to Whitley Hall in the final, where they will they will now meet Solly Sports Central Yorkshire League champions Wrenthorpe at Hanging Heaton on Sunday, August 21 (1pm).

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Manningham Mills v Pudsey Congs

At Scotchman Road

Saturday July 23rd, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Greggs Bakers

Match report by John Taylor

Congs made a quick getaway from Scotchman Road with 17 points, doing a smash and grab to steal the points from their hosts in the last couple of overs.  Having won the toss and elected to bat Mills made a steady start on a slow scoring pitch.  The Congs opening bowlers conceded few runs, and Mills were 37-0 in the thirteenth over when Eugene Burzler pulled up and left the field – subsequently diagnosed with ligament trouble by staff at the nearby BRI.

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The first wicket fell in the twenty first over, Ahmed bowled by Walmsley with the score on 53, quickly followed in the next over by his fellow opener Islam lbw to Roberts.  This was the first of what would prove to be six lbw’s in the game, and Congs can probably count themselves lucky that they were only on the wrong end of two of them.  Imran Khalid, the overseas player, was next out giving Naved a gift of a catch at deep mid-on at a time when all that was needed was for him to stay in.  With the scoring rate slow and wickets falling at regular intervals a large total was never likely – and with 10 overs left Mills were still only 98-5.  However 72 runs came from the last 10 together with a further 4 wickets to at least keep the scorers awake.  Mills finished with 170-9 from their 50 overs, Glenn Roberts (4-45) being the pick of the bowlers.

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In reply Congs were on fire, 12 from the first two overs, before a wicket maiden in the third brought them crashing back to earth – Gareth Phillips judged to be caught behind.  Andy Siddall was promoted up the order to three and he shared a stand of 31 with Josh Atkinson before playing a terrible shot to be bowled by Khalid for 17.  He was soon followed back to the pavillion by Atkinson, lbw to Khalid for 16 to leave Congs 48-3 after 14 overs.  Another lbw soon afterwards accounted for Andrew Bairstow, and the Congs innings seemed to be crumbling.

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At halfway the game was still very much in the balance with Congs 81-4 needing another 90 runs to win.  However, the fourth wicket pairing of Adam Patel (40) and Ed Walmsley (34 not out) were putting together a stand of 60.  This included some excellent running between the wickets, and Congs were seemingly cruising to a comfortable victory needing just 58 from the last 16 overs. Then the 35th over brought some drama – five overthrows from the second ball then Patel caught close in off the third, although confirmation from the umpires was required to decide that the ball had grounded in front of the fielder.  The next ball Patel could only watch as it somehow trickled into the stumps to leave Pudsey at 119-5. Then followed nine overs where Mills were in the ascendency – no runs at all from the next 15 balls; then only 14 runs from the next 7 overs to push the required rate up to over 6 runs per over for the first time.  Then just as the match was leaning their way the previously tight Mills bowling went into meltdown.  The unbroken sixth wicket stand was worth 57 at the close (35 of them from the final 15 balls of the innings) which was dominated by Barbar Butt but with able support from Ed Walmsley.  Butt in particular helped himself to some  poor bowling – 4 sixes and 2 fours to leave him 41 not out from 38 balls – and he also had the presence of mind to dispatch the last ball over the wall into  Scotchman Road for 6, thereby ensuring an extra bonus point.  In the end Congs had won by 5 wickets with 15 balls to spare, a most unlikely outcome only 15 minutes earlier.

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The result consolidates Congs position in third place, albeit they have lost ground on the teams immediately above them.  Second placed Cleckheaton take 19 points in beating Undercliffe by 4 wickets whereas a 5 wicket win only scores Congs 17 points – begging the question of whether a flukey 1 wicket win should be worth more than a comprehensive 10 wicket mauling.  This anomaly does however set up next Saturday’s home game at the Britannia Ground when Cleckheaton and Congs will battle it out, with the winner likely to end the match second in the league.

Manningham Mills 170-9

Pudsey Congs 176-5

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Pudsey Congs 17pts bt Manningham Mills 4pts by 5 wkts

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Yeadon Jets v Pudsey Congs

At High Street

Wednesday July 20th, 2011

Match report

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  Adam Patel became the fifth player to hit a century in this season’s Dyson Insulations Twenty/20 Cup.

He raced to fifty off 20 balls and completed his century from just 33 deliveries as Congs passed Yeadon’s score of 134-7 in just 11.2 overs. Patel hit nine sixes and nine fours in an innings which spanned just 29 minutes. He simply destroyed the Yeadon bowling.

Batting first, Yeadon reached 134-7 thanks largely to a knock of 58 from Kasir Maroof. Accurate bowling from spinner Edward Walmsley (2-13) and overseas paceman Muhammad Naved (1-15) kept the scoring rate under control.

