SKIPPER Farakh Hussain led from the from the front as Bowling Old Lane lifted the Jack Hampshire Cup for the first time.

Hussain was named man of the match after blasting 76 from just 40 balls as Old Lane passed Keighley’s total of 202-8 with 7.5 overs to spare and six wickets in hand.

Hussain was thrilled to be lifting a trophy in his first year as captain. He said: "The team have given me tremendous support and this was a reward for their hard work.

"We haven't done as well as we would have liked in the league this season, but this does make up for that."

He pin-pointed the first 12 overs of his side's innings as being key to their success.

"Keighley are a talented young side and we knew we had to take advantage of the fielding restrictions to put them under pressure.

"I knew that if we could get 80 or more runs on the board it would give us a platform to go on and win," said Hussain.

His furious assault at the start of the innings saw Old Lane make 96 in the first 12 overs and that effectively took the game away from Championship Two leaders Keighley.

The left-handed opener raced to his half-century off just 21 balls as the Keighley bowlers were dispatched to all parts of the ground.

Hussain hit three sixes and 13 fours and took his aggregate in this season’s competition to 426 from five matches.

The captain's only regret was not going on and making his third century of this year's competition.

"Paul Quinlan did me with a slower ball. I tried to hit it out of the ground and was bowled. I should have gone on after such a good start and I must confess I got a bit nervous when we lost a couple of wickets because if I had gone on we could have finished things a lot quicker."

Fellow opener Amjid Hussain (40) was prepared to play second fiddle to his skipper as Old Lane eased to victory.

Skipper Hussain’s innings overshadowed the earlier efforts of Keighley’s Jonathan Wilkinson, who struck six sixes and three fours in an unbeaten 63 which was made off just 35 balls.

His efforts pushed Keighley’s total up to 202-8 which exceeded most people’s expectations when they slipped to 35-4 having opted to bat first.

Arsalan Ijaz bowled his eight overs straight off and took 2-28 and made good use of the new ball in partnership with Zeeshan Haider (3-34) as Keighley were prevented from taking advantage of a good Carlton wicket and a fast outfield.

The experienced Richard Gould (40) helped rebuild the innings in a 60-run fifth-wicket partnership with Adam Greenwood.

The left-handed Greenwood made a determined 66 but was handicapped in the latter stages of his innings after damaging a calf muscle which necessitated the need for him to employ a runner.

Crucially for Keighley it also denied them the services of their only slow bowler and that lack of variety hampered their efforts.

Keighley skipper Quinlan was philosophical about his team's defeat.

He said: "They were the better team on the day, but we have to focus on winning the league now."

Keighley have an early chance of revenge as they visit Old Lane in the league on Saturday.