Key Points
- Barnoldswick and Kearsley played out the first tie of the season in either first-team division of the Anthony Axford North West Cricket League, both finishing on 189 in 45 overs.
- Kearsley, chasing 190, needed four off the last over and one off the last two balls, but Wasique Ali defended brilliantly and took the wicket of visiting skipper Andy Gregory, who was stumped off the final delivery.
- Wasique Ali claimed three wickets in the match, while Muhammad Azmat and Deron Greaves took two wickets apiece for Barnoldswick.
- Kearsley slipped from a strong 112-1 during their chase after sub-pro Geeth Kumara was dismissed, triggering a middle-order wobble.
- Both teams earned seven points from the tie; Kearsley remain fifth in the Premiership, while Barnoldswick are second-bottom and 25 points behind Astley Bridge with four games left.
- Home skipper Jonathan Beech, standing in for Matt Cavanagh, praised Wasique’s last over and said he never considered a tie was possible until the final moments.
- Beech highlighted opener Owais Shah’s composed 68 and admitted Barnoldswick’s relegation fears are all but over after a defeat to Salesbury.
- Looking ahead to 2027, Beech said Barnoldswick will aim to return to the top division at the “first bite of the cherry” but acknowledged the need to recruit and refresh an ageing squad.
Kearsley (Bolton Today) August 22, 2026 – A dramatic final over bowled by Wasique Ali secured a thrilling tie for Barnoldswick against Kearsley in the Anthony Axford North West Cricket League Premiership, as both sides finished on 189 in their 45-over contest at Victory Park. The result marked the first tie of the summer across either first-team division of the league, with each team taking seven points from a match that swung decisively in Kearsley’s favour before a late Barnoldswick revival.
What happened in the Barnoldswick vs Kearsley tie?
Barnoldswick and Kearsley produced a tightly contested 45-over match that ended with both teams on 189, the first tie of the season in either top division of the Anthony Axford North West Cricket League. Kearsley, set 190 to win, appeared to be cruising at 112-1 during their chase before losing momentum after the dismissal of their overseas player, sub-pro Geeth Kumara. From that point, boundaries became scarce, and the visitors adopted a more cautious approach, allowing Barnoldswick to creep back into the game through tight bowling and sharp fielding.
The climax arrived in the last over, with Kearsley requiring four runs. Wasique Ali, the home side’s off-spinner, defended four off the over and then a single off the final two balls, before trapping visiting captain Andy Gregory stumped off the very last delivery, to leave Kearsley on 189-8 and ensure the points were shared. As reported by the sport desk of The Bolton News, Barnoldswick’s Jonathan Beech said:
“The first time a tie entered my head was when they needed one to win off the last ball.”
How did Wasique Ali seal the draw for Barnoldswick?
Wasique Ali’s spell in the closing stages proved decisive, with the off-spinner finishing with three wickets as Kearsley’s innings faltered from a promising position. His final over, in which he conceded only the runs Kearsley could not convert into a win and then removed Gregory, stumped off the last ball, was singled out by Beech as “brilliant”. Beech told The Bolton News he had expected Gregory to edge one for four and get lucky, but instead the captain attempted to dab a single and missed the final two deliveries.
Supporting Ali, Muhammad Azmat and Deron Greaves each claimed two wickets as Kearsley’s middle and lower order failed to accelerate sufficiently after Kumara’s dismissal. The combined effort restricted Kearsley to exactly 189, one short of their target, in a finish Beech described as
“a brilliant game of cricket, to be fair, certainly for the neutral”.
Why did Kearsley slip from 112-1 to a tie?
Kearsley’s chase began strongly, reaching 112-1 and appearing well on course to overhaul Barnoldswick’s total of 189. However, the loss of their professional player, sub-pro Geeth Kumara, triggered what Beech described as “a bit of a wobble”, after which the visitors’ scoring rate dropped, and boundaries dried up. According to Beech’s comments to The Bolton News, Kearsley stopped taking risks, and Barnoldswick were able to
“ease our way back into the game a little bit, just by bowling tight and fielding as well as we could”.
The pressure built through the middle and latter stages until the final over, when Kearsley still needed four runs but could not find a way through Ali’s controlled off-spin. Beech acknowledged that Kearsley would be
“very disappointed they didn’t win that game”,
given how comfortably they had been positioned early in their innings.
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What did Jonathan Beech say about the match and Barnoldswick’s season?
Jonathan Beech, standing in as Barnoldswick skipper in place of Matt Cavanagh while Cavanagh resumes football management duties with AFC Silsden, provided detailed post-match comments to The Bolton News. He praised Wasique Ali’s final over and the team’s collective effort, saying:
“The boundaries dried up, and they weren’t really taking any chances. We just sort of eased our way back into the game a little bit, just by bowling tight and fielding as well as we could. And Wasique bowled a brilliant last over.”
On the tie itself, Beech admitted he had not considered it a likely outcome until the very end:
“As I said, I didn’t even think about the tie. I thought he’d (Gregory) edge one to the boundary and get lucky. But he just tried to dab a single and missed the last two balls.”
He also highlighted opener Owais Shah’s innings, describing him as “a very solid batter” who was
“pretty annoyed that he didn’t go on and get a big one because he looked very calm and composed at the crease. He didn’t give a chance until he got out.”
Shah top-scored for Barnoldswick with 68.
Where do Barnoldswick and Kearsley stand in the Premiership?
The seven points apiece from the tie left Kearsley in fifth place in the Premiership, maintaining their mid-table position as the season enters its final stages. For Barnoldswick, however, the comeback is almost certainly too late to save them from relegation. They remain second-bottom of the table and, with four games remaining, sit 25 points behind Astley Bridge with only 48 points still available to play for.
Beech accepted that their hopes of survival are all but over, particularly after a defeat at home to Salesbury the previous Sunday, which he described as a “hammer blow”. Speaking to The Bolton News, he said he had told the squad after that loss:
“No pressure now, just go and enjoy your cricket. Play for the badge and personal pride. Let’s just try and get as many points on the board as we can.”
What are Barnoldswick’s plans for 2027 after relegation?
With relegation effectively accepted, Barnoldswick’s focus has already shifted to 2027 and an immediate push for promotion back to the Premiership. Beech told The Bolton News:
“We will be really keen to get back up at the first bite of the cherry.”
However, he warned that changes will be needed at Victory Park, acknowledging that the current squad has “probably grown old together” and that their fielding has sometimes lagged behind more agile Premiership sides.
“We will be looking to recruit, but I don’t see any reason why we can’t be at the top of the pack next season,”
Beech said, signalling an intent to refresh the playing group while building on the promotion achieved last summer. The final four games of the current campaign are now viewed as a stepping stone towards that rebuilding process, with personal pride and club identity the main motivations for the remaining fixtures.
How does this tie fit into the wider North West Cricket League season?
The Barnoldswick–Kearsley result was notable as the first tie of the summer across either first-team division of the Anthony Axford North West Cricket League, underlining the competitiveness of the Premiership. Elsewhere in the league, title-chasing Farnworth Social Circle continued their strong form, with other Premiership and Championship fixtures proceeding across the region. The tie added an extra layer of drama to a season in which several clubs are already planning squad changes and recruitment drives for 2027, as illustrated by Beech’s comments on Barnoldswick’s need to rejuvenate.
For Kearsley, the dropped points in a match they were well positioned to win could prove significant in the final standings, while for Barnoldswick the performance offered a morale-boosting display even as their top-flight status looks set to end.