Doncaster Town suffer defeat in Jack Bland Trophy final

Bilal Anjam top scored for Doncaster Town in their defeat to Whitley Hall.

The reigning ECB Yorkshire South Premier League champions had hoped to get their hands on some silverware for a second successive season.

But after comprehensively winning their group they went down by four wickets at Treeton in the culmination to this year’s truncated competition.

Doncaster were restricted to 167-9 from their 40 overs and Hall reached their target with 7.3 overs to spare.

Town got their innings off to a brisk start through openers James Stuart and Duncan Heath but, following their departures, they were indebted to an excellent anchoring knock of 47 from Bilal Anjam.

Wickets continued to fall around Anjam and, at 89-6, it needed a captain’s knock from James Ward to get Doncaster up to a respectable total.

Ward hit an unbeaten 39 off 33 balls to set Hall a victory target of 168.

Robert Heyes raised Doncaster’s hopes when he struck twice early on to reduce Whitley to 8-2.

Heyes claimed four of the first five wickets to fall in a lively spell.

But, after Matt Cartwright was dismissed by Stuart with the scoreboard on 54-3, Neil Longhurst and Danial Rafiq came together for a fourth wicket stand of 79 that proved to be crucial.

Heyes’ dismissal of Rafiq for an aggressive 51 off 56 balls was the first of three wickets to fall for 12 runs and with Hall on 135-6 the game was back in the balance.

But the experienced Longhurst combined with Sam Woodcock to make short work of scoring the remaining 33 runs needed for victory.

Longhurst, who finished on 54 not out, was named as man of the match.

Heyes claimed figures of 4-45 and Stuart took 2-48.