Keighley will be among the promotion favourites

9:47am Monday 14th April 2008

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Keighley Cricket Club open their 2008 season in Division Two of the JCT 600 Bradford League at Hartshead Moor on Saturday, April 19. A preview of Keighley's first team and their rivals in the division as written by Alan Birkinshaw is as follows: KEIGHLEY: They missed out cruelly on promotion on the last day of last season and are among the favourites for a top two spot this season. They have a nice blend of experience and youth and it will be interesting to see if youngsters Scott Hartley and Liam Dyson can make the sort of progress Max Davidson and Paul Quinlan made last season. The return of Dale Towler will further strengthen the bowling attack. Any side with an all-rounder as effective and successful as Richard Robinson has to be a threat.

BANKFOOT: Former captain Greg Colehan is set to return after two years at Idle to speahead the bowling attack while batsman Darren Blenkiron has been recruited from Undercliffe and should make a big difference to a side who performed inconsistently last season.

FARSLEY: Relegated last year but sure to be strong challengers for promotion this time. They have a new young captain in wicketkeeper/batsman David Syers who has taken over from former Yorkshire star Ashley Metcalfe who will surely be a prolific runscorer in Division Two. Their new recruits include former Idle opener Harvey Anderson and Townville all-rounder Daniel Clayton.

GOMERSAL: They have one of the strongest batting line-ups in the league with Richard Gould and Bradley Parker having been joined this season by overseas player Kashif Naveed who made such a big impression at Great Horton last season. The lack of penetration in their bowling cost them dearly last year and could be their Achilles heel again.

GREAT HORTON: The loss of Kashif Naveed is a big blow to a side which sprang big surprises in the Sovereign Health Care Priestley Cup last season but failed to find any real consistency in the league. They may find the going tough this time.

HARTSHEAD MOOR: Finished bottom last season but have a new captain in Simon North who has been signed from Central Lancashire League side Norden. They are looking for an improvement this term.

IDLE: After a winter of discontent this could prove a tricky campaign for the Cavendish Road club who were relegated last season. Experienced players Paul Cummins (Esholt), Greg Colehan (Bankfoot), Harvey Anderson (Farsley) and Steve Thompson (Pudsey St Lawrence) have departed leaving new skipper Danny Shuffe leading a new-look side. It will be a surprise if they finish better than midtable.

LIGHTCLIFFE: Made steady progress under new skipper Richard Nichols last season and could be a surprise package this time. They have high hopes for their new Australian player Stuart Lee who played in the Cheshire League last season. They have also strengthened their squad by signing former Brighouse wicketkeeper Mark Horne while batsman Nick Pyrah has rejoined the club after a spell with Copley.

MORLEY: They started with six straight wins last season before fading away badly in the second half of the campaign. They are ambitious for success and new skipper Matt Taylor hopes his brother, Yorkshire batsman Chris, will be available for more than the odd game. The bowling attack has a new spearhead with former Pudsey Congs overseas player Mohammad Azhar-Ullah set to share the new ball with Nathan Bromby who has returned after just one season with Pudsey Congs. They should be serious promotion contenders.

SPEN VICTORIA: They were forced to apply for re-election last season and may find the going tough again without their star all-rounder Chris Elstub who has joined East Bierley. Peter Jackson is the new captain having led Huddersfield League side Thongsbridge for the past three years. Spen have a new-look side and will need to utilise the experience of last season's Manningham Mills captain Mahboob Hussain who has joined them.

UNDERCLIFFE: As usual they are full of ambition and it will be interesting to see if new director of cricket Russell Heritage can bring them a change of fortune with a new-look side. James Clarke is back after a spell at Brighouse as captain and so too is prolific opening batsman Mark Gilliver. They have a new young wicketkeeper in Elliott Milnes, who has been recruited from Woodlands, and hope they can secure promotion at the fourth attempt.

WINDHILL: There have been little green shoots of improvement over the past two seasons and they will be keen to maintain that progress this time. All-rounder Iqbal Khan and wicketkeeper Mohammad Altaf have been signed from Great Horton.