LOCAL Cricket was well represented when an English Cricket Board XI took on Sri Lanka 'A' in a three day game this week.

Radcliffe professional Steve Dearden, the former Walshaw and Ramsbottom all-rounder, followed up a hectic trip to Ireland to compete in the Triple Crown series with a fine display and his performances suggest further representative honours could go his way.

He confessed to "A few runs and a few wickets" as England reached the final of the Triple Crown, only to be defeated by Scotland.

But against Sri Lanka, at Oakham School, he helped to keep the England amateurs in the game after the visitors threatened to force the follow-on. Sri Lanka were 348 for 8 in their first innings while the ECB XI were 100 for 6 before lunch when Dearden and Chris Mole came together with a face-saving stand of 85, Dearden getting 44 before being caught behind and Mole top-scoring with 66 in a total of 226.

Dearden followed his 2 for 59 in Sri Lanka's first innings with 4 for 48 in their second when they were all out for 143.

The ECB response was an all out 201 with Dearden failing to trouble the scorers, his off stump removed by a two-foot turner from Perera.

Also in the ECB side was Bury-based Chris Hall, formerly with Elton and Ramsbottom, who now plays for Leigh in the Liverpool Competition.

In his first full game with the ECB side since a warm-up game against Combined Universities 21-year-old Hall put on 18 as nightwatchman in the first innings and was economical with the ball finishing with 0 for 29 and 0 for 9 both from six over spells.

It will have been a busy week for Hall who was today due to turn out for Minor Counties Under-25s against Leicester after playing against Northampton yesterday.

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