The best and worst of ...... Leinster

The theme of this "Best and Worst....." series is how quickly the fortunes of clubs can turn around - both from good to bad and the other way around.

We have already seen how Clontarf went from a double winning team to the bottom in a few seasons, and today we look at another club with a very similar tale to tell.

In 1998 Leinster won the league and cup double, but that team quickly fell apart, and only three seasons later was in all sorts of trouble at the wrong end of Senior B/Division 2.

Leinster's low - rating 42.183 - ranking - 44th - date July 8 2001 - after 39 run loss to Pembroke

A fraction over three years since lifting the Leinster Senior Cup, five players on that cup winning team took to the field in an end of season match between Leinster and Pembroke. Unfortunately (for Leinster), three of them were playing for Pembroke - Johnny, Joe and Peter Byrne. The two other survivors were Mark Jones and Dylan Clancy at the top of the order, but the rest of this team was an odd mix of stars and players who are still playing in Leinster cricket fifteen years ater. This match (scorecard here, courtesy of Cricket Europe) was a mid season match, with the team losing the last three games. Although they then won the next four, they finished in fifth place in the second tier.

There is one stand out name in the eleven, with a certain Trent Johnston 2-28 and scoring 8. It was a long way from that day in Rathmines to Jamaica and Banglalore. Of the other eight players in the team. nearly all still play in the province - John Moffat for Greystones, Peter Johnston for Leinster (as well as being Ireland's assistant coach), Kenny McDonald for Terenure, Stu McDonnell for Pembroke, and Gavin Gilmore and Rob Kenealy still playing for Leinster. Only Kiwis Matt Brownie and Will Lennon couldn't last the pace.

For Pembroke, Owen Gilchrist top scored with 72, as Pembroke made 201-9 before Pete Johnston top scored with 42 in Leinster's response. As with all our other "low points" in this series, things could only get better!

Leinster's high - rating 112.618 - ranking - 4th - date Sept 12 2012 - after 16 run win over Railway Union

2011 didn't really give too many clues as to the success that Leinster would experience in 2012. The season had a pretty successful season, finishing second to Terenure in Division 2, being promoted back to Division 1 after one season. It seems as if Leinster were determined to stay up, as a slew of new players arrived, and those new players took Leinster to their first league title in fourteen seasons.

Zac Scott, Timmy Law, Joe Carroll, Joel Leacock and Stephen Moreton all arrived in Rathmines, enriching a squad containing players such as Anton Scholtz, Mark Jones, Hugh McDonnell, Craig Mallon, Pete Johnston, Richard Forrest and JP O'Dwyer. By the time the season ended, Leinster had been only beaten once (by Clontarf) and ran away with the league. The final game of that season is Leinster's high point, although despite winning the match, the team may not have been that representative of Leinster's season!

Leinster travelled to Park Avenue to take on Railway Union, and it was a low scoring affair with spinners dominating. Apart from the players already mentioned, three more took the field that day - Stephen Pullbrook (no longer playing cricket), Shair Chaudhary (now with Wicklow County), and Zeeshan Khuda Buksh (now with North County). Bajan Joel Leacock top scored with 44, as Leinster only made 127 all out, with Greg Lambert taking 3-11 for Railway.

In reply, Pat Collins top scored, and Railway were well placed at 63-2, before Scholtz (3-26) and Moreton (4-36) bowled Railway out for 111. It took Leinster to 4th place on the island, a position they haven't matched since.