Little Lever captain Josh Gent says his side will not be going into the unknown when they face Padiham in Sunday’s Hamer Cup final, something he believes was a factor when they lost to Read last year.
Little Lever have qualified through to their second successive Hamer Cup final. Last year, they lost at home to then Championship leaders Read, who will in turn play hosts to this year’s showpiece, starting at 1pm.
This year, Gent and co face Premiership rivals Padiham, a regular foe. For example, this will be their third meeting in a fortnight having met in the Birtwistle Cup T20 semi-final and the league. Little Lever won both. They are third in the Premiership and Padiham fourth.
“We were really poor in last year’s final, weren’t we,” said Gent, whose side were bowled out for 100 in a nine-wicket defeat. “We were well off the mark.
“Looking back, Read were a better side than we thought. A hell of a lot better.
“They’ve proven that this year. They are chasing the Premiership title with pretty much the same side that won the Championship last year.
“But we know Padiham, and they know us.
“They’re a good side who will be fancying themselves. But so are we.
“I think it’s got the makings to be an absolute cracker.”
A victory over the 2023 Hamer Cup champions on Sunday would give Little Lever the honour of becoming the first club to complete the set of NWCL major honours; the Premiership league title, the Birtwistle Cup T20 crown and the Hamer Cup.
Read would also complete the same achievement in September should they go on and win the Premiership.
“To be honest, I hadn’t thought of that,” said Gent.
“Yes, it would be a proud moment, but I don’t want to think too much about it now because we’ve still got a lot of work to do.
“I’ve been playing in the Bolton League and the NWCL since I was 10 or 11, and I’ve only played in three Hamer Cup finals. They’re hard to qualify for and even harder to win.
“It would be a great achievement for us, but let’s do it first.”
Padiham beat Read in their semi-final and Little Lever beat Blackrod last month by 88 runs on the back of a 259-4 total. Earlier in the competition, they had beaten Astley Bridge and Tonge.
While the Victory Road side have found consistency in the cup competitions in 2025 – only losing to Read in the T20 final last month – they have struggled to find that in the league and sit mid-table after 15 games, winning seven and losing eight.
“The standard’s a lot better, for a start,” reasoned Gent. “Everyone’s beating everyone this year, more so than before.
“I know everyone struggles for injuries, and they’re part of the game. But we have had a couple of really important ones.
“Curtis Anderton has been one, and you all know how many wickets he’s taken. He broke his ribs, but he was back at the weekend, which is a massive thing for us.
“The other one is Mukhtar Nasir, who obviously bats at three for us and opens the bowling. He’s dislocated his shoulder and is out for the year.
“I think as well, we’ve played a lot of cricket. We’ve had the league, the Hamer Cup, we got to the T20 final and also played in the Lancs Knockout. As far as any team in this league goes, I reckon we’ve played more cricket than anyone else.
“The one I would say is that even though we’ve had that inconsistency, we’ve won some big games. We beat Read in the league, we’ve beaten Farnworth Social Circle.
“We’ve turned up against some really good sides.
“I’m hoping that’s the story on Sunday.”
Padiham are chasing a second Hamer Cup title in three years, but captain Toby Burrows admits that this one would be extra special should they get over the line against Little Lever in Sunday’s final at Read CC.
Burrows and co were the inaugural winners of this competition under the NWCL banner in 2023, beating Settle in a rain-affected final at Farnworth.
Late in that season, Padiham posted a commanding score of 239-7 from 40 overs before Settle replied with 49-6, only for the rain to arrive. With a reserve day set for a week later, Settle opted to concede.
“We found out on a text message at about 3.30pm on a Wednesday that we’d won it,” recalled spinner Burrows. “That’s not the way anyone wants to win anything.
“Whatever sport you’re playing, you want to be able to enjoy it in the moment.
“Look, it was just one of those things. There wasn’t any other way around it.
“It still felt good. It wasn’t as if they game was in the balance. We deserved what we achieved.”
Padiham and Little Lever is set up to a crackerjack final. The 2023 champions and last year’s beaten finalists on a small ground with a flat pitch.
Little Lever also beat Padiham in the recent Birtwistle Cup T20 semi-final and again in the league on Saturday just gone. Little Lever are third in Premiership after 15 rounds, Padiham fourth.
“I think it will be great for the league,” said Burrows.
“It’s just down the road from us, and there will be loads of people there, just like there was in 2018 when we beat Settle in the Ramsbottom Cup final there (Ribblesdale League).
“There were hundreds of Padihamers who’d walked over, and I’m sure it will be the same again.
“Little Lever are a well-supported club, so they’ll bring a few too.
“It should be a great spectacle.”
Hosts Little Lever beat Blackrod in their semi-final by 88 runs having posted a total of 259-4 midway through last month.
Padiham, meanwhile, claimed the scalp of defending champions Read in their home semi-final – a low-scoring affair which they won by two wickets chasing 153.
“There wasn’t a single person that rocked up not thinking we’d win that,” said Burrows, whose side have also beaten Cherry Tree and Brinscall along the way.
“We looked past the form that Read were in and the players they’ve got.
“They obviously back themselves as much as anybody in the league at the minute, and rightly so.
“But we knew if we could get on top and not let them have things their own way, and not let them play the style of cricket that they try to play, especially at home, we’d have a chance.
“Playing Little Lever in the final is probably the biggest game, and the toughest, we could have aside from Read. So we’re going to have to be right at it again.”
As much as Padiham know they have a sizeable task on their hands to win this final, so too do Little Lever, who were beaten heavily by Read on their home ground in last year’s final.
Burrows added: “We’re set up to be good in the cup.
“Just naturally, the way our team falls with six genuine bowlers plus at least two other options that would bowl for quite a lot of teams. You’re looking through it, and there’s always somebody you can chuck the ball to.
“And we’ve got a lot of quality with the bat as well.”
The 40-over final begins on Sunday at 1pm.
