Manningham Mills were left cursing the weather tonight as the JCT600 Bradford League’s Sovereign Health Care Priestley Cup final went into a second day.

They had reduced East Bierley to 99-6 off 38 overs when a heavy downpour ended play at Spen Victoria, with the match due to resume tomorrow at 11am.

Mills won a critical toss, and with opening bowlers Iqbal Khan and Zeeshan Qasim, plus spinner Noman Ali, in miserly mood, Bierley found it difficult scoring singles let alone boundaries.

Mark Gill was dismissed for a duck, Andrew Renn-ison was run out after a mix-up with Bierley skipper Gavin Hamilton and the latter played on to the outstanding Khan as the South View Road side were in peril at 20-3.

Richard Atkins fell to a superb diving catch in the covers by Haseeb Rehman to make it 26-4, whereupon Rao Anjum, who took almost 40 balls to get off the mark – his first single was greeted by massive jeers from the Fat Boys supporters club on the banking, which Anjum acknowledged by raising his bat – initiated a partial recovery with Andrew Newby.

Drinks were taken at 37-4 after 25 overs and Anjum and Newby took the score to 54 before Newby – injured skipper Lee Goddard’s replacement – was out for eight.

Pakistan international Anjum was just starting to cast off the shackles when he too fell to an instinctive catch, this time by Mills captain Masood Ahmed, having made 20.

Bierley were now 58-6 but Nick Walker (22no) and Tim Cooper (20no), who survived a convincing appeal for caught behind when he had made 11 off Ali, added 41 unbroken with a mixture of bold aggression and watchful defence before the heavens opened at 2.40pm.

An early tea was taken and umpires Alan Carter and Glyn Pearson inspected the wicket and outfield at 5.30pm and 6pm before calling play off for the day after herculean efforts by Spen’s groundstaff.

Pearson said: “Conditions were not reasonable to expect players to play a game of cricket and we will inspect again at 9am tomorrow with a view to starting at 11am.”

Tomorrow’s forecast is not good and admission will be free but, if the match cannot be finished on Monday, it will be started afresh on Sunday, September 16, again at Spen Victoria (11am).

Former England and Scotland international Hamilton said: “A total of 150 is our minimum target and we would have taken that after ten overs.

“Winning the toss was huge but they bowled really well. Scoring wasn’t easy but it wasn’t for lack of effort.”

Masood Ahmed said: “The wicket really helped our bowlers and we made the most of it. We also fielded well.

“As for the call-off, we waited for over three hours and the umpires helped us all the way.”