EAST LANCS missed a glorious chance to pull two points clear at the top of the Transco Lancashire League when ACCRINGTON last pair denied them bowling points.

Accrington had been set a taget of 136, thanks largely to 43 from Phil Bolton and 33 from professional Claude Henderson.

Accrington sub pro Tama Canning again impressed with 5-56 from 25 overs.

But Accrington were in early trouble and when Canning departed to a debatable bat-pad catch before Henderson took three wickets in one over, it appeared that the full bonus points were on offer for the title chasers.

But, with 13 overs remaining, Damian Clarke joined Tariq Hussain to put on an undefeated 36 despite offering two sharp chances to Paul Kelly and skipper Phil Mercer in the final over.

BACUP kept their title challenge on track with a nerve-wracking two-wicket win over COLNE.

Chasing Colne's 140-8, Bacup got home with just two balls to spare as they lost three wickets within three runs of victory.

Professional Adam Dale was one of those to go after top-scoring with 45, having earlier put on a crucial 75-run stand with opener Pete Thompson.

After the pair were parted, Bacup slumped from 126-3 to 138-8 but skipper Neal Wilkinson kept his nerve coming in at number 10 to see his side home.

Earlier, Dale and David Ormerod had bowled through unchanged to add seven more wickets to their combined tally.

Teenagers Ben Lloyd and Sam Tucker kept their cool to steer CHURCH to a dramatic last ball victory over HASLINGDEN at Bentgate.

Chasing the home side's 158-7, the visitors needed 21 with just four overs and three wickets remaining when the pair met at the crease.

But 16-year-old Lloyd and 15-year-old Tucker went into the last over requiring six.

And they managed to scramble a leg-bye off the final delivery to win by three wickets.

Earlier, deputy professional Joe Scuderi had been the star of the Haslingden innings, stroking six fours in a patient unbeaten 55, as Keith Semple, Tom O'Neill and Nick Westwell all bagged two wickets apiece. RAWTENSTALL continued their run of form which has lifted them off the bottom of the table -- and it was that man Keith Roscoe who sowed the seeds of victory again at LOWERHOUSE.

The Rawtenstall skipper had broken his club's record, which had been held since 1921, last weekend taking his tally to 73 wickets for the season.

And he added another six yesterday, claiming 6-48, in a six wicket win.

Roscoe got rid of the main threats, opener Nick Hope (31) and Frank Entwistle (44), as the home side set a target of 140-8.

It was looking good for Lowerhouse when opener Barry Greenwood was out for a duck with only the ninth ball but new boy William Cook-Martin set the pace, forming a solid second wicket partnership with professional Matthew Mott.

Mott was dismissed for 39 but Cook-Martin's unbeaten 53 meant Rawtenstall took the 10 points.

TODMORDEN skipper Nigel Hunter led from the front as his side raced to an eight-wicket win over BURNLEY.

Hunter hit a rapid half-century as the home side passed Burnley's 162 all out with 10 overs to spare.

His 50 came in 64 balls with eight fours before he fell for 62 to end a 91-run first-wicket stand with Stuart Priestley, who went on to make 44.

Professional Dan Marsh then followed up his five wickets with an unbeaten 35 as Todmorden took maximum points.

Burnley had started brightly with an opening partnership of 67 between Ben Law, who passed 400 runs for the season, and professional Geoff Foley on his last appearance for the club before things went rapidly down hill.

Peter Sleep returned to RISHTON and proved a match-winning substitute, scoring an elegant 84 in the bottom-of-the-table derby with ENFIELD.

Sleep hit nine fours and a six as Rishton's 163, achieved despite the excellent bowling of Liam Jackson (5-57), always looked likely to prove too much for the visitors.

Enfield professional David Saker tried his best to inspire a victory charge hitting 63, but only two of the amateurs managed double figures and the men from Dill Hall Lane were hanging on at 124-8 at the close.