HAVE York Cricket Club brought back the "good old days"?

Clifton Parkers captain Nick Kay is hoping the toppling of league leaders Harrogate Town in the Solly Sports Yorkshire ECB County Premier League can spur his side on to recreate former glories as they look forward to a double header this weekend.

York produced a devastating bowling display to see off their North Yorkshire rivals last weekend and, hailing it as the best display of the campaign so far, Kay saw glimpses of the talent that allowed the club to win seven successive league titles.

Now Sheffield Collegiate, in the league, and Doncaster Town, in the League Cup, are the next tests for an emerging Shipton Road side and Kay believes the team are growing in belief that they are a match for the league's best.

"We played our best game of the season without a doubt - with bat, ball and in the field," he said of the Harrogate match. "It was kind of like the good old days. This season we have beaten both Harrogate and Yorkshire Academy, who are two of the top teams in the league.

"It shows me that the lads, on their day, are good enough to beat anyone. It needs a bit of belief and we have got to do it as a team. Last Saturday, we had four bowlers who all contributed. Two of our seamers, who have been a bit out of luck this season, in Charlie Elliot and Chris Burn, stepped up and both bowled match winning spells.

"We made a good Harrogate batting line-up look a bit brittle. They are good players but if you put the ball in the right areas you will get rewards. That will give those lads a lot of confidence and show them that they are good enough to take wickets in the Yorkshire League."

Looking ahead to Sheffield Collegiate tomorrow, Kay is wary of a side that are third bottom of the table but possess a potent batting attack.

He explained: "Sheffield Collegiate's league position is a little bit false. They have played fewer games than everyone else and, last week, they beat Chesterfield in the regional final of the national knockout competition. That's quite a good achievement in the south section.

"They have got two of the best batsmen in the league in Will Root and Simon Guy."

Sunday's game with Doncaster Town will be the third time the two teams have met in the first half of the campaign, following victories for York in both the league and the recent Solly Sports T20 competition.

Kay said: "We have played Doncaster twice this season. We got the better of them in the league and then beat them comprehensively in the T20 competition. As is always the case, when you play with the pink ball and in the one-day coloured clothing, it will bring out the best in them.

"I hope it will also bring out the best in us. We enjoy that format and, hopefully, we can get a positive result. There is an incentive for us in that if we win we have got a semi-final game at home. That is definitely something to play for."

York will field the same side that beat Harrogate against Collegiate while, for the Doncaster Town clash, Tom Pringle and Chris Booth will return to the squad in a strong line-up.