TWP Wealth Twenty-20 Finals Day Sunday July 6th. at Darwen CC Netherfield captain Marc Brown with the TWP Wealth Twenty-20 Trophy Netherfield retained the TWP Wealth Twenty-20 Trophy after overcoming both Lancaster and Blackpool on Twenty/20 Finals Day at Birch Hall, Darwen. Marc Brown's team defeated Blackpool in the Final, by an impressive 54 runs. Netherfield posting 171-5, setting Blackpool an imposing total. Sri Lankan Professional Saliya Saman top scoring with 72 off 37 balls and Ben Phillips opened with a half century off 41 balls. Chasing the large total, Blackpool were restricted to 117-7, Tom Williamson with figures of 4-17, An individual performance which gave Williamson the man of the tournament. Netherfield go on to the Area Finals on 10th August to be hosted by the Bolton League. Netherfield TWP Wealth Twenty-20 winners FINALS DAY ROUND UP Christi Viljeon in the field for Blackpool Semi- Final 1 Darwen CC v Blackpool CC Darwen agonisingly missed out on a place in the TWP Wealth Twenty/20 finals day as the hosts were robbed of a spot in the showpiece showdown on the final ball of the first semi-final yesterday. The Towers, who won the right to stage the Northern League's popular event after winning their group, pulled out all the stops to make the day a success off the field. Darwen posted a testing 150-6 and it seemed as though Jordan Clarke's men were to book the final fling. But in a thrilling chase Blackpool edged over the line on the last ball as Steven Mercer hit two successive boundaries. When Darwen batted Ammer Mirza made a fine 36 but the headline act was John Cordingley who carried his bat for 61 He hit six fours and one six in a quite brilliant innings that oozed class, while Kamran Anwar's booming 34 not out helped Darwen reach their 150-6. It looked like enough but Blackpool had other ideas. Needing five off two deliveries with two wickets left and Darwen pro George Linde bowling the game was in the balance but Mercer's square cut found the ropes after Ammer Mirza slipped while trying to cut the ball off on the edge. That tied the scores but Blackpool needed one run as they had lost more wickets. Mercer obliged with a brutal boundary after the field had been brought in. It was tough on the Towers, who had pulled the game back after Blackpool pro Christi Viljoen made a spectacular 22 before falling to a stunning Linde catch in the deep and when Andy Furiss (18) and skipper Paul Danson (12) had gone it seemed like Darwen's day.Greg Lawrenson claimed three wickets and the Towers also effected three runs outs to turn up the pressure only for it all to go wrong later. It looked like enough but Blackpool had other ideas. Blackpool celebrate after reaching the final with victory over Darwen (Picture courtesy of KIPAX) Scorecard Semi-Final 2 Netherfield v Lancaster A gritty Ben Barrow knock saw Netherfield recover from a lacklustre start and progress to the TWP Wealth Twenty/20 final after strangling the Lancaster reply in the middle overs. The Parkside Road club defended a relatively modest 129-7 to win by 13 runs as slow left-armer Tom Williamson picked up 2-18 and Nathan Chambers 2-22. After losing big-hitters Marc Brown, Saliya Saman and John Huck, Ben Phillips provided the initial fightback before Barrow gave the innings further impetus with a top score of 42. Netherfield were 8-0 in the second over before Brown picked out Scott Sparks at square leg off the bowling of New Zealand professional Michael Barry for two. Saman was the next to go, trapped in front by Liam Moffat for six which saw Huck join Ben Phillips at the crease,the Australian carried the fight to the Lune Road outfit. John Huck smashed Ian Burstow for a six over long on with a further maximum over mid-wicket from Phillips bringing up the Netherfield fifty in the ninth over. Huck was stumped next over by Sam Moorby off Matthew Liver for 14 with Barrow's first-ball cover drive to the boundary saw Netherfield 61-3 at the halfway stage with Phillips 31 not out. Ben Phillips Matthew Liver struck again to remove Phillips, who picked out Luke Phillips at silly mid-off, after striking five fours and clearing the boundary rope once, as Barrow and Joe Atkinson took Netherfield beyond three figures. Sparks bowled former Lancaster man Atkinson for seven before Brad Earl edged Metcalfe behind for one with the Parkside Road club 116-6 after 18 overs. Netherfield after their 20 overs were 129-7 Ben Barrow batted with plenty of poise, hitting four boundaries but also maximising the scoring opportunities around the ground to finish with a 33-ball 42. He holed out to Dylan Conroy at long on to ensure Michael Barry was the pick of the bowlers with 3-19 and Matthew Liver returned economical figures of 2-19. Jamie Heywood and Michael Barry started the Lancaster reply in positive fashion, reaching 28-0 after four overs before the former top-edged to Stuart Dixon at short third man for 12. Dixon conceded only 16 runs from his spell and struck in his second over as Charlie