HALTON Jaguars can break open the bubbly as BBF Premier League North champions.

The Runcorn-based team clinched the title with a victory over Bolton Blaze and defeat for fellow challengers Sheffield Bladerunners.

Jags can now prepare for the journey south for the Premier National Final play-offs - on September 3 at Croydon.

Halton started poorly with four runs conceded to the greatly-improved Bolton in the top of the first.

However Jags came back with three, centre fielder Alex Heesom squeezing one in, advancing three bases on Nigel Harrison's single, before Harrison was tagged out going for second.

Blaze continued to score freely in the second as Halton starter, Nick Bustin, struggled with Bolton's top of the order before relief came in the form of Chris Taggart.

Bustin dropped back to his regular centrefield slot while Taggart pitched two solid innings, giving up just one run.

In return, Halton came back fiercely by scoring six in the third and seven in the fourth to take back control.

A Bolton rally in the top of the fifth was based on three consecutive walks from Taggart which resulted in three runs for Blaze and a further pitching change for Halton with Rob Mills being brought on.

Meanwhile the Jags' scoring dropped to a steady two runs in each of the fifth and sixth but even so, their lead was virtually unassailable at 23-14.

By the end of the sixth, Jags needed just one run to win by the ten-run slaughter rule.

Having kept the Blaze scoreless in the sixth, Mills carried on the good work in the seventh facing just five batters and allowing no runs.

Johnny Pauls struck out but third baseman, Ioan Said, singled and then advanced on Heesom's double.

Second baseman, Nigel Harrison, walked - bringing up left fielder William Sneddon whose single scored Said to win the game 24-14.

Despite the threat of an early lead by Blaze, Halton had hit and scored freely with Taggart and Mills neutralising the Bolton offence while sound defence backed up the good work of the pitch-ers.

Most-productive Halton hitters were Chris Taggart with five RBIs and Nick Bustin with three RBIs.

William Sneddon and Colin Walton each scored four runs while Sneddon had five hits in six at bats.