BATTLING York Cricket Club kept alive hopes of retaining their Solly Sports Yorkshire ECB County Premier League title for another week.

A hard-earned victory over Cleethorpes means the title race looks set to go down to the wire.

A late burst from Chris Burn proved too much for the opposition lower order, the young seamer taking the last three wickets to fall to complete his first five-wicket haul for the Clifton Park side.

Asked to bat first against an under-strength home side things began badly for the visitors when Gareth Fenton was caught behind off James Keast in the teenage bowler’s first over.

A partnership of 143 for the second wicket between Simon Lambert and Liam McKendry got the visitors back on track.

McKendry was the most fluent, striking eight boundaries on his way to a 56-ball half-century. Lambert took 87 balls to reach the same milestone.

The pair were dominating until a drinks break proved their undoing.

Within two overs of the restart McKendry, having reached 80, was caught at long-on and four overs later Lambert (61) spooned a simple catch of the bottom of the bat.

That brought together Ryan McKendry and Nick Kay with the score on 160-3 and it was their partnership of 99 from just 15 overs which turned the game.

Kay hit seven boundaries on his way to 43 from only 45 balls while McKendry finished unbeaten on 65, from 67 balls, as skipper Daniel Woods called a halt to the innings on 279-4 declaring with four overs in hand with which to bowls the hosts out.

Burn picked up the wickets of Harry Warwick, caught behind, and Prithvi Shaw, in his opening spell to set the home side back on 39-2.

Fifteen overs then passed before James Osmond succumbed to the spin of Woods and then David Mansfield was bowled shouldering arms to Tom Pringle in the next over.

Pringle picked up his second wicket, though skipper and opener Bill Kirby proved resolute defence to bat for almost two and a half hours. He found an ally in Ian Mansfield the pair batting into the 44th over.

Pringle finally trapped Kirby and bagged Mansfield.

When Woods invited Burnm to have another go, he wiped out the remaining wickets picking up the last three in the space of just 14 balls without conceding a run.