New Farnley show Heavy Woollen Cup credentials at Burley

I stepped off the train at Burley-in-Wharfedale’s station to persistent Sunday rain. Fortunately, the drizzle cleared on the walk to Hodson Park for this Heavy Woollen Cup first round match.

The less said the better about the grim forecast predicted but not for the first time, I travelled in hope, keen to see how New Farnley, the runaway leaders of the Bradford Premier League, were shaping up.

Since 2021, New Farnley’s form in this historic competition reads a hat-trick of titles and a losing finalist to Wakefield Thornes last season.

Burley being Harry Brook’s club, there was a neat symmetry to watching a young cricketer called Harry getting encouragement from the sidelines as he bowled during a junior match beforehand.

On Sky Sports in the clubhouse, discussion was whether England could match India’s first innings with Brook fortunate to get a lifeline the previous evening. At lunch, they showed a segment with Harry Brook being interviewed as Burley got a mention.

I grab five minutes with Alex Lilley, New Farnley’s first-team skipper, to get a sense of how the season is going from his perspective. As questions go, it was the equivalent of getting a slow full toss to drill into the stands.

Not bad, John. (They have a 36-point lead over second-placed Farsley after after ten games).

Amid the hubbub of a noisy clubhouse, Alex tells me that life imitated Test cricket briefly during the league game with Jer Lane the day before.

“Yesterday, there were a few eyebrows raised when I won the toss and bowled. It was a fresh pitch and tends to do a bit more first half… the lads were calling me ‘Stokesy’ when they were 200 for four I think with ten left!”

New Farnley have signed Indian quick bowler Abhay Negi for this season after several profitable but incomplete stints from New Zealand batter Cam Fletcher who was recruited by Derbyshire for the T20 Blast in 2024.

Unable to get a replacement for the second half of last season due to league rules, it prompted a change of strategy to a bowler with first-class experience but who’s less likely to get the call from Anthony McGrath at Headingley.

That said, Negi (above) and Cleethorpes’ Mayank Mishra were both asked to bowl at the Indian Test squad before the first Test in Leeds:

“It was a really good experience bowling against top teams and top batters. It’s a different level. Any young bowler should bowl to the senior teams. You’ll gain a lot of experience just by being around them.”

Talking to Abhay during the day, he is settling in well. His wife, Sandhya, is in England too and as a cricketer herself, she umpires for New Farnley’s second team and coaches the juniors.

They got married in April and arrived at New Farnley CC in the middle of the night a few weeks later; now living with the club’s first-team scorer Noel on Lawns Lane.

As the squads warmed up, I pondered today’s match-up.

On paper (not an infallible indicator unless you’re playing Howzthat? dice), Burley who are second in the top-flight of the Aire-Wharfe League would struggle to match the firepower of their opponents from LS12.

The two squads knew each other quite well with New Farnley opening bat Ed Brown having captained at Burley while Fletcher Coutts played there too and Adam Ahmed has had a few matches for Burley in Group 1 of the Aire-Wharfe League’s T20 contest.

The visitors were reshuffling their pack through necessity with opening batter Steve Bullen resting his calf as a precautionary measure as Jonny Phillips slotted into the top six.

Subhaan Ali would have been in the mix but as a cricketer selected for Yorkshire’s Emerging Players’ Programme, I think he was either rested or required elsewhere. As it turned out, he cropped up on Sky Sports at lunch with a segment on Moin Ashraf’s MACC Academy.

Lilley was hoping not to bowl to manage the workload on his achilles but with Sam Barraclough also unavailable, that seemed hopeful.

On the fallacy of form, Alex also pointed out that Barkisland ran New Farnley very close in last year’s Heavy Woollen Cup quarter-final. Four to win, two balls remaining and one wicket in hand. Direct hit by Ryan McKendry for a run out meant job done – but close call.

Here, the hosts won the toss and elected to have first use of the surface with the bat; maybe buoyed by Burley’s 277-4 against Pool the previous day, also with rain about later.

