Padiham's Clarke feels the tables are turning

Having secured a first Ribblesdale Cricket League win against their rivals in eight years at the start of the month, the Arbories outfit went on to claim a Twenty20 triumph at Whalley Road.

The visitors were impressive with the bat and that was magnified by Nathan Whitehead’s spell at the crease as he struck five fours and two sixes in a knock of 54.

Rhys Meehan added 16 to the total and Brannon Varley an extra 37 to push Padiham on to a pedestal.

Brady Barends and Clarke then put on a 43-run stand for the fifth wicket as the away side culminated on 201-4.

Barends found the boundary on six occasions as he finished the innings unbeaten on 44 while Clarke ended on 23 not out.

The hosts struggled to make an impact in the reply as they fell 94 runs short in the Group C encounter.

After a positive start where Jack Jones (28) and Bradley Graham (27) put on 45 for the opening wicket, Read simply collapsed.

Thomas Turner and skipper Joe Marshall made double figures but the home side’s batting order was severely limited by the performances of Curtis Meehan and Shahbaz Rashid.

The former accrued figures of 3-17 from a four over spell while the latter contributed with 2-3 from a three over stint.

With two games remaining, Padiham top the group with six points while Read lie in third spot with four points.

“We’ve beaten them twice in a week now,” beamed Clarke. “We beat them first in the league and now we’ve followed that up in the Twenty20 competition.

“It’s always nice to win your derbies because it’s been quite a while. It had been eight years since we’d last beaten them in the league.

“It’s good and hopefully it shows that the tide is now turning. There’s never been a massive gap between the two clubs but they’ve always had individuals that have helped them get over the line.

“This time we’ve had that strength with some excellent performances seeing us to victory.”

Clarke added: “There was a collection of great efforts which was great to see. We’ve started playing really well in the Twenty20 because it’s a competition that suits our style.

“We’re currently top of the group with two fixtures remaining and one more win should see us through to the semi-final stage. We’re eager to do well in this competition.”

Padiham host Earby on Friday and Read travel to Victory Park to tackle second place Barnoldswick.

Meanwhile, Padiham’s league clash with Barnoldswick and Read’s encounter with Great Harwood were abandoned at the weekend due to the weather.

Marshall’s men did, however, advance to the next stage of the LCB Knockout Trophy with an eight-wicket win over Longridge.