Keighley well beaten by Altofts after middle-order collapse

But Saturday saw them brought back down to earth with a bump, as they slid to a 51-run defeat at Altofts.

That was the home side’s first win of the season, and moves them up to sixth in Division Two, while Keighley drop to eighth in the 12-team table.

When Altofts batted, they were heavily reliant on two men.

One was Joe Plater, who made a careful 51 not out at No.4, while the other was the more explosive Saif Tahir, who walked in with his side wobbling on 78-4 and struck 69 from 74 balls.

But opener bowler Amjid Hussain did a fine job for Keighley, taking 3-45 from his 13 overs, and Altofts’ total of 209-7 was hardly insurmountable.

But Keighley got their chase all wrong, bowled out for 158 and leaving 17 of their 50 overs unused.

Opener Ryan Ridehalgh struck a rollicking 63 from 58 balls to get the visitors off to a great start, and they looked well set at 89-1.

But Jacques Porter (6-76) caused havoc in the middle order, as Altofts took seven wickets for just 28 runs.

Ijaz Ahmed belted a valiant 37 from 30 balls, which included four sixes, to push the visitors towards a respectable total.

But he was the last man out, caught off the bowling of Tahir (3-26), who had an outstanding match with bat and ball.

Speaking during the week to the Keighley News, Keighley skipper Simon Bailey admitted:  “That collapse was like what we saw from us last year.

“It is the start of the season, so we’re not used to batting on outdoor wickets yet, but I think a lot of the lads are still thinking we’re indoors, where you can try and hit every ball out of the park.

“The heat had an impact on Saturday, because we were in the field first, for over three hours, and there’s no shade over at Altofts’ ground.

“But there’s no excuse, as when we batted, we lost silly wickets in clusters.”

Keighley’s next match is a Bradford District derby at home to second-placed Buttershaw St Paul’s.