BURNING Desire B will have their work cut out if they are to lift the Warburton Cup.

The First Division side are the only non-Premier Division team to make it into the semi-finals.

But they can go into the last four with the confidence of knowing they can beat top-flight sides after knocking out Nomads A 5-4 in a game which was played off scratch.

The decisive point came at 3-3 after which they won the next two sets to clinch victory.

Ben Armstrong and Ian Quinn both won two and Kevin Chapman added the other. Dennis Collier was unbeaten for Nomads.

Holders Burning Desire A gave unbeaten Division Three leaders Coburg five points start but still managed to run out comfortable 7-2 winners. Lindsey Reynolds and Paul Cicchelli both trebled.

Hilton Tameside scored a 5-4 win over Division One team Heaton D in the tightest of matches. Heaton, who had a three-point start, held their own from the beginning but, from being all square at 3-3, they lost the next two to give Tameside their win.

Jake Shaw was unbeaten for Tameside and Caroline Hallows added the other two. Ady Denson was the star performer for Heaton, winning two, and Alan Crompton and Alan Cowley each won one.

On their visit to Ladybridge A, top team Ramsbottom A gave the Division One side a four-point start and came away with a 6-3 win. The match was closer than the scoreline suggests with five sets decided by the fifth game.

Mick Moir trebled for Ramsbottom and Mark Ramsbottom added two and Andy Jackson one. Dave Bolton, Alex Waring and Craig Bradbury each recorded one win for Ladybridge.

In the Brian Gittins Cup for Premier and Division One teams, one match remains outstanding between Ladybridge A and Hilton B. But Ramsbottom A and Burning Desire A, along with Division One team Hilton D, are through to the semi-finals.

The Hilton team scored a 5-4 victory over fellow Division One team Heaton D. Unfortunately, the Heaton team could only field two players and had to concede three sets. Their two players, Alan Crompton and Alan Cowley – with a two-point start – won two apiece. Lee Davenport and Brett Haslam won two each and John Cartledge one for Hilton Three wins by Lindsey Reynolds, two by Paul Cicchelli and one by Reena Ardeshana gave Burning Desire A a 5-3 victory against fellow Premier Division team Little Lever B. With a two-point start, John Hutchinson and Roy Costello both won one for Little Lever.

Ramsbottom A enjoyed a comfortable 5-1 triumph on their visit to Hilton Tameside who received two-point start. Mick Moir and Mark Ramsbottom both won two and Andy Jackson one for the winners. Caroline Hallows recorded the solitary win for the losers.

Two teams from Division Two, Hilton F and Hilton Tigers, along with Division Three teams, Coburg and Hilton G, are through to the semi-finals of the George Yates Shield.

Hilton F, with a two-point start, came away with a 5-3 win at fellow Division Two team, Meadow Hill A. The victory featured two wins by Brian Cooke and Roger Bertrand, and one from Jim Bolton. Phil Noden scored two wins and Steve Jones one for Meadow Hill.

The other Second Division team, Hilton Tigers, scored a comprehensive 5-0 win at Third Division Farnworth SC B despite giving them a two-point start. Chris Naylor and Marek Maraszkiewicz won two each and Rob Hall one for the winners.

Hilton G won the all-Third Division match at Ladybridge C 8-1, despite the losers receiving a two-point start. The match was closer than the scoreline suggests with five sets decided by the fifth game.

Trebles by Brian Young and Tim Fields, and a double for Matthew Fields, earned the win for Hilton with Ian Gregory scoring a consolation for Ladybridge.

Played from scratch, Division Three’s Coburg beat Division Two’s Farnworth SC A 6-3. Jimmy Hewitt, Mark Speakman and Bob Bent all won two for Coburg with Geoff Rushton, Gill Marsden and Ian Westmoreland all winning one for Farnworth.