GREENMOUNT missed out on the opportunity to close the gap on their Bolton League title rivals as they slipped to a crushing nine-wicket defeat at home to Bradshaw on Saturday.

Batting first, Greenmount were bowled out for just 159 despite Phil Heaton’s stubborn 37, with Bradshaw’s Tom Liversedge and pro Kamran Younis taking four wickets apiece.

Liversedge then led the Bradshaw response, striking an impressive 86 not out as his team posted 160-1, with opening partner Stuart Hornby contributing 59.

Greenmount had highlighted the difficulty of their run-in before the match, posting on Twitter: “Seven games of the season left, five of which against the other teams in the top six. Nobody has an easy run-in.”

The nail-biting nature of the table’s summit will make this defeat all the more disappointing, with just two points separating the top three sides, with Greenmount a further seven points back in fourth.

That disappointment was further compounded by the weekend’s other results, which saw Greenmount fail to capitalise on previous table-toppers Egerton failing to overcome new leaders Farnworth.

Egerton restricted Farnworth to 173-9, with Kamran Sajid (68) top-scoring for the hosts, and Will Halton and Adam Street taking four scalps each.

However, they faltered in their chase due to some tight bowling from the Farnworth attack, spearheaded by Curtis Anderson (4-53), and fell 10 runs short, finishing on 163-9.

Despite the set-back, Egerton captain Will Halton insisted his side would come out on top come the end of the season.

“There were lots of positives. The defeat just makes things a bit closer but everybody has still got to play each other,” he said.

“We played well but just lost wickets at the wrong time and came a bit short on some of them.

“I am very confident we will be back on top. It is in our hands and if we play like we did (against Farnworth) then we will be fine.

“We don't fear anybody. We have still got to play some good sides but we are very confident that we can win them all.”

Last year’s champions Farnworth SC beat Eagley by 11 runs to leapfrog Egerton and move into second place.

Greenmount now have six games to overturn their nine-point deficit, starting with a double-header this weekend, with a trip to fourth-bottom Eagley on Saturday before they host Egerton on Sunday.