NELSON'S Jonathan Finch can certainly lay claim to being something of an all-rounder - but I'm not talking batting and bowling.
For the Seedhill batsman warmed up for this cup final clash against arch-rivals Burnley by taking part in a golf lesson at Colne Golf Club in the morning then made his debut for Brierfield Celtic Football Club in the Memorial League.
And all that before a ball was bowled.
In the end it worked out well for Finch as it was the only exercise he was to get after the game was rained off - but only after he got himself run out after a brief stint at the crease.
Mind you, he could be forgiven for by that time he probably didn't know whether to putt the ball, head it or drive it for a boundary!
In what should have been a fitting finale to bring the curtain down on the youth league, the only thing to come down was the rain.
Hopes were raised when the rain clouds disappeared briefly at the start of play but they were soon back and the match was halted for the first time after a few overs.
However it didn't seem to bother Nelson openers Leon Ghulam and Simon Pile who started brightly enough before both men went in successive overs with 19 runs on the board. Pile can feel slightly aggrieved after being given out lbw off the bowling of David Brown.
But there was no doubting Ghulam's dismissal in the next over when his attempted hook shot fell straight into the hands of Barvain Patel off the bowling of England under 17s and Lancashire quick bowler James Anderson.
Anderson showed just why he had earned county and national honours as he continually pestered the Nelson batsmen.
And Brown, who himself represents Lancashire, proved there was nowhere to hide and it was a piece of his quick thinking that led to the dismissal of Finch.
After a terrible mix-up, Finch and Khurrum Nazir found themselves both at the same end and Brown showed his lightning reactions when the bowler received the ball above his head and in one movement hit the wickets with a fine throw.
With 36 runs on the board, three wickets down and the rain making the surface even more unpredictable, Burnley could have gone for the kill.
But credit goes to Nazir and Munir Khan who held the Burnley bowlers at bay with Nazir in particular in fine form with an undefeated 20. But then the drizzle turned to a downpour and the match was halted after 18 overs.
The match will now begin again from scratch on Saturday at 1pm at Nelson Cricket Club - and who knows what sports Finch will have got under his belt by that time.
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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