Skipton'S gallop at the head of affairs in Division C of the Airedale & Wharfedale League came to a halt on Saturday when the Sandylands men suffered only their second defeat of the season.

They went down by three wickets at home to one of their promotion rivals Illingworth, a result which leaves the battle for the top two places finely poised with only 10 points separating the top four clubs.

There was no hint of the disappointment ahead when Kevin Owens and Steve Carling opened the innings after Skipton had been put in. The in-form pair got them off to an ideal start, seeing off the opening assault to reach 35-0 after 10 overs. The scoring rate then increased as the two batsmen settled into the challenge and had progressed to 95 when Owens was guilty of giving his wicket away cheaply when he was caught for 42.

Carling reached another half-century with a boundary, but he too was guilty of a lapse of concentration when he missed a full toss off the bowling of spinner Dave Scott which saw him dismissed leg before.

From the relative properity of 114-2 with 23 overs remaining, however, the rest of the batting struggled against some accurate Illingworth bowling and Skipton closed at 179, giving the opposition three extra overs in the process, a concession which would prove crucial later on in the game.

Skipton made an excellent start, reducing the visitors to 13-2 inside the first four overs and the game was evenly poised on 48-3 after 15 overs and then 85-4 after 28.

At this point came the partnership that won Illingworth the game. Richie Smith and Trevor Kerr added 55 for the fifth wicket.

At 140-4, Illingworth looked to be cruising to victory, but when Kerr was dismissed the game came alive again, two more wickets falling to put the game back in the balance.

Tight bowling at the death by Iqbal and Chris Hope gave the home side a chance of taking points from the game, but at this stage the failure of Skipton to use of up their overs came into sharp focus.

Though the pressure was building, the visitors had an extra three overs to reach their target, a goal they reached in the 53rd over when they claimed the six runs they needed to win the game.

Upper Wharfedale continue to make progress in the middle of Division C, their six-wicket win at Ben Rhydding looking as though it might appear in the league record books at one stage.

The home side crumbled in the face of a destructive bowling effort from Tom Whitaker, who finished with a match-winning haul of 8-27 from 16 tremendous overs.

At one point Ben Rhydding were 7-6 and looking as though they might struggle to reach double figures, but a 51-run stand between the Winterbottom brothers spared some blushes.

The home side were finally dismissed for 67 in 33 overs, although thoughts of a rout were quickly dispelled when Upper Wharfedale batted. They had both openers back in the pavilion with only one run scored and the third wicket fell at five to compound the anxiety.

Kevin Holme (23) and James Hastings-Trew (25no) were able to steady the ship, however, and the Dalesmen got home with four wickets in hand.