CHERRY Tree skipper Mark Hadfield was in sparkling form with bat and ball last weekend, but he would have swapped his personal performances for two wins for his team.

The skipper took 5-53 at Ribblesdale Wanderers on Saturday, then hit 47 runs at the top of the order to earn a six-wicket league win.

He was at it again 24 hours later, bagging four wickets for 38 runs at Great Harwood, then reaching 47 before he was run out.

Unfortunately for Cherry Tree, it wasn't enough to win the Ramsbottom Cup quarter-final clash as sub-pro Cristiaan Jonker's 149 of 91 balls put Great Harwood through.

That's left the men from Preston Old Road keen to get back to winning ways, starting tonight in the first round of the T20 cup at Brinscall.

Hadfield said: "We've got two challenging matches but we are up for getting two wins.

"The T20 is a competition we've done well in; we've been runners-up for the last two seasons.

"This is the first match, so there's a long way to go, but we'll be taking it seriously again this year and hoping to do very well."

The Ramsbottom Cup loss was a particularly bitter pill to swallow for Hadfield, who admitted Jonker's knock in the first innings put Great Harwood in a commanding position as they finished on 238.

And despite putting in two decent performances himself, the skipper was disappointed not to reach his half century in either innings.

He said: "I didn't have a bad weekend, but I would have given that up for the team to have got a couple of wins.

"Unfortunately, I just failed to get to 50 in both innings.

"Sunday was a bitter blow. We did well in the cup for the two years ago when we got to the final, and this year we were hoping to be challenging on all fronts.

"Great Harwood had a fantastic sub-pro, though, and he took the game away from us with a magnificent innings.

"We bowled well and fielded well, but it didn't really matter because he was clearing the boundary by 20 yards."

Hope of pushing on in the league and T20 comes in the form of some of the younger players emerging through the Cherry Tree ranks, especially in the batting department.

Wicketkeeper Craig Kennedy has moved up to open alongside his captain and showed promise with a decent knock against Ribblesdale Wanderers, while 19-year-old Jack Willacy is showing great maturity.

Hadfield said: "Craig has stepped up in the batting and scored 45 on Saturday.

"Jake has moved up to No 4 this season and we're expecting big things from him. He has an old head on young shoulders."

New pro Stefan Klopper has also settled in well, amassing 333 runs in five innings, with a best of 143 against Baxenden earlier this month, and claiming 15 wickets.

Cheery Tree will be hoping all three keep it up in tonight's T20 clash and away at Padiham in the league tomorrow.