When the Southern Raiders slumped to 29 for five, needing 92 to avoid the innings defeat, it looked for all in the world that day 4 would not be required in this year’s Emerald Challenge.

Gavin Hoey and then Jai Moondra, on his first class debut, had other ideas. Hoey, with a previous highest score of 37, bettered that by exactly 50 and when Moondra ran out of partners he had contributed 46 to a second innings total of 209. The Northern Strikers needed 118 to win.

 They had one over to face/survive and Matthew Humphreys, sent in with first innings centurion Jake Egan as night watchman had no intention of surviving. And Egan had no intention of facing.

Humphreys swung merrily at every ball. The first was sliced over the slips for four, he turned down possible singles to deep mid-wicket off the second ball and to thirdman from the fifth and drove the last ball of the day back to Reuben Wilson. Strikers will need 114 with nine wicket left on the final day.

It was the 20th wicket of a remarkable day when, yes, the bowlers dominated the bat, but it was hardly the preparation for a four-day Test against the might of New Zealand. The selectors sat down last night to pick the squad and it was unlikely to have been a quick one.

For a start, they were still awaiting the result of the scan on Paul Stirling’s calf, but as he failed to last two overs in this match, there is no way he can be selected for a game at the highest level, having not played for more than 100 days.

Worryingly, Andrew Balbirnie, Harry Tector and Curtis Campher were all part of the Raiders top order collapse – all caught at second slip! – which was completed by Stephen Doheny, one of the players in possession of a Test place, who chopped on to give Tom Mayes his third wicket.

In the third over after tea, Lorcan Tucker another Test certainty, also played on to leave Raiders 51 for six, still 41 behind.

By now, Hoey was in the middle. In the first innings he had used up 42 balls over his first five runs but it was a much different approach this time and he dispatched Young for two fours and a six from his third, fourth and seventh deliveries.

He enjoyed two lives, a return catch to Matthew Humphreys on 62 and a missed stumping off Andy McBrine on 75 but also hit the biggest six of the match, clearing the trees to the left of the clubhouse. He finally holed out to long-on 13 short of a century, having faced just 86 balls with 10 fours and four sixes. Unfortunately, as as bowling all-rounder, a third spinner won't be required at Stormont.

Moondra maintained the momentum, with six fours and two sixes in his 46-ball innings and even No 11 Matthew Hollard enjoyed himself, hitting three fours as the lead soared into three figures.

Humphreys was wicketless and conceded 58 runs in his 10 overs while the experience of McBrine shone through again with figures of 2-43 from 13 overs. Mark Adair bowled only five overs but took two of the early wickets for just nine runs and Mayes kept himself  in the selectors’ mind for a Test debut with four for 66.

The wickets started tumbling in the elongated morning session with Jake Egan adding just six to his overnight 114 and Morgan Topping 17 to his 61, Liam McCarthy with both the wickets.  He finished with three for 90 from 22 and with a pace bowling slot up for grabs next week, was certain to be mentioned in the selection meeting.

McBrine is a certainty as much for his batting as his bowling and he showed off his skillset on Wednesday with a rearguard 72 (just seven fours) which ensured a meaningful and, still, probably, match-winning lead.

With Stirling not batting, McBrine was last man out, after turning down a single he holed out to thirdman off Hollard to give the South-African born, but Irish qualified pace man his fourth wicket in his 21st over.

Play resumes at 11 o’clock on Thursday.

DAY THREE SCORECARD