CL SENIOR BOYS FINAL: CUS VS THE HIGH SCHOOL (THURS 22.5.2025)

The CL Schools Senior Boys Final is always a fantastic day in the cricketing calendar and this year the showpiece event will take place between CUS, Leeson Street and The High School, Rathgar.

The High School will be looking to get their name on the trophy for the first time in 35 years whilst CUS will be keen to win back the Cup which has spent most of the last decade in the trophy cabinet on Leeson Street.

This competition started in 1905 and has been played every year since then with the exception of 2020 and 2021 due to Covid restrictions at that time. It is one of the oldest sporting competitions in Ireland and indeed anywhere in the cricketing world. The first winners in 1905 were The King’s Hospital who defeated Mountjoy School (subsequently integrated to form Mount Temple) by 2 wickets at Observatory Lane.

From a historical perspective, the dominant school in the history of the competition is Belvedere College with 36 wins followed by the former Masonic School (with 17 wins). In recent years, the competition has been dominated by CUS (under the leadership of Stephen Tonge) who won the competition from 2017 until St Joseph’s Rush won the title for the first time last year.

The Catholic University School (CUS) cricket team has reached the 2025 Senior Final, marking a standout season of skill, determination and teamwork. The team is led by captain Chris Butler from Clontarf, whose consistent all-round performances with both bat and ball have anchored the side. Ethan Marshall (also Clontarf) has lit up the crease with several top-class innings. 

Ethan has just returned from the Ireland U19s tour to Zimbabwe where he had a top score of 41 and took a wicket in each ODI. The squad boasts impressive depth, with key contributions from Harry Irving, William Cleere, Rory Honan, and Joe Morrissey, the 2nd year leading the charge opening the batting. The Final promises to be a fitting stage for this talented group.The High School (Rathgar) have won the Senior Boys Cup on seven previous occasions (last in 1990) and have qualified for this year's Final having overcome Ardgillan College (Balbriggan) in a keenly-contested semi-final. 

Ardgillan are to be applauded for reaching the penultimate stage of the competition and we wish them well for future years.

The High School team is led by Pembroke's Ethan Clarke, a promising cricketer who has already achieved underage cricket representative honours. The Vice-Captain is Ireland Under 19player, Robert O'Brien, who has represented Leinster & Ireland at all underage categories and is a key player in Railway Union's First Team in the CL Premier League. Rob finished the semi-final against Ardgillan unbeaten on 136 and was well supported by Ethan Clarke who made 45 not out as The High School booked their place in the Final. Gethin Kelleher will also be a key player for the Rathgar school, another who has performed well at representative level and now plays his club cricket at Railway Union alongside Rob O'Brien.

There is plenty of cricketing pedigree in The High School team with various contributions in the previous rounds including Eli Clarke with 4 wickets and James Dreyer 24* in the first game against Sandford Park. The team also includes brothers, Benjamin & Jake Dillon from Terenure.

On their pathway to the Final, The High School beat Sandford Park, Rush, Castleknock College and Ardgillan.

The two squads who will compete in the Final (40-Over Match) are as follows:

CL Senior Boys Secondary Schools Final Thursday 22nd May, 2.00pm, Anglesea Rd)

CUS (Leeson Street)
Chris Butler (Captain), Ethan Marshall, Joe Morrissey, Aryan Mulajker, Hugo Fitzgerald, Mitchell Grant, Rory Honan, Ruairi Murphy, James Arnett, William Cleere, Vihaan Puri, Alex Morley.

Coach/Manager:John Swanwick

The High School (Rathgar)
Ethan Clarke (Captain), Robert O'Brien (Vice-Captain), Gethin Kelleher, Eli Clarke, Benjamin Dillon, Jake Dillon, Ted Duke, Jamie Morton, Leon Russow, James Dreyer, Jack Wynne.

Coach: Jonathan Garth, Head of Cricket: Dewald Barnard

Our thanks to all participating schools, to Merrion CC as the host club for the Final and to Rob Delaney who has done a brilliant job again this year in co-ordinating the CL Secondary Schools Boys Programme for 2025.

LEINSTER SCHOOLBOYS REPRESENTATIVE FIXTURES
Just to note that there are also a couple of representative fixtures for Leinster Schools taking place over the coming weeks as follows:

Thursday 29th May: Leinster Schools vs MCC (Civil Service)

Monday 23rd & Tuesday 24th June: Leinster Schools vs Ulster Schools (Anglesea Road)