THE wheels came off Atherton CC's Redmayne Bentley Bolton Association championship carriage at the weekend.

Firstly against Elton on Saturday they failed to press home the advantage that a first innings score of 241-6 gave them and had to settle for a draw and 12 points.

It got worse on Sunday as the home side, batting second, failed to match Clifton's 164-8 and lost by eight runs to take just six points.

They found themselves batting first against Elton after skipper Steve Walsh lost another toss.

Chris Partington and Dave Charlson opened the innings and while Charlson was watchful against some quickish bowling from Peter Kay and Mike Holden, Partington seemed intent on self-destruction and soon ran himself out for five.

Greg Dimery, eager to prove a point or two to the club where he previously spent two seasons, joined Charlson and immediately began to show his pedigree with some classy, no risk batting.

The pair put together a partnership of 39 and when Charlson was well caught in the covers for 16, the score was scene was set for the entry of Phil West who in tandem with Dimery put together a 100 partnership at the rate of a run a ball. West's share was 52 from 54 balls. He only hit two fours but hoisted three sixes out of the ground.

Paul Walsh replaced West but lasted only six balls before being caught for five. Rob Clews followed and proceeded to produce some electrifying batting in partnerships of 30 and 21 respectively with Dimery and Ian Nuttall. Dimery was finally out for a top score of 82.

Undefeated partnership

Clews went frantically on his way to an undefeated partnership of 30 with Paul Brown thanks to some breathless sprinting between the wickets. Clews finished with a highly-entertaining 47.

Elton opened with Mark Goddard and skipper John Pemberton, Atherton their bowling with Dimery and Nuttall.

The first wicket to fall went to Nuttall who bowled Pemberton for nought. There then followed a partnership of 81 between Goddard and Harold Pawson, and when Goddard was dismissed for 37, Pawson went on punishing loose balls but was helped by some poor ground fielding and dropped catches.

Wickets proved hard to come by and in some desperation Walsh turned to Clews. In his first over he had Rashid Riaz caught by Walsh himself. After a quickfire 12 from Peter Kay and two late wickets from Dimery, the overs ran out with the home side on 153-5.

The following day Walsh managed to win the toss and asked Clifton to bat. They made a steady start through Geoff Griffiths and professional Dave Parkinson who put on 55 for the first night but not without some risky snicks that somehow managed to avoid going to hand.

A double bowling change saw Charlson and Steve Walsh replace Dimery and Nuttall and they immediately made a double breakthrough. Walsh had Griffiths brilliantly caught one handed by a diving Clews at first slip and then in his second over Charlson had Parkinson caught by Dimery.

Second attempt

Skipper Ian Morris came and went and Tony Kelly became Charlson's third victim when, after sharing in a partnership of 35 with Andrew Griffiths, he was caught by keeper Phil Williamson at the second attempt.

After Charlson caught and bowled Paul Weir for four, Clifton put together the best stand of the innings, 49 between Griffiths and Wild. Charlson eventually removed Griffiths to pick up his fifth wicket and went on to make it 6-42 from 16 as Clifton closed on 164-8.

Wicketkeeper Williamson was given the nod to open with Charlson and the pair batted circumspectly to take the score to 31 in the 13th over and then suddenly the alarm bells rang.

Williamson became a Griffiths victim, caught father bowled son. Then real disaster struck when Dimery dragged a wide ball from Griffiths onto his boot and back onto the wicket and was bowled for nought - his first failure of the season at Higham Park.

West and Brown had a repair job to do. They set about the work with great caution but a partnership of some substance developed and when they had reached 131, an Atherton victory looked likely.

But both were out when they were well set, Brown going for 40 and West for a half century.

The remaining batsmen were unable to finish the job and they fell eight runs short of their target.

Atherton have just one match this weekend, a trip to Lostock tomorrow.