Bronte Wanderers have captured the first honours in the league -- clinching the Division Two title with style.

They beat Cowling reserves 8-0 and have now piled up 42 points. There closest rivals, Barnoldwick United can only reach 41. Both teams have three matches left. Barnoldswick's 3-1 victory over Gargrave Reserves on Saturday could be important in their fight for second spot with Embsay Reserves who have matches in hand.

The Embsay side virtually ended Silsden FC's hopes with a 2-1 defeat in midweek. Silsden had previously dented Keighley FC Reserves, beating them 4-3.

Embsay's match on Saturday was called off because of a waterlogged pitch.

At the bottom of the table Gargrave Reserves already know they will be relegated and either Horton or Cowling Reserves will join them. After Cowling's heavy defeat all eyes were on the North Craven side but they also went down, losing 3-1 to Skipton LMS reserves.

Horton must win their final match to avoid the drop, while Cowling have two chances to stay up.

Fortunes in the Silentnight Premier Division are swaying the way of Skipton Bulldogs as they quietly work their way through a massive backlog of fixtures. They beat Grassington United 3-1 in midweek with goals from Jonathan Beck (2) and Ian Bernard while Sebastian Richardson scored Grassington's goal.

They followed up with a second meeting with Embsay which was not quite the epic of their first meeting. Embsay were hit with injuries and struggled to raise a team. They started the match with only nine men but made Bulldogs pull out all the stops for their 3-0 victory, goals came from Ian Bernard (2) and Chris Simpson.

Bulldogs put one hand on the trophy when they beat nearest rivals Oxenhope Recreation 3-2, with that man Bernard again scoring two goals. Five points from their remaining five matches will clinch the title and with two games this week it could soon be all over.

Other results in the Premier Division saw Keighley FC complete their programme with a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Skipton LMS. Once again the backlog of games took its toll on Keighley who looked a jaded side. They could only manage one goal through Keith Spence while LMS had Darren Phillip and Richard Cartman to thank for their points.

A bottom of the table clash between Gargrave and Cononley sports ended all square at 1-1, leaving them both with a lot to do if they are to avoid the drop. Grassington are the other side in trouble and must win their one remaining match. Cononley have four games to go and Gargrave have three, both teams could cause problems if they hit a purple patch.

The meetings between Clitheroe United and Skipton Town, Addingham and St Pauls could be the deciders in Division One. If both home teams win Clitheroe will take the title, but if they both lose Grindleton could still pip them at the post.

At the bottom end of the table Cowling faced a strong Oxenhope Reserve side with only 10 men, going down 8-2. Oxenhope lost on Saturday to Clitheroe and must win their remaining three matches to stay up and condemn either Sutton or Hellifield to the drop.

Intake won on Saturday but it was too late and they are now relegated. Sutton defeated Skipton Town 2-1 midweek to keep their hopes alive.

Division Three looks like going all the way to the wire. Leaders Ilkley Juniors lost at Hellifield 4-1 allowing Bronte Wanderers Reserves to close the gap to two points after their 4-3 victory over Earby. Bronte have two matches in hand. Bradley Reserves are the in-form team and they beat McBrides 4-3 and followed up with a 5-2 win over Skipton town reserves to move up to third place. If they win their remaining five matches they could have a big say in the destination of the title.

On Saturday the Premier Division match between Oxenhope Recreation and Skipton Bulldogs went the way of the visitors. Bulldogs were a goal up in the first three -minutes when a shot flashed into the top corner. Oxenhope, playing down the slope, quickly levelled from the penalty spot and played some good football to take the lead.

Bulldogs raised their game and put the home defence under pressure to draw level. Oxenhope were caught out as they pushed forward to restored their lead and a speculative lob went in over the keeper's head to put Bulldogs 3-2 up at the break. A torrential rainstorm made second half conditions virtually impossible and players did well to complete the game. Both teams worked hard but defences remained on top leaving Bulldogs in the driving seat in the final push to the title.

Oxenhope Recreation Reserves visited Clitheroe United and found the champions-elect in good form. Oxenhope had no answer to their fast flowing football and did well to contain them to six goals without replay.

Bronte Wanderers hosted Silsden FC in the quarter final of the Northern Plant Hire Cup, going ahead through an own goal in the first minute. They dominated the opening quarter before adding to the score. Silsden settled won and took advantage of poor defending to go 2-1 up with goals from Ryan Hook and Robert Pearson. Bronte had to pull out all the stops and levelled through Ian Maude on half time.

Rye Bailey regained the lead for Bronte but they again allowed Silsden to equalise with a goal from Robert Pearson. At this point the heavens opened and the pitch became very wet. The referee took the players off for 10 minutes and after the re-start Bronte could not get to grips with the conditions and Silsden quickly regained their lead through GarethHigs. They made sure of a semi-final place when Robert Pearson completed his hat-trick.

Unfortunately both semi-finals had to be postponed because of waterlogged pitches and the league will try to find a new date, or leave the competition over until the start of next season.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.