LAST weekend’s Manchester Association Premier Division action saw South West Manchester have the better of a drawn game against a Bury team desperate for points in their relegation battle.

South West skipper Najeeb Ahmad followed up his eight-wicket haul last week with a top score of 70 to set up a useful total. Kahlid Mahmood (33) and Ash Imdad (28) kept up the good work as South West closed their innings on 205-8.

Then it was back to the business with the ball for the two top-scorers who kept Bury in check and picked up wickets at regular intervals. They both bagged three wickets as Bury were restricted to 170-7 in their allotted overs.

Whalley Range’s slim hopes of breaking into the top three were dashed as their under-strength team lost a low-scoring game on a slow pitch at Stretford. Luke Morley was the star with the ball as the pitch suited his off-spin and he returned fine figures of 5-20. Vilas Cutty also chipped in with 2-15 as Stretford were dismissed for a modest 101.

However, it was never going to be easy for Range as they slumped to 26-5 in reply before Morley (22) found help from Paul Davies (15). Once they were dismissed, it was one-way traffic as Stretford rolled over the tail and Range fell for a disappointing 78.

Reigning Premier Division champions Wythenshawe have just a handful of games to pull themselves back from relegation after another batting collapse saw them beaten at high-flying Winton.

Against a determined team looking for the top spot, Wythenshawe again applied themselves well in the field to restrict their hosts to 180-7 with Colin Crowther again the main man with the ball, taking 5-38. Chris Miller gave his team hope of success or, at the worst, survival with a well-executed 55 at the top of the order to take his team to 95-3.

Once he had gone though, the rest of the batting folded meekly, slumping to 105-7 and then all out for 120, to leave them with a mountain to climb in the last three weeks of the season.

Back at Longley Lane, Wythenshawe’s seconds shared the spoils in the reverse fixture after they had limited Winton to an achievable 151-7. The star of the show with the ball was spinner Izzy Fernandez whose marathon stint of 24 overs produced the fine figures of 3-48. Fellow spinner Martin Leonard took 2-45 in 14 overs and Ian Hilton added a useful 2-14.

To make their target, Wythenshawe needed a major innings from their top order. Ian Habershon (35) and Simon Bowers (20) both batted with authority but needed to carry on the good work. Keiron Dunn and Andy Hillas both scored 15 as the home team finished on 120-8.