IBI CORPORATE FINANCE PREMIER LEAGUE PREVIEW – ROUND 4 (JUNE 1ST)

The fourth round of league fixtures in the IBI Corporate Finance Premier League take place this weekend, and even in the early throws of the season, this round features what looks like it could be in any other year a relegation 6-pointer (there is, of course, no relegation this season) and a couple of clashes which will give a good indication towards shaping the top of the table.

The unbeaten in all competitions Pembroke host Clontarf who are 1 from 2 in the league however have also been knocked out of the Leinster Senior Cup, whilst Balbriggan are 2 from 3 in the league, but have progressed in both knockout cups without taking the field and face up against Phoenix who have lost just one game, their league opener against Pembroke. The six-pointer is the battle between Malahide, who are winless in the league, and Leinster who in spite of an opening day win over Merrion, have struggled in their last two league outings.

Malahide vs Leinster

We kick off in Malahide with that important clash, as Leinster make the trip across from Rathmines. The home side have suffered heavy defeats at the hands of two excellent run chases in their two home league games so far, however they did also win both of the games in which they chased on home turf, perhaps Malahide is simply becoming a very difficult place to defend a score? If the toss has become that important, we may as well stop here, however, considering the way which Leinster collapsed last week in the face of a relatively modest chase against Pembroke, this may be the game that bucks the trend in The Village.

Malahide’s bowling unit will obviously key, as whether they are defending or chasing runs, they will need to find a way to restrict Leinster’s top order and it’s free flowing style. They welcome back Mike Frost this weekend and his left-arm spin will be a massive boost in both directions, for one that he’s Malahide’s classiest bowler, but also in the context of how Leinster struggled so badly against spin last weekend. From that point of view it’s no surprise to see Mohit Sane also retained, whilst the seamers include captain James Newland, Kelvin Donnelly and Jeremy Martins, with the likely addition of some more pace from all-rounder Andrew Sheridan. With the bat, they rely heavily on Younas Ahmadzai putting them ahead of the game early on, however Martins has been in the runs of late and this sort of game could suit Cormac McLoughlin-Gavin, with a first use wicket likely to be conducive to his more pragmatic style of play, they also welcome back Ali Frost to the side in what is a much stronger looking line-up than recent times.

Leinster meanwhile are extremely reliant on runs from their big two at numbers 3 and 4, in what seems to be much of a throwback to this time last season. Monil Patel was a cut above the rest for much of his 45 last weekend, however once he was bogged down it was only a matter of time before Leinster started to struggle, not even the usually reliable Joey Carroll could get going after Patel’s dismissal and that will be something that they will need to rectify in order to put up a competitive effort with the bat. They’ll be looking to skipper Bilal Azhar and Matthew Vercoe-Curtis at the top, and Saqib Bahadur at number 5 to help their big two compile a big score. With the ball, Luke Callanan spearheads the attack along with Jai Moondra and that pair could well make good use of the pitch conditions if Leinster were to be in the field first, they’re backed up by Azhar and Carroll, with the latter especially seeming to be a yard quicker in the past couple of weeks than he has in recent times, whilst their frontline spinner is now Tom Johnson, who bowled an excellent spell against Pembroke last weekend.

Whilst there’s certainly an element that much of this game could well be decided based on the toss, no team will win any game, nevermind batting second, without putting enough runs on the board. Monil Patel has been in fine touch for Leinster so far this season, and is likely to face up to Malahide’s best bowler in Mike Frost at some stage in the innings, if Frost dismisses Patel cheaply, there’s no doubt the home side will be well on the front foot.

KEY BATTLE: Mike Frost vs Monil Patel

Balbriggan vs Phoenix

Balbriggan’s season has developed nicely so far, in spite of only having taken the field in one of their last four scheduled fixtures. Their win over Clontarf last weekend was a massive moment, as having raced off into a very strong position they were clawed back, before eventually sneaking over the line. That sort of fighting instinct and ability to stay in the game was epitomised by Dylan Lues’ efforts in the victory as his 3/27 and 25* proved to be crucial in both innings’. Their batting unit features plenty of players in good form including the likes of Cameron Rowe, who made an unbeaten century against Malahide, Chris de Freitas, Ghanim Dara, who made 77 in last week’s chase, as well as the likes of Greg Ford who has been proven in the side over a number of seasons. New gloveman Ciaran Gray meanwhile had slotted in at number four last weekend, however he’s replaced behind the stumps by Emad Uddin this weekend. With the ball, as already mentioned Lues is the main spinner in the side and very much one of the spearheads, whilst the seam attack opens up with the left-arm of Sam Willemse and right-arm of Sebastien de Oliveira, who both offer good movement and control, there’s support from Chris de Freitas, whilst Jordan Hollard also makes his debut this weekend having made the early season transfer from Malahide.

