South Staffordshire champions gear up for Birmingham League promotion play-off tilt

South Staffordshire County League champions Fordhouses are poised to begin their Birmingham League promotion play-off tilt with a weekend double-header.

Fordhouses had long confirmed top spot in the county premier campaign and have had an eye on this weekend’s clash against Stourport and Wellington, which will go a long way to deciding promotion.

Fordhouses’ play-off campaign finishes against Aston Manor on Saturday week, September 26.

The top two teams from the county feeder leagues will win promotion to Birmingham League Premier Division Two.

Stourport, champions of the Worcestershire League, will visit Fordhouses’ Jack Threlfall Memorial Ground on Saturday (11am). Fordhouses are then on the road to Shropshire champions Wellington on Sunday (11am).

They tackle Warwickshire champions Aston Manor at a neutral venue of West Bromwich Dartmouth.

Skipper Lewis Peat’s side finished the regular season with a hefty 191-run at home to mid-table Hammerwich for a second defeat in five games.

Hammerwich’s Scott Elstone smashed 137 to assist opener Imran Qadir’s 106 as the visitors powered to a huge 353/4 from their 50 overs.

Fordhouses were at 98/2 in response but slumped thereafter as John Jennings (4-44) and Ryan Elliott (4-34) ripped through the order.

Beacon leapt above Wombourne into third with a hefty 174-run home victory.

Opener Tom Elwell struck 74 against his former club with consistent scoring from Kavishka Gamage (68) on the way to 288 all out.

Wombourne fell well short in response, with Jake Cartwright (3-29) starring.

Walsall ensured second place with a dominant display of high-scoring against rock-bottom Wolverhampton seconds.

Rajeev Kanji shone with a magnificent 144 for hosts Walsall as part of a 243-second wicket stand with skipper Hashim Iqbal (89) for 337/5 to take the game away from their visitors, who were 262 runs short in reply.

Relegated Old Wulfrunians Tettenhall edged to a three-wicket over Cannock, who had posted 206/9.

Hosts Wulfs completed the chase with 12 balls to spare and three wickets in hand, thanks to half-centuries from Gulfam Awan (50) and Parvinder Malliyya (58).

Lowly Brewood ensured they finished in ninth, one place above 10th-placed Pelsall, with a five-wicket home win.

Pelsall’s revised 191 was caught with Naveed Khalid (53) and wicketkeeper Royeth Hussain (56) scoring well for Brewood.

Penkridge finished the campaign in fifth, three places above Tamworth seconds following a 17-run victory.

Amaan Hassan lit up the final-day clash with an unbeaten 132 assisted by skipper Jack Pope’s 79 on the way to 285/6.

There was some resistance from visitors Tamworth, but they fell 17 runs short from the revised 32 overs.