Swords 4 vs Wexford Wanderers 3 - No preview as North Kildare 6 vs Clondalkin 6 (June 11) in Division 18 still not submitted.
Balbriggan 1 vs Merrion 1 - A case of very much "as you were" in the Premier League after last week's wash out. Balbriggan need a win to move them away from a precarious seventh place, but there are only two points between them and Merrion in fourth, so there is no reason for anyone to panic yet. There is a gap of 19 points between Merrion and YMCA in 3rd, so these two will both be keen to make sure that gap doesn't grow too large. Merrion will have no fears in traveling to Balbriggan having won all of their four previous senior matches there. The 2017 Championship match is probably the most noteworthy. Merrion were 5/2 and then 22/3 before John Anderson (117) and Michael Lewis (104) added 187 for the second wicket. No one else got more than Dom Joyce's 13, and Merrion made "only" 288 all out, with Abdul Samad taking 5-43. Multiple hundreds in the same Merrion innings are fairly common. Since this took place, there have been two more occurrences - John Anderson and Dom Joyce against Leinster in June 2019, and John Anderson and Stephen Doheny against Malahide in August 2021. Samad has only bowled 22.5 overs in his 39 match senior career for Balbriggan, with this being the only time he tool more than one wicket. Balbriggan then made a real fist of it, with 50s from Adrian Harper (55) and Trent McGrath, but Tom Stanton's 4-62 ensured Balbriggan were bowled out for 253 - 35 runs short.
YMCA 1 vs Leinster 1 - Third hosts the leaders in Claremont Road in the Premier League, although in reality there is nothing between the teams (three points). Leinster have won their last three senior matches in Claremont Road, with YM's last senior win being amazingly back in 2013. Stephen Moreton top scored for Leinster with 38, but Simi Singh was the hero for YMCA with 5-27. It was one of five five wicket hauls he has in Leinster senior cricket, and one of four for YMCA which helped to bowl Leinster out for 152. YMCA knocked them off easily, losing three wickets in the process with 91 balls still to be bowled. The bulk of the runs were scored by that man again, Simi scoring 72* from 64 balls. Simi went on to repeat the feat of 50 runs and 5 wickets in the same match against Leinster in the 2016 Leinster Senior Cup final.
Malahide 1 vs Clontarf 1 - Second place Malahide host the form team in the Premier League, Clontarf who have won their last three. History points towards a Clontarf win, as Malahide have not won a senior game at home since June 2010, when they chased Clontarf's 207 for the loss of four wickets. Since then Clontarf have been to the Village four times with a couple of very narrow wins along the way. In the August 2013 Championship match, Ryan Gallagher scored 51 for Malahide, one of four times he passed 50 for Malahide. Andre Botha took 3-42 for Clontarf, the last time the Clontarf legend took three wickets in an innings for them. Gallagher starred with ball as well, dismissing Robert Forrest with the score on 2, but Tarf recovered somewhat to 88-2, before a series of mini middle order collapsed saw them slip to 94-5 and 143-7. But 34* from Zander Van Der Merwe and then 18 from Connor D'Arcy helped Tarf get close, before Adam Craig and Van Der Merwe added the three runs needed for victory. That was Clontarf's second 1 wicket win in 118 senior matches against Malahide, the other one being on June 23 1979.
The Hills 1 vs Railway Union 1 - A crunch game in The Vineyard, where a 25 point win would lift Railway Union off the bottom of the Premier League table. The Hills will be a lot more positive though - a win could move them up two places to 5th. The Hills have won the last three matches between the teams in The Vineyard with Railway's last win being all the way back in April 2014. It was an odd match. Naseer Shoukat was near to the height of his powers, taking 6-41 (In his career of 686 senior wickets (so far!) he was only to have one more five wicket haul. That total places him 21st in the all time list). But Pat Collins (76) and Saad Ullah Khan (51) both hit 50s as Railway got to 225 all out. Nicolaas Pretorius then hit Kevin O'Brien out of the attack as The Hills got off to a first start. But parsimonious spells from Kenny Carroll (0-29 from 10) and Mohammad Tariq (2-14 from 6) put the breaks on, and wickets kept falling. Ciaran Divney took six catches, equaling the record we have in our database, and Kevin O'Brien returned to take the last three wickets. It was the last time he took three wickets in an innings in Leinster cricket as Railway won by 66 runs.
