SPECTATORS at Broadwater on Saturday (June 10) for the Bay 96.9 Northern Premier League clash between third placed Fleetwood and seventh placed Morecambe were kept on the edge of their seats for a great part of the game as the fortunes of the two teams fluctuated dramatically throughout.

Fleetwood, put in to bat, collapsed to 43-5, recovered to reach 156 and in reply Morecambe looked out of the game at 43-4.

But then they recovered to reach their target and win by six wickets, thanks to some whirlwind hitting by skipper Phil Thornton at the end.

The defeat leaves Fleetwood, two points behind second placed Darwen last week, a further eleven points behind them and 26 points adrift of leaders Netherfield.

On a pitch which gave help to the bowlers, Fleetwood moved to 23 when John Wright was bowled by Peter Stephens for five.

And at the same total his opening partner, Michael Dewhurst, 10, which included two well-struck boundaries, was unlucky to to get edge a Faruk Patel ball for wicketkeeper Damien Gudgeon to take the catch.

Things got worse for Fleetwood as professional Abbas Ali, who looked as though he was going to build a substantial innings, flicked a short ball from Patel off his legs all too casually to be caught at backward square leg by John Eccles for one.

John Whalley, nought, drove loosely at Stephens for Thornton to take the catch at the second attempt at wide mid-on and when Michael Clinning, 14, did not move his feet when attempting to drive Patel, Gudgeon once again took the catch.

At 43-5 Fleetwood were down and almost out.

But Mark Wilkinson and Rob Clark restored some order. They added 65 runs for the sixth wicket before the persevering Stephens bowled Clark for 27.

Two runs later, at 100, Wilkinson followed when he was adjudged leg before wicket to Ghulam Maje for 37.

Pat King and Alex Laird took the total to 129 when Laird, not getting to the pitch of the ball, was bowled by off spinner Tommy Clough for seven.

King made 14 before Graham Fisher held a low catch at extra cover off Clough and then debutante Chris Buschini, 13, and Neil Gregson, eight not out, took the total to 156 before the former was leg before wicket to Stephens, who returned 4-60.

The pitch played equally awkwardly in the early part of the Morecambe innings and although Mark Woodhead crashed a boundary through mid-wicket, two balls later he succumbed to a catch by Clark at gully off King for four.

South African professional Ashwell Prince, who will return to join the South African 'A' team in August, was looking well set when he drove Gregson towards wide mid-on where Laird took off to his left and held a stunning diving catch to dismiss him for 16.

At 39 Karl Hansson, 11, gave Bushini, behind the stumps, his first senior victim when he edged King through and then Fleetwood moved into what seemed a commanding position at 43-4 when Fisher, six, failed to make his ground as a Pat King throw wrecked the stumps at the non-striker's end. This brought together Thornton and Clough and, while they struggled in the early stages of their partnership, once the pitch had eased scoring became more easy.

John Wright rang the bowling changes but the pair had got into their stride and nothing could stem the flow of runs.

Michael Dewhurst bowled leg spin only for Thornton to smash him for two mighty sixes out of the ground before the whole Fleetwood team went up for a catch behind the wicket with the Morecambe skipper on 49.

Not out was the umpire's verdict and Thornton continued his havoc and his eighth four, along with three sixes, saw him to 69 not out from 84 balls and saw Morecambe through to 160-4 and, what at one time seemed an unlikely victory by six wickets.

Tommy Clough remained 41 not out at the other end as the pair completely changed the course of the game, adding 117 runs in 83 minutes