Jaffer Nazir continues to cut a swathe through the SDS Brad-ford League First Division.

The East Bierley pace bowler rifled through Hanging Heaton's top order to take his league wickets tally for the season to 33, which is way above anyone else.

"I am bowling better this season than ever," said the 27-year-old. "I am concentrating on line and length and swing and on making the batsman play every ball.

"I like the Bierley track and the Bierley people and I am happy playing here."

Bierley's skipper Richard Gould is delighted with his overseas player, saying: "This season is the best I have seen him bowl.

"When you can chuck him the ball and know that you are going to get 15 to 20 overs and he will end up with five wickets, that is a huge bonus."

However, Gould did not think that Nazir's spell was the reason that Bierley claimed the six points against the second-placed club.

He said: "It was the stand between Tom Owens (40) and Rob Ellis (27no) that did that. Tom got 50 for us earlier in the season, but he batted better here, and they won us the match.

"If Hanging Heaton had been chasing 120 it would have been a different story."

Bierley were 81 for six with 20 overs left and Gould thought that was too early to send in Jaffer and his long handle.

The captain added: "Jaffer might have got a hundred, but he might also have got a duck and I decided it was better to let Tom and Rob play their natural games."

But it wasn't just a day of talking about Nazir, Owens, Ellis or Hanging Heaton's Ranjit Don and John Carruthers, who pulled their score up with a late partnership of 46. It was another game where the umpires were centre stage again.

Hanging Heaton skipper Alex Morris was scathing afterwards, saying: "They made six bad decisions - some for both sides - and they ruined the game." However, Gould had some sympathy with the men in white coats, saying: "In these conditions (a wind that was strong enough to blow the sight-screen over at the pavilion end) it was very hard to umpire."

For example, wicketkeeper and slips went up early in the match for an edge, but neither the bowl-er Nick Summerscales nor um-pire Geoffrey Robertshaw heard a thing as they were upwind.

Gould added: "No-one makes a mistake on purpose. There were a couple or three that they got wrong but they are two very good umpires (Ted Noble was at the other end) and maybe they just had a bad day - I know I would rather be a player."

Morris added: "It was a new wicket and a green wicket, and when you have quality bowlers like Jaffer it is going to be very difficult to bat on.

"Now we just have to concentrate on winning the Heavy Woollen Cup and staying as high up the table as possible. But we have a more consistent side this season. We are picking from 12 players of Bradford League First Division quality, whereas last season we had three second-teamers in for three-quarters of the season.

"I don't think Pudsey Congs will win it as easily this season as they have been doing in the past five years. It should be between East Bierley, Wood-lands, St Lawrence and us."

As for Jaffer's prospects of ever playing for Pakistan, no-one of importance in Lahore or Karachi takes note of what is happening at Bierley or Baildon.

But Jaffer hasn't entirely given up hope of representing his country, saying: "Maybe the squad will change after they return from the West Indies ."

Nevertheless, his pal Iftikhar Ahmed added: "It will take a sensational season back home for Jaffer to force his way in.

"There is so much politics in Pakistani cricket that it is a matter of who you know, unless you are a world-class performer."