Off for rain with the scores tied on DLS and no further play possible.

Connor Brown and Matthew Skelly combined to dismiss Downpatrick for just 39 on their way to a seven-wicket win that keeps them in mid-table and Downpatrick rooted to the bottom. Brown took 6 for 14, while Skelly claimed 4 for 20 in a superb effort by the duo. The chase was over in under eight overs, but Sam Irwin did take two of the three Bangor wickets to fall to take the bad look off the heavy defeat.

A superb century by Jake Egan propelled CIYMS to a ridiculously comfortable victory over Templepatrick. Despite needing 225 for victory, Egan’s 132 off just 80 balls (15 fours and six sixes) helped the home side to their target by the start of the 29th over. From 59 for two, Egan shared a third wicket stand of 144 in 18 overs with Herman Rolfes who finished 52 not out. Captain Ross Bryans top scored for Templepatrick with 89 and received good support from Charles Swart who made 61 in a fourth wicket stand of 116. But the visitors lost their last six wickets for 17 runs to be bowled out in 46 overs.

Civil Service North must rely on North Down being badly beaten by Woodvale on Sunday if they are to claim a top six place ahead of the split. Defeat by 101 runs at home to Muckamore leaves them in seventh, behind the Comber side on run-rate. South African professional Neil Brand was back on duty for the Moylena side and, opening the batting, he hit 131, with 12 fours and five sixes, in his side’s 279 for six. CSN, bowled out for 79 last week, managed to more than double that total but Ryan Hunter’s 21 was their top score and 30 for the last wicket between Andrew Cowden and Tom Ford was their highest partnership. Ireland batting coach Gary Wilson batted at No 9 and was caught off Brand for 10.

INSTONIANS and Waringstown share the lead in the NCU Premiership, with the two sides following up their cup semi-final victories with crucial wins in the title race over Lisburn and Cliftonville Academy respectively. The Shaw’s Bridge side again opted to bowl first in their clash with third-placed Lisburn, and once again their bowlers responded to the challenge by restricting them to 186 in an innings that never really got going. Ross Adair (20) and Nigel Jones (26) got starts, but only when Ben Calitz was in full flow did Lisburn get a foothold in the contest. The Irish passport holding South African hit three sixes and fours in a 42-ball 47, adding 83 for the fourth wicket with skipper Neil Whitworth (36). However, Cian Robertson spun his left-arm magic, claiming four wickets for just 23 to put the home side firmly in control. Shane Dadswell (three for 30) and two wickets for Ben Rose reaffirmed the advantage and a final total of 186 looked to be well short of challenging. Cade Carmichael had missed out in Saturday’s cup win, but the Irish international cashed in with a quite brilliant 77-ball 117 that included 15 fours and four maximums to break the back of the chase. His century means that he is the leading run scorer in the league with 473 runs, just ahead of Jason van der Merwe. Carmichael added 112 with Rob McKinley (24) and that allowed ‘Inst’ to coast to a six-wicket win in the 28th over – Dadswell bringing the game to a hasty conclusion by thumping three fours and a six in the final four balls. For Lisburn, a season that promised so much is in danger of falling apart, with their main hope for silverware now resting on the Irish Senior Cup, where they travel to play Balbriggan in the last four next weekend.

Woodvale and North Down shared a dramatic tie in a see-saw game at Ballygomartin Road – a result that saw both happy in the end to get something from the match. Stevie Saul just missed out on a century, getting two from the final ball of the North Down innings to end on 99 (seven fours, four sixes) adding 127 for the fourth wicket with Mickey Copeland as they made 193 for five in 35 overs. Woodvale looked beaten as they slumped to 78 for six, but Carl Robinson’s 51-ball 64 got them right back into contention as he added 104 in 17 overs for the seventh wicket with Zarar Khan (49 not out). 17 were still needed from the last two overs when Anek Anil joined Khan but they chipped away, survived a dropped catch, and the equation came down to three from the final ball. Anil managed to scramble two, ensuring a share of the spoils. North Down finished in the top six for the split, while Woodvale’s two points meant they moved off the bottom above Templepatrick.

