YORK Cricket Club gained some compensation for Sunday's rain-demolished fixture when they visited Sheffield United and gained an incomplete ECB Yorkshire Premier League win.

Batsmen seemed to hold sway for most of the day, but in the last five overs of the match York's bowling and out-cricket snatched success when defeat seemed a real possibility.

Steve Piercy and Will Warne gave York a sound start with 60 off 21 overs. Warne went on to strike an excellent 50 and the innings was given further momentum by Nick Kay who made a fluent 58 in only 59 balls.

York wobbled a bit in mid order as paceman Tom Fletcher picked up four wickets. However, Dan Broadbent and Rob Flack picked up the pace with the latter demonstrating again his middle order value with 44 off 34 balls, including six fours to take York to a useful total of 235.

United got off to an even smarter start with 61 in 17 overs before Riley O'Neill seduced Rich Cummins to hit a catch to James Pringle. Broadbent picked up a couple of wickets but Martin Barlow and Piet Swanepoel put on 95 to take United to the brink of victory with 35 runs required off the last six overs and seven wickets remaining.

Within seven balls both had departed as Barlow fell to a smart Nigel Durham stumping off Piercy and Broadbent took a brilliant catch for O'Neill to claim Swanepoel's scalp.

Sheffield's tail buckled to Piercy's tight off-spin as he grabbed three wickets in five balls. O'Neill nicked another victim and United were left hanging on for the last five deliveries to preserve their tenth wicket with their score ten short of the York total.

This was a real achievement for York as Flack was unable to bowl because of a muscle tear when batting and Warne had to leave the field with a broken nose from a bad bounce.

Updated: 11:14 Tuesday, June 01, 2004