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Nelson moved to the top of the Lancashire League Division Two table after a thrilling one-wicket victory over local rivals Colne on Sunday.

Looking to bounce back from Friday night’s T20 defeat, the 1st XI returned to the Horsfield aiming to continue their impressive league winning streak.

After losing the toss and being asked to field, Nelson made an excellent start. Sam Kelly removed the Colne captain with the score at 11-1, before Hassan Fazal dismissed the other opener to leave the home side 36-2.

Colne recovered well and had progressed to 174-3, looking set to post a formidable total, before Khurram Nazir (4-57) removed the home side’s professional just as he looked ready to accelerate the scoring. Hassan Fazal also impressed with 3-67 as Colne closed their 50 overs on 235-9.

Nelson’s reply got off to the worst possible start, losing Nabeel Ahmed with just one run on the board. Lewis Bradley joined Sam Holt and the pair added 60 for the second wicket before Bradley was caught and bowled for 21 & Holt was given out LBW for a well made 42.

Professional Tyler McGladdery could only watch from the other end as Nelson slipped from 83-2 to 145-7, leaving the visitors staring defeat in the face.

With 90 runs still required from the final 13 overs, McGladdery and Gul Sabir began to rebuild, keeping the scoreboard moving gradually.

When Sabir was trapped LBW for a valuable 25, Nelson were 203-8 and still needed 33 runs from the final four overs.

McGladdery, who had held the innings together throughout, then shifted through the gears in pursuit of an unlikely victory.

At the start of the 49th over, Nelson required 16 runs from 12 balls with two wickets in hand. McGladdery struck the first two deliveries for four, bringing up a terrific second century of the season in the process.

After taking a single from the next ball, Nelson needed seven runs from nine deliveries with Khurram Nazir on strike. Attempting to get McGladdery back on strike, Nazir was run out, bringing number 11 Sam Kelly to the crease.

Crucially, Nelson’s professional was back on strike. McGladdery launched the fifth ball of the over for six to level the scores before, with the field brought into the circle, he hit the final delivery of the over for his 14th boundary to seal a remarkable Derby Day victory and spark jubilant celebrations.

McGladdery finished unbeaten on a superb 113* from just 93 balls, guiding Nelson to the top of the Division Two table after seven matches.

It was a nail-biting victory and Nelson’s fourth consecutive league win. They will now look to build on that momentum when they host Accrington twice at Seedhill this weekend. First, they return to T20 action on Friday evening before fourth placed Accrington visit again for Sunday’s league fixture.

Nelson began their 2026 T20 campaign on Friday evening with a trip to local rivals Colne for their opening group fixture of the season.

Having retained the Scuderi Shield at Seedhill a week earlier in the annual T20 friendly, Nelson won the toss and elected to bat first.

The visitors made an excellent start, with captain/professional Tyler McGladdery and Lewis Bradley sharing a superb opening partnership of 160. Their stand was the third highest first-wicket partnership in Lancashire League history and Nelson’s highest ever partnership in T20 cricket.

Bradley was eventually dismissed for an impressive 69, while McGladdery carried his bat through the innings, finishing unbeaten on 95 from just 55 balls. Their efforts helped Nelson post a formidable 186-2 from their 20 overs.

Set a challenging target, Colne were required to score quickly from the outset and responded impressively. Despite creating opportunities, Nelson were unable to capitalise on their chances as the hosts chased down the target inside 18 overs, losing only four wickets in the process.

It proved to be an entertaining fixture for everyone in attendance, with Colne emerging victorious in the opening group game.

Nelson will look to bounce back this Friday evening when T20 action returns to Seedhill, as they host Accrington.

Nelson’s 1st XI completed a perfect Bank Holiday weekend as they climbed to 2nd place in the league table with victory over Church at Seedhill on Sunday.

After losing the toss and being asked to field, another outstanding bowling performance saw the visitors bundled out for just 93.

Hassan Fazal and Sam Kelly produced an excellent opening spell to keep the scoring in check during the early overs, with Kelly eventually finishing with figures of 2-26 from his eight overs.

However, it was Neil Thompson’s superb spell that proved decisive. Thompson produced magnificent figures of 6-22 from 14.3 overs in a genuine match winning performance.

Chasing a modest target, Nelson found themselves in trouble at 63-5 before opener Nabeel Ahmed (21*) and Tom Bradshaw (18*) guided the side home and secured maximum points.

The 1st XI now sit second in the league table, trailing leaders Rishton by just one point, and head into another busy weekend tomorrow evening with a first group stage T20 clash against Colne.

On Sunday, Nelson return to Colne in league action looking to make it four league victories in a row

The weekend began in winning fashion on Friday evening as Nelson secured a fifth consecutive Scuderi Shield victory against Colne at Seedhill 

After losing the toss and being asked to field first, Nelson restricted Colne to 112-8 from their 20 overs. Captain and professional Tyler McGladdery led from the front with an excellent spell of 3-19 from his four overs, while Sam Kelly provided strong support with figures of 2-21.

In reply, Nelson reached their target with three balls to spare to seal a four wicket victory. McGladdery top scored with 36, while Gul Sabir finished unbeaten on 32 to guide Nelson home.