Sport

No favours as The Hills battle for survival

We have now reached the time of year which all cricketers and cricket followers dread - the end of the senior season

By KARL JOHNSTON
Fri Sept 08 2000 - 01:00

We have now reached the time of year which all cricketers and cricket followers dread - the end of the senior season. This time around, the members of either Pembroke or The Hills will have cause to be even gloomier than usual when the weekend is over, for one of them will be condemned to plying their trade next year in the lower echelons of the Leinster Senior League, sponsored by Whitney Moore and Keller, alongside Railway Union, already relegated to Section B.

So the two Section A matches on offer - Phoenix at home to The Hills tomorrow and Pembroke against The Hills on Sunday at Sydney Parade, will be simply vital for the two visiting teams. The outcome of their home match may be of academic interest for Phoenix, safely poised as they are in mid-table, but all the same it is unlikely in the extreme that Jeremy Bray and company will be prepared to do any favours for skipper Matt Dwyer and the men from The Hills.

Gary Black, away on holiday, will be missing from the Phoenix ranks, and his place will be taken by David Ford. The Hills have named a squad of 13, since the findings of tonight's disciplinary meeting may make a few players ineligible, thus making victory over Phoenix all the more difficult to attain.

So Sunday's match will be a repeat of last year's Conqueror Senior Cup final, when Pembroke lifted the trophy at Cabra. Indeed, it may be argued that this time a great deal more is at stake, as Pembroke are running the risk of relegation for the first time ever.

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It's somewhat ironic for The Hills that their Fingal neighbours North County, this year's defeated Senior Cup finalists, have deservedly won promotion to Section A next season, along with CYM. Someone has to lose out, but one way or the other, this weekend's matches will bring the senior season in Leinster to an interesting and exciting close, weather permitting, as usual.

Meanwhile, PBC Cork - the renowned "Pres" - continues to be a major supplier of players to the representative ranks. Ross Durity, who played for Munster Reds in last Sunday's defeat of Malahide, is the latest former "Pres" boy to be chosen at the higher level, while his former schoolmate Niall Howell was also selected, but had to cry off because of injury.

Other former "Pres" pupils in last Sunday's victorious team were Stephen Hickey, Mark Barriscale, Ken Sorensen and Robert Duggan. Sorensen and Duggan each scored 43, opening bat Hickey had a fine innings of 39 runs, while Barriscale took 2 for 54 off 12 overs.