While Accrington aren’t giving up on the hopes of a third successive Lancashire League title, professional Will Driver admits that the Worsley Cup has become a big priority.
The Thorneyholme Road side have been hit and miss this season although Driver’s 320 runs so far has helped them to seventh place in the league - already though 35 points behind leaders Haslingden.
While they are still aiming to put in a charge and hope that Graham Knowles’ side will throw their lead away like they did last year, the cup is now top of the bill.
Accrington take on struggling Colne this weekend - still reeling after Colne notched up their first league win of the season last week against David Ormerod’s men.
"That was hard to take." said Driver, whose side got a bye in the first round of the Worsley Cup.
"We know these are games we should be winning if we want to challenge near the top but we are just not doing it. It has been a really topsy turvy season so far and we can’t seem to get any consistency.
"When we have been good, we have been really good and when we have been bad, we have been awful.
"Of course there are still plenty of points to play for though, and all we can hope is that Haslingden blow up like they did last season but obviously it is going to be really hard for us to win the league although we won’t give up hope.
"So that means the cup takes on an extra importance. Colne did beat us last weekend but their pro bowled 20 overs and obviously this week he can only bowl 10 so that should make a difference."
Former Lancashire second XI player Driver was a sub pro around the Lancashire League last season and has settled in quickly to Thorneyholme Road where he hit four half centuries in his first four games of this campaign.
"I have had a good start with the bat but I have been really disappointed with my bowling - I have only got six wickets and Damian Clarke and Paul Carroll havs done that in a match this season! It is something I have to improve on.
"Luckily, with the likes of David Ormerod, Jimmy Hayhurst and Paul Carroll around me, they have bailed me out."
He hasn’t need bailing out with the bat and has been ably supported by his fellow batsmen with Simon Hanson on 296 runs for the campaign so far, Graham Lloyd on 208 and Matt Wilson on 192.
"Matt Wilson has been brilliant this season. I knew he was a good player when I came here but I have been really impressed with him. There is a lot more to come from Graham Lloyd and Simon Hanson is a superb top of the order batsman and he is only a young lad. We have just got to put all this together."
They will be hoping they can tomorrow to reach the cup semi-finals and emulate their victory in the competition two seasons ago.
Church are also still in the hunt for cup silverware facing Burnley tomorrow while Enfield face a tough one at home to holders Ramsbottom.
While these three teams are glory-hunting this weekend, last weekend was one to forget.
Defending champions Accrington saw their title aspirations again stutter when they lost that clash with Colne, who moved off the bottom with the win.
There was little indication of what lay ahead as Colne were all out for 189 batting first with Carroll taking 6-66.
It then looked like being a straight forward victory for the struggling Horsfield outfit as Accrington slumped to 73-7.
But Simon Hanson, who had watched wickets tumble at the other end, found a willing partner in Jimmy Hayhurst and they put on 53 for the eighth wicket before Hanson departed for 41.
However David Ormerod then picked up the baton and put on another 45 for the ninth wicket that lifted Accrington to within four runs of their reduced target.
But the pair then fell in quick succession without adding to the score to leave the hosts celebrating an unlikely victory.
Church were unable to repeat last week’s Worsley Cup heroics against Haslingden as they lost heavily to the league leaders to end their five-match winning run.
Graham Knowles’ side were determined to avenge their Worsley Cup exit and were given a chance to atone for the defeat when they were asked to bat, Church hoping that a damp wicket may offer assistance.
But it proved less favourable to the bowlers than hoped with strong winds increasing the difficulty and the visitors got the solid start they failed to obtain a week ago.
Although they never cut loose as they sometimes can, professional Phil Hayes and captain Knowles added 95, Hayes dropped on 30 from a caught-and-bowled chance offered to skipper Andy Bentley. Levi Wolfenden made inroads with three wickets in his second spell but Steve Dearden was in punishing form and boundaries were not quite at such premium this time round.
All the middle order contributed and, although Bentley picked up five wickets as Haslingden briefly looked like being bowled out, it was not his best spell of the season.
And all the bowlers struggled to keep a tight rein with the visitors posting a daunting total of 226 -9.
It was certainly that after Church lost both openers with only eight on the board. Good starts have been a feature of Church’s season but Ammer Mirza was caught behind off Dearden and Craig Fergusson was trapped leg before by slow left armer Chris Read who took the new ball.
It needed a huge contribution from pro Luke Woodcock while Levi Wolfenden made a battling 15.
But Dearden was bristling with aggression and the middle order fell away to such an extent that at 88-7 it looked a doomed chase.
However Woodcock is in tremendous form and punished Read and Knowles with five huge sixes while keeping Dearden at bay. A 51-stand with Phil Gilrane briefly got Church fans calculating the run-rate needed.
But Jack Sudworth had Gilrane smartly stumped and Woodcock was left stranded on an unbeaten 77 which could have blossomed into a match-winning knock had it been provided with a firmer foundation and stronger accompaniment. Dearden finished with seven wickets for Haslingden.
Down at Acre Bottom, struggling Rishton were close to pulling off a surprise win after posting 187-8 when batting on winning the toss.
The total did not look demanding on a flat wicket but, with just two overs left, then joint leaders Ramsbottom needed 11 runs to win. And they looked to have virtually sealed victory with nine off the penultimate over.
But the first four balls of the last over from professional Andrew Agathagelou brought only one run to tie the scores.
And the hosts crawled over the line with skipper Jon Fielding running a leg bye off the penulitmate ball.
Rishton will rue not setting a more demanding total after progressing to 141-4 with 10 overs left. Their top run-makers were John Seedle (31) and Tiernan Hamill (37).
The weekend demise of the four Hyndburn clubs was complete when Enfield dropped to a seven-wicket defeat at Todmorden after the visitors collapsed from 143-4 to 166 all out.
Top scorer was professional Adam Bracewell, who notched 39 with five fours and a six as he looks to boost his runs tally.
In the field, Enfield could do little to contain host pro David Wiese, who hit eight fours and two sixes in an unbeaten 58 from 53 balls that took Todmorden across the winning line.