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Yeadon Jets 134-7 (Kasir Maroof 58)

Pudsey Congs 135-2 (Adam Patel 104)

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Pudsey Congs 4pts bt Yeadon Jets 0pts by 8wkts

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Pudsey Congs v Gomersal

At the Britannia Ground

Saturday July 16, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Jayne E Verity

Match report by John Taylor

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Pudsey Congs made it four league wins in a row with a comprehensive 68 run win against relegation threatened Gomersal at a soggy Britannia Ground.  Arriving at the ground the covers were on and the rain had stopped – only for a persistent shower to put the match in some doubt.  Once the rain had cleared and the ground had been prepared the start was scheduled for just after 3.30pm playing 34 overs a side.

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Gomersal won the toss and elected to field on a pitch that was hard with a couple of damp looking patches.  The decision reaped immediate rewards, with Gareth Philips caught from the second ball.  The second wicket partnership between Mark Gill and Eugene Burzler started as a slow scoring affair, with only 18 from the first 11 overs.  However, balls started disappearing around the ground.  Gill was unlucky in playing a ball so straight it demolished the pile of sawdust but failed to make it to the boundary, whilst the scorebox was nearly put out of action by a six from Burzler which hit the plastic screen in front of the scorer’s desk (which was only put up in case it rained again, and which will now probably be used at all matches just in case).  The partnership was worth 81 when Gill was out caught for 35.

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Adam Patel came in at four, and continued the excellent scoring rate – he had 40 from only 21 balls before being bowled by Platt with the score at 149.  Burzler reached his 50 from 73 balls, and a rejigged batting line-up contributed some late runs – Andrew Bairstow (38 not out from 17 balls), Mohammed Naved (13 from 5 balls) and Ed Walmsley 3 not out at a run a ball. A total of 60 runs came from the last four overs to raise the score to 216-5 and ensure that Congs took four batting points from the game, which was fully deserved for an excellent batting performance.

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Following a 10 minute break at the interval Gomersal made a quick start, with 15 plundered from the second over.  Four came from the next over, before Naved dispatched the opener Greenwood.  Andrew Gorrod was next out, caught by the wicketkeeper Gill off the bowling of Naved with the score at 31 – there was to be no repeat of the century he scored against Congs earlier in the season. A stubborn 57 run partnership for the fourth wicket raised hopes for the visitors that they would survive their overs and accumulate bonus points. The partnership was only broken in the 21st over, Rashid run out by Walmsley for 35.  With Naved returning to bowl out his 11 overs at the Intake Road end, and Walmsley in support at the other end, wickets soon started to tumble – literally with Naved having four of the middle and lower order bowled.  He finished with figures of 6-34 from 10.1 overs, Walmsley 2-32 from 8, and Gomersal were bowled out for 148 with 11 balls to spare.

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The teams at the top of the league again found themselves at the mercy of the current points system – which is plainly exposed for what it is when playing a rain affected game – but this time it proved to be to Pudsey’s advantage.  Scoring over 200 and bowling the opposition out on a day disrupted by the weather saw Congs collect a 19 point win, the highest score and points tally of the day.  This allowed them to close the gap on leaders Woodlands (16 points) and second placed Cleckheaton (15 points), meaning Congs are now third, a mere 19 points behind Woodlands.

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Pudsey Congs 216-5 (34 overs) (Eugene Burzler 82, Adam Patel 40, Andrew Bairstow 38no, Mark Gill 35)

Gomersal 148 all out (32.1 overs) (Greg Pickles 42, Shabbir Rashid 35, Muhammad Naved 6-34)

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Pudsey Congs 19pts bt Gomersal 3pts by 68 runs

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Bradford & Bingley v Pudsey Congs

At Wagon Lane

Saturday July 9th, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Exeeco

Match report by John Taylor

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A third consecutive win helped Congs to consolidate their position in the league.  Following a week of persistent rain showers it was no surprise that Bingley chose to field; perhaps memories of their 94 all out against East Bierley a fortnight ago in a similar situation were still raw.  Congs made an excellent start with openers Mark Gill and Josh Atkinson, promoted back up the order.  Gill in particular was scoring freely, and dispatched Thompson for sixes in successive overs back passed the bowler towards the rugby ground. Atkinson was out with the score at 46 off the bowling of Briggs, the first change bowler.  Babar Butt came in at three and he then shared a 61-run partnership with Gill, who reached his 50 off 51 balls and was eventually out for 75. With the score at 108-2 with 22 overs left, Congs looked on for a big total.  Bingley then restricted the scoring rate and began picking up wickets.  It was left to captain Andrew Bairstow to pick-up the scoring rate – his 45 not out from 49 balls included three 6s but no 4s.  There was a moment of slight farce when he skied the ball to the boundary and the fielder oblivious to the fact it was a no-ball held the ball only for the batsmen to run through for two whilst he was celebrating the ‘wicket’, only to be put right by his team in no uncertain terms.  A harsh looking decision saw Glenn Roberts run out via some fancy footwork from the bowler, before more quick running nearly saw Alex Hewitt go the same way.  Congs finished at 200-8 from their 50 overs, taking the fourth bonus point from the final ball of the innings.

