John Matchett is among exalted company when it comes to the Irish Cup. The CIYMS skipper’s three centuries is only matched among NCU batsmen by Kyle McCallan and the late, great Raman Lamba.

The 27-year-old laughs about his prolific form in the competition and admits it’s been a talking point in the Belmont changing rooms.

“The boys wind me up as apparently it’s the only time I score any runs! The competition seems to bring out the best in me, but I don’t know necessarily why that is, but it’s definitely something that I always seem to get myself up for, and hopefully there are more hundreds to come.”

Matchett’s side have been drawn away to Bready in the first round, a ground which has happy memories for him and the club, being the scene of their cup success back in 2022.

“That was probably the best day in the club’s history,” reflected Matchett who scored 94 in the win over Lisburn. “We had played such good cricket for a few years leading up to that but hadn’t quite got there. It was on the bucket list for most of the team including Nigel Jones and a few of the senior lads, so it was great to achieve that in front of a big crowd.”

CIYMS go into the match on the back of wins against Waringstown and Muckamore, following an indifferent start to the campaign.

“We had a great fightback at The Lawn where we probably didn’t have enough runs but defended it thanks to the bowlers. Against Muckamore, Herman Rolfes and Jake Egan both scored centuries in a record stand for us (252), in what was as good a display as I’ve seen – they were awesome. They have settled in well along with young spinner Alex Armstrong who is bowling exceptionally. There’s a really great environment about the place, with new Coach Bret Mulder coming in. He’s brought a real positive mentality to the group. It’s a pretty young group and there are players with higher cricketing aspirations which makes them motivated, and it’s a real fun place to be.”

Matchett himself was part of the Knights set-up, making 15 appearances between 2017-2023, but accepts that he isn’t likely to feature anytime soon. “I was about the squad but didn't nail a place down. Those last few years I’d been studying for accountancy exams and not probably able to commit to training as much as I’d liked. I didn’t score enough runs, and there are so many talented young players around now that unless something drastic happens I can’t see a return. I’m committed to CIYMS and love playing there.”

In the other cup ties, six times winners Waringstown have a crunch clash with fellow league champions Donemana, while joint league leaders Instonians and Lisburn are home to NW sides Strabane and Brigade. North Down face Pembroke, boosted by the absence of no fewer than five Irish internationals in the Sydney Parade side’s line-up.

Templepatrick’s first game in the tournament sees them handed a tough task as two-times champions, and current Leinster Premiership leaders Clontarf. Cliftonville Academy are away at Balbriggan, while Muckamore make the trip to Coleraine, CSNI face a long trek to Cork County and Woodvale entertain Malahide with Sri Lankan U19 international Pramod Maduwantha deputising for the unavailable Eddie Moore.

North West sides have a horrific recent record in the competition with no winners since the now defunct Limavady back in 2004, and they haven’t managed to beat a Leinster side in any tie since Strabane knocked out Phoenix in 2018.

Their best chance would seem to be with Newbuildings, who are home to 2023 champions Leinster. Johnny Thompson was a member of the Donemana side that lifted the Bob Kerr trophy 25 years ago, and the veteran, along with West Indian international Peat Salmon will be hoping to cause an upset. Ardmore, surprise early leaders of the NW Premiership face National Cup holders Rush, while Eglinton are on the road to take on five-times champions North County.