SKIPPER John Wright led Fleetwood from the front in their Bay 96.9 Northern Premier League clash with Preston at Broadwater on Saturday (May 27).

He won the toss, asked Preston to bat, orchestrated his bowling so that the visitors were dismissed for a meagre 95 and then scored a speedy 42 not out to take his side to 98-2 and victory by eight wickets.

Preston started badly and never recovered.

Paul Mann, two, was the first to go when he steered Neil Gregson to slip for Michael Dewhurst to snap up the catch with the total on ten and then at 17 Glen Johnstone, two, edged Pat King through to wicketkeeper Karl Wilkinson.

Meanwhile Asif Bukhari boldly went for his shots and by the time he was third out at 43, lofting an intended drive to Michael Clinning, he had made 29 from only 38 balls with six fours.

Then three wickets then went down in the space of only one run; professional Scott Henderson, Manoj Parekh and Paul Painter the victims.

Skipper Tony Hesketh then showed the only real resistance in the Preston innings and with Paul Greenwood he added 38 runs for the seventh wicket.

Greenwood, 12, was then caught at slip by Gregson off Abbas Ali before Hesketh, a top-scoring 30 from 40 balls with five fours, was bowled by Alex Laird and it was 88-8. Laird then removed Roger Kaye, caught low down by Wright for six, and James Anyon, caught by John Whalley for nought, and the Preston innings was over in only 39.2 overs for 95.

Gregson, 3-32, King 3-34, Laird 3-25 and Ali 1-4, shared the wickets.

John Wright took Michael Dewhurst to the wicket with him but after two scoring cover drives the youngster was bowled by Anyon for nine with the total on 19.

Clinning joined Wright and the pair added 55 in 39 minutes before the former was leg before wicket to Greenwood for 31 made from 34 balls with six fours.

Ali came to the crease, faced only six balls, but despatched three of them to the boundary for four, four and six. But it was skipper Wright to drove the winning runs, hitting his seventh four from 64 balls in making 42 not out.

That took only 19.3 overs and by a quarter to five a sunny Broadwater was deserted. The Fleetwood players were celebrating their third victory of the season and the Preston players were being given a stern on-field lecture by a disappointed captain.