Read won the clash of the Premiership leaders and the reigning champions on Saturday as they beat Blackrod to maintain their winning start to life in the Anthony Axford North West Cricket League’s top flight. 

Read’s sixth success of 2025 – by a 14-run margin – came on the the back of a 206-6 total, including a middle order 50 off 68 balls for Joe Halstead. 

He was backed up by a series of other contributors.

Incredibly, however, Blackrod fell from 113-0 to 192 all out in reply. 

Thushendra De Zoysa made an excellent 99 not out, but Read’s Sri Lankan professional Sehan Weerasinghe spun his way to a decisive four-wicket return.

They lead the way at the top of the Premiership on 66 points, 13 clear of second-placed Padiham after six rounds. 

Cherry Tree moved top of the Championship courtesy of their fifth win in six, this one by six wickets at fellow promotion hopefuls Astley Bridge, whose 153 all out was well short of being competitive.

The visitors chased down their target with ease courtesy of an opening 66 from captain Charlie Elwood. Earlier, local pro Mini Bhada opening the bowling and struck five times with his spin, while Andreas Sudnik also claimed four wickets. 

Premiership strugglers Farnworth claimed their first league win of the season, in thrilling fashion – by two wickets chasing 219 at Atherton.

After five straight defeats, they built on their only success – in T20 cricket – as former captain Simon Booth hit a middle order 57 with four sixes. 

When he fell, they were 195-6 and slipped to 215-8. But Nakash Qamar finished 17 not out and hit the winning runs. Australian professional Riley Vernon claimed three wickets and top-scored with a measured 44. 

They were replaced at the foot of the table by Lostock, who were beaten at home to Farnworth Social Circle. Their fourth win elevated them to third behind Padiham.

Social Circle were bowled out for 161, which included Bajan pro Jameel Stuart’s unbeaten 81. Basil Sultan then took the new ball and struck four times in Lostock’s 141 all out. Faiz Khandu claimed three wickets and Stuart two. 

The middle of the top-flight table is jam-packed. 

Kearsley (34 points) are ninth with three wins from six, only nine points behind Little Lever in fourth with the same record.

Kearsley beat Little Lever at home by eight runs in an enthralling contest which saw the visitors finish on 241-8 in reply to 249-6. 

Kearsley were indebted to an opener’s 95 off 118 balls from Indian pro Ajay Rohera and a late 32 not out off 13 from Irfan Kareem.

Little Lever were 129-2 in reply with Australian overseas amateur Ryleigh Cameron unbeaten on 90. But they fell narrowly short, with Rohera and Kareem claiming three wickets apiece. 

Left-arm spinner Luca Doyle claimed a fabulous 6-31 from 13.4 overs having opened the bowling as Eagley claimed an impressive 134-run home victory against Salesbury, who were bowled out for 70 chasing a target of 205.

Earlier, opener Phil Ingram top-scored with 48 off 53 balls as Eagley posted 204-8 to set themselves on the way to a third win added to three defeats. Salesbury, meanwhile, lost for the second time.

Second-placed Padiham claimed a come-from-behind victory at Tonge as they defended their battling 145-8 to win by 27 runs – their fourth win of the summer.

None of their batters made it to 30, with Callum Clarke’s 25 their top score. In reply, Tonge were cruising at 74-1 before losing their last nine wickets for 46 to fall to 122 all out. 

Oliver Parr was Padiham’s hero with a stunning 6-12 from 5.1 overs.

In the Championship, Cherry Tree (60 points) hold a nine-point lead at the top over Barnoldswick, whose second defeat of 2025 came at home to Whalley by 52 runs. 

Whalley’s third win was achieved on the back of a 164-8 total and a polished bowling display, which saw the hosts bowled out for just 112. 

Homegrown pro Levi Wolfenden top-scored with 42 for the visitors before he claimed three cheap wickets having taken the new ball. 

Brinscall claimed their second win of the summer, by 42 runs at home to Ribblesdale Wanderers, who were 141 all out replying to 183-5. 

Brinscall’s Sri Lankan pro Kasun Abeyrathne top-scored with an opener’s 82 before Chris Ware took a new-ball four-for.

And Oswaldtwistle Immanuel’s fourth win elevated them to third in the table. They were 66-run winners at home to Earby – 117 all out also in reply to 183-5.

Aussie OA Luke Sirianni hit a superb middle order 100 off 101 balls to fashion a recovery from 84-4 before Zohaib Khan claimed a new-ball five-wicket haul. 

Farnworth captain Tayler-Jay Heyes has hailed the character and togetherness of his players after they ended a five-game losing streak with a first win of 2025 on Saturday.

Farnworth sat bottom of the Premiership table in the Anthony Axford North West Cricket, but hoisted themselves up a place with a narrow, two-wicket win at Atherton chasing 219.

Former captain Simon Booth hit a crucial middle order 57, while Australian professional Riley Vernon hit 44 and claimed three wickets.

They were just two of a number of valuable contributors. Matthew Hicks claimed three wickets in an over as Atherton were bowled out for 218 before he started the chase with 32. 

Nakash Qamar hit 17 not out at the end to see his side to the 12 points having struck once with the ball. 

And Heyes himself, having taken on the captaincy this summer, hit 33 as he and Hicks shared 67 for the first wicket to set the platform for a successful pursuit.

“It’s massive credit to the lads,” said the skipper. “Although the results haven’t been there, we – as a team – are quite strong.

“You look back at the results so far, and we took every game deep. We’ve not been rolled, we’ve certainly not been been brushed past. So we’ll come good, I’m sure.

“This is a huge, huge moment for us. 

“To put our start to the season into perspective, week one, Kearsley, we dropped five catches. Our first three games we dropped 15 catches!  

“Even Friday night at Astley Bridge in the T20, the two players who scored runs for them, we’ve dropped them both three times apiece.

“It’s that old saying isn’t it, ‘Catches win matches’.

“I genuinely feel that it’s in the field that’s killed us. 

“Look, we’ve not blown a team away with the ball, we’ve not scored the runs we wanted, but we’ve still been in a position to win games. Hopefully now we can build on this and kick on.”

As well as their struggles in the league, they were beaten at home in round one of the Hamer Cup by holders Read last month. They are also the current Premiership leaders, who are on a six-game winning streak in the league.

“That was another game where at one point we probably should have won the game,” said Heyes. 

“Every credit to Read, I’m not knocking them at all. They battled through, were the better team on the day, without a doubt. But there was a spell where if things had gone our way, we turn the screw and win.”

Farnworth are now second-bottom on 27 points, but two more wins quickly and they will be comfortably sat in mid-table. 

“I don’t think we’re going to go and win the league or anything like that,” said Heyes. “But we’ve still got a chance of finishing up there because it looks like everyone’s beating everyone.

“We’re only six weeks in, and the amount of bonus points we’ve taken and losing points that we’ve gained so far, we’re not a million miles off at all.

“As poor as our results have been, and as bad as it looks from the outside, us sitting on the inside know we can turn that corner. We will get there, I’ve no doubt about it. 

“We have plenty of talent in the changing room, and winning becomes a habit, as losing does.”

That talent includes Aussie pro Vernon, who was a big contributor on Saturday and, says Heyes, has been excellent in his first couple of months with the club. 

He added: “Riley’s got himself a hundred in a friendly, and maybe people thought it was going to be easy for him. But it doesn’t always work out that way. It takes time to settle.