Waringstown kept pace with Instonians thanks to an emphatic seven-wicket win at Cliftonville Academy in a match reduced to 25 overs. Abhishek Rauthit a 32-ball unbeaten 56 as the home side posted what looked a competitive 174 for five – Varun Chopra making a run-a-ball 36 (five fours), and Hayden Melly 27.The Topping brothers though made light work of the chase, as they shared an opening stand of 125 in just 80 balls. Morgan hit eight fours and six sixes in a 56-ball 87, while younger brother Sam’s 36-ball 53 included five fours and three maximums. John Glass claimed two wickets but the seven-wicket win was sealed in the 19th over.

Woodvale remain rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table, on run rate, after a 152 runs hammering by Cliftonville Academy at the Castle Grounds. The home side piled up 247 for five in their 35 overs, after a delayed start, with Varun Chopra and John Glass, who each hit three sixes, putting on 117 for the third wicket. Abhi Raut and captain Matty McCord then added 51 from the last 26 balls. Woodvale lost Ruhan Pretorius and Ludwig Kaestner in the first eight overs and their last six wickets for 23 runs, with McCord taking three for 14 from five overs.

CIYMS confirmed their place in the top six ahead of the split with an eight wicket trouncing of an under-strength Civil Service North. After asking their visitors to bowl first on a green Belmont pitch, Hermann Rolfes, Mark Best and Ben Snell each took three wickets as CSN, without top runs scorer Mark Ellison, were bowled out for 79 inside 26 overs. The game was over before tea as CI romped to victory in the 12th over with Chris Dougherty batting through for 25 not out.

Instonians continued their winning ways at the top of the Premier League with an eight wickets win over Templepatrick. The home side chose to bat first but only Charlie Swart put up any resistance, facing 102 balls for his 59 as they were dismissed for 129. Ben Rose wrapped up the tail, including the wicket of Swart, to finish as the most successful bowler with three for 20. Instonians needed only 25 overs to reach thgeir target with 61 off 73 balls from Rob McKinley and an unbeaten 47 from Sully Gould.

Jason van der Merwe produced a man of the match performance to condemn early pacesetters Lisburn to a second successive Premier League defeat. First, he hit 135 from 95 balls (12 fours, nine sixes) in a club record stand of 213 for the third wicket with Sathish Suresh, who hit seven fours and five sixes in his 95. Van der Merwe then took the big wickets of Lisburn captain Neil Whitworth and professional Faiz Fazal in the space of four balls to halt the visitors’ charge. Teenager Luca Bates then finished them off and claimed the match ball by taking the last four wickets to give Muckamore a 67 runs victory and a place in the top six post-split.

Half-centuries from Ireland internationals Graham Hume, James McCollum and Greg Thompson paved the way for Waringstown to post 333 for eight against North Down. Hume’s 76 came off 61 balls with nine fours and captain Thompson had seven fours and a six in his 51 from 34. North Down never threatened to overall the total but Stevie Saul and fit-again captain Tyron Koen responded with 50s of their own but they fell 103 runs short and may need to beat Woodvale next week to book their top six place post-split.

Waringstown, fielding their first choice XI for the first time this season, made it a three-way tie at the top in the Premier League by inflicting Lisburn’s first defeat of the season. Waringstown finished just seven runs short of 300, yet were bowled out in the 46th over. Tom Mayes, not for the first time this season, top scored with 66 while Matthew Halliday hit an impressive 50 before being dismissed next ball. Josh Manley and Adam Kennedy, at twice the expense, each took three wickets. Lisburn never threatened the total although a last wicket stand of 48 between Kennedy (30 not out) and Callum Atkinson (24) reduced the margin of defeat to 45 runs. Waringstown captain Greg Thompson finished with three wickets including the big one of Faiz Fazal for 58.

Instonians top the Premier League table on run-rate after crushing CIYMS by 150 runs at Shaw’s Bridge. Ireland international Cade Carmichael scored 134, with 14 fours and two sixes, and shared stands of 121 with Rob McKinley (44) and 134 with captain Nikolai Smith (87) as Instonians finished on 315 for seven. Shane Dadswell took two early wickets to put the visitors immediately on the back foot at 49 for five. A partnership of 35 for the last wicket between Beau Dennison and Ben Snell only delayed the inevitable.

Cliftonville Academy won their first league match of the season with an impressive 141 runs success at Stormont. Francis Collins led the way with 104 and 50s from Abhishek Raut and Jared Wilson, not out, took them to 301 for six. Civil Service North reached 133 for three in reply but Sean Davey and Adam Leckey, top scorer with 58, were dismissed within five balls of each other and nine overs later they were all for 160. Varun Chopra ended up as the winners’ most successful bowler with three for 13.

