Pembroke win U11 Cup in a nail biting final over

The Under 11 Cup final took place between Railway Union and Pembroke in Park Avenue over the weekend.  The final turned out to be a real classic with the advantage ebbing and flowing throughout the match.  This was truly one of the great games of under age cricket in Leinster in recent years and both teams were a credit to their respective Clubs.

Pembroke won the toss and elected to bat first.  The Pembroke opening batsmen got off to a solid start and worked their way into the game despite some very good seam bowling from the Railway openers.  Railway broke the partnership in the 11^th over with the wicket of Dan Murray (22) and Pembroke on 61 runs.  Shortly afterwards Ethan Clarke retired on 30 runs.  Bruce Whaley and Rian O’Neill came to the crease and added 17 and 16 runs respectively.  By this stage Robert O’Brien had been added to the bowling attack and he ended with figures of 3 for 23, whilst earlier Toby O’Connell produced bowling figures of 1 for 9 off three overs.    Pembroke posted 109 runs after their 20 overs.

Railway came out after the break and set out their intentions in the first few overs.  Robert O’Brien retired on 30 (including 4 fours) early in the 5^th over.  At this stage of the match, the Railway run rate was running at almost double that of Pembroke’s.  However, the Pembroke bowlers stuck to their task and managed to slow down the run rate considerably.  Johnny Woods (retired 30) and Peter Le Roux (29 not out) continued to keep the score board moving in the right direction.  The match continued to ebb and flow as the Railway innings moved into the latter stages.  As we entered the final over, Railway required 7 runs.  However, the Pembroke bowling at the death remained focused and accurate and Railway came up marginally short after the 20 overs.  Dan Murry finished with bowling figures of 2 for 18 off his 4 overs, whilst Eli Clarke bowled 2 overs for just 5 runs.

A special thanks to Railway Union for providing a great array of refreshments following the match which was enjoyed by both teams and supporting parents.