Civil Service 1 vs Phoenix 1 - A tough week for Civil Service last week. They were the only game in the top two divisions to get a result; had the misfortune for it to be against Pembroke; and then lost their advantage over North Kildare, got the 12.5 points from a rained off match. They go again today in the Phoenix Park derby. Civil Service are probably kicking themselves for not putting Phoenix away in the reverse fixture on June 3. Dhirag Shetty hit 59 (his first senior 50 in only his second match) and multiple contributions down the order got Service to 210 all out. Amish Sidhu took three wickets for the 13th time in a senior match (he has added two more since). When the Civil Service bowling attack took five wickets for 115, Service had their chance. But 80 from Jed Wiggins and 43* from Theo Dempsey got Phoenix home with no fuss - four wickets and 84 balls remaining.
Cork County 1 vs Pembroke 1 - Cork County need to put the infamous June 3 match behind them, although mentioning it here probably won't help. Pembroke achieved their highest ever victory by runs, winning by 310 runs - they have now played 1725 matches in Leinster Senior cricket! Jonathan Garth hit 139, his first ever Senior hundred in Leinster cricket, and Nick Stapleton took 5-16. Stapleton's 2023 season is currently the fourth best bowling return (by average) for Pembroke in senior cricket. He currently has 30 wickets at 7.60, with the best being MB Williams' 46 wickets at 6.78 in 1957. Pembroke have played Cork County in The Mardyke in three matches over the years, in 1996, 2015 and 2017 and won them all.
Terenure 1 vs North Kildare 1 - A win for North Kildare today could move them up to 6th place in the Championship, with Terenure looking to maintain their fourth spot and to close the gap on the top three. And despite North Kildare's league position, a win today is a real prospect as they have two wins from the three times they have played Terenure in Terenure in the Championship. In the six innings across those three matches, no team scored more than 141, so don't expect a runfest! In the May 2016 match Subramanya Ramnathpur took 5-20, his only five wicket performance so far in 59 matches for County Galway, Rush and Terenure as North Kildare made 141. Conor Mullen scored 47 runs for Terenure but from 121-6 Terenure lost their last four wickets in a hurry, being bowled out for 131.
Rush 1 vs North County 1 - North County lie in 6th place in the Championship but need to close the gap on Cork County above them that currently sits at 19 points. Rush will be much happier with their position and are still neck and neck with Phoenix in third place. Matches between the pair have been surprisingly rare in the last decade. Rush won last season by 71 runs, but we need to go back to May 2014 for the match before that, which saw North County win by 9 wickets in the Leinster Senior Cup. Eddie Richardson took 5-40 in that match to bowl Rush out for 142 before Adam Coughlan (77) and Tim Affleck (68) added 143 for the second wicket to get County home. That is the third highest 2nd wicket partnership for North County (since 2011), with Conor Armstrong and Greg Hay's 165 against Terenure in May 2011 being the best.
Adamstown 3 vs Balbriggan 3 - A pair of dead matches in Group C of the Intermediate Cup, as Tyrrelstown 2 have already qualified for the semi finals. The reverse fixture on June 17 saw Balbriggan win by 5 wickets. Jacob Ullasa Kumar hit 33 for Adamstown and Chuka Uba took 2-22 as the innings meandered its way to 131/6. Not fantastic, but not too bad either. A solid 56 ball 50 for Cian Rooney (his 7th 50 for Balbriggan) put them on their way, and even a string of late wickets didn't seem to inconvenience the chase too much - Balbriggan reaching the target for a loss of five wickets with three balls to spare.
