DAISY Hill secured promotion to the Bolton Premiership on Saturday, but the title is still wide open with Atherton and Blackrod ready to pounce going into the final weekend.

Second-placed Atherton host Blackrod, who are third, this weekend knowing the winner will join Daisy in the top flight next season.

The St James Street outfit must win away at Adlington to secure the title, but if they slip up the winner at Higham Park will clinch the silverware.

And Blackrod captain Joey Pryle is hoping his side play their part as he eyes a repeat of the resounding 90-run victory in the reverse fixture earlier in the season.

“We beat Atherton last time and Jack Southworth got a century so we are hoping for the same again,” Pryle said.

“We know it will be a good game, it is always a good game against Atherton.

“I hope Atherton honour the game and try everything they can to get the game on. I’m sure they will and it will make for an exciting game.

“This is the good thing about the promotion and relegation, we are going down to the last game with something to play for.”

Pryle was gutted that the penultimate match against Adlington was abandoned but insists his side did everything they could.

“We bought a new thing halfway through the season called a wicket bund which is meant to stop the water coming down the wicket but there was that much rain it went over the bund,” Pryle added.

“It was dry in patches but it was like there was a river going down on one side, it was out of our control.”

Blackrod, who missed out on the top division by two points last season, are hoping to gain promotion at the first time of asking.

However, Pryle is adamant it will still be a successful season if results do not go their way at the weekend.

He said: “We could look back over the season and think we could have done better but we are still happy with the way things have gone.

“We were beaten twice by Astley Bridge, home and away, which was disappointing. We also lost to Little Hulton.

“It has been quite difficult to get a consistent team out this season so it is remarkable that we have done as well as we have.

“We have not had the same team out twice all season and it has been constantly chopping and changing.

“It has been a long and tricky season. We lost our captain Sandy (Chris Sanderson) early on so we are still in a transitional stage.

“It would not be the end of the world if we don’t go up. We are a local cricket club, not a professional outfit.

“We have had discussions about what would happen if we didn’t go up and it wouldn’t be disastrous.

“Our aim is to develop young players and that’s what we want to continue doing.”