MIDDLESBROUGH face a trip to the seaside as they seek to increase their advantage at the top of the table.

And the scorers will need to be on their toes, with the Marske ground proving to be a bowler’s graveyard in recent weeks.

A series of high-scoring league matches culminated in the record-breaking interleague encounter last Sunday, when 778 runs were scored in just 86 overs of boundaryladen cricket.

The match between the NYSD and the NEPL set national run-scoring benchmarks at both team and individual levels and the toss of the coin is likely to prove even more crucial than normal today.

There is little surprise in the fact that the home team have three batsmen, Simon Guy, Chris Allinson, and Gary Lynch, who have already scored 1,700 league runs between them, but Boro have their own big guns in James Lowe, Alex Roberts and Liam Botham, who are just a hundred short of that mark.

The good news for Marske is that Botham misses the game, although Tom Hodgson returns and Roberts has been passed fit.

On the other side of the coin it is the lack of runs that is worrying Great Ayton as they make the short trip to Fountains Garth for the derby against Guisborough, who will start the match as favourites to maintain their championship challenge, given the visitors’ indifferent form of late.

Chris Batchelor became a national inter-league recordholder with his phenomenal 185 from just 119 balls last Sunday, and he sits seventh in the league run-scoring charts, but the next Ayton player on that list is down at number 46.

Matt Wilkinson misses this match, with the selectors mulling over several options as they seek to solve the scoring conundrum.

The Priorymen keep faith with the side who showed signs of returning to form at Richmond last week, victory a must if they are not to let Boro disappear over the horizon.

Champions Marton are the form team – a run of four wins in six has rekindled their championship ambition after easing their way up into fourth place.

With Chris Lane set to miss the rest of the season due to family commitments, the news that Jonny Spillane returns is welcome.

He comes straight into the side for the derby at Cricket Lane, where home team Normanby Hall have skipper Dave Cross back at the helm.

Hartlepool are also in a rich vein of form, a five-match unbeaten run banishing any worries that they might become embroiled in the relegation dogfight.

Marc Symington and Steve Purcifer are back this week, and former Boro double winning skipper Danny Evans retains his place after a successful debut. Hosts Northallerton expect to be unchanged.

Bishop Auckland include their new medium-pace signing from Durham City, Steve Brooke, at third-placed Stokesley, where the home team have Chris Bayliss back from university.

Chris Minto and Danny Wade come into the Thornaby side playing at Richmond, and Simon Lee and Dan Hardy are in the Darlington line-up for the Feethams meeting with Billingham.

The League’s under 21 side puts its four-year unbeaten record on the line tomorrow in the White Rose Trophy.

They play at Collingham against the Airedale & Wharfedale League with the following side: James Clarkson (Richmond) capt, Chris Allinson, Josh Carroll (both Marske), Andrew Weighell, Jonny Weighell, Will Brown, Josh Linton (all Stokesley), Dan Hodgson, Liam Coates (both Darlington), Jonny Spillane (Marton), Callum Prosser (Hartlepool).