North County 3 vs Phoenix 4 - Lots of games in hand for North County in Division 8 and a win today could move them from 6th to 3rd place. Phoenix are currently in third, and whilst the leaders Athlone are probably too far ahead (106 points!) second place Knockharley 2 are "only" 44 points ahead, and are catchable with a helpful wind. The sides haven't played in Inch in the league since May 2022. Tariq Quadri scored a brilliant 110, his only century in 132 matches in Cricket Leinster (2014-present) as North County made 230 all out. For Phoenix, no one scored more than Sandip Kumar's 27 as they never really threatened, being bowled out for 178 with M Mudassar Zahid taking 4-46
Wexford Wanderers 2 vs Tyrrelstown 3 - Fourth in Division 13 hosts third. Dundalk 1 are way ahead in the division, but the fight for the second promotion spot it very much on, and the winners today will go second. The last time the pair met in Wexford was a fairly nondescript match in August 2021. Adithya Annam top scored for Tyrrelstown with 34 as they made 166/8 from 40 overs, Attila Stahlut taking 3-10. Wexford never really looked like losing - but never dominated with Brendan Orsmond hitting 55 as Wexford got home with 2 wickets at 18 balls to spare. For Tyrrelstown, Srikanth Reddy Police took 3-15 and Anup Kishen 3-35.
Slieve Bloom 1 vs Adamstown 5 - The last matches in Group B of the Junior Cup today with Adamstown playing this match, and Slieve Bloom playing a double header. Three teams could end up on 16 points, and then Net Run Rate would be needed to find the two qualifiers for the semi finals. Two wins for Slieve Bloom will put them through, but one win will need more calculations! If all three teams tie on 16 points, Adamstown will be out as they lost to both Slieve Bloom and Adamstown. The teams have never played each other before. Slieve Bloom are 5-5 for the season, turning their season around after a dodgy start. Faizan Hakim is their leading run scorer with 224 runs at 28, with their leading wicket taker being Sajin Soman with 13 wickets at 16.85. Adamstown 5 are 5-7 for 2023 with Avinash Avinash being their leading wicket taker with 11 wickets at 14.73 and Vinayak Komati being their leading run scorer with 217 runs at 27.13.
Laois 2 vs Knockharley 2 - Knockharley are already out of the Intermediate Cup, but for Laois this fixture is very much alive. They need to win to qualify for the semi finals, a tie or rained off match will mean they are level with Finglas 1 and will need net run rate to separate them after the two matches between the sides were shared. Laois lead the all tine head to head 3-1, and won the reverse fixture on May 21. Sanjeev Singh took 3-31 for Laois as Knockharley scored 136/9 with Shoaib Khan top scoring with 31. Laois romped home with 25 balls to spare as Muhammad Ashiq (48*) and Mohammed Sheraz (67) added 120 for the first wicket. It is the highest 1st wicket partnership for any Laois team in T20 cricket.
Naas 1 vs Rush 3 - Naas' Division 11 campaign still looks pretty bleak, and with only four matches left they are going to perhaps three matches to get themselves off the bottom (although winning all four may not be enough). Rush have games in hand on everyone above them and are in a decent position - a win today will lift them to third. Rush have won the last two games between the teams, with this year's reverse Division 11 fixture seeing a monster win for Rush. Irish cricketing legend Conor Armstrong made 107 at the top of the order, with others chipping in as Rush made 310 all out. Abdul Ashraf took 4-39, his best bowling for Naas in the 22 matches he has played. Nirmal Kandwal hit a defiant 80* from number 6 but Naas never really threatened. Shrayash Jain took 4-39 as Naas were bowled out for 196. It was Rush 3's third biggest win by runs since our database started in 2011.
Leinster 4 vs Ashbourne 1 - The last match in Group B of the Intermediate Cup and there is plenty riding on it. A Leinster win would leave them level with Pembroke 4, and net run rate needing to be used to separate them. An Ashbourne win will take them into the semis, whilst a tie or rained off match would put Pembroke and Ashbourne in a tie, net run rate again being needed. The reverse fixture was played two weeks ago and was dominated by two Ashbourne partnerships. Anjani Bonam (44) and Nishad Sudhakaran (65) added 72 for the wicket wicket before Sudhakaran and Jobin Thomas (61)
then added another 109 for the third wicket. Both were the highest partnerships for that wicket for all T20 cricket in Ashbourne. Leinster didn't do too badly in the chase of Ashbourne's 193/2. Avtar Singh top scored with 42, but Jobin Thomas had a fine match with 3-27 as Leinster fell short by 25 runs.
