English cricket is facing fresh controversy after allegations that a player was using finger clicks to fake edges, with an official investigation now underway into what has been described as a “disgraceful” act.

Saltburn CC, currently top of the North Yorkshire & South Durham Cricket League Division 2, are at the centre of the claims. Videos of wickets taken by the side appear to show the first slip fielder clicking his fingers as the ball passes the bat, seemingly to create the sound of an edge.

A number of clips circulating on social media appear to show daylight between bat and ball, despite batters still being given out. Score records also show Saltburn’s wicketkeeper has taken 31 catches across his last eight matches.

That sequence includes an extraordinary haul of eight catches in a single innings. For comparison, the world Test record is seven, shared by Wasim Bari, Bob Taylor, Ian Smith, and Ridley Jacobs.

As the controversy gathered pace, live streams from some Saltburn matches appeared to have been taken down from the club’s website.

The allegations were first raised by local cricketer Ben Mummery, who posted footage of a dismissal against Middlesbrough and wrote: “First slip clicks his fingers to imitate an edge, bat nowhere near it and given out.

“This is about the worst case of cheating I’ve ever seen in cricket. Apparently, their keeper has a huge amount of catches this season.”

Middlesbrough captain Rory Cotterill then responded by posting another clip and saying: “Boro 2s skippa here, was 2 more incidents during this game, leading to a 15 and 16 year old being cheated out of an innings, along with this one.

Footage appears to show first slip clicking with his left hand as the ball passes the bat . “I was at the non strikers end at the time unknowingly watching them cheat in real time. We lost this game by 29 runs. Shocking.”

On Tuesday, the league confirmed it had been made aware of the issue and had begun examining the complaint.

Its statement said: “The league have received a formal complaint regarding alleged incidents in a Division Two game on Saturday.

“A full investigation has been initiated and until such time as the formal processes are complete no further comment will be made.”

Saltburn could face sanctions if the allegations are upheld.

Online reaction has been fierce. Cricket analytics platform BigHitCricket posted: “This is absolutely disgraceful and hopefully action will be taken against club and player as a result of Ben highlighting it.

“But what I keep thinking; surely there’s countless times where he clicks and the batter middles it, or he’s too busy clicking to catch a genuine edge?”

Journalist Amer Malik wrote: “Looks as if Saltburn CC are in for a rude awakening.

“Having allegedly cheated their way through each weekend, the only viable option is to relegate them to the lowest division and impose extended bans on every 1st and 2nd-team player who represented the club during the period in question.”

Cricket fan John MacIntyre also weighed in, saying: “I’m very surprised to see no response at all from Saltburn to this disgraceful cheating.

“Has the spirit of fair play lost its value at Saltburn Cricket Club? I hope someone has reported this to the league committee, who should definitely take action.”

Cricketers proven to be cheating at international level can face severe penalties. One of the most notorious involved Australia batter Cameron Bancroft using sandpaper on the ball in a bid to generate reverse swing during a Test scandal that also led to bans for captain Steve Smith and batter David Warner.

Earlier, South Africa captain Hansie Cronje admitted taking money from bookmakers to fix matches during a tour of India, a revelation that resulted in a lifetime ban.

Then in 2010, Pakistan players Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif, and Mohammad Amir were found guilty of deliberately bowling no-balls in a Test against England. All three received prison sentences as well as lengthy suspensions from cricket.