REIGNING champions Walkden have picked up where they left off in the Anthony Axford Bolton Cricket League this season.

Three weeks into the delayed Premiership campaign, they sit top of the pile with their latest victory seeing them dismiss Horwich for just 45 on Saturday.

Tahir Maqsood took 6-14 for Walkden and Mustafir Bashir 4-23. Extras were the highest score for Horwich with 18.

Of the batsmen only Josh Little reached double figures as he made 10.

Walkden lost three wickets as they sealed victory with Usman Tariq scoring 23 in the reply, the early leaders getting over the line in the 14th over to ensure a swift finish to proceedings.

Heaton and Westhoughton played out a rare tie at the St George’s Oval.

Luca Williams-Denton was the leading run maker for Heaton with 75, rescuing the innings from 63-6 with a 72-run partnership alongside Irfan Muhammad, as the visitors finished on 158-8 batting first.

There were two wickets each for Kieran Edwards and Uzzair Shah.

With Rob Houghton making 45 and Ryan Chaisty 32, Westhoughton were well placed for victory at 83-1 and 107-2 in reply.

However they could ultimately only tie the game, a dramatic finish seeing Edwards run out off the last ball of the innings.

Marcus Haslam recorded figures of 4-36, Darshan Varsani 3-39 and Muhammad 2-40.

There were three wickets each for Farnworth Social Circle’s Dave Mather, Jamie Bohannon and Chris Barrow as Lostock totalled 111 all out, Dave Flanagan hitting 32 of these.

Ayran Soma steered Social Circle to a six-wicket victory with a watchful, undefeated 45 at the top of the order.

Tom Sheen took 2-20 for Lostock.

A 90-run opening partnership between Anthony Hilton, and Adil Nisar, who went on to make 126, set Little Lever on their way to an eventual 235-6 off their 40 overs against Kearsley.

Nisar’s knock came from 109 balls and included 19 fours and two sixes.

Cameron Murray hit a half century and Mohammed Jameel 42 as Kearsley responded with 150. Naeem Patel was the pick of the Little Lever bowlers with 3-28, and there were two wickets for Nisar, Curtis Anderton and Josh Hill.

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