Pembroke 3 vs Mullingar 1 - Only one match in Division 6 this weekend, but it is an important one for both sides. Pembroke have had a poor season, and won't be able to lift themselves out of relegation places today but need to start putting pressure on Carlow above them. Longford look to be out of reach of Mullingar at the top, but they need to keep chalking up the wins to stay ahead of the mid table teams behind them. Mullingar haven't won in this exact fixture since September 2013. Jeremy Dunleavy top scored for Pembroke with 87, his highest scored for Pembroke 3 in 40 matches. Pembroke kept chipping away with wickets, as Dunleavy (3-26) and Justin Doherty (3-32) both performing well. But Mullingar were not without some fight as Daragh Ryan (29), Ali Yasir (46), Rajat Nautiyal (26) and Irfan Qasim (24) all contributed. Vipin Nautiyal's 14 got them over the line with two wickets and two balls to spare.
Leinster 5 vs Merrion 6 - Double headers today in the Junior Cup for both Leinster and Merrion, but unfortunately they are all dead rubbers with Dundalk 1 and Ongar 1 already having nailed down the semi final spots. The sides met on June 5th in Division 14. Kuldeep Bisht made 46 for Leinster, but the total of 152/8 looked well under par with Winston Dassanayake taking 3-25, the 10th time he has taken 10 wickets for Merrion (since 2011) in his long 111 match career. Rishabh Sharma top scored for Merrion with 46* as they eased home with 21 balls and five wickets to spare.
Railway Union 5 vs Civil Service 5 - No preview as Laois 3 vs Naas 2 (July 6) in the Russell Court Trophy still not submitted.
Tyrrelstown 5 vs Merrion 7 - A dead match in Group A of the Adamstown Cup, with the two semi final places between Sandyford 4, Ongar 2, Adamstown 7 and North Kildare 6. Both of the previous matches between the teams have been in Division 19 league matches this season, and Tyrrelstown won both. The May 21 game in Bird Avenue was a low scoring affair although Jithesh Vijayakumar scored 60 for Tyrrelstown out of their all out total of 118. Ethan Hall took 4-37, not surprisingly his best in the two matches he has played for Merrion 7. Merrion's innings was very similar. Yaqoob Shinwari scored 42 at the top of the order, but most of the others struggled. Jithesh Vijayakumar completed a player of the match performance with 4-12 as Merrion made only 111, Tyrrelstown winning by 7 runs.
The Hills 5 vs Malahide 6 - An exciting double header between these two teams today in the Minor 2 Cup to see who will join Clontarf 7 in the semi finals. If the games are shared (or both rained off), net run rate will be used to separate them. Apart from that, whoever does better on the day will go through. The Hills are only 3-2 for the year, with only 14 year old Max Stead having had the chance to put together much of a season with 7 wickets at 9.29. Malahide are 5-9 for the year, with Sanjay Pahuja the leading run scorer with 117 runs at 29.25 and James Dickinson the top wicket taker with 12 at 9.75.
Phoenix 3 vs Greystones 1 - No preview as Greystones 1 vs Castleknock 1 (July 15) in Division 7 still not submitted.
Pembroke 5 vs Swords 3 - Pembroke 5's long term slide is looking like continuing in 2023. Their league position has got worse every year since 2016 and if they finish where they currently lie (8th in Division 16 - 128th in the league) it will be their worst ever season. They have a toughish task at home to Swords today, with Swords 3-3 and in 5th place in Division 16. However despite that doom and gloom, a Pembroke win would lift them out of the relegation zone. The only previous match between the teams was the reverse league fixture on May 13. Pembroke made 150 all out with Bhushan Baviskar top scoring with 45. Bhavisjar is currently the second highest run scorer in the Open Competitions with 612 runs at 43.71, Leinster's Waleed Khan leads with 614 runs. In reply Swords were going well at 129-4 (Ginu George 46) before four wickets fell for nine runs as Kieran Vulker took 4-20, the tenth time Vulker has taken four wickets in an innings for Pembroke. It needed Sandeep Murali and Sanju Easow to get them over the line for a two wicket win.
DLR County 1 vs Lucan 1 - A dead match in Group B of the Middle Cup, where one of Kilkenny 1 and Mullingar 1 will go through. The reverse fixture on June 3 saw Nikhil Katare score his second 50 for DLR County 1 (and 10th in Leinster cricket) as DLR made 158/6 from their 20 overs, Manpreet Rocky Singh taking 3-14. Aditya Nayak took 3-13 for DLR, but a pair of 39s from Manpreet Rocky Singh and Abhishek Negi got Lucan home with an over left.
