Ferguslie skipper Jamey Carruthers believes five teams are still genuine contenders for the title after another topsy-turvy weekend of top-flight action.

Prestwick held onto pole position thanks to a battling win at Dumfries but Ferguslie made the significant move by reclaiming second place after a hard-fought win over Ayr at Meikleriggs.

A solid batting display saw Gregor Preston-Jones, Michael English and James Holt all record half-centuries while Riyaad Henry fell four short of that landmark as the Paisley men posted a formidable 276-8.

Henry then made an important breakthrough to remove the free-scoring Neil Smith, courtesy of a diving catch by English as Ayr’s reply suffered an early setback.

Ferguslie continued to take wickets at important times as their rivals struggled for meaningful partnerships and the home side struck the decisive blow when Haroon Tahir enticed Michael Papps down the track and Dave Stafford completed the stumping.

The former New Zealand Test batsman had made 56 and was beginning to warm to his task. However, his departure left Ayr with an uphill battle and, despite a stoic 50 from Michael Miller, they fell 20 runs short.

Tahir was the pick of the home bowlers with a further two wickets in addition to the prized scalp of Papps and the Scotland U19 spinner earned warm praise from his captain.

Tahir has become a key performer for Ferguslie following the close-season departure of his brother Hamza to Poloc and Carruthers said: “We’ve always had high hopes for Haroon and he is really showing his skills and ability this season.

“It was probably inevitable that he would get more opportunities and it’s great to see him rise to the challenge.

“I thought we should have been looking to post 300 today but it was a decent batting performance and it proved to be a testing total.

“The league is very open in my book and there’s still five teams I believe will challenge all the way.

“There is no room for slip-ups now.”

A look at the fixture list reveals the enticing prospect of top versus second on Saturday when Ferguslie head down the coast to face pace-setting Prestwick.

The Ayrshire side survived another stern examination at the weekend when, thanks to a century from Fazal Jawad and some lower order contributions, they recovered from 122-5 to post 235-9 at Dumfries.

The home side had their own centurion in Josh Forsyth but his 110 proved in vain as tight Prestwick bowling ensured a thrilling five-run win.

Poloc confirmed their return to form with a convincing seven-wicket success at Bothwell Castle against an Uddingston team who topped the table just two weeks ago.

A unbeaten 104 from Anwar Hafeez allowed the hosts to reach 206-4 but Hamza Tahir’s 3-18 always kept Poloc in the contest.

Jurie Snyman led the chase with a well-crafted 82no while Owais Shah contributed 62.

Clydesdale cannot be ruled out of contention, the champions flexing their muscles to win by ten wickets at rock-bottom Kelburne who were skittled for just 47.

East Kilbride boosted their survival prospects with victory by 13 runs at Greenock.