LEINSTER CRICKET SCOREBOARD AND ROUND-UP
LHW T20 Alan Murray Cup
Semi Finals
PEMBROKE 99-2 (17.3 overs, J Cooke 60*) beat Rush 95-8 (F McAllister 42, A Balbirnie 4-17) by 8 wickets
MERRION 134 all out (K Beasley 24, R Barker 22, G Ancher 6-27) beat PHOENIX 131 all out (C Dickieson 63, K Edwards 29, T Patel 3-30, M Petrie 2-14) by 3 runs.
Final
MERRION 76 all out (18.5 overs, J Anderson 21, R Francis 3-18, A Balbirnie 2-7, J Cooke 2-13) lost to PEMBROKE 77-3 (10.4 overs, R Francis 27*, J Cooke 21) by 7 wickets.
WHITNEY MOORE LEAGUE
Section B
RAILWAY UNION 257-5 (50 overs; T Fisher 105, K Carroll 55, C Mullen 29no, E Whaley 2-12, A Balbirnie 1-48, G McDonnell 1-46) beat PEMBROKE 217 allout (48.3 overs; J Cooke 65, R Francis 39, T Lawson 30, T Johnston 3-32, T Copeland 3-44, C Mullen 2-35) by 40 runs.
YMCA 220 all out (50 overs; A Lewis 56, B Dunk 52, S Raza 3-34, S Dutt 2-47) beat OLD BELVEDERE 149 all out (31.4 overs; Yogesh 87, Dutt 25, W Armstrong 6-18) by 71 runs.
CYM 243-7 (50 overs; D Vaughan 82, K McDonald 59, AJ Coetzee 39no, R Flanagan 2-35, C Kelly 2-58) lost to PHOENIX 247-9 (49.5 overs; D Langford-Smith 75, G Flanagan 43, P Conliffe 21no, K Brennan 2-31, M Lax 2-31, M Launders 2-44) by one wicket.
The final of the Twenty20 Cup was won by a very youthful Pembroke side, who defied their underdogs tag, to beat Section A sides Merrion and Rush to collect the trophy on their home soil.
Ireland Under 19 star Andrew Balbirnie starred with the ball in their 8 wicket win in the semi final over Rush. The off spinner, currently on the books of Middlesex, took 4 for 17 as Rush could only muster 95 for 8 in their 20 overs. Ireland wicket-keeper Fintan McAllister (42), the only bright note in a poor batting display. An unbeaten 60 from Jonno Cooke saw them canter to victory with 15 balls to spare.
The other semi final saw Merrion beat Phoenix by 3 runs in a thrilling contest. Garth Ancher took 6 wickets to restrict Merrion to 134, when they looked set to make 160+. Titkish Patel then took a hat-trick, including the wicket of Kirk Edwards for 29 to put Merrion firmly in control.
With 30 needed from 3 overs, Corey Dickieson then smashed 3 consecutive sixes off Simon Morrissey, to leave 10 needed from 2 overs. Matt Petrie then removed Dickieson for 63, to leave 5 needed from the last over. John Anderson proved the hero, conceding just a single, leaving Merrion victors by 3 runs.
The final proved to be a virtual no contest, with Merrion managing to score just 76. Rick Francis (3-18), Andrew Balbirnie (2-7) and Jonno Cooke (2-13) doing the damage. Only John Anderson (21) reached double figures, with extras being second top scorer with 11.
Francis then hit a quickfire 27, and Cooke made 21 as Pembroke coasted to a 7 wicket win with almost 10 overs to spare.
In the Section B promotion race, Railway Union stretched their lead at the top of the table following a 40 run win over Pembroke. A Tom Fisher century, and 5 from Kenny Carroll helped them to 257 for 5. In reply, despite good knocks from Jonno Cooke (65), Ricki Francis (39), and Theo Lawson (30), they fell short. The two Trents, Johnston and Copeland each took 3 wickets.
Half centuries from former Ireland captain Alan Lewis (56), and the prolific Australian professional Ben Dunk (52), saw YMCA post a very competitive 220 in their clash with promotion hopefuls Old Belvedere. That proved 71 too many, despite a typically ebullient 87 from Yogesh. YM skipper Warwick Armstrong was the destroyer-in-chief, with match winning figures of 6 for 18.
Closest finish of the day saw Phoenix defeat CYM by 1 wicket, with Irish World Cup star Dave Langford-Smith scoring a match winning 75. A 2nd wicket partnership of 117 between Donal Vaughan (82), and Ken McDonald (59) saw CYM to an above par 243/7.
When Phoenix crashed to 46 for 5, it looked all over, but Langford-Smith and Graham Flanagan (43) put on 127, and a last wicket stand of 29 between Steve Neill and Paddy Conliffe edged them home with 2 balls to spare.