Phoenix meanwhile return off the back of a bye last weekend, and will be eager to avoid letting their record slip to one from three in the league. Their last league outing is now 28 days ago, when they fell over the line against Malahide. Jack Lalor made his debut in that fixture and instantly showed his class with 61, and backed that up with an Irish Cup double-ton, he’s clearly cemented himself as being the class angle in the side. Johit Munjal at the top of the order alongside Levon Shields are two players well capable of finding the boundary regularly, however it’s the innings-finishing ability of their all-rounders Tyrone Kane & Shane Getkate and skipper Adam Chester where they are capable of causing some major damage in the second half of their 50 overs. With the ball, Amish Sidhu leads the line in the spin department in the absence of Ben White and George Dockrell, and will be backed up by Dev Ranolia, whilst the seamers are led in the main by three all-rounders in Lalor, Kane and Getkate.

Phoenix’s batting is likely to centre around Jack Lalor, with his knocks being integral to the balance of the team in the fixtures since his debut, he will need to get on top of Dylan Lues to give the side a chance of posting a strong batting effort.

KEY BATTLE: Dylan Lues vs Jack Lalor

Pembroke vs Clontarf

Pembroke come into this game off the back of an excellent comeback win last weekend, as having been 129/8 at one stage, they posted 183 and ran out 42 run winners against Leinster. From that side, Danny Hogan, Joe Prendergast and Mark Berry drop out, with Sam Murphy coming in behind the stumps, whilst Fiachra Tucker returns to the side from a hand injury, and Olly Riley is back having missed last weekend due to exams. Their bowling is lead by their spinners, with Paul Lawson and Gavin Hoey’s respective spells being the moments that turned the game in their favour last weekend, and they will be hoping to restrict Clontarf in a similar manner through the middle overs again this time around. The seamers were hampered last weekend with Nick Stapleton unable to bowl, and if he is back to full fitness this weekend it will be a massive boost, however if he isn’t it will allow Olly Riley and Byron McDonough to take the lead in that area. Pembroke are unbeaten in all competitions so far this season and back on home turf this weekend will be aiming to retain that record into the month of June. With the bat, JJ Garth and Tim Tector at the top of the order are Pembroke’s two most dangerous stroke makers, whilst Stapleton at number 4 was the victim of an unfortunate run out last weekend and will be another man keen for more runs.

Clontarf meanwhile come into this fixture off the back of a disappointing loss against Balbriggan last weekend, Eoghan Delany showed his class as his unbeaten century was really what kept his side in the game for as long as they were last weekend, and with the bat he’s supported by overseas man Rahul Dalal, all-rounder David Delany, new signing Mitchell Thompson and Leinster Schools’ midweek star Ethan Marshall. Amongst those five there is plenty of class and depth that should see them able to compete against this extremely strong Pembroke bowling unit. With the ball, David Delany and Fionn Hand are as good an opening pair as there is available to any side in the league, whilst Reuben Wilson as the third seamer rounds off an all Leinster Lightning pace attack. Their spinners feature Cillian McDonnell’s left arm, and Paul Ryan’s off-breaks, both of which are more than capable of producing wicket-taking spells. McDonnell in particular was excellent in their last outing against Balbriggan.

Fionn Hand’s return for Clontarf this weekend is likely to see a fiery spell, with the all-rounder not having played in earnest for a couple of weeks, his last club appearance in Pembroke saw him bowling a remarkable game-winning spell in the Leinster Senior Cup final, and if he can knock over Tim Tector at the top of the Pembroke order, it will give the side a big early foothold.

KEY BATTLE: Tim Tector vs Fionn Hand

IBI CORPORATE FINANCE PREMIER LEAGUE

Match Day 4 – June 1^st, All 12 noon starts

At Malahide, Malahide vs Leintser

At Jack Harper Park, Balbriggan vs Phoenix

At Sydney Parade, Pembroke vs Clontarf (Featured Game)