BOWLING Old Lane's veteran warhorses have been celebrating a famous success after securing the Grey Fox Over-50s Trophy, which is open to cricket clubs across Yorkshire.

The Bradford League side downed Wetherby Wrinkles by six wickets in the final, at the county ground in Scarborough, securing the title for the first time.

Naz Ali, who is Old Lane chairman and captain of the Over-50s, expressed his delight at the victory, and talked about how much it meant to the club as a whole.

He enthused: "There's about seven of us in the team that are part of Wyke Manor's Class of '84 and it's our third year playing together in this competition.

"They looked after us brilliantly in Scarborough. A lot of the juniors came along and played on the beach, while the likes of Geoff Hanson, who is a legend at the club, also came to watch.

"It was a nice feeling to have them all there and a good win for us."

It was a reasonably comfortable win over Wetherby in the final, but the bad weather threatened to spoil Bowling's big day.

Talking the T&A through the final and the lead up to it, Ali recalled: "We came top in the group stages, then we beat Beverley in the semis at New Rover in Leeds.

"Wetherby scored 178-6 off their 30 overs in the final and we chased that down with 179-4 in 26.2 overs. We tried to get there quickly as we didn't want it to be rain-affected.

"It's good for a Bradford side to win it, as we're the first one in a while."

It is quite the growing set-up at Bowling Old Lane. A wide array of sides play there, with Ali feeling that they owe it to Bradford to do so.

He explained: "We have seven teams, right through from our Under-13s, up to the Over-50s, where we have firsts and seconds. We also set up out first women's side this year.

"We're promoting the inner city in Bradford. Great Horton and Manningham Mills have folded over the last few years, which is sad, but we offer something here for all ages and genders."