LEIGH bounced back from defeat to league leaders New Brighton with a draw against relegation threatened Birkenhead Park.

They remain well placed in mid-table, 16 points above the drop zone, after batting out the second innings of their match on the Wirral to stave off possible back-to-back defeats.

A century from Birkenhead opener Mike Barnes (118) put Leigh on the back foot.

Two wickets apiece for Richard Dempster (2-70) and Ryan Housley (2-44) pegged back the home side a little but they were still able to set an imposing total of 233-5 as they declared after 53 overs.

Leigh were never in serious trouble in their reply, building a number of 30-plus partnerships despite losing wickets at regular intervals.

Opener Ross Zelem and number three Hedley Molyneux both made 28, but captain Matt McKiernan and Daniel Hewitt provided the biggest obstacle to a Birkenhead victory and briefly threatened to take the game away from them completely.

McKiernan rattled off 61 from 58 balls while Hewitt hit 41 in 42 but after both fell to the bowling of Rob Houghton, who took 4-53, Leigh were forced to batten down the hatches to force the draw, eventually making 201-7 from 54 overs.

Leigh Cricket Club will be hosting sports summer camps for girls and boys aged from six to 13. The camps will run over two weeks at the end of this month, starting on Monday, July 20, and a week at the end of August.

To find out more visit www.leighcc.org.