Wicklow County 2 vs Finglas 3 - A massive game in Group B of the Minor Cup. The winners will qualify for the semi finals. The losers will have to wait on other results, first DLR County will have to lose to Mullingar. If the losers are Finglas it is then Finglas that would go through with a better head to head with DLR County. But if Wicklow County lose, they will be out. Wicklow are an impressive 8-3 for the season so far, with their run scoring charts being topped by Thejas Sreedharan with 437 runs at 48.56. He holds the record for most runs in a season for the team - 567 in 2022 so needs a few more yet. Their leading wicket taker is Sashi Kanth with 21 wickets at 11.38. Finglas are an even more impressive 10-3 for 2023, with Ryan Dsouza being top run scorer with 374 runs at 62.33 and Abilash Nair being top wicket taker with 18 at 11.5.
Greystones 3 vs Terenure 4 - Greystones are out of the running for a semi final spot from Group B of the Russell Court Trophy. Terenure are very much in with a shout - two wins will send them into the semis, one win could be enough depending on a multitude of variables. There has only been one previous match between the two sides, a Minor Cup game in June 2022. Manav Sarvaiya made 40 for Terenure as they made a below par looking 120/6 from 20 overs. Greystones made short work of the chase, with Kunal Arora scoring 43 with Greystones finishing on 121/5 from 18/1 overs.
Adamstown 4 vs Greystones 2 - The final match in Group C of the Whelan Cup is unfortunately a dead one, as Phoenix 5 have already qualified. Greystones have lost all three matches between the sides, with two Division 13 losses in 2018 and the reverse fixture in the Whelan Cup this year. Greystones made 140/6 with Jared Allpass top scoring with 43, before Adamstown left it late with a last ball boundary, needing two to win off that last delivery.
Kilkenny 2 vs Sandyford 3 - If you're deciding for the best way to bring a league to its conclusion, you'd probably go with Group A of the Minor Cup and this match between Kilkenny and Sandyford. A Kilkenny win will put them top of the league and into the semis. A Sandyford win will put Sandyford and Kilkenny through. A tie or rained off match is good for Kilkenny, but Sandyford would then be sweating on The Hills match at home to Phoenix on Sunday. Kilkenny are 7-4 for the season with Rana Faheem Riaz top run scorer with 185 at 37. Their top wicket taker is Lintu Regi with 12 wickets at 13.17. Sandyford 3 are a brilliant 10-1 for the season with their current run of nine matches without a loss being their best ever. Mohit Sharma is their top run scorer with 396 runs at 44 and their leading wicket taker is Aaditya Shah with 22 wickets at 6.73.
Clondalkin 1 vs The Hills 3 - The Hills are out of the running for qualification from Group A of the Middle Cup. But for the other teams in the group it is a vital weekend. Clondalkin have a game today and a game tomorrow (against Phoenix). One win could be enough, but they may need two wins depending on how things pan out. Clondalkin have won all four matches between the teams (all from 2021-present). The reverse fixture was played on June 17. Lorcan Woodhouse made 46, and when he was out with the score on 108-3, he would have hoped for a better total, as The Hills went from 108-2 to 136 all out. Khalid Khan took a hat trick for Clondalkin (Woodhouse, Muhammad Hassan and Matthew Richards) and Muhammad Kaleem Saleem took 3-13. The Clondalkin response was not that convincing, as they stuttered from 95/3 to 116/8 with overs running out. However Abhinav Sharda hit 20 from 8 balls as Clondalkin won by 2 wickets with five balls remaining.
Ashbourne 2 vs Clondalkin 2 - As you may have read in the Slieve Bloom/Adamstown preview above, 16 points looks like being the crucial mark for teams to qualify for the semi final. Clondalkin can't quite get there, but a win would take them to 14 points. There may be an extremely remote scenario where 14 points is enough, but I can't find it! For Ashbourne, a win will take them to the magical 16 points, but they would only advance if they were tied with Adamstown. If they are tied with Slieve Bloom, Bloom will be ranked above them. Ashbourne haven't beaten Clondalkin since August 2018. Ashraf Sajib took 4-39 for Clondalkin, his best bowling in 35 matches for Clondalkin as Ashbourne made 220/8, Ahmed Naseem top scoring with 57. Clondalkin didn't really look like chasing successfully, as Andrew Robertson (3-32) and Umesh Burraa (3-37) kept Clondalkin in check. They were eventually bowled out for 183, with Abul Shapon top scoring with 52*.