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In reply Congs had two quick wickets – the opener Etherington lbw to Alex Hewitt from the seventh ball, and captain Slater bowled by Naved – to leave them 21-2 at the end of the fifth over.  Although Bingley were keeping up with the required run rate they lost wickets regularly.  Eugene Burzler bowling from the pavillion end took two wickets in successive overs to leave the score at 44-4, but a stubborn fifth wicket partnership of 54 from Naweed Ghany and Chris Thompson threatened a comeback before it was eventually broken – Thompson bowled by Ed Walmsley with the score at 98. With 20 overs left the game was poised with Bingley needing 97 with 5 wickets left.  Ghany was out 2 overs later – an excellent catch by Bairstow off the bowling of Walmsley – and the game suddenly tipped Congs way.  The seventh wicket pair again hung around, but by this time the scoring had dried up and Bingley weren’t realistically going to win.  The only threat to the match seemed to be the low evening sun, which shines directly down the wicket from the pavillion end.  With Naved returned at the pavillion end it took him only three overs to finish off the last three batsmen all bowled – picking the ball out of the sun at Naved’s pace cannot have been easy.  Naved finished with 4- 27 off 11.5 overs, with Ed Walmsley (2-42) doing much to slow the scoring in the middle of the innings and Eugene Burzler (2-18) taking a couple of important wickets at the start of the innings.

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In the end Bingley finished on 159 all out, with Congs winning by 41 runs.  The points mean that Congs stay in fourth place.  With Woodlands taking 20 points they extend their lead by one point, meaning we are now 22 points adrift of top spot.

Pudsey Congs 200-8 (50 overs) (Mark Gill 75, Andrew Bairstow 45no, Babar Butt 31)

Bradford & Bingley 159 all out (46.5 overs) (Naweed Ghany 35, Muhammad Naved 4-27)

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Pudsey Congs 19pts bt Bradford & Bingley 6pts by 41 runs

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Pudsey Congs v Woodlands

At the Britannia Ground

Saturday July 2nd, 2011

Match Ball Sponsor – Peter Marsh

Match report by John Taylor

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The first match in the second half of the season saw Congs complete their first ‘double’.  A stunning performance helped to record a comprehensive 48 run win over the runaway league leaders Woodlands. Congs seem to revel in being something of a ‘bogey’ team for Woodlands, being responsible for two of their three league defeats this season.

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Winning the toss and electing to bat Congs made another nervy start reaching 48-2 from the first 20 overs.  Then followed an exciting 78 run partnership between Babar Butt (46) and Andrew Bairstow (47) from the next fourteen overs; in what proved to be an expensive let-off Butt had been dropped in the slips on 1 when the score was still only 18-1.  The innings then gradually fell away with wickets falling at regular intervals to leave Congs 161-7 from 46 overs.  Some late hitting saw 40 come from the last four overs with Glen Roberts finishing on 34 not out from only 19 balls, including a six from the final ball of the innings to close the innings at 201-8 and ensure Congs took four of the five possible batting points.  

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In reply Woodlands were always behind the required run rate, although no wickets fell until the 13th over with the score at 29 – Frankland bowled by Naved for 2, after earlier been put down in the slips without scoring with the score on 6. The second wicket followed four overs later with the score at 39 – the opener Richardson bowled by Roberts.  The familiar sight of Roberts and Walmsley bowling at either end saw overs disappear at an alarming rate and scoring slowed to a crawl, although Woodlands were seemingly still in the game at 67-2 with 20 overs left.  However, whereas Congs had managed to find the gaps and had effectively punished the bad balls, Woodlands were doing neither very often which ensured that scoring remained sporadic.  

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Wickets began to fall regularly, with the visitors falling way behind the run rate; with 40 overs gone they were 107-6 needing another 95 for what would now be an outstanding victory.  With Roberts and Naved to bowl the last ten there was no way that Congs would let such a winning position slip, and by this stage the match for Woodlands had reverted to an old fashioned battle to bat out their overs and deny their opponents full points.  Then the ninth wicket fell to Roberts with 8 balls of the innings left with the score on 144 to set up a tense finale.  Several appeals for lbw at either end were turned down, before the number 11 dispatched the last ball of the game to the boundary to gain a second batting point for Woodlands who finished on 153-9 from their 50 overs.  The stand out bowler for Congs was again Glen Roberts who finished with figures of 6-41 from his 15 overs.  

The result tightens the battle at the top of the league, although Woodlands are still 13 points clear of second placed Cleckheaton.  Congs have moved into fourth place 21 points behind the leaders.  With only six points separating Congs and Manningham Mills, who are third from bottom, consistency is now the key to ensure Congs stay at the top end of the table.

Pudsey Congs 201-8 (50 overs) (Andrew Bairstow 47, Babar Butt 46, Glenn Roberts 34no, Pieter Swanepoel 3-64)

Woodlands 153-9 (50 overs) (Pieter Swanepoel 32, Glenn Roberts 6-41)

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Pudsey Congs 18pts bt Woodlands 6pts by 48 runs

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