Current leaders Hanging Heaton (Alan Thompson, David Armitage, Michael Armitage and Graham Hirst) took on The Mixtures of Rastrick and Elland (Viv Smith, Roger Stopford, Trevor Heley and Derek Hewitt) who still have a chance of the title. Hirst’s good form of late was brought to an end as Heley just got the better of him in a tight 21-15 win. David Armitage beating Smith 21-13 put the Batley side in the driving seat and Thompson’s victory over Stopford 21-13 put daylight between the two teams. Michael Armitage then suffered a 21-14 defeat to Hewitt which gave a match score of 15-14 which didn’t help either side.
Mid table Cleckheaton Sports (Paul Fincher, Tony Quinn, Chris Bray and John Ineson) were matched with Crosshills (Barry McCourt, Rod Bastow, Kevin Burnett and Barry Turnbull) a team who are on the slide, with relegation looking a possibility. The slide was halted, as the Aire Valley side produced all four winners in their 20-11 win, giving a great display of team bowling.
Greetland (George Simpson, Mick Shaw, Barry Sugden and Ken Fleming) took on defending champions Nomads (Philip Holroyd, Les Holmes, James Senior and Mark McGorlick) and knew they needed a result after the Crosshills result. All four games were close, Sugden, Simpson and Shaw all going down while Fleming just scraped home 21-19 against Yorkshire bowler Senior, in the best match of the day.
Mid table Lindley Libs (Richard Saunders, Richard Dickinson, Mark Sykes and Pete Hopkinson) were looking for a big win against bottom club Mirfield Old Bank (Brian Scarth, Dave Sharp, Mel Stradling and Kev Morton). Sykes and Hopkinson were winners for the Libs and Stradling and Morton replied for Old Bank, Dickinson’s twenty against Morton just gave the Libs the game 17-15.
The opening game in the Plate was Asa Briggs (Don Harrison, Trevor Kendall, Kenny McCafferty and Malcolm Isles) still in with a chance of the title, playing current leaders Spen Victoria (Barry Firth, Les Mitchell, Gerald Bromley and Brian Thompson). The leaders did their chances no harm as they provided three winners in Bromley, Mitchell and Thompson with Kendall replying for Asa.
Second placed Bronte’s (Fred Rothwell, Derek Pollard, Martyn Benson and David Hemsley) form has picked up in recent weeks hence their latest league position and they were looking for a decent win against bottom club Cleckheaton Sports 2 (Janet Inness, Ian Wilson, Joyce Ellis and Jayne Bradley). Bronte’s got their win, 17-11 but with only two winners, Rothwell and Hemsley. Wilson and Ellis were successful for Sports.
Lindley B C (Simon Anderson, Michael Thornton, Steve Haig and Tony Lockwood) were looking to stop Sowerby West End’s (Lorraine Hirst, John Sharp, Geoff Price and Shirley Dillingham) race to the top after recent results had put them in contention. West End provided three of the four winners but only won by 16-15 as unusually Hirst was beaten to single figures.
Silsden (Alan Hughes, David Beardsworth, Colin Hargreaves and Nigel Stockdale) and Pellon (Paul Firth, Robert Walker, Mark Bolton and David Gowing) had a nice game and with two winners each, Beardsworth and debutante Stockdale for Silsden and Firth and Walker for Pellon who just got home 16-14 with the better scoring losers.