Dundalk 2 vs Castleknock 4 - Three games left in Group B of the Adamstown Cup, and still so many unknowns. 14 points are going to be need to qualify. Athlone are already there, but a few teams could yet join then to make it complicated. Dundalk can only get to 12 which makes their progress unlikely but possible. They need to win both of their matches this weekend and hope other games go their way. For Castleknock, this is their last game and as they can only get to 10 points it seems very unlikely they can advance. Both previous games between the teams have been this year with Dundalk winning both. They scored 257-8 in Porterstown Park and 290-8 in Hiney Park, so their batting is to be watched!
Merrion 3 vs Leinster 3 - No preview as Merrion 3 vs Balbriggan 2 (July 4) and Merrion 3 vs Cork Harlequins 1 (July 15) in Division 4 both still not submitted.
Phoenix 6 vs Lucan 3 - A dead match for both teams in this Minor Cup match with the semi final spots between Kilkenny 2, Sandyford 3 and The Hills 4. Phoenix have had a tough season so far, 1-8. Not surprisingly the players have struggle. Their leading run scorer is still Emmet Staunton with 133 runs at 19 with the top wicket taker being Zahid Safi with 7 at 20. Lucan 3 are 3-8 for the year; have a top run scorer of Annu Shukla with 2777 at 25.18; and leading wicket takers Anuj Kumar Sharma and Vishnu Raju with 11 each.
North Kildare 5 vs North County 5 - The bottom two in Group B of the Junior Cup have no interest in who qualifies for the next round, and so can have an enjoyable day in The Maws. North County are 4-4 for the season. Asad Ali is their leading run scorer with 157 runs at 22.43, with their top wicket taker being sixteen year old Mahad Gull with 13 wickets at 15.54. North Kildare have not had the best of seasons, with a 2-8 record. Paramveer Singh is their leading run scorer with 196 runs at 21.78, with their top wicket taker being Surinder Joshi with 10 wickets at 11.60.
Mullingar 3 vs DLR County 2 - Mullingar are out of the running for qualification from Group B of the Minor Cup, but it's a vital game for DLR County. It looks like 20 points will be needed for a semi final spot, which means DLR must win. However there are scenarios where a loss or a rained off match could work as well. The easiest thing is a win! The sides have never managed to complete a game on the pitch. Mullingar are 4-8 for their season with a top run scorer of Riju Varghese with 243 runs at 34.71 who is also their top wicket taker with 14 at 14.79. DLR County are a very impressive 12-1 for the season, with Chhandak Barman the leading run scorer with 273 at 27.3 and Manoj Jacob and Swapn Joshi both having taken 14 wickets.
Adamstown 6 vs Tyrrelstown 4 - No preview as Laois 3 vs Naas 2 (July 20) in the Russell Court Trophy still not submitted.
Bagenalstown 1 vs Athlone 1 - No preview as Merrion 4 vs Bagenalstown 1 (July 9) in the Middle Cup still not submitted.
North Kildare 3 vs Balbriggan 3 - Balbriggan's second match of the day and their second dead match of the day with Tyrrelstown 2 already having qualified from Group C of the Intermediate Cup. Only two matches have been played before between the two teams, with North Kildare winning both. The reverse fixture in Balbriggan on April 23 saw a remarkable innings from Zeeshan Afzal, who scored exactly 100* from 59 deliveries - the next highest score being 14 as North Kildare made "only" 154/6. It is the only century we have recorded for North Kildare in T20 cricket. Steven Harper then had a pretty similar innings, hitting 93 from 61 balls, but Balbriggan finished 7 runs short.
Castleknock 3 vs Balbriggan 4 - Another dead match in the Russell Court Trophy, with the bottom two in group B meeting in Porterstown Park. The sides last met in 2022, when they played three times with Castleknock winning all three. The closest of those wins was the Division 17 match played in Porterstown on May 15. Sohail Khan scored 52 for Castleknock (out of their total of 146 all out) and Fionn Bannister took 3-33 for Balbriggan. The visitors regularly lost wickets, with their best position probably being 74/2. Prashant Agavane took 3-20 and Arif Mohammed 4-25 as Balbriggan fell away to 126 all out.
