ANOTHER exciting game saw Leigh Fourths take their second win of the season at home to local rivals Wigan.

Losing the toss and being invited to bat, the home team made their all too familiar start, losing two wickets with only nine runs on the board.

Solid batting from Steven Young then took the score to 55 before he was unluckily trapped lbw for 28 to a ball that kept very low. A further flurry of wickets saw Leigh rocking at 77 for 7 in the 27th over, and an early tea looked on the cards.

However, the last three batsmen showed the top order how it should be done, and the final total of 139 all out from 49 overs represented a substantial recovery, with fine contributions from Chris Waywell (15), Andrew Potter (18) and "youngster" Pete Dugdale (11 not out).

Wigan then made a disastrous start, losing opener Wadeson to the first ball of the innings, with Mohammed following four balls later.

Both batsmen fell for Steven Young's cunning plan, which had them both superbly caught at square leg by Matthew Woodward whose fielding was exemplary throughout the match.

Despite losing a third wicket to a run-out with the score on 18, the visitors then staged a potentially match winning recovery, before Akbar was bowled by Pete Dugdale for 54, with the score on 93.

Even though a spate of wickets followed, Wigan reached 106 with 12 overs remaining and five wickets in hand. A target of under three an over seemed to be sending 20 points heading towards Wigan until Steven Young in his second spell, helped by Dugdale at the other end, applied a stranglehold of only 1 run from the next 6 overs, including 5 successive maidens.

Wickets then started falling and it was left to Andrew Potter to take the final scalp, aided by a good catch under pressure from Will Banner, with two overs remaining.

This was a magnificent victory for Leigh's inexperienced side, who fought all the way from a number of situations where the match could have been lost.

Man of the match was Steven Young who in addition to his 28 with the bat ended with bowling figures of 11 overs, 6 maidens, 4 for 11.