Greenmount first eleven stormed to an eight-wicket victory over Nelson on Sunday to stay in the mix at the top of the league.
Elsewhere, the third team won once again but an improved performance from the seconds wasn’t enough for a rare twelve points.
Playing at the Log Cabin, the firsts would’ve been rueing a below-par bowling effort after winning the toss and choosing to field. This was especially the case given they had Nelson 17 for 3 early in the contest.
Their visitors put on 231 for 7 all-in-all, with Neil Thompson’s 93 from 122 balls being by far and away the highest score.
Callum Hunter at least had something to shout about with ball in hand, as he ended with commendable figures of 4 for 52 from 13 overs.
The rain then hit, and an extended delay meant that the new target for the Mount’s batters was 187 from 35 overs. This proved to be no issue, as the score was made in just 20.5 overs, with eight wickets to spare.
Plaudits, once again, went to the formidable opening pair of Jacques Snyman and Tom Heaton, who blasted scores of 55 and 96, respectively.
Heaton’s innings was especially impressive, making his way to the total in just 65 deliveries and scoring 17 fours before falling agonisingly short of a ton.
Once the partnership was broken, the two had put on 142 together, and victory was something of a formality.
A similarly dominant display came on Saturday for the third team, as they played host to Littleborough. After winning the toss and electing to bat, they compiled an excellent total of 213 for 8 off their 40, with several contributors.
Captain Mark Crowther top scored with 63 from 50 balls while Tom Clarke and Liam Riley hit 37 and 34 respectively. Altogether, six of the nine players to bat made it into double figures.
In the second innings, the bowling effort followed a similar trend, as five of the six bowlers picked up at least one wicket. Riley picked up the best figures of the bunch, taking 3 for 23 in his eight overs.
The visitors were eventually removed for 145 at the end of the 38th over.
Contrastingly, Sunday’s second team fixture at Nelson was yet another tough one for Greenmount, as they lost by five wickets.
They will have been encouraged by the batting display, however, posting 183 for 7 after choosing to bat first. This was mostly down to an anchoring innings from Sam Greenhalgh, who carried his bat in an effort of 66 from 132 balls.
He was backed up by a well-made 42 off 50 from Toby Leach as the Mount at least buried some doubts from recent low scores.
Nelson are top of the league for a reason, though, and their chase was comfortable in the end, despite wobbling at 110 for 5 at one point.
Sardar Asghar (30*) and Armaan Moghal (43*) saw the hosts over the line by the end of the 36th over.
Results mean the first team sit in fourth in JW Lees Division Two, 20 points behind leaders Ramsbottom. The Thirds are also pushing in their league, staying in second with their win and trailing first-placed Nelson by 22 points. The Seconds are ninth as things stand.