The showpiece of the Northern Cricket Union calendar will be played at The Meadow, Downpatrick on 27 July.
After the appalling weather of the last couple of weeks one match was decided on the pitch and the other so to speak off the pitch. The game between Carrickfergus and Waringstown never realistically stood a chance and the teams agreed to settle the match with a bowl out at Middle Road.
Many will argue that this is not the way to decide the finalists of such a prestige competition, reducing the result to a lottery, but few neutral observers will argue that it was the correct result on this occasion and Waringstown will defend the trophy they won last season.
Waringstown struck first through Gary Kidd and then Darius van Rensburg equalised for Carrick. James Hall had the final say with Waringstown’s fourth delivery and neither of Carrick’s two remaining bowlers could hit the stumps.
It says much for the determination of both captains and their respective teams that the other semi-final was the only senior cricket match played on Saturday in the NCU. With Instonians home pitch at Shaw’s Bridge unplayable the Old Boys agreed to switch to Comber with a view to deciding the outcome on the field of play rather than have a bowl out.
Thanks to the sterling work of the North Down club and groundsman Raymond Moreland in particular a game did take place. Play commenced on time atnoonand it was soon clear that the bowlers would have the upper hand.
Peter Connell struck with the last ball of his opening over to bowl Instonians opener Rory McCann. With the first ball of his second over he removed Regan West to leave the visitors on 4 for 2 with Irish international Andrew White walking in to face the hat trick ball. Connell felt sure he had it when he hit White on the pads but the umpire much to his disappointment did not raise the finger.
White and captain John Stevenson set about trying to rebuild the innings and took the score to 53 in the 15th over. This was almost single-handedly down to White who scored 34 from 38 balls with 7 fours.
Gavin McKenna then found the edge of White’s bat and North Down skipper Peter Shields took the catch behind. White will be disappointed with his dismissal and for Instonians it was the beginning of a long slow death.
The bowlers reassumed their pre-eminence and the next 32 overs produced only 57 more runs as no-one was able to dominate in the way White had. Skipper Stevenson lasted 58 balls for his 13 and young James Shannon briefly threatened to shine with 19 off 32 balls with three boundaries.
Instonians were all out for 112 in 47 overs with three wickets each for McKenna and Connell. On top of this, 17 overs from the North Down slow bowlers Marty Moreland, Ryan and Robin Haire yielded just 36 runs for 3 wickets.
Stevenson knew his bowlers had to strike early to make a match of it and opened with the pace of Phil Clark at one end and the spin of West at the other. It was immediately obvious that this was not a formality asClark was moving it both ways off the wicket and West getting prodigious turn.
The normally free scoring Neil Russell though obviously hampered by a back injury took 34 balls to get off the mark, playing and missing with regularity at the luckless Clark. However the first wicket fell to a splendid piece of fielding from Stevenson, throwing down the wicket leaving Ryan Haire floundering as he tried to regain his ground when sent back by Russell.
Instonians gambled all and brought White into the attack and with West switching ends the pair bowled in tandem. Michael Turkington sent in at number three briefly upped the tempo with two boundaries before Shannon took a sharp chance close in off White.
West finally put Russell out of his misery taking a caught and bowled to end his 43-ball stay for 12, which contained only three scoring shots. David Kennedy was joined by Robin Haire, who better to have when you are looking to grind out a win at just over 2 an over.
Kennedy was then hit on the pads by West and looked astounded when the umpire answered the appeal in the affirmative. At 62 for 4 North Down were in a similar position to the one Instonians had found themselves in earlier.
Peter Shields strode to the wicket knowing that if he could see out the remaining 6 overs of West and White in company with Haire then the job was as good as done.
This he did and went on to make a captain’s innings of 31 not out with 4 fours. Haire was dismissed for 18 with 10 needed to win but it made little difference.
Clark, West and White sent down 30 overs for 57 runs but Instonians lacked another bowler to apply the pressure and get the vital breakthrough when needed. Shields with three catches and 31 not out must have featured highly in NCU President Ivan Anderson’s thoughts for the TCH Down Democrat Man of the Match.
In the end it was Gavin McKenna who got the nod picking up his second TCH award of the season for his 3 for 29 including the vital wickets of White and Stevenson.
Courtsey of the Down Democrat