Muckamore hit the highest total of the day, 325 for four, with Mark Gleghorne finishing 127 not out, including 13 fours and 5 sixes. He added 119 with Neil Brand (65) for the second wicket, 84 for the fourth wicket with Sam Gordon and 76 unbeaten for the fifth with Luke Allen (43 not out). Curtis Moorhead was the destroyer in chief for the visitors as Woodvale collapsed from 111 for three to 144 for eight, taking four of the wickets for 16 runs. He claimed the match-ball by having Ashwin Shetty stumped for 38 after a stand of 57 for the ninth wicket with James Martin.

North Down would have disappointed to finish on 267 for seven after Alistair Shields (104) and Mo Aahil (71) had put on 194 for the first wicket. But Michael Stewart dismissed both batters in the space of three balls and Templepatrick conceded just 73 runs in the last 12 overs. Although the visitors reached 118 for two in the reply, a horrible collapse – they lost their last eight wickets for 26 runs - handed North Down a comfortable 123 runs victory. Mickey Copeland and Shields each took three wickets.

CIYMS claimed their fourth win of the season with a six wickets victory over Woodvale at Belmont. The visitors made 159 for five in their 35 overs with 50s for Ludwig Kaestner and Finn Restieaux but CI got home with 11 balls to spare. Jake Egan was run out by Ruhan Pretorius for 62, with his side just 10 runs short of victory. Pretorius bowled his seven overs for just 13 runs but could take only one wicket.

Templepatrick won their first Premier League match to leave Cliftonville Academy, bottom of the table. Robert Smith with 65 and an unbeaten 33 from Charles Swart eased the Ballyclare-based side to an eight wickets victory with more than 11 overs to spare. They had bowled out their visitors for 130 with Ewan Wilson taking three wickets for 17 runs and Michael Stewart finishing with figures of two for 10 from six overs. Jared Wilson was on 45 when he ran out of partners with Cliftonville Academy failing to use two of their 38 overs.

Instonians charged to a 10 wickets win, needing only 12.4 overs to beat Muckamore at Moylena. After bowling out the home side for 87, Cade Carmichael hit 62 off 40 balls and skipper Nikolai Smith 21 to give everyone an early finish. All six bowlers shared the wickets for Instonians with Jason van der Merwe, top scorer with 19, the only Muckamore batter to face more than 30 balls.

Marc Ellison and Adam Dennison matched each other run for run at The Lawn but it was Dennison who scored the quicker and had the better support as Waringstown continued their winning form with a seven wickets (DLS) win over Civil Service North. Ellison (83) and James West (50) put on 109 for the first wicket for the visitors but it took 24 overs and although they added 70 in the remaining nine overs, with Sean Davey hitting 28 off 23 balls, Waringstown made light of their target of 189 in 30 overs. Dennison’s 83 came off 70 balls with eight fours and three sixes and Morgan Topping and Graham Hume, with an unbroken stand of 55 from 36 balls, hurried the Villagers to victory with almost four overs to spare.

League leaders Lisburn made it six wins out of six with Adam Berry starring in an emphatic eight wickets win over North Down. Berry, fittingly, hit the winning run to finish 87 not out, from 79 balls (nine fours, three sixes), sharing an unbroken partnership of 105 with skipper Neil Whitworth who added another 36 to his run of unbeaten scores. Earlier, it was a partnership of 76 between Peter Davison and Jaxon Dines that had rescued the visitors from 64 for seven to set Lisburn a target of 147. Ryan Macbeth took four wickets and Mark Adair had figures of 1-13 from five overs in his first match of the season, ahead of next week’s T20 internationals against West Indies.

Templepatrick are still searching for their first win of the season after they crashed to a 70-run loss at CSNI. Marc Ellison hit six fours and two sixes in a top-score of 58 from 52 balls as the Stormont side made 156 for five, with 26 apiece for Sean Davey and Adam Leckey. Charlie Swart top-scored with 41 (five fours, one six), but received little support as they were bowled out for 86. Teenagers Harry Dyer (4-7), Finn Lutton (3-17), and Seb Yeates (2-5) doing the damage.

Muckamore’s replacement professional Madhav Kaushik hit the ground running with a match-winning half century at North Down to give the Moylena side their first points of the campaign. The Indian cleared the ropes four times and hit four fours in a 25-ball 54 to help Muckamore to 151 for seven – runs too for Jamie Magowan (25) and Jason van der Merwe (20) – while Ally Shields claimed four wickets. In a tense chase, Ryan Haire’s 31 gave the Comber side a shout, but his dismissal with 22 needed off two overs proved decisive as Muckamore won by 17 runs.

