Little Lever new-boy James Richards claimed a stunning 8-54 from 14.4 overs added to 22 with the bat to maintain his side’s excellent start to the new Anthony Axford North West Cricket League Premiership campaign as they breezed past Salesbury on Saturday.
Richards, the former Eagley captain, is a new-ball seamer and a middle-order batter, and he has been instrumental in Little Lever’s position at the top-flight summit. They sit on 63 points with five wins from six and are eight ahead of champions Farnworth Social Circle, who also tasted victory at the weekend.
Richards was the main protagonist as hosts Salesbury were bowled out for 172 chasing 241.
Earlier, Little Lever’s 240-8 from their 45 overs was underpinned by opener Cameron Murray’s well-paced 78 with five sixes. Richards then returned the best first-team bowling figures across both divisions this season.
The former Eagley captain has now taken 22 wickets in his debut season for Little Lever.
In the Championship, Eagley’s fifth win in seven maintained their position as league leaders.
They inflicted a first defeat of the season upon Baxenden, the home side finishing on 163-9 as they attempted to chase 217.
Eagley’s 216-7 was built around Pakistani professional Danish Aziz’s composed 73 before he struck twice in a successful defence. Adeel Baig and Harvey Seigne struck three times each.
Earby were also beaten for the first time in 2026, by 60 runs away at Atherton, who successfully defended 193.
Atherton’s 192-5 total set up their third win in six, with opener Oliver Gredecki top-scoring with 63 and Indian pro Raghavendra Pratap contributing 55.
Pratap struck three times to stymie Earby’s reply, though Sawan Kankanange led the way with four wickets as the visitors were bowled out for 132.
Walkden won their first league match, at the sixth attempt, triumphing by 55 runs at home to Oswaldtwistle Immanuel.
Walkden’s 209-9 was underpinned by wicketkeeper-batter Soham Panvalkar’s brilliant 88 off 86 balls, recovering them from 30-4.
In reply, bottom side Oswaldtwistle had no answer. They were bowled out for 154, with captain Ammad Afzal taking three wickets added to four for Moinuddin Saiyed.
Premiership champions Farnworth Social Circle kept pace with leaders Little Lever as they hammered bottom side Barnoldswick by eight wickets chasing just 57.
Dave Mather’s superb new-ball 6-20 from 12 overs was central to skittling the hosts for just 56 before opener and captain for the day Max Perry top-scored in pursuit with 21.
This was Social Circle’s fourth win in six games this season.
Unfortunately, newly-promoted Barnoldswick have played five, lost five.
Like Social Circle, Read have also won four from six and are one of those on the coat-tails of Little Lever. They were also eight-wicket winners, at home to Lostock as they chased 116.
Sri Lankan professional Sehan Weerasinghe struck four times with spin in Lostock’s 115 all out before Joe Marshall’s measured unbeaten 40 marshalled the Read chase.
In a game similar to the Barnoldswick v Social Circle one, in that it was a low-scoring affair, Padiham were five-wicket winners at Tonge, whose hopes of victory were dashed by being bowled out for 67.
Padiham skipper Toby Burrows returned 5-24 from 15 overs of left-arm spin having taken the new ball, while local pro Iftikhar Nasser returned eye-catching figures of 4-2 from 3.4 overs.
Naseer also contributed 20 with the bat, but wicketkeeper-batter Tom Turner’s 21 not out helped settle any nerves which arrived at 5-2 in reply.
Padiham have played seven, won four, leap-frogging Tonge in the process. Again, they are amongst those chasing Little Lever hard.
A polished bowling display was the chief reason why Farnworth won for the third time in six, this one away at Blackrod by 39 runs.
Bowled out for 147, including 43 apiece for key duo Abdul Bangalzai – their Pakistani pro – and wicketkeeper-batter Simon Booth, the visitors still had plenty of work to do.
But they did it in style, thanks to a fabulous 7-25 from 7.2 overs of spin from Matthew Hicks, who was destroyer in chief as Blackrod were bowled out for 108.
Kearsley’s second win in six games was achieved in impressive, dominant fashion away at Astley Bridge as they chased a 186-target for the loss of only three wickets inside 34 overs.
South African overseas amateur Byron Giraudeaux starred with an opening 119 not out off 107 balls.