Carlow 1 vs Swords 1 - A dead match in Group D of the Middle Cup, the last game in the group. There has been a great rivalry between these two sides over the years. Swords have won four of the six matches, but the last five have alternated between them. The reverse fixture on July 9 was only going in one direction when Swords were at 6 from 10 overs, Carlow's Saqib Nagra taking 3/18. But Bilosn Kuruvilla hit 51* from number 7, turning the match on its head. That was Kuruvills's only 50 so far for Swords 1, in 30 matches and one of five 50s scored by Swords 1 number 7s. Swords made a useful 155/7 and Carlow always threatened to chase it, without ever quite being in a position to do so. Mainul Chowdhury opened and top scored with 39, but no one else scored more than 21 and 72-2 off 10.5 slowly got worse as Sandeep Murali took 3-23 towards the end.
Laois 1 vs Sandyford 1 - A dead match in Group D of the Tillain Cup, where Railway Union 2 have qualified for the semi finals. The reverse fixture was on June 18th in Stradbally and it was a day for middle order batters. Abhishek Pandey scored his 13th 50 for Sandyford 1 (64), the most we have on record for Sandyford 1 and Rachan Potluri hit 53* to get Sandyford to a distinctly useful 182/5 their second highest ever T20 score. Laois lost two early wickets (3/2) before Rashid Mehraj (70) and Mathew Auret (44) propelled Laois to their taget, Ahsan Pervaiz's 20 ball 37 completing the job wth 1 ball to spare. It is the highest successful chase in T20 cricket for Laois 1
Leinster 6 vs Carlow 3 - A busy weekend in Group B of the Adamstown Cup with the last four matches being played. Athlone 2 have finished their campaign on 14 points, so that is the mark to be chased. Leinster need two wins to get past it and play Kilkenny tomorrow. Carlow are in the same boat and play Dundalk tomorrow. It could well be that 12 points are enough to grab a spot in the semis and so it seems possible that the loser in this match still has a chance. The sides haven't played since a Division 18 match in Carlow in September 2021, when Leinster won by 6 wickets chasing Carlow's 162/7. That total would have been worse, were it not for Jimmy Dooley's top scoring 38* from number eight - his top score in 18 matches for Carlow. The Leinster reply was dominated by Rupam Sutta's 95*. Dutta only played six matches in his Cricket Leinster career, scoring 141 runs at 35.25 in 2021.
Leinster 5 vs Ongar 1 - Leinster's second dead match of the day, but the game is important for Ongar who will take the number one spot in the table if they get any points today. Leinster are a mediocre 4-7 for 2023, with their top run scorer being Nitesh Khodke with 232 runs at 23.30. Their top wicket taker in the series so far is also Khodke who has taken 12 wickets at 13.58. Ongar are a brilliant 12-1 for 2023, with Anup Kishen having 375 runs at 34.09 and Suman Bokka taking 16 wickets at 10.94.
Slieve Bloom 1 vs Finglas 2 - This is Slieve Bloom's second match of the day and everything depends on how their first game against Adamstown 5 went. See the preview above for details around the possibilities and how Slieve Bloom's season has gone. Finglas 2 aren't out of it, but have to win (to get to 14 points) and then hope other results go their way. Finglas are 6-5 for the year with their top wicket taker being Syam Mohan with 9 at 20.89. Leading run scorer is Vivek Ojha with 178 runs at 22.25.
Tyrrelstown 1 vs Merrion 4 - No preview as Merrion 4 vs Tyrrelstown 1 (July 8) and Merrion 4 vs Bagenalstown 1 (July 9) in the Middle Cup still not submitted.
Railway Union 4 vs Malahide 4 - A match in the Inter Cup with a very easy outcome to worry about - in terms of semi final qualification. If Railway win or get any other type of result (tie or rained off), they are through. If Malahide win they will draw level with Railway and Net Run Rate will be needed. The reverse fixture on May 28 was a tight one, with Railway eventually coming out ahead by nine runs. Jigar Chudasama top scored with 48 for Railway as they ended up with a par looking 142/7. At 52/1 Malahide perhaps had a chance, but regular wickets meant they were always struggling a bit, and they finished 133/7.