WITH the games ticking away in the Darlington and District League, it looks very much a case of who will blink first between Barton and Middleton St Geroge in the race for the championship.

With both yet again recording wins last week, Barton remain just a single point ahead of their rivals and it could possibly all come down to the game between the pair of them which is scheduled for the penultimate Saturday of the season.

Barton’s 42-run win at Middletonin- Teesdale looked fairly routine, but there were a number of twists and turns before they secured the points.

John Murray (55) and Neil Kearney (46) led an early Barton charge, but it took some late order belligerence from Danny Shoulder (22) and Sam Gibbs (25no) to ease the total up to an impressive 220-6.

Middleton responded positively as Anthony Coatsworth (55) and Neil Watson (37) shared an opening partnership that threatened a shock, but their dismissals proved the turning point as Murray (4-91) and Peter Frankland (3-51) tightened things up to leave the Saints well back on 178- 9.

Haughton gave Middleton St George a run for their money before capitulating by 55 runs.

Daniel Naisbitt (4-44) spearheaded the home attack to such effect that only John Bainbridge (57) of the normally free flowing George line-up could get going, and it took a late flurry from Mo Nadeem (26no) to take the visitors up to respectability at 161-8.

Nadeem then strangled the Haughton response, bowling unchanged through 35 overs to serve up miserly figures of 3-34. Phil McMahon laboured throughout the innings to end with an unbeaten 31, but Haughton just couldn’t get up a head of steam as they closed on 106- 8.

Rockliffe Park remain very much in the title equation just 20 points behind the leading two, but they need both teams to slip up twice if they are to have a say and they will need to make the most of their games against them.

They kept in the hunt with a 45- run win over Aldbrough St John in which Karl Wheeler (70) and James Briggs (58) starred for the Park. Chasing 225-8, Aldbrough finished on 180-7, a bitter blow for Dave Mathias who followed a five-wicket haul with an unbeaten half century – yet still ended up on the losing side.

In the day’s other top-flight matches, Barningham’s Shane Rowley took the honours as his team scraped past Raby Castle with just a single wicket to spare. Rowley bagged 4-19 as Castle struggled to 123, and then he was at the crease with 30 to his name as Barney endured a nail-biting climax.

Meanwhile Mike Bredenkamp (6- 11 and 33no) inspired Lands to a seven-wicket win over Cockerton, while Phil Olney (51) and Mark Jackson (5-16) took the headlines as Ingleton lifted themselves out of the relegation zone with an 82-run defeat of Catterick.

In Division B, East Cowton enjoy a 45-point lead over Richmondshire and Spennymoor, and it looks like a straight battle between the pair of them for the second promotion berth.