Waringstown are up to second place after an eight-wicket demolition of Instonians at Shaw's Bridge. Graham Hume's (3-11) return increases their firepower considerably and he removed the top three in no time. Shane Dadswell hit three sixes in a counterattacking 35, but two wickets apiece for Daniel van der Merwe, Greg Thompson and James Cameron-Dow saw them bundled out for a paltry 81. That was never going to be enough as Sam Topping (41) shared an opening stand of 59 with elder brother Morgan (19) on their way to victory in just the 13th over.

Only 32 overs were possible in the big game at Shaw’s Bridge but Shane Dadswell provided enough entertainment for the whole day, hitting a superb 105 not out from 59 balls with six fours and eight sixes in Instonians’ 248 for three. Skipper Nikolai Smith shared a third wicket a stand of 101 before was lbw for 56 from 55 balls against a Waringstown attack missing Tom Mayes, Graham Hume, James Mitchell and Ross Allen.

Cliftonville Academy were relieved the rain abandoned their game at The Castle Grounds as they wait for their first league of the season. CIYMS has reduced them to 112 for seven with Mark Best and Alex Armstrong taking two wickets each.

There was disappointment for Templepatrick when rain forced their game at Stormont to be abandoned after they had set themselves up for their first win. They needed just 23.5 overs to bowl out Civil Service North for 93 with Charles Swart and Michael Stewart each taking three wickets.

The first Premier League game to be called off was at Ballygomartin Road. Woodvale welcomed back professional Ludwig Keastner for his first game of his second spell at the club. He made 26 and Finn Restieaux was 23 not out when the rain arrived with the home side on 104 for 4 after 28.4 overs.

Forty overs were possible at The Green, more than any other Premier League game, but it wasn’t quite enough for Jason van der Merwe to reach a century. He was stranded on 97 not out when the rain arrived. He faced 87 balls and hit 13 fours and a six in Muckamore’s 213 for five.

Waringstown moved within one win of table toppers Lisburn and Instonians with a seven wickets victory over Woodvale in their postponed opening day game at Ballygomartin Road. Tom Mayes claimed the huge wicket of Ruhan Pretorius with the last ball of the first over and despite 44 from captain Harry Warke, Woodvale were all out for only 125 in their 20 overs. Sam Topping was also out to the sixth ball of the Waringstown innings but a second wicket stand of 118 between Morgan Topping (60 not out) and James McCollum (57) made light of the chase and Topping won the match with a six in the 14th over.

Lisburn made it four wins out of four to stay top of the table (with Instonians) after a comfortable 119 runs success at the Castle Grounds. Faiz Fazal (67) and Neil Whitworth (56) were top scorers in their innings of 275 which Cliftonville Academy never threatened. Francis Collins made a patient 57 but Ross Adair had him caught in his first over and he had four wickets for five runs from 3.2 overs when they were bowled out for 156. Ryan Macbeth also took four wickets (for 41).

Marc Ellison continued his fine start to the season with a century in Civil Service North’s 112 runs victory over North Down. Ellison hit 107 in his side’s 240 – Mickey Copeland, Tyron Koen and Mo Aahil took three wickets each – but Koen’s 30 not out was the visitors’ only significant resistance as Harry Dyer finished with 3-27.

The gulf between the Premier League champions and last year's Section One winners was there for all to see as Waringstown eased to a nine wickets victory at The Cloughan. Adam Dennison scored 113 not out from 92 balls as Waringstown reached their target in 25.2 overs. Captain Greg Thompson took five wickets as Templepatrick were bowled out for 172 with Patrick Tice top scoring with 52.

