Cork County produced the result of the day and then some with an eight-wicket demolition of Phoenix.

Wickets for Bakhtyar Nabi, Thorne Prophet, skipper Diarmuid Carey, and William Shields had the home side in diffs at 87 for 5, but they rallied with half centuries from Tyrone Kane (65) and Raghav Grover (55) in a sixth wicket stand of 83.

Rory MacColl (26) added late runs and a final total of 253 looked defendable.

However, Raj Undre and debutant Josh Hartill had other ideas. They were helped by Tyrone Kane losing his radar as a flurry of wides and no balls saw him unable to complete his second over.

Undre went on to hit 15 fours and 5 sixes in his 136 from 122 balls, adding exactly 200 with overseas professional Hartnill, whose unbeaten 76 included 10 fours and a maximum.

Cork's win will certainly give them cause for optimism in the rest of the season.

It was a day for the North County debutants as Lochie Hardy and Husnain Maroof stole the show to give the Balrothery side bragging rights against Rush.

Australian youth international Hardy thumped 12 fours and 5 sixes in an 87-ball 105 as the hosts posted 215. He was well supported by Alan Mathew (31) as the pair shared a fifth wicket stand of 70 in just ten overs.

The tail certainly didn't wag though as the last five wickets added just 23, with Nathan McGuire talking four-34 and Gary Smith taking a brace.

Another debutant Isaac Bird showed a glimpse of the form that saw him make 1000 runs in the NW, top-scoring with an even time 66 (9 fours, 2 sixes), but there was little else to cheer about in a disappointing Rush batting effort.

Husnain Maroof claimed 4-15, while Hardy (3-29) and Mathew (2-16) completed fine all-round efforts in a 76-run win.

Sam Morgan starred as Clontarf brushed aside the challenge of a Civil Service side making their top flight return after an 82 year absence.

The New Zealand overseas professional hit 12 fours and cleared the ropes twice in a 74-ball unbeaten 96 as he and Eoghan Delany (48*) added an unbroken 148 in 21 overs for the third wicket to make light of a 216 run target.

Seamus Lynch (32) had set the tone for the chase, hitting six fours in a rapid 32.

Earlier, new Clontarf skipper Fionn Hand struck with the first ball of the game on his way to 3-27 as CS slipped to 76 for 5.

Zaman Safi clubbed 6 fours and 2 sixes in a 43-ball 52 as they rallied to 215. It looked competitive but wasn't. There were two wickets too for spinners Yash Bala and Cillian McDonnell in an impressive all-round effort by the Castle Avenue side.

Merrion recovered from a disastrous start to clinch a 44-run win over Malahide. Stephen Doheny, Daniel Forkin and Swapnil Modgill were all back in the pavilion at 5-3 in the 4th over.

Jamie Forbes top-scored with 64 (6 fours, 1 six) staging a recovery with Seb Dijkstra (38) as they added 92 for the fourth wicket.

Sean Stanton (41) added a further 55 with Forbes, while Mikey O'Reilly tonked three sixes in a late unbeaten 35 to take them to 203 - two wickets each for Kumar, Frost and skipper Jeremy Martins.

It was Martins who carried most of Malahide's hopes with an excellent half century, but wickets for Oisin Bhoja, Mikey O'Reilly and Andrew Doheny sealed the win for the visitors.

Champions Pembroke got the defence of their crown off to a winning start with an eight wicket win at Railway Union.

The hosts posted 181 with Abhey Tipnis top scoring with 38, while there were runs too for Conor Walden (31), Bob Carr (22) and Ryan Smith (21).

Addison Sherriff impressed on debut with three wickets, while there were two apiece for Irish internationals Harry Tector and Gavin Hoey.

The chase was a straightforward one thanks to a century stand between openers Tim Tector and JJ Garth, both of whom scored 70s.

The pair batted sensibly, putting away the bad balls in their partnership of 146. Tim Tector was the more aggressive of the two, hitting six fours and two sixes in his 74 from 76 balls, before being bowled by Liam McCarthy.

Like London buses, McCarthy then castled Harry Tector first ball.

There were no further alarms as JJ Garth finished unbeaten on 74 (7 fours), while overseas professional Sherriff made an unbeaten 16 as the win was sealed in the 38th over.

On this showing the holders will take some stopping..

Leinster gave the home support plenty to cheer as they chased down 228 to beat Balbriggan at Rathmimes.

Balbriggan's Chris De Freitas top-scored with 78 from just 69 balls (11 fours, 1 six) as he and Conor Fletcher (44) shared a third wicket stand of 107.

There were late fireworks too for Jordan Hollard who clubbed three sixes in a 22-ball 31.

Bilal Azhar took four wickets, while there were three for Jai Moondra and a brace for Mark Tonge.

The momentum of the match swung one way then the other, but Younas Ahmadzai (34) and Joey Carroll (29) added 61 for the fourth wicket at a vital time.

Tom O'Connor was the bedrock of the later stages, with his unbeaten 46 getting Leinster over the line with support from Mark Tonge (19) and that man again, Bilal Azhar (22*) who seems to thrive on pressure situations.