The Appleby top order got starts and at 92/3 seemed to be setting a platform but Stuart Hunter (2/17) and Lee Barnes (3/8) orchestrated a collapse to 131 all out.

Ben Allison, who had top-scored with 28, led the Appleby attack with 3/37 and at 86/7 it seemed to be all over.

Simon Shipperd was still there though, teeing off.

In his previous 133 games for Holme 1sts he had never made a fifty, but 8 fours and 2 sixes took him past the milestone.

But with two runs needed to win he was bowled by Allison as Appleby recorded their thirteenth League win by the narrowest of margins.

Lindal Moor went second with a 23-run win against Sedgwick.

Ryan Gilmore (61) and Brad Stephens (44) led them to 180/7.

Tom Ridley was the pick of the Sedgwick bowlers with 3/35.

Sedgwick collapsed to 66/7 with Ed Waind taking 3/23.

Sedgwick didn't give up and Adam Kershaw made 58 not out from 64 balls taking the score to 157 before the final wicket fell.

Morecambe's Taylor Backhouse in action (Image: Tony North)

There was a runfest at the Hyning.

Graeme Crowther (59) and Taylor Gilbert (45) and a cameo 37 not out from Alex Barson powered Warton to 231/7, Jordan Postlethwaite taking 3/32 for Haverigg who at 172/1 seemed set for a notable win with Sam Adams (72) and Joel Maree (70).

But Gilbert (3/38) broke the 135-run partnership and David Jarvis (4/31) ripped out the middle order as Haverigg finished 9 runs short.

At the bottom, Coniston need a run of wins to get them out of trouble, but found Archie Rich in irresistible form returning the season’s best bowling figures of 8/31.

Darren Nelson made 48 not out as Carnforth 2nds won by 8 wickets.

Arnside gained an important win against Settle 2nds.

They made 178/9 thanks to James Crawford’s 60 from 43 balls at number 9 after Nick Cokell’s 3/28 threatened an early finish.

Cokell (48) and Seb Woods (51) put Settle in charge at 86/3 but Crawford chipped in with 2 wickets and Rob Shepherd (4/46) and Rivan Stoman (3/31) oversaw what was ultimately a 24-run win.

Gareth Pedder (50) and Will Battersby (51) took Morecambe 2nds to an imposing 230/7 but it seemed insufficient when Ben Dryden (61) and Owen Dryden (106) added 161 for the 1st wicket.

Owen fell to Taylor Backhouse (2/22) having hit 15 fours and 3 sixes in an 83-ball innings.

At 186/2 Ben Dryden fell to leg spinner Usman Haider who spun a web around the batsmen taking 5/40 as the last 8 wickets fell for 24, Morecambe winning by 19 runs.

Vickerstown are 17 points clear in Division 2A after a pivotal win against second-placed Hawcoat Park.

Wicket for Ulverston's Luke Clough (Image: Tony North)

Jack Litherland hit 81 not out as Vickerstown made 263/8.

Callum Lucas (61) kept Hawcoat in the game after they lost early wickets, but with 100 needed from 9 overs it seemed all over when Hawcoat captain Tom Stanwix (63 not out) marched to the crease at number 9.

No believer in lost causes, he struck 5 fours and 5 sixes as Hawcoat finished an agonising 6 runs short on 257/7.

Kendal 2nds good run continued.

Pacers Kuldeep Singh (3/3) and Tom Bentley (3/17) bowled out Cartmel for 115 setting up a 7-wicket win.

Nick McDonald’s 58 helped Ambleside return to form in a 101 win against Sedgwick 2nds.

John Wright took 4/28 but Ali Howell (69) played a lone hand as Eliot Metcalfe (5/38) and Barney Wileman (3/27) bowled them out for 114.

Mat Studt (5/25) helped Milnthorpe dismiss Silverdale for 125, Ali James making 36, but fell 12 runs short as Rob Letcher (3/38), Luke Mason (3/17) and Harry Mason (3/20) ran through.

The run out of Phil Bovis (42) was crucial.

Shireshead won a thriller against Kirkby in Furness.

Ben Brown batted through the Shireshead innings for 64 in 155/8, Mike Fugler taking 3/20.

Paul Fugler made 85 for Kirkby, but with 2 runs needed from the final ball he was lbw to Evan Yates (2/10).

In Division 2B Ingleton went top beating Barrow 2nds whilst erstwhile leaders Heysham 2nds lost to Morecambe 3rds.

Ingleton’s multi-faceted attack is why they are on top and it was Mark Dobson (3/21) and James Lawson (4/37) who bowled out Barrow for 112.

Mark Hughes made 48 in the 5-wicket win.

Heysham scored 184/6 with Richard Townsend top scoring with 45, but Mark Routledge (48) and skipper Joe Jackson (53) led Morecambe to a 4-wicket win.

Zac Grice (51) helped Netherfield 3rds to 199/8 but Millom 2nds won by 6 wickets with Robert Thompson (62) and Jayden Brockbank (54 not out) the main contributors.

Morecambe's Gareth Pedder hit 50 (Image: Tony North)

Matthew Lee made 58 but his Bare side lost by 6 wickets to Windermere as Andy Hartnett (50 not out) and Lewis Rands-Trevor (68 not out) saw the lakesiders home.

Funress 2nds beat Westgate 2nds by 3 wickets with Steve Perry taking 6/24 and Caolan O’Connor scoring 55.

Penrith 2nds beat Trimpell by 6 wickets to go top of Division 3 despite Paul Thompson carrying his bat for 76.

Lachlan Price’s 3/27 helped to restrict Trimpell to 127 as Vilas Kumar took 3/17.

Paul Duckett (60 not out) and Neil Moysey (40) helped Holme 2nds beat Appleby Eden 2nds by 21 runs despite the efforts of Carl Hodder (5/43), but it was the young bowling pair Oscar Barnes (4/50) and Josh Stephenson (3/47) that set down a marker for the future.

The Galgate bulldozing of Division 4 continues with a 202-run win against Bare 2nds.

Jake Gould (74) and Salman Khan (79) were the main scorers in 270/4 and then Matt Cooper took 7/23 bettering the 7/24 he had against Milnthorpe 2nds in 2015.

Glyn Caine (107 not out from 107 balls) and Caleb Mansergh (52) took Lindal Moor 2nds to 225/4 but Silverdale 2nds won by 5 wickets with Dave Amor smashing 53 not out from 46 balls to bring the win with 2 balls remaining.

Kieran Rogan made 90 for Haverigg 2nds.

Ben Owen took 4/13 for Arnside 2nds who won by 4 wickets (Ed Hart 46, Daniel Richrdson 48).

Jack Brown’s 4/44 helped restrict Dalton 2nds to 155/9, Paul Jones making 47.

Bolton le Sands won by 4 wickets, Simon Brown scoring 58.

In Division 5 there were wins for Coniston 2nds, Settle 3rds, Burneside 3rds and Barrow 3rds.

Fifties were scored by Mark Fryer (77 not out), Niall Parkinson (73), Matthew Holmes (65) and Cameron Penn (51) while the bowling honours went to Caitlin Ormiston (4/11) Matthew Cormack 4/14.

In Division 6 there were wins for Netherfield 4ths and Westgate 3rds.

Katie Hunter took 5/40, Joseph Parker 4/24 and Jack Green 4/23.