Instonians broke the record for the highest ever score in the Premier League* despite being bowled out in the last over. They made 458 with professional Shane Dadswell hitting an astonishing 182 from just 74 balls (11 fours, 18 sixes) to leave another whirlwind knock from Neil Rock (80 off 39) in the shade. Cade Carmichael’s 73 was his third consecutive half-century against Woodvale at Shaw’s Bridge. George Craigan also hit 56 off 35 at the end. But Ruhan Pretorius was never going to give up without a fight and he replied with 163 (nine fours, 14 sixes) but when he was out with the total on 320 after 40 overs, Woodvale lost their last four wickets for four runs. ***Instonians total is a record in the Premier League beating Woodvale's 422/6 v Derriaghy in June 2023 at Ballygomartin Road.***

A record Premier League third wicket stand of 252 between Jake Egan and professional Hermann Rolfes ensured CIYMS followed up their victory over Waringstown with a crushing 142 runs success over Muckamore. Egan scored 120 (nine fours, three sixes) and Rolfes 142 (17 fours, 2 sixes) as CI posted 327-4. Jason van der Merwe top scored for Muckamore with 45 and Neil Gill was 40 not out when they were bowled out for 185.

Faiz Fazal hit the last two balls of the match to give Lisburn a remarkable one wicket victory over Civil Service North. When Matthew Foster dismissed Adam Kennedy at the start of the 48th over, Lisburn, chasing 257 for victory, were 227 for nine. Last man Callum Atkinson took a single off his second ball and Fazal did the rest, facing all 15 balls and finishing on 145 not out. It looked like Foster was going to be the CSN hero when he bowled three 'dot' balls to Fazal to start the final over, but the Indian professional then sprung into life, taking a two off the fourth ball and then clearing the boundary from the final two balls. James Hunter scored 51 but Matthew Humphreys was third top score with 17. Marc Ellison scored 88 in the visitors' 256 for six with Harry Dyer putting them in a strong position with 53 not out. But Fazal had the final say as Lisburn made it three wins out of three to stay top of the table.

Muckamore took the last three Cliftonville Academy wickets for two runs to claim a 20 runs victory at Moylena. The home side were held up by an eighth wicket partnership of 86 between John Glass and Adam Kelso but professional Randeera Ranasinge bowled Kelso for 36 and next ball captain Sathish Suresh wrecked the stumps of Glass. He took the final wicket four balls later. Jason van der Merwe top scored for Muckamore with 64 in their total of 245 for eight.

Instonians won a thriller at The Green by two wickets, with one ball to spare. Needing nine off the last over, Cian Robertson scored them all, off Josh Corbett, a single from the fifth ball leaving him on 62 not out. James Lambert had given him good support in an eighth wicket stand of 32 after Andrew White had been bowled by Corbett for 46. Top scorer in the match was North Down wicket-keeper Kian Hilton with 69, while Craig Young followed up his 40 on Saturday with 39 as North Down finished on 224 for eight.

Woodvale produced a memorable chase to deny Templepatrick their first Premier League win, in a game of three centuries. The newcomers’ temporary professional Neil Brand scored the first, 144 off 107 balls with 18 fours and three sixes, in his side’s total of 313 for six, but Woodvale had a ‘sub pro’ of their own in South African Eddie Moore and he hit an undefeated 128 off 112 balls (five fours, nine sixes) and Ruhan Pretorius made 132 off 110 balls (14 fours and six sixes), his 10th century for Woodvale. The two shared a third wicket stand of 234, with Pretorius caught just nine runs short of the winning post. Finn Restieaux won the match with a six.

CIYMS recorded their first win of the season with a superb comeback win to defeat champions Waringstown at The Lawn. The visitors were second favourites at halfway having been bowled out for 187 in the 41st over as Tom Mayes, after his stunning century on Saturday, showed off his strongest suit with a six-wicket haul. Only Chris Dougherty, with 61, provided any resistance. Waringstown were still on course for a comfortable victory at 119-4 until captain Greg Thompson and Adam Dennison (54) were dismissed within four balls either side of the drinks break. This time Mayes couldn’t repeat his heroics with the bat, caught down the leg side from Hermann Rolfes’ final ball and Jacob Mulder also took a wicket with his final delivery, his fifth of the innings. When James Mitchell hit Alex Armstrong straight to mid-off, Ross Allen was left stranded on 23 not out and CI had won by 12 runs.

North Down completed an impressive chase to record their second win, with a three wickets success at Belmont. Professional Mickey Copleland was 87 not out when Peter Davison won the match with 20 balls to spare. Set 220, the home side were favourites when North Down lost their sixth wicket in the 30th over but Craig Young (40) shared a seventh wicket stand of 82 with Copeland and the South African saw his new side home. A fifth wicket stand of 78 between Hermann Rolfes (77) and Carson McCullough with a personal best 80 (five fours and four sixes) dominated the CI innings as they finished on 219 for nine.

