SHIRESHEAD maintained their position at the summit of Westmorland Cricket League Division One after claiming a winning draw from their clash with Ambleside at Clifton Park.

In a match reduced to 28 overs per side due to the weather, the hosts posted 147-8 from their allocation after being invited to bat.

After an early Liam Parkinson knock of 20, the Shireshead batsmen were largely kept in check before the arrival of Danny Wilkinson who produced a powerful innings.

Wilkinson finished with 55 after smacking four fours and as many sixes during a 34-ball stay at the crease, with Oli Wileman taking 6-62.

Ambleside started their reply positively and looked to take on James Rafferty, although three wickets in the same over by Peter Wilson changed the complexion of the game.

The Rydal Road club finished on 81-7, collecting one point from the clash as Shireshead took eight from the only league match where play was possible.

As such, the Hackney and Leigh Cup took centre stage with Silverdale making it safely through to the quarter-finals with victory over Division Two side Moor Hospital at Cove Road.

After winning the toss and electing to bat, the visitors were routed for just 64 as Jon Mason, Paul Moffatt and Eddie Letcher all claimed two wickets apiece.

However, Moor Hospital had their top flight opponents in disarray as Steven Beck claimed a hat-trick inside the first over to leave Silverdale rocking at 0-3.

With Jack Hargreaves, James Greenall and Dan Stevens back in the pavilion, Lindsay Thompson and Graham Dodds guided Silverdale home with unbeaten knocks of 35 and 20 respectively.

At Carr Lane, Heysham completed a regulation victory after dismissing Barrow for 98 as Paul Antcliffe returned figures of 3-15 and Reg Cupit and Sam McClements both took two wickets.

After Barrow snared a couple of early victims, opener Luke Pearson steadied the ship and ensured Heysham recorded a commanding eight-wicket win with an unbeaten half-century.

Division Three leaders Carnforth produced an upset by defeating Warton in a nail-biting clash at Hyning Park which went down to the wire.

After being invited to bat by Carnforth skipper Alex Benson, Warton mustered 135-9 from their 25 overs with Ryan Nelson top-scoring with 37 and Graeme Crowther making 28.

Mark Bradley and Gareth Denwood were the pick of the Carnforth bowling, picking up three wickets apiece, with the match finely poised at the halfway stage.

Opener Wayne Tomlinson led the Carnforth charge with 47 as Jack Brown and Gareth Finney shared five wickets, with Denwood hitting the winning run with two balls to spare.

Westgate were another team to progress to the final eight after dispatching Coniston at Cross Hill Park and winning by 109 runs.

Gary Tattersall was Westgate’s leading light with the bat, top-scoring with 66 as the home side posted 175-6, as Khan Puffet finished 29 not out.

The Coniston response was ticking over nicely at 60-2 before off-spinner Andy Hill produced a devastating spell of bowling to stop the visitors in their tracks.

Hill finished with figures of 6-6 while fellow slow bowler Saeed Patel picked up 2-8 as Coniston were bowled out for 84.

At North Road, Ambleside collected a ten-wicket win against Holme, with the hosts setting a victory target of 129 after struggling at 35-5.

However, the visitors made light work of the total, scoring the required runs within 13 overs as Oli Wileman once again starred with the bat, making an unbeaten 84.

In a match played the week before, Shireshead made progress at the expense of Ingleton with the top flight side posting a massive 267-5 from their 25 overs.

Paul Yates made a half century while fellow opener Parkinson posted 30, although the innings received late momentum from Sam Hilton and Robert Skipworth.

The duo clobbered 118 from the final 45 balls with Hilton in particular brutal form, clearing the boundary rope five times during his 31-ball stay at the crease.

Hilton finished 64 not out, bringing up his 50 in just 17 balls, while Skipworth was undefeated on 42 as Ingleton faced an uphill battle to salvage the tie.

Chris Fleming was the pick of the Ingleton batsmen with an unbeaten 43 as his side accumulated 124-7, with debutant Rowan Upton claiming 2-41.