Swarbrick picked out a diving Earl at mid off, with Lancaster well set at 47-2 from eight overs. This wicket proved a turning point with Earl's first over a maiden as the scoring rate slowed with Lancaster adding just five runs in the next three overs. Luke Phillips, who struggled to score freely, was run out for four before Burstow cracked a six off Earl as Lancaster progressed to 70-3. Tom Williamson took the big wicket of Barry who was snaffled by Huck at mid wicket before bowling Burstow as the youngster picked up two scalps with his first three balls. With the scoreboard reading 81-5 and Lancaster requiring 49 runs from five overs the pendulum was swinging in Netherfield's favour with Ben Phillips's direct throw running out Sam Moorby for five. Nathan Chambers bowled Liam Moffat for three and despite an aggressive Dylan Conroy adding 28 from 22 balls, Netherfield prevailed by 13 runs to set up a showdown with Blackpool in the final. Match information courtesy of The Westmorland Gazette and The Lancashire Evening Telegraph) Scorecard The Final Blackpool v Netherfield Reigning champions Netherfield retained their TWP Wealth Twenty/20 title after a blistering batting display blew away Blackpool in the final with the Parkside Road club powering home by 54 runs. Sri Lankan professional Saliya Saman produced a stunning innings of 72 while Ben Phillips added a half century as Netherfield posted a mammoth 171-4 from their 20 overs. Blackpool faced an uphill task from the start and there was no repeat of the semi-final when they chased down 151 to beat Darwen, finishing on 117-7 as Tom Williamson claimed 4-17. After being invited to bat, Phillips carved both Christi Viljoen and Ben Eckton through backward point for four as Netherfield navigated the first four overs without alarm at 18-0. Marc Brown hooked Andy Furniss to the boundary rope before falling to the same bowler for nine after picking out Ash Moreau at mid-off. Ben Phillips and Saliya Saman ensured the score ticked along before the latter unleashed two huge hits in the ninth over for six the first over mid-wicket and the second much finer. A further four through backward point by Phillips saw Netherfield reach 66-1 at the halfway stage with the Australian unbeaten on 31 and Saman 20 not out. The Netherfield innings received a massive surge in the final ten overs which saw 110 runs added with Saman in particular putting the Blackpool bowling to the sword. A pulled four from Phillips was followed by successive sixes from Saman as Danny Gilbert had a baptism of fire, conceding 19 runs from his one and only over in the match. A further six over long-on propelled Netherfield to three figures with a powerful cover drive bringing the 28-year-old Sri Lankan his half century in the 14th over. With scoreboard reading 114-1, Furniss was the next bowler to suffer as his final three balls went for 14 to finish with 1-31 as Saman once again flexed his muscle. Phillips reached 50 in the 16th over before guiding a Steven Mercer delivery to Gilbert at mid-off, as John Huck clobbered the same bowler for four second ball. Namibian professional Viljoen saw another straight boundary crashed off his bowling before exacting revenge as Saman was bowled for 72 with Netherfield 146-3 from 17 overs. John Huck took up the mantle and fired another six off Mercer before Ben Barrow departed looking for late runs as Viljoen finished with 2-29. Brad Earl was run out via a direct hit on the last ball of the innings as Huck finished unbeaten with a 13-ball 23 with Netherfield posting a daunting 171-5. Two boundaries in the opening over saw Blackpool start their reply positively although a mix-up with fellow opener Viljoen saw Gurman Baines run out for eight in the second. Blackpool were ahead of Netherfield at the equivalent stage of their innings as Viljoen was bowled by Stuart Dixon for ten with the Stanley Park club 32-2 from six overs. A straight six brought up the Blackpool fifty in the eighth as Tom Williamson made an immediate impression, bowling Furniss for a top score of 31 with his first delivery. The left-arm spin twins of Williamson and Earl strangled the middle overs with the former striking twice in the 12th over to remove Alex Smith and Chris Baines for eight and five respectively. Ash Moreau was the next to go, stumped for 2 by Barrow off Williamson who finished with 4-17 as Blackpool's impossible task petered out. A six from Mercer brought up the 100 as he and Paul Danson added late runs, with the Blackpool skipper bowled by Saman with the final delivery of the innings for 28. While Williamson was the pick of the bowlers, Saman ended with 1-23 and Dixon 1-18, and although wicketless Chambers, Earl and Mark Clarkson all bowled economically. The Netherfield bowlers union holding the trophy (left to right: Stu Dixon,Mark Clarkson,Brad Earl, Nathan Chambers and Tom WIlliamson (man of the tournament) The Netherfield players collect their medals Scorecard

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