The preliminary phase of the season consists of only two matches. With this phase behind us what have we learnt. Certainly not enough to say how the season will pan out. But we can certainly make an initial assessment of the teams.
An action photo from the match between The Hills and North County from Joe Curtis
Clontarf aind The Hills have emerged to lead the pack with two wins out of two. Clontarf are the reigning champions and there is nothing to suggest from their first two matches that they are likely to relinquish the title easily. Indeed with a rejuvenated John Mooney as player / coach they have made an excellent acquisition that has greatly strengthened their side. He made a telling contribution in the opening game against Phoenix and again in Cork where he top scored with 59 and shared six wickets with David Delany to see off the home side and help secure maximum points. With Andrew Poynter and Conor Kelly still to come back into the side, Clontarf retain poll position.
Clontarf’s main challenge this season may well come from The Hills who have spent the off-season adding to their squad. Already this season they have had to dig deep to see off Pembroke and North County with two 200 plus run chases. Last Saturday it was Albert van der Merve [28*] and Naseer Shoukat [34*] who brought the game home following another solid opening partnership from Cormac McLoughlin-Gavin [73] and Mark Donegan [36]. With strength in depth in both bowling and batting they will be a difficult side to beat this year.
At the other end of the table YMCA and Cork have suffered two losses each. In the case of the former they have resulted from two very competitive matches, with YMCA falling just short in a run chase on both occasions. On Saturday they were only 18 runs shy of a large Phoenix score of 267 thanks to a maiden century from Harry Tector. if anything it is their bowling that looks a little light this season although Simi Singh, who went for a miserly 1/28 off 10 on Saturday, has the ability to check the run rate of any team in the league. YMCA will need all of his guile this season if they are not to end up facing large totals most weeks. For Cork it has been a poor start after their promotion from D2. Their batting in particular looks under powered and will need to improve if they are to be competitive. Even allowing an over reduced contest decided by DL against Clontarf, still no batsman reached 25 [a continuation of the form against Leinster in the previous round where the top score was 20].
The other four sides have won one / lost one. All have shown that they are capable of winning against any opposition. Pembroke [second last season] were in a strong position to beat The Hills in R1 until Hamid Shah’s undefeated century took the match away from them. Against Leinster they showed their mettle by first posting a good total [247] and then successfully defending it after Gareth Delany [72] and Joe Carroll [92] had put Leinster into a strong position. Josh Little [4/39] was outstanding with the ball [his best bowling figures to date in D1] but the young Pembroke attack all contributed.
There was little to tell about Leinster after R1 where they demolished Cork, their fellow travellers from D2. Against Pembroke they were up against a much stronger side and at the end of the day there really wasn’t much between the teams. Another four wickets for Jayden Brown who again led their attack, well supported this time by Joe Carroll [4/34] who had a good all-round day. On their day Leinster could be a match for any side but do they have the consistency for a tilt at the title.
So far this season North County have relied heavily on their captain Eddie Richardson. Another top score [47] at the weekend brings his runs this year to over 200. He has also been in the wickets on each occasion. There is plenty of talent in the NC ranks but perhaps this year a mid-table ending is the most likely outcome. But given the competitive nature of the league this year they could easily become part of a dog-fight to avoid one of the relegation spots. But before suggesting this a likely fate it should be remembered that they are the only team in D1 never to have been demoted to D2.
Perhaps the surprise package of the season has been Phoenix. Last season they were pretty tentative after a period in D2 and only just about survived in the top league. But they have started this season well - a loss to Clontarf where they had their chances of victory showed new strength. This was followed by a well earned win against YMCA, albeit by a close margin. It looks like Phoenix have found a good all-rounder in South African Ari Karvelas and he has improved an already strong attack. On Saturday Thomas [4/58] and Rory [3/43] Anders did the hard work to ensure victory. In the batting Phoenix are also looking more balanced than last season where they were very reliant for runs and a fast start from Reinhard Strydom. At the weekend Adam Chester made his highest senior score - 91 - and there were contributions down the card to allow them to post 267/8.
So plenty to think about from the preliminary phase of the league this year. Teams now have until 20th May to plan their campaigns when the competition will start again in earnest. Check updated official tables here.