Irfan Kareem and captain Andy Gregory had claimed three wickets apiece to restrict hosts Bridge to 185-7 before Giraudeaux hit seven sixes and dominated a defining first-wicket partnership of 149 inside 25 overs with Mohmedruhan Tirmizi (47).
And, finally, back in the Championship, Cherry Tree won a thriller by three wickets chasing 115 at Brinscall to jump into second place.
Their fourth win from seven was achieved but not without drama.
Local pro Mini Bhada claimed 5-18 from 7.5 overs of spin as Brinscall were bowled out for 115.
But, when Bhada fell in the chase, Cherry Tree were 42-4 in the ninth over and wobbling. That became 81-6, only for Mark Hadfield’s superb 61 not out from number five to see them home.
Given the circumstances, that is right up there amongst the best innings of the day across the two divisions.
Cherry Tree (56 points) are nine points behind Eagley.
******
Saturday May 30, Premiership – Farnworth v Tonge, Farnworth Social Circle v Blackrod, Kearsley v Barnoldswick, Little Lever v Astley Bridge, Lostock v Salesbury, Padiham v Read. Championship – Atherton v Oswaldtwistle Immanuel, Eagley v Brinscall, Earby v Baxenden, Ribblesdale Wanderers v Walkden.
******
It may not have worked out for them on Saturday, but it is remarkable to think that the 2026 summer has only been going for just over a month and Earby are already close to matching the number of league wins they achieved throughout the whole of last season.
Twenty two games last term, only six wins in the Championship division of the Anthony Axford North West Cricket League. They finished eighth out of 10 teams.
Now, they have played six and won four, frustratingly suffering their first defeat of the campaign away at Atherton over the weekend.
A fight for respectability last year, they are now well-placed for a promotion push this as they sit third in the table on 51 points, five behind second-placed Cherry Tree and 14 behind leaders Eagley. They have a game in hand on both.
Captain Jake Hargreaves said: “We’ve had a very good start to the season, and it’s been without our new pro for three weeks because he got injured. He rolled his ankle batting.
“He was back with us at Atherton, and hopefully he can kick on now and build on the 60-odd he scored against Oswaldtwistle at the start of May, the game in which he got his injury.”
The professional in question, USA Under 19s batter Utkarsh Srivastava. The 19-year-old’s batting is his main suit, but he is a more than handy off-spinner as well.
Hargreaves continued: “Last year, we knew we had a squad to win games, it just never clicked for us. So far, we’ve won four games, the lads are scoring runs, which was something we just didn’t do last year.
“I think two or three of our amateurs have scored fifties already this season. Last year, it was something like 10 games in before an amateur had significantly contributed to a game.
“Everyone’s really enjoying it.
“It’s just now got to the point that we’ve had that good a start, we don’t want it to end. And it’s a challenge pleasing everyone in the squad because there are so many who have started well, individually.
“Last year, we were turning to a certain two or three who you would expect something from. But now, there’s six or seven lads you can chuck the ball to or you can bat them in top four.”
In fairness, Earby were soundly beaten on Saturday by an Atherton side who have won three from four and sit fourth, level on 51 points with them.
Hosts Atherton won by 60 runs as they successfully defended a 193-target.
Atherton’s 192-5 was set up by opener Oliver Gredecki, who top-scored with 63. Indian pro Raghavendra Pratap also contributed 55.
Pratap struck three times to stymie Earby’s reply, though Sawan Kankanange led the way with four wickets as the visitors were bowled out for 132. Earby’s pro Srivastava top-scored with a patient 41 from number three.
What that result will not have done, though, is dent the confidence of Hargreaves and his team-mates.
The skipper said: “We expect to be top three, top four in the league. That’s the aim we set at the start of the season before we played any cricket. Now the way we’re going, we should be there or thereabouts.
“We’re also hoping to have a good T20 and a good Cup run.”
In the Hamer Cup, Earby host Brinscall in round two on June 14. They progressed courtesy of a bye. In the Birtwistle Cup T20, they lost their opener at home to Padiham on Friday night.
We have already spoken a bit about new teenaged pro Srivastava, and Earby also have a new overseas amateur for 2026 in South African wicketkeeper-batter Nandus McLean.
And while Hargreaves says their batting styles are like chalk and cheese, it is suiting Earby just nicely.
He added: “Nandus, his glove-work’s phenomenal, and he’s just a bully with the bat. He just wants to hit everything hard.
“Utkarsh, he just wants to bat all day.