The umpires, Phillip Milton and Tim Summers, were to have an eventful afternoon that began on the third ball of the match with Joe Hall edging Negi (1-21) to Gabe Field.

Had it carried? The umpires conferred and the decision was upheld. Cue some grumbling and close inspection of the FrogBox footage which proved inconclusively pixellated. Either way, the umpire gave it so let’s crack on.

Burley slumped to 37-4 as Revis holed out in the deep and Lilley (3-16) bowled Jason Wright. The recovery, such as it was, came from Jayden Vince; the Tasmanian whose side back home New Town play in the Cricket Tasmania Premier League.

Fun fact, New Town has a club song on its website… altogether now: ‘Oh, we’re from townie land, a fighting fury, we’re from townie land, in any weather you will see us with a grin, (Hey), risking leg and shin (hey)…’

It is not on record what Vince thought of the Yorkshire weather in June that had been heading towards thirty degrees the day before and reverted to April gloom overnight.

What I can say is that Burley’s overseas signing was well worth his 51 off 44 balls; bringing up an untroubled half-century with a pull for six into the artificial nets square of the wicket. His dismissal by Ryan McKendry was a surprise as he clattered past me in his spikes to herald another flurry of wickets.

McKendry and out

Adam Ahmed (1-18), Gurman Randhawa (1-29) ensured spin kept things tidy but it was McKendry’s 3-21 that kept Burley on the back foot, dismissed for 132 in 32 overs.

For good measure, the quietly effective allrounder pulled off a run out and took a catch in a busy stint in the field.

A mention for Burley’s keeper Josh Hastings who dropped anchor for a steadying knock of 23 not out from 59 balls while calamity ensued at the other end.

The interval allowed me to buy a stellar tea, kindly assembled by Wendi Bolton (Club Secretary) who had to magic up food for 25 or so in 13 fewer overs than expected. The ginger cake was a winner while others gravitated to the hot food.

At this point, it rained heavily. Siling it down, you might say. The last resort would have been a bowl-out in the nets, had less than the requisite number of overs been possible.

As that possibility became more likely, discussions were had and a midweek T20 was mooted. Burley, on the wrong side of a light batting display, were noticeably keen while New Farley have a glut of games and felt confident they could finish the job on the Sunday.

Rules were inspected, brows furrowed and when all was said and done, the umpires reduced the run chase to 67 off 15 overs. The goal? To get a result that was fair to both sides and in the end, the visitors sped to victory by seven wickets.

To Burley’s credit, they threw some punches with the ball as Vince (1-25), Hall (1-20) and Postle (1-12) claimed wickets but Jonny Phillips (28) and McKendry (20 not out) saw the Bradford Premier League side into the next round: Home to Almondbury Wesleyan on 6 July.

Elsewhere in round 1 of the Heavy Woollen Cup, Townville beat York by seven wickets and defending champions Wakefield Thornes won by 10 wickets at Bilton.

Burley might be disappointed with their brief exploits in the Heavy Woollen this year but they find themselves in title contention in the Aire-Wharfe Cricket League’s 1st XI Premier Division.

Burley aim for league momentum

Burley’s captain Mark Harrison spoke to me before his side got a chance to bowl. I was curious what has sparked their Aire-Wharfe League momentum? Often talked about as a side capable of challenging, it is all clicking into place this season.

Mark said: “We’re consistent with our side…player availability… and we thought we’d compete. We just want to play good cricket and when we play good teams, make sure they know we’re there.”

He identifies the impact of younger players like Joe Hall (512 runs) while Jayden Vince averages 56 with a strike rate of 122. Unsurprisingly, Harrison’s goal is silverware and in the league, that means getting past Otley.

Before that chapter unfolds, there’s the exhibition game against Lashings World XI on Friday 4 July. Those hospitality tables will be popular and I have my digits crossed that the sun shines. Will Curtley Ambrose make an appearance with the ball?

As ever, thanks to both clubs and supporters for interviews, nuggets of gossip and their own insights. Dave Cooper at Burley is a whirling dervish who somehow found time to make me a brew. Friendships have been cemented on less.