A superb individual performance by Jared Wilson was not enough to take his Cliftonville Academy side to victory, falling nine runs short in a thrilling match at the Castle Grounds that saw 625 runs. Wilson took 5-59, including the last four wickets for six runs, as Instonians finished on 317-9. Rob McKinley hit 88 and Neil Rock, after his record-breaking 173 on Friday night, hit another six sixes before he was dismissed immediately after reaching his 50. The home side looked down and out at halfway in the reply, on 125 for four, but Abhishek Raut hit 103 and Wilson 93 off 60 balls (five fours and nine sixes) to leave them needing 38 off 38 balls with four wickets left. Even when James Magee dismissed Wilson after being hit for three sixes in the over, Cliftonville Academy captain Matty McCord maintained the charge with a run-a-ball 24. But he could not beat the experience of Andrew White who took two wickets in the 49th over and 12 runs off the last proved too much.

Civil Service North romped to a nine wickets victory after bowling out Woodvale for just 91. The bowling attack mauled by Neil Rock less than 24 hours earlier, bounced back in style with James West finishing with figures of 7.2-5-6-4. Ruhan Pretorius provided the only Woodvale resistance with 36. West, opening the batting then hit 41 not out as CSN won with more than 33 overs to spare.

Lisburn made it two wins out of two with an eight wickets victory in Templepatrick's first ever Premier League home game. The hosts put up a respectable 190 for nine, batting out the 50 overs despite skipper Ross Bryans being eighth man out for 60 in the 39th over. Ryan Macbeth, who took three wickets in an impressive opening spell took the ninth wicket to finish with four for 32. The target proved no problem for the visitors with Ross Adair, on his Lisburn debut, making 93 from 71 balls with 13 fours and four sixes. Faiz Fazal then scored an undefeated half-century before Neil Whitworth hit the winning boundary in the 32nd over.

A career best 137 not out from Tom Mayes rescued Waringstown from 61 for six and lead them to a comfortable 142 runs victory. Mayes, who faced 88 balls and hit seven fours and 11 sixes, shared a seventh wicket stand of 180 with professional Daniel van der Merwe who scored 76, with seven fours and three sixes. Waringstown finished on 294 for eight and Mayes then took two early wickets to reduce Muckamore to 30 for three. Their fourth wicket stand of 43, however, was the only one over 20 as they were bowled out for 152 in 36 overs.

Neil Rock smashed 16 sixes and 11 fours in a blistering 173 frim 64 balls as Instonians beat CSNI by 92 runs in their rearranged Premiership T20 game. 'Pebbles' brutal assault on the beleaguered CSNI attack took the Shaw's Bridge side to a mammoth 257 for 6, with Shane Dadswell chipping in with 21 in what was essentially a one-man show. That was always going to be too many to chase, and two wickets apiece for Andy White and James Magee reduced them to 69 for 6. Stuart Thompson's undefeated 78 from 46 balls (6 fours, 3 sixes) as he and Paddy Beverland (28) added 70 in seven overs to finish on 165 for 7. As a footnote, Rock's 173 is the third highest individual score for the club, and not surprisingly their highest T20 score. Andrew White's 177 in the Irish Cup still holds the record.

Captain Tyron Koen and new professional Mickey Copeland eased North Down to a seven wickets victory over Cliftonville Academy. In a match delayed until 1.50pm and reduced to 37 overs, the visitors were bowled out for 99 with Copeland taking 4-17 in 6.2 overs. The South African then showed off his all-round talent with an unbeaten 35 in an unbroken partnership of 48 with new signing Koen who won the match with a six.

Templepatrick’s first ever match in the Premier League ended in defeat at Moylena. Batting first, the new boys were restricted to 126 for seven in a match reduced by a rain interruption to 28 overs. Neil Brand, playing as a temporary professional, and opener Jack Smyth both scored 30. Muckamore’s target was upgraded to 152 but 47 not out from Mark Gleghorne saw them home with five balls to spare. New professional Randeera Ranasinge, batting at No 7, hit 26 off 18 balls.

Lisburn were the first Premier League winners of the new season but only after a thrilling finish in a low-scoring game at Wallace Park. CIYMS were bowled out for 103 with new signing Jake Egan’s 44 the only significant contribution as NCU chief executive Callum Atkinson had the best bowling figures of 3-33. Lisburn were 102 for five in reply but, remarkably, lost four wickets for one run before Ryan McBeth and last man Atkinson scrambled the winning single.