ST PETER'S School, York, pupil Jonathan Bairstow is placing no boundaries on his pursuit of honours in two sports.

Jonathan's cricket and rugby union talent has caught the eyes of county selectors in both games but he is still undecided whether representing his country at Twickenham or Lords would represent the height of his sporting ambitions.

As it happens, he has already come within a whisker of running out at the RFU's famous headquarters after kicking the winning last-minute penalty that saw St Peter's Under-15s reach the semi-finals of the Daily Mails Schools Cup.

The team's challenge ended at the last four stage but fly-half Jonathan impressed Yorkshire selectors and has just represented his county for the first time as a rugby player, becoming a member of the side that reached the final of the National Tens' Tournament at Rugby before being beaten by North Midlands.

As a cricketer, Jonathan, the son of late Yorkshire and England wicketkeeper David Bairstow, has represented the White Rose since the age of ten and is now one of just two U15 players on the county's prestigious scholarship scheme.

A talented top-order batsman, he has scored three 50s for Yorkshire U15s last season and is also a member of the North of England squad.

Jonathan's father was also an accomplished player in two sports, having figured in 17 matches for Bradford City as a professional footballer in the 1971-72 and 1972-73 seasons during which time he scored one goal and appeared as a substitute in a 3-1 defeat against York City at Bootham Crescent.

Current progress points to a bright future in either rugby or cricket for Jonathan but, for now, he is expressing no preference for one over the other.

He said: "I like them both equally and think I'm probably similar at both in terms of ability. I'm not too sure which sport I would like to pursue at this present time and I'm just enjoying both and we will see what happens."

Jonathan does add, however, that he would be delighted to follow in his famous father's footsteps and represent his county and country at cricket.

He said: "I'd like to play for Yorkshire at senior level. I hope I can do that and I'd definitely like to play for England one day."

Jonathan is being given expert guidance in achieving his cricketing goals with the Yorkshire scholarship scheme where first-team players have offered their advice.

He said: "It is an honour to be given the scholarship because not many are handed out and they are reassessed at the end of each year. You receive more training and at the outdoor nets recently Anthony McGrath and Richard Pyrah both came over and talked to us about mental approaches, as well as taking us through some drills."

Jonathan has signed for York Cricket Club from Dunnington, where he also benefited from the coaching of former West Indies Test player Collis King.

He said: "Dunnington were very helpful to me, especially Collis. He talked about little things to improve my game and worked on my concentration. He has a lot of valuable experience and know-how."

Jonathan hit eight 50s - the limit before being required to retire - for Dunnington U15s last year and also hit 36 not out for the first team in the final game of the season.

By moving to York, Jonathan is hoping that he will get greater senior level exposure, saying: "I am hoping to play for the second team in the York first division and I'd like to see if I can break into the first team and play in the Yorkshire League."

Updated: 09:09 Saturday, May 21, 2005